Esports event
Nintendo World Championships
|
---|
![](//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/thumb/2/2d/Nintendo_World_Championships_logo%2C_2017.png/220px-Nintendo_World_Championships_logo%2C_2017.png) |
Genre
| Esports
|
---|
Location(s)
| Nationwide
|
---|
Country
| United States
|
---|
Inaugurated
| March 8, 1990
; 34 years ago
(
1990-03-08
)
|
---|
Most recent
| October 7, 2017
; 6 years ago
(
2017-10-07
)
[1]
|
---|
Organized by
| Nintendo of America
|
---|
Website
| nwc
.nintendo
.com
|
---|
The
Nintendo World Championships
(
NWC
) is a nationwide
video game competition
series, organized by
Nintendo of America
at no particular interval.
The first Nintendo World Championships was in 1990, touring 29 American cities, being hosted in Los Angeles, CA twice. The NWC was conceived by Steve Grossman and Jay Coleman, principals at EMCI, Nintendo's marketing agency. The event won numerous marketing awards and was sponsored by
Pepsi
,
Reebok
, and
Nabisco
. It was based on a custom
Nintendo Entertainment System Game Pak
, which would historically become one of the most
rare and valuable
NES
cartridges
. The NWC is considered one of the first ever
esports
event.
[
citation needed
]
In 2014, Nintendo released
NES Remix 2
, featuring the reminiscent
Nintendo World Championships Remix
, which uses emulation and online
leaderboards
for amateur global competition. On June 15, 2015, the second Nintendo World Championships took place for its 25th anniversary as part of Nintendo's
E3 2015
coverage. The third Nintendo World Championships was on October 7, 2017.
A video game themed around the event, titled
Nintendo World Championships: NES Edition
, is set to be released on the
Nintendo Switch
on July 18, 2024.
[2]
1990
[
edit
]
Preceding the Nintendo World Championships, the
Nintendo Challenge Championship
(
NCC
) was in Canada in 1989 and 1990, coinciding with Nintendo's 100th anniversary. This was Nintendo's first annual nationwide video game competition series.
[3]
Nintendo assumed full distribution and marketing from its partners and rebranded its competitions as the Nintendo World Championships.
The Nintendo World Championships began March 8?11, 1990,
[4]
[5]
in the
Fair Park
's Automobile Building in
Dallas
,
Texas
, and toured 29 cities across the United States.
[6]
Players from three separate age groups (11 and below, 12?17, and 18 and above) competed across three days. The top two scorers then competed for the title of City Champion. The finalists won a trophy,
US$250
, and a trip for two to the World Finals at
Universal Studios Hollywood
in
Los Angeles
,
California
. The runners-up won a
Power Pad
and a
Game Boy
.
The World Finals were held December 7?9, 1990,
[7]
[8]
[9]
conducted similarly to the City Championships and were located at Universal Studios Hollywood in Los Angeles, California within the
Star Trek
Theater, now
DreamWorks Theatre
. There, contestants played a special
Nintendo World Championships 1990
cartridge for the Nintendo Entertainment System.
The cartridge contains three customized minigames based upon the popular games
Super Mario Bros.
(1985),
Rad Racer
(1987), and
Tetris
(1989). The objective is to achieve a high score according to a custom cumulative scoring formula across all games, within a total time limit of 6 minutes and 21 seconds.
[10]
Three 1990 World Champion titles were given. Jeff Hansen won in the under-11 category,
Thor Aackerlund
won in the 12?17 category, and Robert Whiteman won in the 18+ category.
[11]
[12]
There was no official competition round to crown a single winner. However, after the competition ended there was an informal face-off between the three winners, with Thor Aackerlund taking first place, Jeff Hansen taking second, and Robert Whiteman finishing third. The top winner in each age category was awarded a
$10,000
U.S.
savings bond
, a 1990
Geo Metro
Convertible, a 40"
rear-projection television
, and a golden
Mario
trophy. Runners up in each age category received a $1,000 U.S. savings bond and a silver Mario trophy.
