Nintendo to give away Wii U games at midnight launch event

Here's a good reason to pick up a Wii U the minute it goes on sale, in the early hours of Friday 30 November. Nintendo will be giving away two free games at the launch in London as the clock strikes midnight, Eurogamer reports.

You'll need to get yourself down to the flagship HMV store in Oxford Street. But hurry, as you'll have to be in the first 100 people to buy a new console to nab New Super Mario Bros U and one other game gratis. Not too shabby, I think you'll agree.

But even if you miss out on a spot in the first 100, the next 100 will get £5 off Wii U hardware or software during the event. And the next 500 will all get goody bags. So it could be worth heading down regardless. There'll be plenty of the usual launch-day shenanigans happening too, such as the chance to play ZombiU, Nintendo Land and New Super Mario Bros U. You can take part in games, have your picture taken with zombies, and meet the obligatory man dressed as Mario. Poor guy.

"We're thrilled to be hosting the Official Midnight Launch Event for Wii U at our Oxford Street flagship," HMV's games boss Ewan Pinder said. "[It's] fast becoming the natural home of all major games launches in the UK."

The Wii U has had a bit of a bumpy start in the US, where it launched last week. Nintendo announced the console was missing its TVii streaming service, disappointing anyone wanting to access online telly shows on their brand new Wii U. The cheaper version of the console also only has 3GB of storage space, so those streaming options are a necessity if you want more than a handful of movies and shows at your beck and call.

Will you be queueing up for the midnight launch of the Wii U? Let me know what you make of it in the comments below, or on our Facebook page.