The video game developer and publisher
Nintendo has engaged in a variety of marketing campaigns, ranging from early efforts to appeal to teenagers with "Play It Loud!" to the more open-ended "Who Are You?" campaign. Nintendo also sometimes markets
its various consoles and
games with lavish promotions.
Facilities
Originally, all marketing operations for Nintendo of America were based out of the company's
Redmond, Washington headquarters. It opted not to expand that headquarters, although it owned 550,000 square feet of property for potential expansion.
In May 2007, the company announced plans to move its sales, marketing, and advertising divisions to either
San Francisco
San Francisco (; Spanish for " Saint Francis"), officially the City and County of San Francisco, is the commercial, financial, and cultural center of Northern California. The city proper is the fourth most populous in California and 17th ...
or
New York City
New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the most densely populated major city in the Un ...
.
The company established its new office in
Redwood City, California
Redwood City is a city on the San Francisco Peninsula in Northern California's Bay Area, approximately south of San Francisco, and northwest of San Jose. Redwood City's history spans its earliest inhabitation by the Ohlone people to being a ...
.
Personnel
Reginald "Reggie" Fils-Aimé joined Nintendo in December 2003 as the Executive Vice President of Sales and Marketing. He was responsible for all sales and
marketing
Marketing is the process of exploring, creating, and delivering value to meet the needs of a target market in terms of goods and services; potentially including selection of a target audience; selection of certain attributes or themes to emph ...
activities for Nintendo in the
United States
The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territori ...
,
Canada
Canada is a country in North America. Its ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, covering over , making it the world's second-largest country by tot ...
, and
Latin America
Latin America or
* french: Amérique Latine, link=no
* ht, Amerik Latin, link=no
* pt, América Latina, link=no, name=a, sometimes referred to as LatAm is a large cultural region in the Americas where Romance languages — languages derived f ...
. Fils-Aimé shot to fame in May 2004 with the opening line of Nintendo's
E3 press conference: "My name is Reggie. I'm about kickin' ass, I'm about takin' names, and ''we're'' about makin' games." His theatrical antics, flying in the face of Nintendo's long-standing "kiddie" image, gained a cult following soon after, with many gamers calling him the "Regginator".
Following the conference, many images of him spread across the Web. Fils-Aimé is considered to be responsible for revamping Nintendo's public relations in North America, leading many fans and members of the press to dub his arrival the "Reggielution" (after "Revolution", the
code name for the
Wii). He speaks highly of the "blue oceans" strategy, which attempts to bring in people who are not traditionally gamers. His expertise is with
youth marketing
"Youth Marketing" is a term used in the marketing and advertising industry to describe activities to communicate with young people, typically in the age range of 11 to 35. More specifically, there is teen marketing, targeting people age 11 to 1 ...
,
although he made an effort to reach out to the elderly using games like ''
Brain Age: Train Your Brain in Minutes a Day!'' and ''
Nintendogs
is a real-time pet simulation video game developed and published by Nintendo for the Nintendo DS handheld video game console. It was released in Japan, and was later released in: North America, Australia, New Zealand, Europe and other regions. ...
''.
In October 2007, Fils-Aimé was promoted to president and
chief operating officer
A chief operating officer or chief operations officer, also called a COO, is one of the highest-ranking executive positions in an organization, composing part of the " C-suite". The COO is usually the second-in-command at the firm, especially if ...
of NoA. On February 21, 2019, Fils-Aimé publicly announced that he is now retiring and handing over his presidency of Nintendo of America to
Doug Bowser
Doug Spencer Bowser is an American businessman, currently serving as the president of Nintendo of America. He succeeded Reggie Fils-Aimé as president in 2019, having previously worked for Procter & Gamble and Electronic Arts.
Early career
B ...
.
Cammie Dunaway took up the role following the promotion of Fils-Aimé. Dunaway was named one of the 100 top marketers by ''
Advertising Age
''Ad Age'' (known as ''Advertising Age'' until 2017) is a global media brand that publishes news, analysis, and data on marketing and media. Its namesake magazine was started as a broadsheet newspaper in Chicago in 1930. ''Ad Age'' appears in m ...
