Nintendo and its fans are celebrating today, as it marks no less than 134 years since its founding on September 23, 1889 in Kyoto, Japan.
Lately the company has had us on a carousel of emotions with all its new products. Its next financial results meeting is already scheduled and the winds of an eventual Nintendo Switch 2 are getting stronger. But while we wait we have a lot of content to enjoy, from the successful Super Mario Bros. movie to its next and long-awaited video game, Super Mario Wonder.
But with each passing year, we realize that Nintendo is more than just a video game company. It is a brand that unites millions of players with its magical IPs and seemingly infinite creativity.
Nintendo turns 134 today
Without a doubt, the history of Nintendo has not been easy, originally founded by Fusajiro Yamauchi as a Japanese card manufacturing company.
Things got interesting in ’63, when it changed its name to Nintendo Co., Ltd and entered the video game market. Their first consoles arrived in ’77 with an acceptable reception. However, everything changed after the arrival of Donkey Kong, Shigeru Miyamoto’s first global hit in the 80s.
This was Mario’s first appearance, and it has to be said that Nintendo really needed that win. He was in big financial trouble and it wouldn’t be the last time, but the talent of his employees has always gotten them through.
Today Nintendo has some of the most important IPs in the video game industry, including Mario, Super Smash Bros., Zelda, Pokémon, Metroid, Animal Crossing, among others. It has also made important contributions in hardware such as its line of Game Boy, Nintendo DS, Wii, and most recently Nintendo Switch.
Now we are waiting for what the company has in mind for Nintendo Switch 2, a console that could be much more powerful. Regardless of your hardware, we know that companies like Epic Games, creator of Unreal Engine, want to do what they can to support the new system.
But there is not even a rush for a successor. To this day Nintendo Switch continues to be a bestseller with exceptional games. Super Mario Wonder is proof that it still has a lot of potential.
The company is also diversifying into other fields such as mobile gaming, where it surprised with its massive viral game Pokémon GO. More recently he also entered the cinema with the Super Mario Bros. film, which was a historic success in both critics and viewers. Thanks to that we know that many other films are on the way.
And this is just part of what the future holds for us with Nintendo at our side. We can only congratulate Nintendo for another year of world domination, and ask them to never stop being that spark of magic in video games.
Happy 134 years, Nintendo!
