Nintendo Direct
Nintendo Direct is an online presentation or live shows produced by Nintendo, where information regarding the company's content or franchises is presented, such as information about games and consoles. The presentations began in Japan and North America with the first edition on October 21, 2011, before later expanding to Europe, Australia, and South Korea.
Format
Nintendo Direct presentations vary in format between different presentations and regions.Regional differences
Nintendo Directs generally come in both regional and international formats.International
For subjects of a general worldwide appeal, a single Nintendo Direct is often localized for a simultaneous international broadcast. Usually, these will be recorded in Japanese and presented by a Japanese presenter. Prior to Nintendo president Satoru Iwata's death, he would host Directs in both English and Japanese, with other languages' presentations being subtitled.Upon Iwata's death, Nintendo Directs did not receive a worldwide host until 2017, when Yoshiaki Koizumi from Nintendo EPD took over this role. Since 2018, Koizumi has shared this responsibility with Shinya Takahashi.
Since 2017, the Japanese presenter and any narrators' roles will be dubbed or subtitled for international release, including into English.
Presentations scheduled for around the time of the Electronic Entertainment Expo are usually produced by Nintendo of America, presented and narrated in English for international broadcast.
Japan
In Japan, Nintendo Directs were most commonly presented by Nintendo's global president Satoru Iwata until his death in 2015, with Yoshiaki Koizumi now serving as host.Since 2017, Japan has hosted region-specific "Indie World" presentations, focusing on indie games published for Nintendo Switch.
Directs focused on Super Smash Bros. are typically hosted by series creator Masahiro Sakurai.
North America
In North America, the videos were often presented by Nintendo of America president, Reggie Fils-Aimé, and Bill Trinen.For international Directs produced in Japan since 2017, Nintendo of America would air a dubbed version of the Direct in English; although one notable exception of having it subtitled instead of dubbed was the Mr. Sakurai Presents "Min Min" presentation for Super Smash Bros. Ultimate in 2020 because of the COVID-19 pandemic. Both the presenter and narrator are dubbed by separate narrators.
Since 2017, Nintendo of America has hosted presentations focusing on Indie games published for Nintendo Switch. Between 2017 and 2019, these were branded as "Nindies Showcase", before aligning their branding to the Japanese "Indie World" banner.
Europe and Australia
European Directs were presented by former Nintendo of Europe president, Satoru Shibata. These presentations were also broadcast in Australia.Australia generally only airs the European output, but one Direct was created specifically for the region, broadcast on September 24, 2014. This Direct was hosted by Tom Enoki.
For international Directs produced in Japan since 2017, Nintendo of Europe airs the original Japanese audio for the presenters, but will use an English dub for the narrated sections. These are then subtitled for broadcast in other languages. Since 2019, the Pokémon Direct and Pokémon Presents are the only Directs that are dubbed for Europe and Australia in English, however, they are subtitled in different languages with the English dub.
Since 2017, Nintendo of Europe has broadcast presentations focussing on indie games published for Nintendo Switch. From 2017 to 2018, Nintendo of Europe broadcast the American "Nindies Showcase" presentations. In 2018 and 2019, Nintendo of Europe hosted its own "Indie Highlights" videos. From 2019, they returned to broadcasting Nintendo of America's presentations, now under the "Indie World" banner.
