Nintendo recently published its annual report for the fiscal year ending March, 2020, which includes a variety of details about the publisher’s plans for the future. On top of proving that its directors are paid significantly less than US execs, the report appears to confirm that Nintendo is interested in pursuing non-video games projects with its IP.
A section in the report describes the instability of the contemporary video games industry, before briefly discussing the possibility of delivering Nintendo experiences to a wider audience. “The Company group is seeking to deliver its entertainment to a wider range of consumers than ever before by recognizing Nintendo IP (including characters and worlds from its games) as its strength, in addition to developing integrated hardware-software products,” reads the report. “As a company that creates entertainment to bring smiles to people’s faces, Nintendo strives to create new forms of entertainment while maintaining a robust business structure,” reads a section further down. “To expand our business, our highest emphasis is placed on providing users around the world with exciting forms of entertainment that they have never experienced before.” The “new entertainment” mentioned above is nothing new - from the Wii’s motion controllers to the Switch’s handheld/home console hybridity, the company has always been known for its innovation in the games sphere. However, collecting distinct sections from the report into one whole gives us reason to believe that Nintendo is exploring other avenues - something that is backed up by the company’s recent partnership with LEGO and the ongoing development of Super Nintendo World. “We will continue to flexibly transform ourselves by adapting to changing times while constantly valuing the spirit of originality based on the belief that ’the true value of entertainment lies in its uniqueness’ - and will endeavor to continue providing products and services that people will be positively surprised and delighted by,” reads the report. The most concrete evidence comes from the company’s statement to “deliver it entertainment to a wider range of consumers … by recognizing Nintendo IP as its strength,” implying the transferability of properties such as Zelda, Pokemon, and Mario to other mediums. While it remains unclear what the company has up its sleeve, it appears that Nintendo video game characters could start appearing in more and more non-video games projects.
