Super Smash Bros Wii U 3DS Ice Climbers

Nintendo fans are eagerly anticipating the arrival of Super Smash Bros. for 3DS, while Japanese gamers have been enjoying the game for nearly a week. The title has been a hot commodity in the land of the rising sun, selling over one million copies in just two days; as a result of the game's earlier release, the entire list of playable characters was revealed. Some fans may be disappointed that they were unable to discover the secrets of the title alongside Japanese players, but even more are simply disappointed with the final roster.

One of the biggest cuts that was made in the transition from Super Smash Bros. Brawl to the 3DS iteration is the removal of the fan-favorite duo, the Ice Climbers. Knowing that many fans would be baffled by the pair's removal, franchise creator Masahiro Sakurai addressed the tag team's absence from the new games.

Taking to his bi-weekly column in Famitsu, Sakurai confirmed that he was forced to cut the adorable pairing of Popo and Nana because of the technical limitations of the Nintendo 3DS hardware. Even more tragically for fans of the characters is that the team behind Super Smash Bros. had the fighters up and running on the Wii U version of the game, but seemingly dropped them with the intent of having the same roster across both platforms.

Despite many players wishing for the arctic-themed duo's return, Sakurai didn't make incorporating the Ice Climbers into the game a priority since the series in which they originate is more or less dead in the water – with no plans, reboots or announcements in sight.

Super Smash Bros Wii U 3DS Ice Climbers Screenshots

Admittedly, it's sad to see the parka-clad combatants go, but there's always a chance they could be brought back in future DLC – provided Nintendo plans on making it for the highly anticipated fighter. Since working data of the duo exists on the Wii U version, they'd make a great platform exclusive offering for fans. Couple that with the upgraded CPU offered in the New 3DS, and it looks as if the Ice Climbers still have a fighting chance to join the fight at some point down the line.

Sakurai later went into detail during the article about why the Wii U and 3DS versions of Super Smash Bros. will be releasing apart rather than in unison, reconfirming previous statements that the titles each needed separate time for debugging. According to the famed dev, it was possible that both versions could have been pushed back into 2015 if they wanted to release them simultaneously.

Taking that into consideration, Nintendo will hopefully still be able to get the Wii U version out in time for the 2014 Holiday season. There's no question that it has a lot riding on the title's release.

How do you feel about the removal of the Ice Climbers from the latest Super Smash Bros. games? Are you hoping to see them added post-release? Get at us in the comments!

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Super Smash Bros. on the 3DS will hit retailers on October 3, 2014, while the Wii U version is pencilled in for Holiday 2014.

Follow Riley on Twitter @TheRileyLittle for more news on Super Smash Bros., as well as everything else in gaming.

Source: Esuteru (via Nintendo Everything)