South Korea
South Korea has also aired exclusive Nintendo Directs hosted by Nintendo of Korea president, Hiroyuki Fukuda.Hong Kong and Taiwan
A few Nintendo Direct presentations have been produced specifically for Hong Kong and Taiwan.Types of Nintendo Direct presentations
Outside of the general Nintendo Direct presentations, which cover a range of titles, there are also Directs centred around specific titles or series. These are usually presented by the producer or director of the game or series, or employ a narrator.Nintendo E3 Directs
Since June 2013, in lieu of traditional large-scale Electronic Entertainment Expo press conferences, Nintendo has opted to utilize the Nintendo Direct platform as an alternative method of conveying its news. Speaking at an annual March financial results briefing just two months prior, Nintendo CEO Satoru Iwata stated that the company's decision was determined by the fact that “different people demand different types of information”, and that the Nintendo Direct platform had established itself to the point that Nintendo would “be able to deliver messages more appropriately and effectively … based on the various needs of different groups of people”. Christopher Dring of GamesIndustry.biz observed that the last press conference that Nintendo held at E3 in 2012 featured too much of a mix between Nintendo's new hardware for the Wii U and game announcements. Compared to other press conferences held that year, Nintendo's presentation left little for fans of the company to be excited for. By switching to Nintendo Directs, Dring opined that the company was able to better connect to fans using the Nintendo Direct presentations, made the faces of Nintendo's executives more visible, as well as having Directs outside of the E3 cycle to provide more frequent updates on game and hardware releases.During the stream of the prerecorded broadcast for E3 2013, Nintendo's website suffered from technical difficulties in the form of overloaded servers, rendering the live video unwatchable for many viewers, and prompting an official apology from Mr. Iwata. Despite these difficulties, Nintendo of America President Reggie Fils-Aimé noted that secondary viewership following the initial broadcast still worked to popularize product promotion.
The following year, in addition to the Direct, the company added "Nintendo Treehouse: Live @ E3" live streams to their presence at the trade event. Named after the Product Development department at Nintendo of America, these are daily streams from the show floor that feature NoA localization staff and game developers demoing and giving in-depth coverage of titles that were announced during that year's Direct. The year also began a trend of Nintendo hosting a game tournament sometime during the week, in which the participants compete in titles that had yet to be released.
| Year | Title | Summary |
| 2014 | Super Smash Bros. Invitational | Sixteen professional Super Smash Bros. players invited to play Super Smash Bros. for Wii U. |
| 2015 | Nintendo World Championships 2015 | Sixteen players, eight chosen from qualifying competitions throughout the United States and invited by Nintendo, compete in various Nintendo games, with the final game being Super Mario Maker. |
| 2016 | Nintendo lacked both a tournament and a presentation this year, only having Nintendo Treehouse live streams that focused mainly on ' and Nintendo 3DS games. | |
| 2017 | Splatoon 2 World Inkling Invitational | Professional Splatoon teams from the United States, Japan, Europe and Australia/New Zealand compete in a round-robin tournament with Splatoon 2s Turf War and Ranked Battle modes. |