''. She appeared onstage for Nintendo's
E3 2008
E3 (short for Electronic Entertainment Expo or Electronic Entertainment Experience in 2021) is a trade event for the video game industry. The Entertainment Software Association (ESA) organizes and presents E3, which many developers, publish ...
press conference, demonstrating ''
Shaun White Snowboarding'' and ''
Wii Sports Resort
''Wii Sports Resort'' is a 2009 sports simulation video game developed and published by Nintendo for the Wii video game console, and is a sequel to ''Wii Sports''. It is one of the first titles to require the Wii MotionPlus accessory, which wa ...
''. She also made numerous more appearances that day. Dunaway also appeared at Nintendo's
E3 2009
The Electronic Entertainment Expo 2009 (E3 2009) was the 15th E3 held. The event took place at the Los Angeles Convention Center in Los Angeles, California. It began on June 2, 2009, and ended on June 4, 2009, with 41,000 total attendees.
Majo ...
press conference. Dunaway left Nintendo of America in October 2010. She joined
KidZania as the global chief marketing officer.
Dunaway was succeeded by Scott Moffitt in May 2011. Moffitt previously worked at
Henkel and
PepsiCo, and was tasked with providing new life to the
Nintendo 3DS and
Wii. In August 2015, Scott Moffitt was succeeded by Doug Bowser as the Senior Vice President of Sales and Marketing.
Bowser
, or King Koopa, is a fictional character, the primary antagonist in Nintendo's ''Mario'' franchise, and the arch-nemesis of Mario. In Japan, the character bears the title of . Bowser is the leader of the turtle-like Koopa race. Despite the ...
had previously been the VP of Sales, coming to Nintendo in 2014 from Electronic Arts.
Nintendo engages non-employees (known as Brand Ambassadors) to do marketing too, an example being ''NintendoCade Gaming'' (channel name). In late May 2020, Nintendo dropped several Brand Ambassadors, including Wood Hawker, without giving specific reason.
Brand campaigns
The Best Play Here
"The Best Play Here" campaign was aimed at children and adults.
[Elliott, Stuart. "THE MEDIA BUSINESS: Advertising; Nintendo Turns Up the Volume in a Provocative Appeal to its Core Market: Teen-Age Males." New York Times: D.15. New York Times. Jul 01 1994. Web. 25 May 2012.] It was relatively mild and not as emphatic as the "Play It Loud!" campaign that would follow.
Leo Burnett U.S.A. produced the campaign.
Play It Loud!
Facing intense competition from Sega, Nintendo decided to alter the trajectory of its marketing and pitch a new image to the public.
The ''Play It Loud!'' campaign marked a departure from traditional marketing practice by Nintendo. Instead of focusing on one particular console or game, it promoted a particular corporate image.
[Lefton, Terry. "Sneak Peek: Nintendo Rocks Out Hardcore Image Push." Brandweek 35.25 (1994): 1-. ABI/INFORM Global; ProQuest Research Library. Web. 25 May 2012.] The campaign was aimed at Nintendo's core market: teenage boys. Dan Coyner, marketing manager at
Nintendo of America
is a Japanese multinational video game company headquartered in Kyoto, Japan. It develops video games and video game consoles.
Nintendo was founded in 1889 as by craftsman Fusajiro Yamauchi and originally produced handmade playing card ...
, noted that previous campaigns felt "like an adult talking to a child," while ''Play It Loud!'' appealed more directly to a younger audience.
John Montgomery of Burnett said the ads were intended "to capture what kids are in their music, their clothes, their attitudes."
The advertisements extensively used youth
slang
Slang is vocabulary (words, phrases, and linguistic usages) of an informal register, common in spoken conversation but avoided in formal writing. It also sometimes refers to the language generally exclusive to the members of particular in-g ...
of the day, advising viewers to "hock a loogie at life" and "give the world a wedgie."
They also utilized "provocative imagery," such as a tattoo reading ''Play It Loud!''
Advertisements used music extensively, marrying
hard rock music with video games.
One early advertisement featured the
Butthole Surfers, an
alternative rock
Alternative rock, or alt-rock, is a category of rock music that emerged from the independent music underground of the 1970s and became widely popular in the 1990s. "Alternative" refers to the genre's distinction from mainstream or commerci ...
band.
Many were concerned that the campaign would seem too fake, as if adults were trying to
pander to children and pretend to be "hip."
The campaign ran from July 1994 to September 1996. It had a $10 million budget and was produced by Burnett.
''
Nintendo Power
''Nintendo Power'' was a video game news and strategy magazine from Nintendo of America, first published in July/August 1988 as Nintendo's official print magazine for North America. The magazine's publication was initially done monthly by Ninten ...
