To commemorate the start of the mainline Super Mario series in 1985, Nintendo plans to unleash new material as well as remaster some of its original games.
The 35th Anniversary reveal was due to take place at E3 2020, but the event’s cancellation means Nintendo are looking at a digital showcase instead.
As Super Mario nears the ripe middle-age of 35, Nintendo plans to celebrate with several new releases and remastered back-catalogue games for Switch.
Following Mario Kart 8 Deluxe, the company intends to release multiple other Super Mario titles this year. Expect a new instalment in the Paper Mario series and a Deluxe version of 2013’s Super Mario 3D World.
Rumours are swirling that Super Mario 64, Super Mario Galaxy, and Super Mario Sunshine will also be brought to Nintendo Switch.
One flagship licensing deal has been approved for a special interactive Lego Mario set where players can engage in real-life levels, collect coins, and defeat their enemies.
Nintendo is also partnered with Universal Films, with an animated Super Mario movie and a Super Nintendo World theme park in the works. The gaming giant recently also collaborated with clothing brands Uniqlo and Levis for Nintendo-themed clothing lines.
Shigeru Miyamoto, the director of Nintendo, said the company was seeing success from collaborations, with its audience broadening outside of the gaming sphere.
“We want to expand our video game characters to a variety of settings – not just in games, all while keeping their value,” Miyamoto said.
“In other words, we’ll be collaborating with various other companies. If we’re able to accomplish that, we can create more opportunities for people to make contact with our characters on a much larger scale than usual.”
The new and remastered game releases aim to boost the success of the Switch, which has sold over 50 million units.
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