| 2017 | Pokkén Tournament DX Invitational | Four two-player teams consisting of YouTube and Twitch personalities compete, with one member of each team using one of the new characters added for the game's Nintendo Switch release. |
| 2017 | Arms Open Invitational | Four E3 attendees compete against four professional fighting game players in a single elimination format with the various gameplay modes in Arms. |
| 2018 | Splatoon 2 World Championship Finals | Representatives from the United States, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, Europe and Japan, will compete in a series of ranked matches for the grand prize at E3 2018. |
| 2018 | Super Smash Bros. Invitational 2018 | Professional Super Smash Bros. players and selected convention attendees at E3 2018 got to play the upcoming Super Smash Bros. Ultimate title for the Nintendo Switch. |
| 2019 | Super Mario Maker 2 Invitational 2019 | Special guests invited by Nintendo get to play a wide variety of newly made courses in the upcoming Super Mario Maker 2. |
| 2019 | Splatoon 2 World Championship 2019 | Teams from North America, Europe, Australia/New Zealand and Japan, each the winners of their respective tournaments, will battle after a year of events to be given the world number one title. |
| 2019 | Super Smash Bros. Ultimate'' World Championship 2019 3v3 | Qualified teams of three from each of North America, Europe, Australia/New Zealand and Japan will compete against each other after each winning their regional tournaments. |
List of presentations
Alongside Nintendo Direct presentations, other Nintendo-produced online presentations without the "Direct" in its name are listed.| Broadcast type | Coverage | Date | Regions | |
| Nintendo Direct | Nintendo 3DS and Wii games | Japan, North America | ||
| Nintendo Direct | Nintendo 3DS and Wii games | Japan | ||
| Nintendo Direct | Nintendo 3DS and Wii games | Japan, North America, Europe, Australia | ||
| Nintendo Direct | Nintendo 3DS and Super Mario 3D Land | South Korea | ||
| Nintendo Direct | Nintendo 3DS and Wii games | Japan, Europe, Australia | ||
| Nintendo Direct Pre E3 2012 | Wii U built-in software | Japan, North America, Europe, Australia | ||
| Nintendo Direct | Nintendo 3DS XL reveal Nintendo 3DS and Wii games | Japan, North America, Europe, Australia | ||
| Nintendo Direct Mini | ' | Japan | ||
| Nintendo Direct | Dragon Quest X | Japan | ||
| Nintendo Direct | Nintendo 3DS and Wii games | Japan | ||
| Nintendo Direct Mini | Brain Age: Concentration Training | Japan | ||
| Wii U Direct | Wii U games | Japan, North America, Europe, Australia | ||
| Nintendo Direct Mini | New Super Mario Bros. 2 | Japan | ||
| Nintendo Direct Mini | New Super Mario Bros. 2 | North America, Europe, Australia | ||
| Nintendo Direct Mini | Nintendo 3DS XL & Nintendo eShop | Japan | ||
| Nintendo Direct | Nintendo 3DS games | Europe, Australia | ||
| Nintendo Direct | ' | Japan | ||
| Nintendo Direct | Nintendo 3DS games | Japan, North America | ||
| Nintendo Direct | Nintendo 3DS games | South Korea | ||
| Wii U Direct | Wii U, system apps and games | Japan, North America, Europe, Australia | ||
| Wii U Direct | Wii U interface and Miiverse | Japan, North America | ||
| Nintendo Direct Mini | New Super Mario Bros. 2 | Japan, North America, Europe, Australia | ||
| Nintendo Direct | Wii U and Nintendo 3DS games | Japan, North America, Europe, Australia | ||
| Wii U Direct | Niconico | Japan | ||
| Nintendo Direct Mini | Dragon Quest X | Japan | ||
| Pokémon X and Y | Japan, North America, Europe, Australia | |||
| Wii U Direct | Wii U games, Miiverse and Virtual Console | Japan, North America, Europe, Australia | ||
| Nintendo Direct | Animal Crossing: New Leaf | South Korea | ||
