The Nintendo Controversy Iceberg EXPLAINED

Summary

The video presents an iceberg chart of Nintendo-related controversies, moving from familiar complaints to obscure incidents. It covers Nintendo’s business practices and controversies involving its games, fans, and broader gaming culture. The narrator’s tone is humorous and often profane; some entries are presented as rumors, disputed claims, or jokes rather than established facts.

Business Practices and Consumer Complaints

• Content released after launch: The video criticizes Nintendo for launching games with limited content and adding characters or major features later through updates. Examples include ARMS, Kirby Star Allies, Mario sports games, and Super Mario Maker 2.
• Prices and availability: It points to high prices for Mario Kart World, Donkey Kong Bananza, and a Switch calculator app; Nintendo’s tendency not to discount older games; and the limited-time sale of Super Mario 3D All-Stars. Super Mario Bros. 35 was also shut down, leaving it unplayable.
• Online and creator policies: Nintendo is criticized for taking down YouTube music uploads, its former Creator Program taking a share of video revenue, and its strong opposition to emulation—even for games Nintendo no longer sells.
• Hardware and game quality: The video discusses Joy-Con stick drift, complaints about Breath of the Wild weapon durability, Pokémon Sword and Shield’s graphics, and bugs in Pokémon Scarlet and Violet.
• Switch 2 costs: The narrator objects to the prices of the console’s games, accessories, and an optional instructional software title.

Game Design, Presentation, and Fan Backlash

• Mario Party: The original Mario Party’s Tug-of-War minigame reportedly caused blisters when players spun the stick with their palms, prompting lawsuits and Nintendo-issued gloves. Later versions warned players not to use their palms.
• Smash Bros.: Topics include Brawl’s random tripping mechanic, the absence of a story mode in Smash 4, and fan frustration over the number of Fire Emblem swordfighters—especially Byleth. The video also covers Waluigi’s unsuccessful fan campaign, a major Smash 4 roster leak, and the cancellation of the Big House Melee tournament after Nintendo objected to its emulator use.
• Other design complaints: Kid Icarus: Uprising is criticized for awkward controls, Wii Music for its reception, and Chibi-Robo! Zip Lash for abandoning what fans liked about the series. The video also notes disappointment with Switch Sports’ limited new character customization and the chibi art style of Pokémon Brilliant Diamond and Shining Pearl.
• Visuals and announcements: The narrator recalls backlash to The Wind Waker’s art style, an awkward Skyward Sword motion-control demo, and the underwhelming 2008 Nintendo E3 presentation. Metroid Prime: Federation Force was criticized for being a co-op spinoff rather than the mainline Samus game fans wanted.
• Voice and representation: The video covers the Super Mario Bros. Movie casting announcement, Samantha Kelly’s reported replacement as Princess Peach’s voice, and the dispute over Bayonetta 3 voice actor Helena Taylor’s pay claims. It also mentions the American censorship of a Fire Emblem: Awakening scene and dialogue, and the controversy over Xenoblade Chronicles X’s character-creator options being removed outside Japan.

Censorship, Stereotypes, and Sensitive Content

• Pokémon: The banned “Electric Soldier Porygon” episode caused seizures among viewers because of flashing imagery, leading to a hiatus and stricter broadcast rules. Other topics include the Lavender Town music urban legend, the redesign of Jynx, and the suggestive “Beauty and the Beach” episode.
• Cultural and regional depictions: The video criticizes the national stereotypes in Punch-Out!! and describes controversy over Mr. Game & Watch’s Native American-themed attack. It also recalls the backlash to Mario wearing a sombrero in Super Mario Odyssey marketing.
• Sexual content and censorship: Entries include Conker’s Bad Fur Day’s adult humor; suggestive content in Bayonetta and Xenoblade Chronicles 2; the removal of Fire Emblem Fates’ cheek-touching minigame outside Japan; and censorship of Mythra’s appearance in Smash Bros. The video also notes that Nintendo’s eShop has carried adult-oriented games despite the company’s family-friendly image.
• Relationships and identity: The video discusses changing descriptions of Birdo, the removal of same-sex relationships from the original Tomodachi Life—later allowed in subsequent games—and Miitopia receiving an adult rating in Russia for depicting same-sex relationships. The narrator also recounts online arguments about an Animal Crossing hairstyle and Nintendo’s response that in-game clothing and hairstyles are for everyone.
• Other content disputes: The video mentions the removal of a Kirby gun scene, a potentially offensive phrase in Mario Party 8 that led to a UK recall, and the removal of a gesture in Mario Kart 8 Deluxe that can be considered insulting in some places.

