Takashi Tezuka

More than ever, publishers and console makers love to stress how incredibly detailed their games are, with cutting-edge graphics that are driving video game budgets to almost unsustainable levels. Almost every big publisher out there is keen to show off just how realistic and perfect their games look, but one of very few to buck that trend is Nintendo, which regularly pumps out brilliant games despite the limitations of the Switch's hardware.

Nintendo has announced new The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom merchandise to coincide with the game’s first anniversary this week.

A new range of officially licensed t-shirts based on The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom is coming to Uniqlo soon.

It's not often we get to hear a senior developer of a Super Mario Bros. game philosophise about game design. At gamescom last year, Takashi Tezuka, executive officer at Nintendo and producer on Super Mario Bros. Wonder, and Shiro Mouri, the game's director, gave us a glimpse, as they spoke with Eurogamer about their intentions for Super Mario Bros. Wonder.

During a GDC talk yesterday, Nintendo looked back at the creative process for Super Mario Bros Wonder, particularly how the large development team dealt with incorporating everyone's input when creating the game's 'Wonder effects'.

Last year, Nintendo brought Mario back to his 2D roots with a surprise new game, Super Mario Bros. Wonder. The critically acclaimed platformer was an instant crowd-pleaser thanks in no small part to its namesake feature, Wonder Effects. These power-ups completely transformed Mario’s world, letting its developers experiment with wacky ideas from wiggling pipes to singing Piranha Plants.

could have had far more silly and bizarre elements, according to the game's creators. The title already saw the introduction of new power-ups that could transform the player into an elephant — something that Mario's creator, Shigeru Miyamoto reportedly wasn't a fan of in the early design stages, saying it didn't look like a Mario character -, provide them with a drill to burrow into the ground or up into the ceiling, or a bubble-spewing flower to capture enemies.

The amount of time that has elapsed since The Legend of Zelda: The Wind Waker HD’s release is now equal to the length of time between the original game’s release for GameCube and Wind Waker HD’s release for Wii U.

Nintendo‘s next console will reportedly feature a custom Nvidia chip when it launches later this year.

Nintendo has announced that it will be making Zelda and Splatoon concerts available on its YouTube channel next month.

A Lego set based on The Great Deku Tree from The Legend of Zelda could be released later this year.

Super Mario Bros. Wonder sold 4.3 million units within two weeks of launch, according to Nintendo.

Nintendo has revealed the latest batch of games joining Nintendo Switch Online, and one game stands out in particular as a surprising, but welcome, addition.

The original Super Mario Bros. on NES was made by a team of five people, and it seems every single one of them is still at Nintendo and was credited on Super Mario Bros. Wonder.

Super Mario Bros. Wonder is one the most unusual and surreal spins on a 2D Mario game that Nintendo has released in a long time, and so far, fans have embraced the new style and liveliness. One of the game's most interesting stylistic upgrades is expanded voice-over work from characters, and apparently, this was once planned to be much more ambitious. In a recent Ask the Developer blog post coinciding with the launch of Super Mario Bros. Wonder, game producer Takashi Tezuka and designer Koichi Hayashida spoke about many of the ideas that were worked on yet ended up being tossed into the development trash bin, including a live commentary feature that would praise - or judge - your every move.  According to game director Shiro Mori, Takashi pitched the idea of having live commentary on the game - just one of the ideas that the developers received via 2,000+ sticky notes. The concept went pretty far into the development, with a full six months of work done. It was used in internal play-tests and even included tsundere-style commentary, a personality that hides genuine tenderness behind a cold exterior and is especially popular in Japanese media .

Today — Friday, Oct. 20 — two wildly clashing and yet somehow complementary works from creators at the top of their game, both sitting right at the intersection of art and commerce, arrive at the same time. It’s Barbenheimer all over again, but this time it’s just for me. Today, we are blessed with both Nintendo’s Super Mario Bros. Wonder and Martin Scorsese’s Killers of the Flower Moon.

Super Mario Bros. Wonder is now available to play on the Nintendo Switch.

It turns out that Super Mario Bros. Wonder had a “live commentary” feature during its development that would have matched players’ actions as they progressed through the 2D platformer’s levels, with the option to switch the generic default voice to “tsundere commentary”. However, it didn't make the final cut.

