Smash Bros Wii U Update Offers 15 New Stages for 8-Player Mode

A new update to Super Smash Bros for Wii U has expanded the game’s 8-person multiplayer mode with 15 new stages to play on.

These levels, which are enlarged and tweaked versions of the standard levels, have been balanced to accommodate for the heightened intensity of eight combatants playing at the same time. For example, hazards such as Shy Guys racing past in the Mario Kart level are not present in the 8-player version.

Smash Bros Wii U's 1.0.2 update also delivers a few minor gameplay balance and tweaks, none of which were outlined by Nintendo, suggesting that they are fairly subtle changes.

The 15 new levels are split between nine in their "Normal" form and six "Omega" stages.

Standard

• Mario Circuit (Brawl)
• Pyrosphere
• Norfair
• Luigi's Mansion
• Lylat Cruise
• Pokémon Stadium 2
• Town and City
• Smashville
• Wii Fit Studio

Omega

• Mario Galaxy
• Mario Circuit (Brawl)
• The Great Cave Offensive
• Lylat Cruise
• Pokémon Stadium 2
• Animal Crossing: Town and City

Meanwhile, the game’s director Masahiro Sakurai has once again hinted that the combined project of Smash Bros for Wii U and Nintendo 3DS has been such an exertion that he is unsure if he'll make another.

In his bi-weekly Famitsu column (translated by Kotaku staff), Sakurai was quoted as saying:"It was very tough this time around... I doubt I'll be able to go on making games if it continues like this. But, I consider myself lucky that so many people seem to enjoy [Smash Bros.]"

These comments closely follow an interview published in December where Sakurai again stated that he was unsure about developing the next Smash Bros.

Super Smash Bros for Wii U has sold more than 3.4 million units since its release, meaning that about a third of all Wii U owners have purchased the title.

GameSpot’s Super Smash Bros for Wii U review was glowing, summarizing: "With the Wii U release, Smash Bros. has fully realized its goals. There's something here for nearly everyone--from young to old, from novice to expert--presented almost without compromise. Super Smash Bros. Wii U invites everyone to join in its undiluted, joyous celebration of the broad community that Nintendo has built over the past forty years."