'' released the ''Play It Loud Original Soundtrack: Volume 1'' on April 1, 1996 as a gift to subscribers. It contained 41 tracks of different music from past Nintendo games.
Who Are You?
"Who Are You?" was a campaign back in 2003 intended on promoting Nintendo's console and handheld systems, the
Game Boy Advance
The (GBA) is a 32-bit handheld game console developed, manufactured and marketed by Nintendo as the successor to the Game Boy Color. It was released in Japan on March 21, 2001, in North America on June 11, 2001, in the PAL region on June 22, ...
and the
GameCube. The campaign was developed in conjunction with the Chicago advertising company,
Leo Burnett
Leo Burnett (October 21, 1891 – June 7, 1971) was an American advertising executive and the founder of Leo Burnett Company, Inc. He was responsible for creating some of advertising's most well-known characters and campaigns of the 20th cent ...
. The promotion would take the form of advertisements in places such as cinemas, print, billboards in major cities, transit, mall banners, and in-store merchandising. There was also an official website containing interactive advertisements of the campaign that has since been taken down.
Too Much Fun
Nintendo of Canada adopted an ironic approach to marketing itself in 2004. The "Too Much Fun" campaign jokingly presented "N" (short for Nintendo) as an illicit drug.
The campaign stated that "Four out of five doctors agree that using 'N' leads directly to Too Much Fun."
Its Ministry of Fun Suppression was said to offer possible remedies. As a remedy, the company suggested self-help groups including Nintendo and other fan sites.
Product campaigns
Nintendo Entertainment System
Nintendo promoted its
Nintendo Entertainment System using the slogan, "Now you're playing with power!" It would go on to modify and adapt the slogan for other consoles. It is also important to remark that this slogan was used for several campaigns.
When promoting the miniature, classic NES (titled the Nintendo Entertainment System:
NES Classic Edition
NES Classic Edition is a dedicated home video game console by Nintendo, which emulates the Nintendo Entertainment System (NES). It launched on November 10, 2016 in Australia and Japan, and November 11, 2016 in North America and Europe. Aesthet ...
in the US, Nintendo Classic Mini: Nintendo Entertainment System in Europe and Australia), the original NES slogan was brought back in its YouTube trailer.
Super Nintendo Entertainment System
In the United States, Nintendo promoted its
Super Nintendo Entertainment System using a modification of the slogan for the console's predecessor, "Now you're playing with power; SUPER POWER!" or "Now you're playing with power. Super power." This slogan is also used in a few commercials from the Netherlands and Australia.
In the UK, its commercials promoting the system used this slogan: “Will you ever reach the end?” (stylized on-screen as ''WILL YOU EVER REACH THE END?'').
For the promotion of the
SNES Classic Edition
The Super NES Classic Edition is a dedicated home video game console released by Nintendo, which emulates the Super Nintendo Entertainment System. The console, a successor to the NES Classic Edition, comes with twenty-one Super NES titles pr ...
, Nintendo used the slogan "Now you're playing with super power."
Game Boy
The company promoted its
Game Boy
The is an 8-bit fourth generation handheld game console developed and manufactured by Nintendo. It was first released in Japan on April 21, 1989, in North America later the same year, and in Europe in late 1990. It was designed by the same t ...
line using a modification of the slogan used for the Nintendo Entertainment System, "Now you're playing with power; PORTABLE POWER!"
Virtual Boy
Nintendo extensively advertised the Virtual Boy, and claimed to have spent
US$
The United States dollar (symbol: $; code: USD; also abbreviated US$ or U.S. Dollar, to distinguish it from other dollar-denominated currencies; referred to as the dollar, U.S. dollar, American dollar, or colloquially buck) is the official ...
25 million on early promotional activities.
[Boyer, Steven. "A Virtual Failure: Evaluating the Success of Nintendos Virtual Boy." Velvet Light Trap.64 (2009): 23-33. ProQuest Research Library. Web. 24 May 2012.] Advertising promoted the system as a paradigm shift from past consoles; some pieces used
cavemen
The caveman is a stock character representative of primitive humans in the Paleolithic. The popularization of the type dates to the early 20th century, when Neanderthals were influentially described as "simian" or " ape-like" by Marcellin Bo ...
to indicate a historical evolution, while others utilized psychedelic imagery. Nintendo portrayed the system as a type of virtual reality, as its name indicates; it was to be more than just another gaming console.