| Nintendo Direct | Animal Crossing: New Leaf | Japan | ||
| Nintendo 3DS Direct | Year of Luigi and Nintendo 3DS games | Japan, North America, Europe, Australia | ||
| Nintendo 3DS Direct | Nintendo 3DS games | Japan | ||
| Nintendo Direct Mini | ' | Japan | ||
| Nintendo Direct Mini | Flipnote Studio 3D | Japan, North America, Europe, Australia | ||
| Nintendo Direct Mini | Nintendo 3DS games | Japan | ||
| Nintendo Direct | Tomodachi Collection: New Life | Japan | ||
| Nintendo Direct | Year of Luigi and Nintendo 3DS games | Japan, North America, Europe, Australia | ||
| Nintendo Direct | Wii U and Nintendo 3DS games | Japan, North America, Europe, Australia | ||
| Nintendo Direct | Monster Hunter 4 ' | Japan | ||
| Nintendo Direct @ E3 2013 | Wii U and Nintendo 3DS games | Japan, North America, Europe, Australia, South Korea | ||
| Nintendo Direct | Pikmin 3 | Japan | ||
| Nintendo Direct Mini | Nintendo 3DS and Wii U games | Japan | ||
| Nintendo Direct Mini | Nintendo 3DS and Wii U games | North America, Europe, Australia | ||
| Nintendo Direct | Wii U and Nintendo 3DS games | Japan, North America, Europe, Australia | ||
| Nintendo Direct | The Wonderful 101 | Japan, North America, Europe, Australia | ||
| Pokémon X and Y | Japan, North America, Europe, Australia | |||
| Nintendo Direct | Monster Hunter 4 | Japan | ||
| Nintendo Direct | Wii Fit U | Japan, North America, Europe, Australia | ||
| Nintendo Direct | Wii U and Nintendo 3DS games | Japan, North America, Europe, Australia | ||
| Nintendo Direct | Pokémon X and Y Monster Hunter 4 | South Korea | ||
| Nintendo Direct Mini | Daigasso! Band Brothers P | Japan | ||
| Nintendo Direct | Monster Hunter 4 | South Korea | ||
| Nintendo Direct | Nintendo 3DS and Wii U games | North America, Europe, Australia | ||
| Nintendo Direct Mini | Nintendo 3DS and Wii U Download software | Japan | ||
| Nintendo Direct | Nintendo 3DS Guide: Louvre District | Japan, North America, Europe, Australia | ||
| Nintendo Direct | Wii U and Nintendo 3DS games | Japan, North America, Europe, Australia | ||
| Nintendo Direct | Nintendo 3DS games | South Korea | ||
| Nintendo Direct | Wii U and Nintendo 3DS games | Japan, North America, Europe, Australia | ||
| Super Smash Bros. for Nintendo 3DS and Wii U | Japan, North America, Europe, Australia | |||
| Nintendo Direct | Tomodachi Life | North America, Europe, Australia | ||
| Nintendo Direct | Mario Kart 8 | Japan, North America, Europe, Australia | ||
| Nintendo Direct | Tomodachi Life | South Korea | ||
| Nintendo Digital Event @ E3 2014 | Wii U and Nintendo 3DS games | Japan, North America, Europe, Australia, South Korea | ||
| Nintendo Direct | Yo-kai Watch 2 | Japan | ||
| Nintendo 3DS Direct | Nintendo 3DS games | Japan | ||
| Nintendo Direct | Hyrule Warriors | Japan, North America, Europe, Australia | ||
| Nintendo 3DS Direct | Nintendo 3DS games | Japan | ||
| Nintendo Direct | Bayonetta 2 | Japan, North America, Europe, Australia | ||
| Nintendo 3DS Direct | New Nintendo 3DS | Australia | ||
| Nintendo Direct | Monster Hunter 4G | Japan | ||
| Super Smash Bros. for Wii U | Japan, North America, Europe, Australia | |||
| Nintendo Direct | Wii U and Nintendo 3DS games | Japan, North America, Europe, Australia | ||
| Nintendo Direct | New Nintendo 3DS reveal Wii U and Nintendo 3DS games | Japan, North America, Europe, Australia | ||
| Nintendo Direct | Xenoblade Chronicles X | Japan | ||
| Nintendo Direct | New Nintendo 3DS reveal and 3DS games | South Korea | ||
| Nintendo Direct | Wii U and Nintendo 3DS games | Japan, North America, Europe, Australia | ||
| Nintendo Direct | Xenoblade Chronicles X | North America | ||