Legal Disputes, Fan Projects, and Internet Incidents

• Nintendo’s legal actions: The video recounts Universal’s lawsuit claiming Donkey Kong copied King Kong; Nintendo’s takedowns of a fan-made Metroid 2 remake and Pokémon Uranium; and its cease-and-desist against Super Mario Logan, which led the creator to change character names and designs.
• Nintendo and Sony: The video argues that Nintendo’s failed disc-drive partnership with Sony helped lead Sony to develop the PlayStation.
• Other legal or copyright stories: A lawsuit over a Paper Mario: The Thousand-Year Door commercial song was dropped after Nintendo showed it had licensed the track. The video also includes Night Trap, a Sega game whose controversy helped spur the creation of the ESRB rating system.
• Fan and tournament incidents: The video covers the “raw crab” thrown at Smash player Hungrybox after a tournament, a custom Etika-themed Joy-Con project that Nintendo reportedly stopped, and an alleged hacked “racist Gengar” at a Pokémon event—which the video itself says was not Nintendo’s doing.
• Rumors, memes, and oddities: Examples include the Animal Crossing “Walbert” hoax, a Mario 3D World bridge resembling a crude shape, a Biden-themed Animal Crossing island, and a lost, reportedly explicit Splatoon comic. Other entries include a satanic-panic claim about an Ashley song in WarioWare, an alleged hidden image in Mario Kart Arcade GP, and a Zelda dungeon shaped like a crude symbol.
• Real-world harm: The video mentions a Nintendogs barking mode being blamed for a dog attack, and the 2007 “Hold Your Wee for a Wii” radio contest, after which contestant Jennifer Strange died from water intoxication. Her family sued the station, and the court ruled in her husband’s favor.

Gamers, Creators, and Sources Featured

Named people and creators discussed or shown: NeesterHere; Charles Martinet; Helena Taylor; Jennifer Hale; Masahiro Sakurai; Reggie Fils-Aimé; Etika; Captain Alex; Hungrybox; Mango; Billy Mitchell; Scott the Woz; Dr. M64; Jax Films; Minus8; Super Mario Logan; Trey Parker; Matt Stone; and John Kirby.

Production credits:

• Writing, narration, and editing: NeesterHere
• Intro music: The NOBLE DEMON
• Self-insert art: Kaminra
• Artists: Puffy Azdoesstuff, Ezzieisntreal, Expl0w0sions, Therealnoahg3, sepzz, Devoramaii
• Footage and gameplay sources: BeardBear, BossRunner, The Game Archivist, Andrew The Arborist, Packattack04082, Gameplay Cache, Prosafia Gaming, Super Mario Logan, Nintendo of America, QP Games, Sakuyalzayoi24, Nintendo Movies Zone, Minus8, John GodGames, ModernXP, DarkMurkrow, LongPlaySonic, Beyond The Summit – Smash, Gamer’s Little Playground, Shirrako, PokeTips, ZackScottGames, YTSunny, DyllonStej Gaming, Sucking At Games, Scott The Woz, Game Archive – No Commentary Gameplay, NeesterGames, Beta Brawler, Paul Anderson, Scott’s Stash, NintenU, Longplay Studio 313, Carls493, Etika, ZXMany, Nintendo Utopia, Clyde Mandelin, QPGames, Fanum Gaming, Evolution, ZeldaSkywardSword, DashieGames, Undle, and Al VGBO.