It’s no secret that people of all ages love Nintendo products — consoles, games, franchises, you name it. You’re probably just as likely to see a grown adult man wearing a Mario costume on Halloween as you are a 3-year-old. The sheer number of Switch consoles sold since the launch suggests it can’t possibly just be children playing those games, not to mention the mountain of content about games like The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild made by and for adults. And yet, when it comes time to critique a Nintendo game like the recently released Echoes of Wisdom, that age-old argument often comes to the fore: “The game is for kids, after all.”
In my experience, this statement is most often used to shut down criticism that’s perhaps too specific or complain-y, like my take that Zelda’s smoothies in Echoes of Wisdom evoke diet culture. The assumption that Nintendo games are for kids is in itself flawed, and I don’t think it tracks with what game creators and consumers say they value. Also, why wouldn’t we care about the smallest details in a game that our children will play? (It’s also a strawman argument, and maybe a bit of a hasty generalization, too, if logical fallacies are your thing.)
This common generalization about Nintendo games harkens back to the lazy and untrue perception that many American audiences hold: Anything animated is designed exclusively for children. But at least that opinion has fallen out of favor in American discourse alongside the rise in popularity of anime in the U.S. and animated shows expressly for adults, like BoJack Horseman and Archer.
71% of Americans play video games, and most of them are 45 years old or older
But that correction hasn’t reached gaming just yet. To this day, most gaming-related headlines in mainstream publications focus on the threats and/or benefits of gaming on developing minds. It’s only in the last decade or so that legacy media companies whose readership is decidedly adult, like The New York Times and The Washington Post, have launched fleshed-out gaming sections (although these sections haven’t always stuck around). More than a handful of times, when I’ve told a stranger about my job as a games journalist, they’ve responded by telling me whether they let their children play video games or not. It’s important to note that none of this reflects the reality — Circana reported on Tuesday that 71% of Americans play video games, and most of them are 45 years old or older.
When it comes to Nintendo, some of this perception is valid. In comparison to the average Sony- or Microsoft-published game, any given Nintendo-published game is more likely to also be appropriate for children, and Nintendo’s marketing is filled with bright colors, chibi characters, and simple writing. Most first-party or Nintendo-exclusive games are rated E for everyone (Mario vs. Donkey Kong), E10+ for everyone 10 years old and up (Echoes of Wisdom), or T for teen (Xenoblade Chronicles 3). M-rated titles, like Emio – The Smiling Man and the Bayonetta franchise, are rare.
But the fact is, nothing about Nintendo’s marketing actually states that its games are aimed specifically toward kids or even young adults. When I asked Nintendo who its games are really intended for, this was the company’s response: “Our hope is that our games bring joy to as many people as possible, regardless of age, culture or gaming experience.”
Further, just because Nintendo’s games are appropriate for children doesn’t mean they’re inappropriate for adults — nor that they’re easy. The “this game is for kids” argument has also been used (by myself and others) to detract from a player’s expertise. I’ve certainly touted my own successes in Mario Kart 8 or Tears of the Kingdom, only to follow up my gloating with something like, “Congrats to me; I can beat a game made for children.” My apologies to my past self. It isn’t that I think either of those games are necessarily difficult. It’s that a game being perceived as easy doesn’t mean it’s for children — and that difficulty is an entirely subjective concept that occasionally veers into ableism. (We see this in other parts of life, too — the so-called “easy” walking trail in a park is often the only wheelchair-accessible one. Why not just call it “accessible” and leave it up to the hikers to determine whether it’s easy for them or not?)
Regardless of how it’s used, this argument is a great way to delegitimize a certain sector of games — a sector that’s often dominated by players who aren’t adult men. Maybe that’s in part because the Nintendo Switch has been so successful that it’s become mainstream — it’s referenced in the chorus of Sabrina Carpenter’s “Espresso,” for instance. Its handheld nature makes it accessible to a wider audience, too, and it’s affordable compared to a gaming PC.
The Switch has vastly outsold both PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X despite that it’s significantly less powerful than both of those machines. Circana’s report also reflects that most of the adults who game are women, and has previously reported that most Switch owners are women. And when a new demographic starts taking ownership of something that previously felt like an exclusive club, those unwilling to share the space attack the way that those newcomers engage. Particularly for women who play games, this often looks like labeling their preferred consoles and games as frivolous, casual, and unserious — like alleging that Nintendo and its games are just for kids.
Whether it’s Animal Crossing: New Horizons, The Legend of Zelda: Echoes of Wisdom, or Mario & Luigi: Brothership, Nintendo ultimately has confirmed that its games are truly intended for everyone, but perhaps more importantly, they’re for anyone. Further, if Nintendo was only for kids, wouldn’t all of us who grew up with it have moved on by now?
