Hey, do you remember how Europe's trade-off for having to wait a possible six months for Super Smash Bros. Brawl was the fact that we'd be getting Mario Kart Wii early? Well, think again, because despite the fact that Brawl is way more anticipated than Mario Kart (as confirmed by Reggie himself), it's been revealed that Europe only gets the game sixteen days ahead of America. This of course means that in just over two weeks, America will have both games, and the PAL territories will still be stuck waiting for a still unannounced Brawl release.

I'd like to know exactly what Nintendo's problem is, but then again, I guess it's not worth begrudging my American friends a game with "let's race!" speech bubbles in place of actual online voice chat and a stupid plastic wheel in place of something interesting. Oh wait, sorry, I forgot that the prevailing attitude is to be grateful every time Nintendo so much as looks in your general direction.

Right, sorry, just had to have a little moment there. It's not that I'm bitter or anything over the way Nintendo likes to take a huge steaming dump over its European market every other week. It's not that I'm bloody sick of it on principle alone. What's that thing writers have? Oh yeah, professional integrity, I have a job to do -- Mario Kart Wii is released in America on April 27 and the full press release is after the jump, we are all super excited.

There. Job done.

Nintendo Speeds Into Spring With Mario Kart Wii

         Hotly Anticipated Racing Game Includes Innovative Wii Wheel

REDMOND, Wash., March 12 /PRNewswire/ -- This year, the typical signs of
spring will be accompanied by the sweet sound of revving engines and the sight
of lightning-fast shells whizzing around every corner. Mario Kart(R) Wii is
zooming toward its launch in the United States on April 27. The game comes
with the intuitive Wii Wheel(TM), which makes it easy for novices to compete
against veterans, so no one is left in the dust. And with a broadband hookup
to Nintendo(R) Wi-Fi Connection, players can compete with up to 11 other
drivers from around the world for racing dominance.

 "Mario Kart Wii transforms one of our most popular franchises into a race
that every member of the family can join," said Cammie Dunaway, Nintendo of
America's executive vice president of Sales & Marketing. "Driving with the Wii
Wheel could not be more natural, and this is one place where speeding is
encouraged."

Mario Kart Wii will include 16 new courses and 16 classic courses from
previous Mario Kart games. For the first time ever, players have the option of
racing with either karts or motorbikes. Players can also hit the road as their
personalized Mii(TM) caricatures in addition to the handful of classic
Nintendo characters found in the game. True to the series, the game features
tons of racing, plenty of power-ups and oodles of objects for players to use
to slow down other drivers. And 10 battle arenas will keep players busy
between trips around the circuit.

The easy-to-use Wii Wheel will also be sold as a separate accessory,
giving every driver in the household a chance to get behind his or her own
wheel. And if veteran Mario Kart fans are afraid of getting smoked by rookie
drivers using the Wii Wheel, they can rest assured that Nintendo has them
covered. Mario Kart Wii supports four different control options: Wii
Remote(TM) with or without the Wii Wheel, Wii Remote and Nunchuk(TM)
controller combo, Classic Controller and even the Nintendo GameCube(TM)
controller. So there's bound to be a configuration that fits everyone's style.

Mario Kart Wii launches with a new channel added to the Wii Menu to
enhance game play: The Mario Kart Wii Channel. This new channel builds on the
huge online community of Wii owners and lets players compete in tournaments,
check worldwide rankings, see when their friends are playing and download
ghost data.

Remember that Wii features parental controls that let adults manage the
content their children can access. For more information about this and other
Wii features, visit Wii.com. For more information about Mario Kart Wii, visit
MarioKart.com.