Wii U will be in stores this November, claim retailers

Nintendo is targeting a November 18, 2012, North American launch date for the Wii U. At least, this is the latest rumor stemming from the leak of two separate pieces of retailer correspondence; both of which indicate Nintendo's next console will land at least one month before the holiday season.

Wii U's alleged launch date was first posted to WiiUDaily. The site claimed it received an email from Japanese retailer Media Land confirming the Wii U will arrive in North America on Sunday, November 18, 2012, followed by a launch in Japan one week later.

Nintendo historians will recall the company launched its GameCube in North America on November 18, 2001, and released the Wii five years later on November 19, 2006. A similar date for the Wii U would match Nintendo's M.O., but that could also be the same logic driving these latest rumors.

Catch up on the latest Wii U gossip in this week's report, Wii U weaker than PS3 and Xbox 360, will be the ultimate MMO console [Rumor].

Matt Bradford wrote news and features here at GamesRadar+ until 2016. Since then he's gone on to work with the Guinness World Records, acting as writer and researcher for the annual Gamer's Edition series of books, and has worked as an editor, technical writer, and voice actor. Matt is now a freelance journalist and editor, generating copy across a multitude of industries.