Confronted with the challenge of showing 3-dimensional gameplay on 2-dimensional advertisements, the company partnered with
Blockbuster
Blockbuster or Block Buster may refer to:
*Blockbuster (entertainment) a term coined for an extremely successful movie, from which most other uses are derived.
Corporations
* Blockbuster (retailer), a defunct video and game rental chain
** Bl ...
and
NBC
The National Broadcasting Company (NBC) is an American English-language commercial broadcast television and radio network. The flagship property of the NBC Entertainment division of NBCUniversal, a division of Comcast, its headquarters are l ...
in a coordinated effort.
American viewers were encouraged via television advertisements on NBC to rent the console for US$10 at a local Blockbuster. This made it affordable for a large number of gamers to try the system,
and produced 750,000 rentals.
["Nintendo/Nickelodeon/Blockbuster." Mediaweek 6.30 (1996): 36-. ABI/INFORM Global; ProQuest Research Library. Web. 24 May 2012.] Despite its popularity, the rental system proved harmful to the Virtual Boy's long-term success, allowing gamers to see just how un-immersive the console was.
Nintendo promoted the console using the slogan "A 3-D game for a 3-D World.". In some commercials, Nintendo used his regular slogan "Play it Loud".
Taken as a whole, the marketing campaign was commonly thought of as a failure.
Nintendo 64
Nintendo promoted its first 3-dimensional console, the
Nintendo 64
The (N64) is a home video game console developed by Nintendo. The successor to the Super Nintendo Entertainment System, it was released on June 23, 1996, in Japan, on September 29, 1996, in North America, and on March 1, 1997, in Europe and ...
, using several slogans. One was "Change the System" while the other was "Get N or Get Out" in the United States. In Japan, it used the slogan “ ゲームが変わる、64が変える。 “ (translated as “The game changes, 64 changes.”) for commercials promoting ''
Super Mario 64''. In the UK, it used the slogan “Get into it.” in its commercials, while in Germany, a few of its commercials instead used the slogan “The New Dimension of Fun” (translated into German as “''Die neue dimension des spaßes''”).
Game Boy Color
Nintendo promoted the
Game Boy Color using the slogan "Escape to a World of Color" and "Get into It!" with Flying CGI Lips.
Game Boy Advance
The
Game Boy Advance
The (GBA) is a 32-bit handheld game console developed, manufactured and marketed by Nintendo as the successor to the Game Boy Color. It was released in Japan on March 21, 2001, in North America on June 11, 2001, in the PAL region on June 22, ...
was marketed using the slogan "Life Advanced".
GameCube
Nintendo used several advertising strategies and techniques for the GameCube. Around the time of release, the GameCube was advertised with the slogan "Born to Play."
The earliest commercials displayed a rotating cube animation, which would morph into the GameCube logo as a woman whispers, "GameCube". This was usually displayed at the end of GameCube game commercials.
It was also used in the opening of a Gamecube demo disc.
Nintendo DS
In 2005, Nintendo adopted a somewhat controversial tagline to promote its
Nintendo DS handheld console. The slogan, "Touching is Good," promoted the unusual
touch-based features of the console.
A web site created for the promotion awarded prizes to fans. In Japan, the slogan was simply known as "Touch!"
Nintendo DS Lite
With the launch of the
Nintendo DS Lite
The is a dual-screen handheld game console developed and manufactured by Nintendo. It is the second iteration of the Nintendo DS and is slimmer, brighter, and more lightweight than the original. It was announced on January 26, 2006, more than a ...
, Nintendo used the slogan "The world you wish for".
Nintendo DSi
For the
Nintendo DSi
The is a dual-screen handheld game console released by Nintendo. The console launched in Japan on November 1, 2008, and worldwide beginning in April 2009. It is the third iteration of the Nintendo DS, and its primary market rival is Sony's ...
, the slogan "What will you and I do?" was used to emphasize the built in camera.
Nintendo DSi XL
The Nintendo DSi XL was marketed using the slogan "a LARGER experience". This slogan placed emphasis on the larger build of the DSi XL compared to the original DSi.
Wii
To promote the launch of its unconventional
Wii console, Nintendo chose a unique approach to advertising. Rather than appeal to teenage males, Nintendo's traditional audience, the "Wii Would Like to Play" campaign showed people of all ages and backgrounds playing the console.
