Nintendo Space World

Nintendo World, formerly called Nintendo Space World, Nintendo 64 Space World, Super Famicom Space World, Famicom Space World, and Shoshinkai (初心会), is a video game trade show hosted by Nintendo. First held in 1989, it is typified by the unveiling of new consoles or handhelds. Unlike most other video game trade events, Nintendo World is not held annually or at any other set interval; Nintendo usually makes a decision to hold the show or not by mid-July. It has historically always taken place inside Japan, in either Nintendo's headquartered city of Kyoto, or at the Makuhari Messe Convention Center near Tokyo.

Nintendo Power issue #79 of December 1995 explains: "Q: What is Famicom Space World? A: Space World is a free show for the public that follows the one day Shoshinkai. Gamers who wish to attend need only pick up an entry pass at any official Nintendo retail location in Japan."^[1]:13

Notable events

The 1995 Shoshinkai show featured a short test of the Nintendo 64 console, along with the public unveiling of games in two of Nintendo's most familiar series: Super Mario 64; and a video of Zelda 64, the working title for The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time. Super Mario 64 was near completion and was soon due for release. The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time would not see release for another three years, due to delays of both in-game development and of the 64DD hardware. The 1996 show was located at Makuhari Messe Convention Center near Tokyo from November 22-24, bearing the first appearance of the 64DD. The system was shown in its own display booth with the hardware specifications having been finalized, according to Nintendo of America's Chairman Howard Lincoln. The system played a conversion of the Super Mario 64 cartridge game onto a 64DD disk in order to demonstrate the storage device, and it demonstrated functionality that later became released in Mario Artist: Talent Studio and the Capture Cassette, by rendering audience members' photographed faces onto 3D avatars and shapes. N64.com described the presentation of Zelda 64 as "very quick shots on videotape".^[2][3] The 1997 show featured a very early prototype of Pokémon Gold and Silver^[4] featuring two starting Pokémon who don't appear in the final game, and an early Chikorita. The game would not be completed until 1999, by which point it would have largely changed. During the Space World of 2000, a compilation trailer of Nintendo licenses running on GameCube hardware was displayed. Some games revealed then were Super Smash Bros. Melee, Luigi's Mansion, Metroid Prime, Meowth's Party, Mario Kart: Double Dash!!, Kameo: Elements of Power, Jimmy Neutron: Boy Genius, Batman: Vengeance, and the technology demonstrations called Super Mario 128 and The Legend of Zelda 128.^[5]

The last Space World consumer event occurred in 2001, featuring the then recently released GameCube and Game Boy Advance. A short clip of Super Mario Sunshine was shown in early form.

Some speculated another Space World consumer event would be held in 2005 for the formal unveiling of Nintendo's next console, Revolution (the development name for the Wii). This speculation was incorrect as Nintendo chose to fully reveal at E3 2006, the details of the system which would be renamed to "Wii". However, they did hold an event called Nintendo World 2006 that showcased the Wii and Nintendo DS.

Nintendo later held an event called Nintendo World 2011 in Tokyo from the 8th to the 10th of January 2011. The company gave the specific details on the Japanese launch of the Nintendo 3DS at this exhibition.^[6]

The systems that have been unveiled at the show series that is now called Nintendo World are Nintendo GameCube, Game Boy Advance, Nintendo 64, Nintendo 64DD, and Nintendo 3DS.

References