| Nintendo Direct | Splatoon | Japan, North America, Europe, Australia | ||
| Nintendo Direct | Wii U and Nintendo 3DS games | Japan | ||
| Nintendo Direct Micro | Nintendo 3DS games | North America | ||
| Super Smash Bros. for Nintendo 3DS and Wii U DLC | Japan, North America, Europe, Australia, South Korea | |||
| Nintendo Digital Event @ E3 2015 | Wii U and Nintendo 3DS games | Japan, North America, Europe, Australia, South Korea | ||
| Nintendo Direct | Wii U and Nintendo 3DS games | Japan, North America, Europe, Australia | ||
| Super Smash Bros. for Nintendo 3DS and Wii U DLC | Japan, North America, Europe, Australia, South Korea | |||
| Pokémon Sun and Moon and 20th anniversary | Japan, North America, Europe, Australia, South Korea, Hong Kong, Taiwan | |||
| Nintendo Direct | Wii U and Nintendo 3DS games | Japan, North America, Europe, Australia | ||
| Nintendo Direct | Culdcept Revolt | Japan | ||
| Nintendo Direct | Culdcept Revolt | Japan | ||
| Nintendo 3DS Direct | Nintendo 3DS games | Japan, North America, Europe, Australia | ||
| Nintendo Direct | Monster Hunter XX | Japan | ||
| Nintendo Direct | Animal Crossing: New Leaf - Welcome amiibo | Japan, North America, Europe, Australia | ||
| Nintendo Direct | Miitopia | Japan | ||
| Nintendo Switch hardware and software | Japan, North America, Europe, Australia, Hong Kong | |||
| Fire Emblem games | Japan, North America, Europe, Australia | |||
| Fire Emblem games | Hong Kong, Taiwan | |||
| Indie games for the Nintendo Switch | North America, Europe | |||
| Nintendo Direct | Nintendo Switch and Nintendo 3DS games, with a focus on Arms and Splatoon 2 | Japan, North America, Europe, Australia | ||
| Fire Emblem Heroes | Japan | |||
| Nintendo Direct | Arms | Japan, North America, Europe, Australia | ||
| Pokkén Tournament DX Pokémon Ultra Sun and Ultra Moon Pokémon Gold and Silver | Japan, North America, Europe, Australia, Hong Kong | |||
| Nintendo Spotlight: E3 2017 | Nintendo Switch and Nintendo 3DS games | Japan, North America, Europe, Australia, Hong Kong | ||
| Nintendo Direct | Dragon Quest XI | Japan | ||
| Nintendo Direct | Splatoon 2 | Japan, North America, Europe, Australia | ||
| Fire Emblem Heroes | Japan, North America, Europe | |||
| Indie games for the Nintendo Switch | North America | |||
| Fire Emblem Heroes | Japan, North America, Europe | |||
| Nintendo Direct | Nintendo Switch and Nintendo 3DS games, with a focus on Xenoblade Chronicles 2 and Super Mario Odyssey | Japan, North America, Europe, Australia | ||
| Nintendo Direct | ' | Japan, North America, Europe, Australia | ||
| Nintendo Direct | Xenoblade Chronicles 2 | Japan, North America, Europe, Australia | ||
| Fire Emblem Heroes | Japan, North America, Europe | |||
| Nintendo Direct Mini | Spring-Summer 2018 Nintendo Switch games | Japan, North America, Europe, Australia | ||
| Fire Emblem Heroes | Japan, North America, Europe | |||
| Nintendo Direct | Nintendo Switch and Nintendo 3DS games, with a focus on Mario Tennis Aces | Japan, North America, Europe, Australia | ||
| Indie games for the Nintendo Switch | North America, Europe | |||
| Fire Emblem Heroes | Japan, North America, Europe | |||
| Indie games for the Nintendo Switch | Japan | |||
| Nintendo Direct: E3 2018 | Nintendo Switch games, with a focus on Super Smash Bros. Ultimate | Japan, North America, Europe, Australia, South Korea, Hong Kong, Taiwan | ||
| Fire Emblem Heroes | Japan, North America, Europe | |||
| Super Smash Bros. Ultimate | Japan, North America, Europe, Australia, South Korea, Hong Kong, Taiwan | |||
| Fire Emblem Heroes | Japan, North America, Europe | |||
| Indie games for the Nintendo Switch | Europe | |||
| Indie games for the Nintendo Switch | North America | |||
