Nintendo 3DS owners have a good reason to not purchase the 3DS version of Scribblenauts Unlimited, as the handheld version doesn’t include the game’s cameo Nintendo characters. But why?

5th Cell’s Jeremiah Slaczka tells IGN that there’s no executive meddling at work here—just a case of bad timing:

“The 3DS version was already finished and moving into manufacturing (cartridges take longer to produce) by the time the deal was signed with WB & Nintendo.” After the deal was signed, Slaczka adds that “only the Wii U and PC [versions] remained and obviously Nintendo would only want their IP on their platform.”

Slaczka went on to confirm that Mario and Zelda were the only franchises getting the guest-starring treatment, although it’s not unreasonably to think that some free DLC could solve this timing issue.

Scribblenauts Unlimited won’t let you modify the characters either, so no amount of adjectives will let you do anything naughty with Princesses Peach and Zelda. Nintendo keeps that on lockdown.

Scribblenauts Unlimited is due for Wii U on its November 18th launch, and figures to be one of 5th Cell’s best-selling console titles yet. 5th Cell has been a big proponent of the Wii U’s tech, citing it as a powerhorse compared to the PS3 and Xbox 360.

Source: IGN