The advertisements made particular note of the Wii's motion control system. The advertising campaign was produced by Leo Burnett,
the firm responsible for many past Nintendo campaigns. The campaign won the Grand
Effie Award in 2008 for the Most Marketing Effort.
Nintendo 3DS
Multiple slogans were used to promote the newest model of the DS family, the
Nintendo 3DS. The first slogan was "Take a Look Inside" which highlighted the system's 3D gameplay. In May 2016, after Nintendo reduced the price of the
Nintendo 2DS, a new slogan, "There's No Play Like It," and accompanying logo was featured.
Wii U
The
Wii U
The Wii U ( ) is a home video game console developed by Nintendo as the successor to the Wii. Released in late 2012, it is the first eighth-generation video game console and competed with Microsoft's Xbox One and Sony's PlayStation 4.
Th ...
's advertisements involved the "How U will play next" ("How will U play next?" in
PAL region
The PAL region is a television publication territory that covers most of Europe and Africa, alongside parts of Asia, South America and Oceania. It is named PAL because of the PAL (Phase Alternating Line) television standard traditionally used i ...
s) campaign to show the various play styles of the console.
Nintendo Switch
The
Nintendo Switch's advertising campaign involved the slogan "Switch and Play" to show the versatility of playing the console anywhere. Alternatively, the slogan "Play anywhere, anytime, with anyone" has been used in various European trailers featuring the console.
Due to the lower sales of the Wii U, Nintendo made the decision to focus their advertisements towards an older audience. This decision paid off well. As of March 2021, the Nintendo Switch has sold over 84 million units, far eclipsing the Wii U's lifetime sales of 13.56 million units.
On November 11, 2019 Nintendo published the "Our Favorite Ways to Play-2019" advert, which showcased a young boy with Down syndrome, Aaron Waddingham from Vancouver, Canada, in a commercial for the first time in Nintendo's history.
Nintendo Power
Nintendo promoted its magazine, ''
Nintendo Power
''Nintendo Power'' was a video game news and strategy magazine from Nintendo of America, first published in July/August 1988 as Nintendo's official print magazine for North America. The magazine's publication was initially done monthly by Ninten ...
'', using the slogan "Get the power! NINTENDO POWER!"
Social media
Much like other companies in the field, Nintendo uses
social media
Social media are interactive media technologies that facilitate the creation and sharing of information, ideas, interests, and other forms of expression through virtual communities and networks. While challenges to the definition of ''social medi ...
to market their products. They use social media to market their upcoming games and products to a large audience. They also use the platforms to develop and maintain relationships with their customer base on the internet.
Twitter
Nintendo began using
Twitter
Twitter is an online social media and social networking service owned and operated by American company Twitter, Inc., on which users post and interact with 280-character-long messages known as "tweets". Registered users can post, like, and ...
on April 20, 2007, long before any other social media. Their Twitter account is used to market their upcoming products and games releasing, along with marketing their already released games. Given the more interactive nature of Twitter, fans are able to react and respond to tweets easily, and allows Nintendo to see the feedback and interact with the feedback easier.
As of December 2019, the Twitter page has over 18,000 tweets and 10.3 Million followers. This follower total far eclipses their follower count on any other social media.
Facebook
Nintendo began using
Facebook
Facebook is an online social media and social networking service owned by American company Meta Platforms. Founded in 2004 by Mark Zuckerberg with fellow Harvard College students and roommates Eduardo Saverin, Andrew McCollum, Dustin Mosk ...
on January 1, 2011. They use their Facebook account to create awareness for their upcoming games and products. They also use their Facebook page to interact with fans and potential customers to answer any questions they may have.
As of December 2019, the Facebook page has 5.2 million followers.
YouTube
Nintendo uploaded their first video to
YouTube
YouTube is a global online video sharing and social media platform headquartered in San Bruno, California. It was launched on February 14, 2005, by Steve Chen, Chad Hurley, and Jawed Karim. It is owned by Google, and is the second mo ...
on January 25, 2011. This first video depicted first reactions and thoughts of the Nintendo 3DS, which was set to debut later in 2011. Nintendo uses their YouTube channel to upload trailers and commercials for their upcoming products and games. They also use YouTube for uploading
Nintendo Directs in which they announce and discuss upcoming games and products in more detail. They usually host four or five Directs a year.
As of December 2019, Nintendo has uploaded over 3,900 videos to their channel, and have over 6.2 million subscribers.