| Dragalia Lost | Japan, North America | |||
| Nintendo Direct | Nintendo Switch and Nintendo 3DS games | Japan, North America, Europe, Australia | ||
| Super Smash Bros. Ultimate | Japan, North America, Europe, Australia, South Korea, Hong Kong, Taiwan | |||
| Fire Emblem Heroes | Japan, North America, Europe | |||
| Indie games for the Nintendo Switch | Japan | |||
| Indie games for the Nintendo Switch | Europe | |||
| Fire Emblem Heroes | Japan, North America, Europe | |||
| Nintendo Direct | Nintendo Switch games, with a focus on ' | Japan, North America, Europe, Australia | ||
| Pokémon Sword and Shield | Japan, North America, Europe, Australia, South Korea, Hong Kong | |||
| Indie games for the Nintendo Switch | North America | |||
| Dragalia Lost | Japan, North America, Europe | |||
| Fire Emblem Heroes | Japan, North America, Europe | |||
| Super Smash Bros. Ultimate DLC | Japan, North America, Europe, Australia, South Korea, Hong Kong, Taiwan | |||
| Nintendo Direct | Super Mario Maker 2 | Japan, North America, Europe, Australia | ||
| Indie games for the Nintendo Switch | Japan | |||
| Pokémon Sword and Shield | Japan, North America, Europe, Australia, South Korea, Hong Kong | |||
| Fire Emblem Heroes | Japan, North America, Europe | |||
| Nintendo Direct: E3 2019 | Nintendo Switch games | Japan, North America, Europe, Australia, South Korea, Hong Kong, Taiwan | ||
| Super Smash Bros. Ultimate DLC | Japan, North America, Europe, Australia, South Korea, Hong Kong, Taiwan | |||
| Fire Emblem Heroes | Japan, North America, Europe | |||
| Indie games for the Nintendo Switch | North America, Europe | |||
| Nintendo Direct | Nintendo Switch games, with a focus on Luigi's Mansion 3 and Pokémon Sword and Shield | Japan, North America, Europe, Australia | ||
| Super Smash Bros. Ultimate DLC | Japan, North America, Europe, Australia, South Korea, Hong Kong, Taiwan | |||
| Dragalia Lost | Japan, North America, Europe | |||
| Fire Emblem Heroes | Japan, North America, Europe | |||
| Super Smash Bros. Ultimate DLC | Japan, North America, Europe, Australia, South Korea, Hong Kong, Taiwan | |||
| Fire Emblem Heroes | Japan, North America, Europe | |||
| Indie games for the Nintendo Switch | Japan, North America, Europe | |||
| Dragalia Lost | Japan, North America, Europe | |||
| ', Pokémon Sword and Shield DLC Expansion Pass | Japan, North America, Europe, Australia, South Korea, Hong Kong | |||
| Super Smash Bros. Ultimate DLC | Japan, North America, Europe, Australia, South Korea, Hong Kong, Taiwan | |||
| Fire Emblem Heroes | Japan, North America, Europe | |||
| Animal Crossing: New Horizons Direct | ' | Japan, North America, Europe, Australia | ||
| Indie games for the Nintendo Switch | North America, Europe | |||
| Dragalia Lost | Japan, North America, Europe | |||
| Nintendo Direct Mini | Nintendo Switch games releasing in 2020 | Japan, North America, Europe, Australia | ||
| Fire Emblem Heroes | Japan, North America, Europe | |||
| Fire Emblem Heroes | Japan, North America, Europe | |||
| Fire Emblem Heroes | Japan, North America, Europe | |||
| Pokémon Café Mix, New Pokémon Snap, Pokémon Sword and Shield DLC Expansion Pass - Part 1: The Isle of Armor | Japan, North America, Europe, Australia, South Korea, Hong Kong | |||
| Super Smash Bros. Ultimate DLC | Japan, North America, Europe, Australia, South Korea, Hong Kong, Taiwan | |||
| Pokémon Unite | Japan, North America, Europe, Australia, South Korea, Hong Kong | |||
| Nintendo Direct Mini: Partner Showcase | Nintendo Switch games from Nintendo's development & publishing partners | Japan, North America, Europe | ||
| Fire Emblem Heroes | Japan, North America, Europe |