Nintendo held a Direct today, but it wasn’t a traditional presentation filled with new game announcements and release dates. Instead, the company turned to its history by giving us our first look at the completed Nintendo Museum in Kyoto, Japan, which is now scheduled to open on October 2, 2024.
The presentation was hosted by none other than Nintendo legend Shigeru Miyamoto, who walked through the main exhibits and activities museum attendees can expect at the new facility. Read on to learn everything announced at today’s Nintendo Museum Direct, including the existence of enormous Wii Remotes!
Miyamoto Introduces the Museum
The presentation began with Miyamoto sharing the history of the museum site, revealing that the Nintendo museum is built on the same grounds as Nintendo’s original playing card factory, which was then used for quality checks during the Famicom (NES) era. The entrance to the museum greets visitors with a Mario-themed plaza, complete with warp pipes, a question block, and more Super Mario Bros. items.
You Can Play Nintendo Games With Enormous Controllers
The highlight of the presentation was seeing the enormous recreations of Nintendo controllers visitors will be able to use to play a selection of classic Nintendo games from the NES, SNES, Nintendo 64, and Wii eras. While we got an extended demo of Miyamoto playing Super Mario Bros. alongside a museum staff member, the star of the show was undoubtedly watching two museum staff members working together to play Wii Sports Resort using a giant Wii Remote’s motion controls. Just look at it!!
Attractions that Pull from Nintendo’s Toymaking Days
The Direct only showed off three of the eight interactive experiences, but the official Nintendo Museum website details the rest. This is the full list of unique play experiences the Nintendo Museum will offer on the first floor:
- Shigureden SP
- Explore Hyakunin Isshu poems using smart devices and the giant screen on the floor.
- Zapper & Scope SP
- Experience shooting using the Zapper and Super Scope in the world of Mario that spreads out on the giant screen in front of you.
- Ultra Machine SP
- A batting-cage experience inside a room. Hit the balls pitched by the Ultra Machine.
- Ultra Hand SP
- Use the Ultra Hand to grab the balls rolling down the lanes, and drop them into the pipes.
- Love Tester SP
- Two people join hands and work together on tests that measure their Love Level.
- Game & Watch SP
- Play Game & Watch games using your own shadow.
- Nintendo Classics
- Nintendo Entertainment System, Super Nintendo Entertainment System, Nintendo 64. Choose from over 80 games to play.
- Big Controller
- Controllers from past hardware generations made giant. Two people must work together to take on challenges in games released back in the day.
Visitors Can’t See Every Attraction with a Single Ticket
One odd wrinkle about the Nintendo Museum is that visitors can’t experience all eight exhibits with a single ticket. As detailed on the official website, digital coins are required to experience the interactive exhibits, and each visitor is only granted 10 coins upon entry. You can’t purchase additional coins once you run out, so as of now it seems you’ll need multiple visits to the Nintendo Museum to get your hands on everything it has to offer. We’ve reached out to Nintendo for comment and clarification on this.
A Rotunda of Nintendo Products
The second floor has a gallery of products created and published by Nintendo from NES to now. This includes games and consoles in Nintendo’s catalog, complete with different iterations of hardware and game boxes to account for differences across Japan, North America, Europe, and other regions. Each section of the exhibit is marked with a big (but not quite as huge) replica of each Nintendo controller and handheld.
There are also exhibits for products played by moving your body, the evolution of the Question Block, the evolution of graphics in games like Mario and Zelda, and an exhibit of products Nintendo made before it entered the video game business, like a copy machine and even a baby stroller.
Make Your Own Hanafuda Cards
The Nintendo Museum harkens all the way back to the beginning of the company with an interactive experience where visitors can design their own Hanafuda cards. This hour-long experience does cost extra, but participants will get to take home the four cards they made. There is also a Play Room where visitors can learn to play one of the most popular versions of Hanafuda.
Along with a museum restaurant and shop Miyamoto teased at the very end of the presentation, that’s what Nintendo fans can expect if they make the long trek to the Nintendo museum in Kyoto. Tickets will cost 3,300 yen (~$23 USD) for adults, with cheaper price ranges for children. Right now, the museum is holding a lottery drawing for the chance to purchase tickets for dates beginning with the museum’s grand opening on October 2, which you can enter here.
What did you think of today’s Nintendo Museum Direct? Did it make you want to take a trip to Japan to see it for yourself? Let us know in the comments. And, be sure to check out the first details on the Donkey Kong theme park expansion at Universal Studios Japan, the next big entertainment endeavor from Nintendo.
Logan Plant is IGN's Database Manager, Playlist Editor, and Super Ninfriendo on Nintendo Voice Chat. Find him on Twitter @LoganJPlant.