[
citation needed
]
Immediately after winning the NWC, Thor Aackerlund became the official video game spokesperson for
Camerica Corporation
, a direct competitor to Nintendo. Jeff Hansen later became the United States representative to Japan to win the World Championships title in Tokyo, Japan, and again in Las Vegas at a rematch with the Japanese champion, Yuichi Suyama.
Nintendo sponsored similar competitions including the
Nintendo Campus Challenge
in 1991 and 1992,
Nintendo PowerFest '94
, and revived the Nintendo World Championships in 2015.
Cartridge
[
edit
]
The competition was based on the NES
cartridge
titled
Nintendo World Championships 1990
. It is unknown how many gray cartridges were made, and the highest numbered as of September 2020
[update]
is #353.
[
citation needed
]
Copies of the gray cartridge were given to the ninety finalists after the championships concluded. Another twenty-six gold copies are known to exist, similar to the gold cartridge design of
The Legend of Zelda
, which were given as prizes in a separate contest by
Nintendo Power
magazine.
[13]
[14]
Both versions have an exposed bank of
DIP switches
to set the amount of time the player has to complete the three games, shorter and longer than the 6 minutes 21 seconds used in the actual competition.
The
Nintendo World Championships 1990
Game Pak
is considered to be the most
valuable
NES cartridge ever released, and one of the rarest. Collectors have paid six-digit prices for a single copy.
[15]
[16]
[17]
[18]
[19]
[20]
[21]
[22]
[23]
2015
[
edit
]
Narcissa Wright
played
Super Mario Maker
, during the final of Nintendo World Championships 2015.
On May 13, 2015, Nintendo announced the return of Nintendo World Championships for the 25th anniversary of the original event, as part of the company's
E3 2015
coverage.
[24]
Qualifying competitions began on May 30, 2015, in eight
Best Buy
locations across the United States.
[25]
At each location, contestants competed for the high score in a custom mode of
Ultimate NES Remix
.
[26]
[27]
[28]
[29]
The winners from each of these eight locations, plus eight players invited by Nintendo (six
speedrunners
and two celebrity contestants), became the contestants for the live event.
[30]
The competition used an
elimination tournament
format with a
repechage
bracket named the Underground, with a wide history of Nintendo's game library. The live video of the final event was streamed online from Los Angeles on June 14, 2015; commentators included Audrey Drake of Nintendo Treehouse and competitive
Pokemon
VGC commentator Justin Flynn.
[31]
An edited exclusive one hour television special aired on
Disney XD
later on in the year, featuring retrospective interviews with many contestants and a shortened overview of the competition.
[32]
[33]
Notable competitors who failed to make it to the finale included
Trihex
,
Arin Hanson
, and
The Mexican Runner
.
The last contest consisted of custom levels within the then unreleased
Super Mario Maker
on Wii U, played by the two finalists: professional
Smash Bros.
player
John Numbers
, the qualifying player from
New York City
; and professional
speedrunner
Narcissa Wright
. In the first two levels, the players were alternately blindfolded while the other played. The player who completed the levels the fastest would receive a 5-second advantage in the final level. In the final level, they raced simultaneously to the end, where Numbers won the championship title.
Gamesradar
said Numbers demonstrated "impulsive mastery" of the
Super Mario Maker
levels which were "hellish", "sadistic", "evil", and "truly weird".
[34]
Shigeru Miyamoto
made a surprise appearance to present a trophy to the winner, and an autographed
New Nintendo 3DS XL
system to each of the two finalists.
[35]
[36]
2017
[
edit
]
On August 8, 2017, Nintendo of America announced the return of the Nintendo World Championships. Qualifying rounds took place from August 19, 2017, through September 10, 2017, at selected
Best Buy
locations across eight cities in the United States. John Numbers, the returning champion of 2015, was one of the 13-and-older qualifiers.
[37]
Eight invited competitors were slated in advance to compete against the sixteen qualifiers, including
Bayley
and
Asa Butterfield
.
The main event was held at the
Manhattan Center
's Grand Ballroom on October 7, 2017, and was streamed via
YouTube
and
Twitch
, and simulcast on
Disney XD
's "D|XP" block. As in 2015, it used an
elimination tournament
format including the returning Underground
repechage
bracket, showcasing select gameplay modes and levels from recent and retro games.
