Minecraft Wii U Edition launching next week

It’s about damn time…. Mojang and Nintendo have announced that the Wii U will finally be getting Minecraft.

Minecraft Wii U Edition will be hitting the eShop on December 17th for $29.99 and will include a nice amount of add-ons, including some popular texture and skin packs. Additional content will also be available for purchase of course.

Other than off-TV with on the GamePad, it doesn’t sound like the Wii U version has any other unique features, but we doubt Wii U gamers will care much.

Read on for the announcement and stop by the official game page for other details.

Mojang?s video game phenomenon Minecraft launches worldwide on Nintendo?s Wii U home console on Dec. 17. Minecraft: Wii U Edition comes with multiple add-on content packs, and will be available in the Nintendo eShop on Wii U in North America for $29.99. Nintendo and Mojang are also collaborating on new content for Nintendo fans to be released at a future date. More details about this content will be released at a later time.

The game will feature off-TV play, so players can keep their games going on the screen of the Wii U GamePad controller if another family member wants to watch something else on TV. The game also comes with some of the most popular current Minecraft add-on content packs:

• Battle & Beasts Skin Pack
• Battle & Beasts 2 Skin Pack
• Natural Texture Pack
• City Texture Pack
• Fantasy Texture Pack
• Festive Mash-up Pack

?With so many included add-on content packs, Minecraft: Wii U Edition brings an exciting collection of Minecraft content and experiences to Nintendo fans,? said Reggie Fils-Aime, Nintendo of America?s President and COO. ?Wii U players will have plenty of reasons to keep coming back to this iconic gaming experience.?

In addition to the content that comes with the game, players will also be able to expand their experience with 16 additional add-on packs available for purchase within the Nintendo eShop at launch:

1. Festive Skin Pack
2. The Simpsons Skin Pack
3. Doctor Who Skins Volume 1
4. Doctor Who Skins Volume 2
5. Star Wars Classic Skin Pack
6. Star Wars Rebels Skin Pack
7. Star Wars Prequel Skin Pack
8. Mass Effect Mash-up Pack
9. Skyrim Mash-up Pack
10. Plastic Texture Pack
11. Candy Texture Pack
12. Cartoon Texture Pack
13. Steampunk Texture Pack
14. Pattern Texture Pack
15. Greek Mythology Mash-up Pack
16. Halloween 2015 Mash-up Pack

More add-on packs will also be available for the game in the future.