Nintendo will be working with Illumination Entertainment to launch a brand new Mario movie, as you may be aware. None other than series creator Shigeru Miyamoto himself is involved on this project. And while the words “Mario” and “movie” in the same sentence tend to dredge up some bad memories usually, this one will be an animated feature instead of a live action one, with Nintendo themselves involved in a large capacity with the project.

If you are excited to see Mario’s debut on the silver screen (we’re going to pretend like the live action movie doesn’t exist, it’s better for our collective sanity that way), then you still have a ways to go. In their briefing for investors during their financial release, Nintendo confirmed that the movie, while in  development, is slated for a 2022 release—so three years from now.

That said, if you are looking for some Nintendo action on the big screen, you’re in luck, because Pokemon: Detective Pikachu, starring none other than Ryan Reynolds as Pikachu, is due to hit the big screen in May this year.

The Nintendo Switch has been an unmitigated success for the company, selling more than the Wii U’s total lifetime sales within 10 months of launching. Though the Wii U ended production in 2017, the Switch could see an even longer cycle than this.

Nintendo’s Shigeru Miyamoto spoke to investors during a recent Q&A and said, “When you think about what can be done with the Nintendo Switch as a device that can be taken on the go and that every person has in their hands to play, you realize it has many features not available on any other hardware to date. Nintendo also has a system in place whereby the software developers focus on these hardware features in their development efforts for the continuation of the Nintendo Switch business.”

“Up until now, the hardware lifecycle has trended at around five or six years, but it would be very interesting if we could prolong that life cycle, and I think you should be looking forward to that.”

In order to create more experiences for the Switch, director Shinya Takahashi said there are various “junior” developers that Nintendo is working with to “create interesting products” for a wider audience that are also fun.

“Behind the unceasing stream of Nintendo Switch software releases to date is an approach to development that concentrates on development, itself the fruit of efforts several years ago to integrate the software development teams, which has made it easier to organise teams.”

Though we somehow doubt that the Nintendo Switch will be around for a decade, it wouldn’t be odd for Nintendo to update this version of the Switch like it’s done with the 3DS handheld. The Nintendo 3DS first launched in 2011 and has since seen numerous updates like the 3DS XL, 2DS, New Nintendo 3DS and so on.

Given the direction other consoles like the Xbox One and PS4 are taking with the Xbox One X and PS4 Pro, Nintendo could very well sell a more powerful version of the Switch and discount the current hardware. We’ll have to see if this is actually the case in the future (and how the 3DS would fit into all this) but it’s good to know that there’s plenty of Switch support on the way.

Nintendo’s Super Mario Odyssey marks a return of the “core” Mario style of 3D platforming after years of New Super Mario Bros and Super Mario 3D World. Despite boasting a new direction and new mechanics, would series creator Shigeru Miyamoto ever be interested in going back to remake past Super Mario titles?

Speaking to IGN, Miyamoto said that, “I don’t really feel like I want to remake any of them. It’s more natural to always create new mechanics and new games.”

Super Mario 64 DS does come to mind though especially with how it remade many aspects of the 1996 Nintendo 64 title. Then again, it straddled a fine line between port and remake. As for Super Mario Odyssey, it will release on October 27th for Nintendo Switch and sees Mario exploring a bevy of new worlds with a new capture mechanic for objects, animals and people.

If Nintendo did remake a Mario title, which one would you prefer? Let us know in the comments below.

Throughout the history of Mario, we’ve never really seen the plumber interact with normal humans. This changed when Super Mario Odyssey was announced as New Donk City and its realistic buildings and people were revealed.

Speaking to IGN, creator Shigeru Miyamoto confesses to being worried about how this would be received by gamers. “I was worried about how players would react to being in a world where Mario is this tall and normal people are a little bit taller. Or the fact that people don’t get mad at Mario when he’s jumping up and down all over the place.

“But with all that said, I think I realized that the character Pauline has already existed, and the idea of this game taking place in the city worked out really well. And so we ran with it.”

Needless to say, once we saw Mario using his magical hat to become a frog, we were sold. Super Mario Odyssey is out on October 27th for the Nintendo Switch. Stay tuned for more details on the game in the coming months.

Nintendo designer and producer Shigeru Miyamoto has a big day ahead of him with the upcoming presentation for Nintendo Switch. While speaking to Glixel, Miyamoto took the opportunity to deny retirement rumours while also discussing the involvement of younger developers in making Switch happen.

Since announcing that he wasn’t involved with the Nintendo Switch, thus creating the rumours, Miyamoto stated that, “Really at the time what we were talking about was giving more opportunity and more leadership opportunity to younger people in the company. So rather than me leading everything we were really expanding that role out to others that had come up.

“We have these younger people in the company who are taking the lead on Switch development and it’s really been them that have put this forward and designed this system. They’re the ones that have really shepherded it through the process.”

We’ll see how that works out when the Nintendo Switch is showcased in all of its glory later today so stay tuned.

The one thing that you can say about Mario is that he truly is the spokesperson for gaming- he has been at the forefront of every major advancement and evolution that video games have had, very often leading the charge himself. From Mario on the NES to Super Mario 64 on the N64, to Super Mario Maker on Wii U, to now Super Mario Run on iPhones, the character has proven himself to be highly versatile, which has led to his enduring popularity.

And speaking with Apple, when Mario creator Shigeru Miyamoto was asked about what he saw in the future of Mario, Miyamoto replied that it would ultimately depend on the technology available at the time, and what he chose to do with it and Mario.