Do you ever wonder what it would be like if someone commented on every decision you made in Mario? Well, according to a recent Super Mario Bros. Wonder developer interview, the idea of live commentary was tested for the game.

Like other 2D Mario games, the upcoming Super Mario Bros. Wonder features online multiplayer. But it also introduces a new feature to the series that would allow solo players to feel like they were interacting with others, which the team dubbed "casual connection." 

The Super Mario franchise’s line of 2D mainline platformers hasn’t quite been on the same level as its flagship 3D entries over the last couple of decades, but with the New Super Mario Bros. series firmly in our rearview mirror and the upcoming Super Mario Bros. Wonder making lofty promises, there’s plenty of excitement surrounding the 2D Mario line’s future once again.

Nintendo's soon-to-be-released Super Mario Bros. Wonder is looking to be a wild step forward for the traditional style of 2D Mario games. Along with its bold, new visual style, it also features some intriguing changes to the conventional style of 2D Mario platforming action. While Super Mario Bros.

Super Mario Bros. Wonder's developers have confirmed that the game wasn't inspired by and has nothing to do with Illumination's Super Mario Bros. Movie.

By Andrew Webster, an entertainment editor covering streaming, virtual worlds, and every single Pokémon video game. Andrew joined The Verge in 2012, writing over 4,000 stories.

Super Mario Bros. Wonder almost had running 'live' commentary, like a sports game.

Nintendo has confirmed that Super Mario Bros. Wonder was not inspired by the Super Mario Bros. Movie.

Later this week, Super Mario Bros. Wonder will release for the Nintendo Switch. It's notably the first 2D entry in the series since 2012's New Super Mario Bros. U, and the key staff on Wonder saw this new game as an opportunity to revitalize the 2D subsection of the franchise. 

Nintendo has always been fully aware of the importance and popularity of the 2D line of Mario platformers, even as the 3D games have continued to enjoy increasing success, and after New Super Mario Bros. U on the Wii U back in 2012, the Japanese company had clearly decided that whatever came next for the 2D Mario series would have to be a major shake-up, regardless of how long its development process could end up being.

The Super Mario property has never wanted for popularity over the years, but even so, it’s never been as popular as it is right now, in the aftermath of the wildly successful The Super Mario Bros. Movie, which released earlier this year. Nintendo is, of course, striking while the iron is hot with the upcoming launch of Super Mario Bros. Wonder, the first new, mainline 2D Mario title in over a decade- but how much of the game’s development was impacted by the movie, especially given the fact that it’s introducing a new look and style for the 2D Mario series?

You might not realize it, but while Mario has had multiple games on the Nintendo Switch and its predecessor in the Wii U, not all of them have been “new games.” In the 2D platforming space, the ones you’ve seen in recent years have been ports, not original titles. With Super Mario Bros Wonder, that 11-year streak will end in the best way. The game is not only completely original but features things that the other titles haven’t come close to touching regarding gameplay twists and new ways for the players to enjoy the levels. Some are already calling it a Game of the Year contender before its release!

When it comes to big game releases, many people want to know not just what led to the game’s success but what elements were inspired by other games or media. After all, there are no new ideas out there, but you can get clever with showcasing things so they’re not directly tied to what came before. In the case of Super Mario Bros Wonder, they had many things to be inspired by, including a younger development team pointing out what to do so that the game could shine. However, they also had the recent animated adaptation of Mario and crew to showcase how things should move.

Super Mario Bros. Wonder is right around the corner, and with it comes a brand new art style for Mario and friends, bringing an end to the New Super Mario Bros. style that many fans had been sick and tired off for quite a while. It's proven a popular change, but despite its popularity, it seems as though it's not a guarantee that we'll see the style used again when Nintendo comes to developing the next 2D Mario title.

Ahead of the launch of Super Mario Bros. Wonder, the 2D side-scrolling platformer’s producer, Takashi Tezuka, has revealed that there’s no strict plan for future Mario games to follow the same game style as this month’s upcoming release. In fact, Nintendo currently isn’t sure what the style for the mustachioed plumber’s next installments will be at all.

Nintendo’s newest Mario title, Super Mario Bros. Wonder, is out later this month. It’s noteworthy as the first side-scrolling platformer in the franchise since New Super Mario Bros. U launched in 2012. The art style has some similarities but is a definite step up from the Wii U franchise.

Super Mario Bros. Wonder is the start of a “new phase” for the plumber’s side-scrolling adventures, according to Nintendo staff.