Instagram
Nintendo's first
Instagram post came on June 3, 2012. Their first photo depicts
Shigeru Miyamoto,
Satoru Iwata
was a Japanese businessman, video game programmer, video game designer, and producer. He was the fourth president and chief executive officer (CEO) of Nintendo from 2002 until his death in 2015. He was a major contributor in broadening the app ...
, and Reggie Fils-Aimé together. Given the nature of Instagram being a photo sharing platform, Nintendo uses the platform to share photos and videos of their products, both upcoming and current. Given the younger demographics of their fan base, more of their fans appear on Instagram as opposed to the older oriented Facebook.
As of December 2019, the Instagram page has 5.9 million followers and over 1,400 posts.
Miiverse
Miiverse
Miiverse was a social network for Nintendo 3DS and Wii U, created by Nintendo System Development and Hatena, and powered by the Nintendo Network. Integrated into many games, Miiverse allowed players to interact and share their experiences by w ...
was Nintendo's own social media created for the Wii U and 3DS. It launched on November 18, 2012 alongside the Wii U. The service allowed players to share moments from games, their thoughts on different sections, and allowed interaction between fans of games. The service was integrated with every Wii U game, and eventually every 3DS game once the service came to the platform. Given the younger demographic of Nintendo's fan base, Miiverse also had a younger demographic, and thus was very child-friendly.
Nintendo used the platform to market their own upcoming games, and used word-of-mouth marketing with games that were already released via the communities posts on the game.
Nintendo shut down Miiverse on November 7, 2017, as the service was not integrated on the Nintendo Switch, their new console.
Demographic shifts
Due to negative perceptions of the business viability of video games following the
video game crash of 1983
The video game crash of 1983 (known as the Atari shock in Japan) was a large-scale recession in the video game industry that occurred from 1983 to 1985, primarily in the United States. The crash was attributed to several factors, including ma ...
, Nintendo decided to position the NES more as a toy than a computing device.
This corresponded with targeted marketing towards the demographic of young boys, a choice which set the tone for marketing across the industry for more than a decade.
At the release of the Nintendo DS in 2005, Nintendo attempted to expand the audience toward older males with the sexually suggestive "Touching is Good" advertising campaign.
Advertising for the DS later pivoted towards adult women, emphasizing health and productivity while avoiding referring to products as games.
Nintendo continued this emphasis on older and female audiences with the Wii console.
The Wii's motion controls and casual software helped Nintendo expand its audience, even as many in Nintendo's traditional market regarded the system dismissively.
Ben "Yahtzee" Croshaw
Benjamin Richard "Yahtzee" Croshaw (born 24 May 1983) is a British comedic writer, author, video game journalist, humorist, podcaster, and video game developer. He is best known for his video game review series ''Zero Punctuation'', which he pro ...
identified ''
The Legend of Zelda: Majora's Mask'' as exemplifying the type of complicated game beloved by core gamers that would not be replicated by newer titles emphasizing accessibility.
Nintendo designer Shigeru Miyamoto commented in 2014 that due to the pervasiveness of mobile phone games, Nintendo no longer needed to work at convincing all audiences that games are for them.
He further expressed a desire to develop for more engaged audiences who want to challenge themselves.
The release of the New Nintendo 3DS, with more complicated controls and launch titles, was seen as a pivot back towards a hardcore gaming audience.
This repositioning was a retreat from competition in mobile gaming from smartphones, while Nintendo prepares new health-oriented game devices to once again tap the non-traditional gaming market.
After the disappointing sales of the Wii U, partly due to poor marketing and the rise of mobile phone gaming, Nintendo pushed its latest console, the
Nintendo Switch, with strong advertising and promotion. The portable home console aims to appeal to both casual and core gamers, focusing on portability and multiple modes of playing. Nintendo showcased its first-ever Super Bowl ad during
Super Bowl LI
Super Bowl LI was an American football game played at NRG Stadium in Houston, Texas, on February 5, 2017, to determine the champion of the National Football League (NFL) for the 2016 season. The American Football Conference (AFC) champion New ...
, with a 30-second advertisement for ''
The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild'' on the Nintendo Switch.
References
{{Nintendo Company
Marketing
Marketing is the process of exploring, creating, and delivering value to meet the needs of a target market in terms of goods and services; potentially including selection of a target audience; selection of certain attributes or themes to emph ...
Promotion and marketing communications