For Nintendo, a “big hit” isn’t a game that sells 1 million copies, but one that sells over 30 million copies – Nintendo Switch

How should success be measured? Every company has its own scale, and it seems that Nintendo is a demanding company when it comes to the video game in question. “big success”. What seems obvious is that switch It’s a great success and there aren’t many months left before it surpasses the DS to become Nintendo’s best-selling console in its history. However, we didn’t know that the big N is not considered a “big success” game that sells 1 million copies.

In a joint interview between Shigeru Miyamotocreator of Super Mario and The Legend of Zelda, and Shigesato Ito, creator of Earthbound, reflect on the industry’s success. He believes that Nintendo must have “big hit” every 3 or 5 years to succeed, Ito then asks what it means for the company for the game to become a big hit, to which Miyamoto replies that the game must sell. 30 million times or more.

“1 million units is not considered a big success for Nintendo,” says Earthbound creator. Super Mario creator responds briefly: “I agree,” though he later says it’s mentality should extend to all employees“If we can make a big hit every three to five years, we’ll be fine. In that sense, if all our employees think about ‘making a big hit’ every day, we’ll be fine,” he explains.

“Nintendo’s Greatest Hits”

According to Shigeru Miyamoto, Nintendo had a total of 12 “greatest hits” along its history. We’ll leave you with those Nintendo super sales below, but we already told you that the Switch was the console that hosted the most successful third-party games, with up to 4 games. That’s Mario Kart 8 Deluxe, Animals Crossing New HorizonsSuper Smash Bros Ultimate and finally Zelda: Breath of the Wild.

1. Wii Sports (2006) – 82.90 million on Wii
2. Mario Kart 8 Deluxe (2017) — 61.97 million on Nintendo Switch
3. Animal Crossing New Horizons (2020) – 45.36 million on Nintendo Switch
4. Super Mario Bros (1985) – 40.24 million on NES
5. Mario Kart Wii (2008) – 37.38 million on Wii
6. Super Smash Bros Ultimate (2018) – 34.22 million on Nintendo Switch
7. Wii Sports Resort (2009) – 33.14 million on Wii
8. Zelda: Breath Of The Wild (2017) – 31.85 million on Nintendo Switch
9. Pokémon Red/Blue/Green (1996) – 31.05 million on Game Boy
10. New Super Mario Bros (2006) – 30.80 million on Nintendo DS
11. New Super Mario Bros Wii (2009) – 30.32 million on Wii
12. Tetris (1989) – 30.26 million on Game Boy.

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