It was clear from the announcement trailer that Super Mario Bros Wonder would be unlike any title with Mario that we had seen before. That in and of itself was a bold thing to say because we’ve seen LOTS of Mario games over the years. However, with how the game looked and played in the trailer, Nintendo was clearly cooking up something special. Over the last several months, we’ve seen the wacky antics of the game via the Wonder Flower and the new power-ups and enemies, and Nintendo has outright admitted that this game is a “new phase” for the series.

Nintendo Switch demo kiosks in the US now feature a demo for Super Mario Bros. Wonder.

Super Mario Bros. Wonder's producer, Takashi Tezuka, has commented on Sonic Superstars launching so close to the latest Mario game, calling it an "interesting coincidence".

Video game history is full of rivalries that continue to this day. Heck, just look at the FTC case with Sony and Microsoft and listen to how they talked about each other and Nintendo. It got brutal. But easily, one of the earliest video game rivalries that sparked generations of debate was “Mario vs. Sonic.” The two icons of the beloved video game publishers clashed in many ways over the years, and now, they appear to be clashing again. Why? Because Super Mario Bros Wonder is set to arrive on the 20th, and Sonic Superstars will arrive just three days before then on the 17th. Coincidence? Some people think so.

Super Mario Bros. Wonder director Shiro Mouri has credited the game’s younger development team for many of its innovations.

Super Mario Bros. Wonder producer Takashi Tezuka has called the game’s proximity to Sega’s own side-scrolling revival, Sonic Superstars, “an interesting coincidence”.

Capcom’s Monster Hunter Rise expansion, Sunbreak, took the top prize at the Japan Game Awards held on Thursday.

Director Shiro Mouri and producer Takashi Tezuka talk about the new and unusual approach to developing its upcoming Super Mario Bros. title, and how it has paved the way for a different kind of entry in the franchise.

Nintendo and Niantic have released a simple browser-based AR game called Pikmin Finder.

A constant struggle in the video game industry is the ability and desire to evolve a franchise beyond what it has been in the past and into new and exciting territory. While not every franchise necessarily needs grand scale changes, most are susceptible to repetition and getting bogged down by repeating the same gameplay. Certain recent sports titles have that issue. In the case of the Mario games, it can be said that things are going on behind the scenes to ensure the games don’t grow stale, something that series creator Shigeru Miyamoto will be most pleased about.

Many people have Super Mario Bros Wonder on their minds, given that the title just had a significant Nintendo Direct that broke down the various elements of gameplay, plot, and the new kingdom players will be in. As if on cue, the floodgates opened after that, and the team talked about everything to do with the game, including the parts of its development process. For example, the team wasn’t rushed to develop something special early on, as the producer wanted them to make something special. But a question about what Mario’s creator had to say about the game has popped up.

The Pikmin franchise is easily one of the more “curious” entries in the Nintendo library. The series was brought to life thanks partly to legend Shigeru Miyamoto and had two entries on the Nintendo Gamecube. It was so popular in certain circles that its main character, Captain Olimar, was put into Super Smash Bros. It eventually got a third game on the Wii U. Heck, it even got a smaller game on the Nintendo 3DS! But despite that, the franchise has never been what you would call a “blockbuster success.” That is, not until the fourth game came out on the Switch.

Super Mario Bros. Wonder’s director, who is not the semi-retired  Shigeru Miyamoto, and is in fact Nintendo veteran Shiro Mouri, has shed light on what his team were thinking when they came up with the out-of-the-box ideas for this game.

It was all the way back in 2015 that Nintendo’s Shigeru Miyamoto revealed that Pikmin 4 was not only in development, but close to completion, but it wasn’t until a couple of months ago that the game actually came out. Of course, Pikmin 4 turned out to be well worth in the end, and has clearly had a successful start where both critical reception and sales are concerned- but is the wait to the next mainline game in the series going to be similarly long?

Nintendo outlined Super Mario Bros. Wonder in a recent Direct, with the various courses, mechanics and new features showcased in glorious detail. However, it’s interesting to note that when the platformer was in the prototyping stage, it didn’t have a due date or deadline.

The director of Super Mario Bros Wonder says Nintendo has to try harder to surprise players these days.

«People have their own image of what online play might be. Maybe it's a little difficult, or maybe it's a little scary.»