The overall winner was Thomas Gonda (Thomas G.), who defeated the 2015 champion John Numbers.
[38]
Reception
[
edit
]
![[icon]](//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/1/1c/Wiki_letter_w_cropped.svg/20px-Wiki_letter_w_cropped.svg.png) | This section
needs expansion
with: reception of the overall 1990 groundbreaking event itself. You can help by
adding to it
.
(
June 2015
)
|
In 2015,
Gamesradar
said the
Super Mario Maker
levels were "hellish", "sadistic", "evil", and "truly weird", summarizing: "The
Super Mario Maker
climax ended Nintendo's championships on a pitch-perfect retro note."
[34]
Contestant Joshua Ovenshire of
Smosh Games
said that the Nintendo World Championships should be "a staple at every E3 ... I was a part of Nintendo history. That's where the magic is at."
[39]
In 2017, the Underground was noted to be generally more forgiving than 2015, as multiple contestants had the opportunity to advance.
[
citation needed
]
See also
[
edit
]
References
[
edit
]
- ^
"The Nintendo World Championships are returning this October"
. Nintendo. August 8, 2017. Archived from
the original
on February 5, 2018
. Retrieved
August 8,
2017
.
- ^
Brian (May 8, 2024).
"Nintendo World Championships: NES Edition officially revealed"
.
Nintendo Everything
. Retrieved
May 8,
2024
.
- ^
"The Nintendo Challenge Championship!"
(PDF)
.
Nintendo Power Flash
. No. 5. Canada. 1989. p. 15.
- ^
"The Story of the First Nintendo World Championships - IGN"
.
IGN
. May 13, 2015
. Retrieved
November 9,
2015
.
- ^
"The Nintendo World Championships '90"
.
AtariHQ
. 1997
. Retrieved
March 8,
2016
.
- ^
"NWC Contestant Information - Flickr - Photo Sharing!"
.
Flickr
. November 18, 2008
. Retrieved
April 19,
2016
.
- ^
"The quest for the golden Nintendo game - Ars Technica"
.
Ars Technica
. September 12, 2011
. Retrieved
November 9,
2015
.
- ^
"Nintendo's Powerfest '90 Is The Video Game Olympics - tribunedigital-chicagotribune"
.
Chicago Tribune
. December 7, 1990
. Retrieved
March 8,
2016
.
- ^
"The Azure Heights Forum: Nintendo World Championships 1990"
.
Miami.edu
. December 7, 2000
. Retrieved
March 8,
2016
.
- ^
"Nintendo World Championships 1990 for NES"
. MobyGames.com. September 16, 2005
. Retrieved
July 4,
2009
.
- ^
"Scan of official contestant information flyer"
. Bob Whiteman. October 18, 2008
. Retrieved
October 4,
2011
.
- ^
McFerran, Damien (December 24, 2018).
"Feature: The Real Wizard: A Nintendo World Champion's Tale"
.
Nintendo Life
. Retrieved
September 22,
2020
.
- ^
"Nintendo World Championships 1990"
. AtariHQ.com
. Retrieved
July 7,
2009
.
- ^
Theobald, Phil (March 7, 2009).
"Playing with Power"
. PlayerOnePodcast.com
. Retrieved
July 4,
2009
.
- ^
Digital Press Mini Rarity Guide
. Messiah Entertainment. 2005.
- ^
"Holy Grails of Console Game Collecting, Part 2"
.
Racketboy
. October 6, 2006
. Retrieved
August 30,
2022
.
- ^
"The Holy Grails of Console Gaming - The Rarest, Most Valuable, and Desirable Games Ever"
. RetroGaming. 2006. Archived from
the original
on September 1, 2009
. Retrieved
July 4,
2009
.
- ^
"Nintendo World Championships 1990"
. Uncrate.com. Archived from
the original
on July 10, 2009
. Retrieved
July 4,
2009
.
- ^
Hendricks, JJ (June 23, 2009).
"How I Got Nintendo World Championships Gold"
. Price Charting
. Retrieved
July 27,
2020
.
- ^
"The quest for the golden Nintendo game"
. Arstechnica.com. September 12, 2011
. Retrieved
September 12,
2011
.