“It’s impossible to know the future. I don’t know what’s going to happen in five years; I don’t even know if I’ll be alive in five years! -Laughs- But I’m fine; I’m fine,” Miyamoto said.

“There was a point just a few years after we released Super Mario Bros. where somebody had done a character popularity poll, and Mario had become more popular at the time than Mickey Mouse. And people said, ‘Well, how do you feel about that?’ To that I replied, ‘But Mickey Mouse has been around for 40 years; Mario has only been around for three!’ And that was when I started to think that maybe what I should do is worry about what is happening with Mario 40 years from now, and then we’ll see how he’s doing against Mickey at that point in time.

“At that time, I realized that Mickey Mouse was a character that had evolved with the evolution of cinema and animation, and so it was then when I felt that if I want Mario to continue to survive as a character, then Mario needs to evolve with technology and video games.

“That’s why when we were making Super Mario 64 for the Nintendo 64; that’s why it was such a fun project for me. And it’s why when we made Super Mario Maker – and all of you could then become Mario game designers – that was a fun project for me as well. As far as what’s going to happen in five years, it really depends on what new technology I come across, and then at that point in time I’ll partner that technology with Mario – or maybe Link – and create something new.”

I would be very excited to see where Nintendo take their icon next- AR gaming? VR? Something new entirely that we haven’t yet even thought of? The world’s Mario‘s oyster, and I am excited to see where he goes next, and what he does next.

The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild was the subject of many rumours over the past few months, especially with regards to featuring a playable female character. The idea was nixed early on and though there has been discussion about a spin-off featuring Sheik (aka ninja Zelda), series creator Shigeru Miyamoto said that Link will always remain the hero of the main games.

Speaking to Gamekult (translation via Nintendo Everything), Miyamoto answered a question regarding Zelda being the protagonist at some point. He stated that, “We clearly talked with the team to make a game centered about Sheik, so I cannot say it is impossible to see something of the sort in the future, but in the classic games in the series, Link is the hero and that will not change. For the rest, you have to be patient and see what happens!”

Till then, Link will be back in the saddle again when The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild releases next year for Nintendo Wii U and NX.

You’d think it’d be enough to showcase a large, open world Zelda title with The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild but Nintendo is always thinking ahead of its next release. Creator Shigeru Miyamoto told GameRant recently that one concept being discussed by Breath of the Wild‘s dev team is a spin-off of the series featuring Sheik as the hero.

“Within the development team, too, there have been talks about how it might be cool to have a game that features Sheik as a protagonist. It’s having maybe a Zelda spin-off with Sheik as a protagonist, for example, I don’t think that’s an impossibility.”

Sheik made his debut in The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time and was (spoiler) revealed to be Princess Zelda. Since then, Sheik has made appearances in Super Smash Bros. and Hyrule Warriors as a playable character. This hasn’t been the first time that a different protagonist has been discussed – Zelda herself has also been pitched as the hero of her own game.

In the meantime we’ll have to settle for Link’s return in The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild when it releases in 2017 for Wii U and NX.

This is a very special week for everybody who is in to our hobby- Mario, gaming’s face and oldest icon, celebrated his 30th anniversary, an occasion that Nintendo celebrated by releasing Super Mario Maker, the game that will hopefully let all players design their own Mario courses.

However, the release of Super Mario Maker (a game that might just be the best game on Wii U yet, judging by early impressions) is certainly a fitting celebration on its own, Nintendo also released a brand new interview with Shigeru Miyamoto and Takashi Tezuka, the creators of Mario and the NES classic Super Mario Bros., with both of them looking back on the making of that game.

It’s two legendary developers, from a legendary company, for a legendary game, in a legendary franchise. There is no other game, series, company, or developer that has ever been as important or influential for gaming as Nintendo has been- seeing how all of that happened, the humble roots from which the modern gaming industry arose, is something else.

You can check out the interview for yourself below. Super Mario Maker is now available exclusively on Wii U.

It’s been a couple of weeks since the passing of Nintendo’s legendary president Satoru Iwata, and we are still no closer to knowing exactly who his official successor will be. For a while, there was a rumour that Nintendo’s pioneering game developer Shigeru Miyamoto, who is currently jointly presiding over the company while the search for an official successor continues, will be taking over the company. Now, it seems, that will not be the case.

People close to the matter say that this is unlikely to happen, owing to a combination of various factors. “Although it would be a romantic dream to have the company led by the father of Mario, I think Takeda-san has more corporate experience and really understands hardware; it was he who argued for a new interface for the Wii rather than just a faster Gamecube with better graphics,” said Nick Parker of Parker Consulting.

Dr. Serkan Toto, a mobile games industry analyst, is of the same opinion. “Iwata-san was apparently a very capable programmer and turned out to be a great leader overall. Nintendo is the most iconic game maker in the world that (at least in Japan) attracts the top talent in gaming; [it] might have people like him in the work force who could follow in Iwata’s foot steps.”

“Takeda, who helped Punch-Out and StarTropics, was one of the main developers on the Wii, and has a similar trajectory in the company as Iwata. Takeda is likely a lead candidate for the job. Nintendo also has a number of executives on its board of directors who also could step up into the spot.”said Mike Schramm of Electronic Entertainment Design and Research.

As of right now, we still don’t know who the successor is slated to be, and given that the company itself is still in a state of mourning, actually expecting them to make an announcement is just a bit insensitive. Nonetheless, for people invested in the future of the company, it is an important question that merits an answer sometime soon. We’ll keep you posted.

[Thanks GamesIndustry]