Nintendo wished heavily memed image of Mario didn't exist

[Coloroscopio]

Back in 2016, Nintendo tried to build some hype for the then-upcoming reveal of the Nintendo Switch, but things didn’t go exactly as planned. A tweet featuring Mario, peeking ominously from behind a curtain, was intended as a playful teaser. Instead, it sparked confusion and discomfort among fans, who quickly turned the image into a meme.

 

 

What Nintendo had hoped would generate excitement ended up drawing backlash—both from fans and within the company itself.

 

 

Former Nintendo employees Kit Ellis and Krysta Yang recently opened up about the incident on their podcast, shedding light on what went wrong.

 

 

According to Yang, the image was thrown together at the last minute due to a lack of prepared assets for the announcement. With no better option available, a quick photoshoot was staged with someone in a Mario costume creeping behind a curtain, but the results didn’t sit well internally or externally.

 

Yang revealed that the tweet sparked some “upset” within Nintendo, as it gave fans too much room to speculate. For a company that prefers to carefully manage expectations around big reveals, the vague imagery was seen as problematic. It was “too much in the zone of speculation,” she explained, noting that the teasing nature of the image was not considered appropriate for a major console announcement.

 

Ellis added that such high-profile announcements require more preparation than many realize. The lack of assets meant the social media team scrambled to create something visually engaging—leading to the now-infamous Mario photo. “Nobody wants to put out a tweet that has no image,” Ellis said, pointing out that the team had limited options at the time.

 

 

Moving forward, Ellis and Yang noted that Nintendo has taken steps to avoid similar mishaps. The company is now more focused on having the right assets in place for major announcements to manage fan expectations more effectively and prevent unintended speculation from getting out of hand.

 

• https://kotaku.com/switch-2-creepy-mario-curtain-image-teaser-nintendo-1851673306 
• https://www.ign.com/articles/dont-expect-super-creepy-mario-to-hide-behind-a-curtain-again-for-the-nintendo-switch-2-reveal 
• https://gamerant.com/former-nintendo-employees-reflect-controversial-switch-teaser/ 

 

Image: Nintendo of America