- ^
"The $15,000 NES Cart"
. Edge-Online.com. May 1, 2008. Archived from
the original
on September 5, 2012
. Retrieved
July 4,
2009
.
- ^
"NINTENDO WORLD CHAMPIONSHIPS NWC 1990 Cartridge"
. ebay.com. December 11, 2009. Archived from
the original
on January 22, 2013
. Retrieved
December 17,
2009
.
- ^
Pitcher, Jenna (February 5, 2014).
"Nintendo World Championships cartridge sells for $100K on eBay"
.
Polygon
. Retrieved
August 23,
2022
.
- ^
"Nintendo World Championships headline Nintendo's expanded lineup at E3 2015"
. Nintendo. May 13, 2015. Archived from
the original
on July 5, 2015
. Retrieved
June 16,
2015
.
- ^
"Nintendo World Championships Headline Nintendo's Expanded Lineup at E3 2015"
.
MarketWatch
.
- ^
"The Nintendo World Championships 2015 Dream ? Part 1: Fernando Terracuso"
.
n4g.com
. Retrieved
August 22,
2022
.
- ^
"The Nintendo World Championships 2015 Dream ? Part 2: Mick Synodis"
.
n4g.com
. Retrieved
August 22,
2022
.
- ^
"The Nintendo World Championships 2015 Dream ? Part 3: Jordan DeMarco"
.
n4g.com
. Retrieved
August 22,
2022
.
- ^
Sheets, Connor (June 13, 2015).
"Alabama man to compete at Nintendo World Championships"
.
AL.com
. Retrieved
August 22,
2022
.
- ^
Nintendo World Championships - Announcing More Details!
. Nintendo. June 9, 2015.
Archived
from the original on December 21, 2021
. Retrieved
June 16,
2015
.
- ^
Nintendo World Championships 2015
. Nintendo. June 14, 2015.
Archived
from the original on December 21, 2021
. Retrieved
June 15,
2015
.
- ^
"Nintendo World Championships 2015 - [Disney XD] - video Dailymotion"
.
Dailymotion
. September 21, 2015
. Retrieved
August 22,
2022
.
- ^
Ferguson, Andrew; McFadyen, Scot.
"Nintendo World Championships 2015"
(Game-Show). Banger Films
. Retrieved
August 22,
2022
.
- ^
a
b
Kietzmann, Ludwig (June 14, 2015).
"Nintendo World Championships conclude with hellish Super Mario gauntlet"
. Gamesradar
. Retrieved
June 16,
2015
.
- ^
Osborn, Alex (June 15, 2015).
"Nintendo World Championships 2015 Winner is John Numbers"
. IGN
. Retrieved
June 15,
2015
.
- ^
Leone, Matt (June 14, 2015).
"John Numbers wins Nintendo World Championships 2015"
.
Polygon
. Retrieved
June 15,
2015
.
- ^
"Nintendo World Championships 2017 ? Official Site"
. Nintendo. October 7, 2017.
Archived
from the original on October 7, 2017
. Retrieved
October 12,
2017
.
- ^
"Congratulations to Thomas G., your #NWC2017 champion! ??"
.
Twitter
. Retrieved
October 7,
2017
.
- ^
Kollar, Philip (June 15, 2015).
"Nintendo World Championships was the best E3 kick-off we could have hoped for"
. Polygon
. Retrieved
June 15,
2015
.
External links
[
edit
]
|
---|
Presidents
| Nintendo Co., Ltd.
| |
---|
Nintendo of America
| |
---|
|
---|
People
| |
---|
Products
| |
---|
Services
| |
---|
Software divisions
| |
---|
Publications
| |
---|
Events
| |
---|
Locations
| Operating
| |
---|
Defunct
| |
---|
Upcoming
| |
---|
|
---|
Related
| |
---|
Esports
and competitive video gaming
|
---|
|
Fighting
| |
---|
MOBA
| |
---|
Real-time strategy
| |
---|
Shooter
| |
---|
Sports
| |
---|
Other genres
| |
---|
Multi-genre
| |
---|
Governing bodies
| |
---|
Defunct organizations
| |
---|
Years
| |
---|
|