Summary
- Nintendo has a history of releasing games exclusively in Japan, leaving some iconic titles, like Kuru Kuru Kururin, unreleased in North America.
- Some highly anticipated games, such as Pokemon Mystery Dungeon: Adventure Team, remained Japan-exclusive despite advancements in gameplay.
- Classic Nintendo games like Super Mario Bros.: The Lost Levels and The Mysterious Murasame Castle were unreleased in the West.
Nintendo has been one of the biggest video game conglomerates since the mid-80s, when they innovated home console technology with the Famicom, released outside Japan as the Nintendo Entertainment System. As the years have gone on, they've continued to be one of the leading giants in the entire video game industry, as evidenced by the recent release of the highly anticipated Nintendo Switch 2.
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However, given Nintendo's origins in Japan, there are a lot of titles, especially early on in the company's history, that have never been released in North America. Some games got localized enough for European markets, while others have remained lost to history. These are the best Nintendo games that missed North America, although a select few of them have since debuted in Virtual Console re-releases.
Kuru Kuru Kururin
A Strange Puzzle Franchise From Nintendo
Kuru Kuru Kururin
- Released
- March 21, 2001
WHERE TO PLAY
- Publisher(s)
- Nintendo
- Genre(s)
- Puzzle
- Platform(s)
- Nintendo Game Boy Advance, Nintendo Switch
Kuru Kuru Kururin was released on the Game Boy Advance exclusively in Japan in 2001, and was quite an eclectic first-party title that sadly never caught on overseas. In the game, players control a propeller-shaped helicopter known as the Helirin and must move through a series of mazes in each level without touching the walls, which get harder as the Helirin grows in size in each difficulty level.
It was a simple and easily lovable game for puzzle fans, enough to get a Game Boy Advance sequel as well as a threequel on GameCube, both of which also never made it over to the States. The one Western acknowledgement of Kuru Kuru Kururin, however, was in Super Smash Bros. Brawl, where the Helirin appears as an assist trophy that acts as a new platform on stage when it is summoned.
Pokemon Mystery Dungeon: Adventure Team
Mystery Dungeon's 3D Debut Is Buried With The Wii
|
Released |
2009-08-04 |
|---|---|
|
Genre(s) |
Roguelike |
|
Platform(s) |
Nintendo Wii |
|
Publisher(s) |
The Pokemon Company |
Of all the Pokemon spin-off franchises, Pokemon Mystery Dungeon is perhaps the one that has the biggest life of its own. After debuting on the Game Boy Advance and Nintendo DS simultaneously in 2005, the roguelike franchise continued well into the late 2000s, when the trio comprising Pokemon Mystery Dungeon: Adventure Team released as a WiiWare exclusive in 2009.
The Adventure Team trio was a big step forward in the roguelike franchise, fully transitioning the series to 3D graphics for the first time (with models resembling the likes of Pokemon Rumble and My Pokemon Farm). Sadly, because they were never made available in North America, and because WiiWare has been discontinued as a service, Pokemon fans can only play this title through non-official means.
Animal Forest
Animal Crossing's Humble Yet Familiar Beginnings
|
Released |
2001-04-14 |
|---|---|
|
Genre(s) |
Social simulation |
|
Platform(s) |
Nintendo 64 |
|
Publisher(s) |
Nintendo |
Most fans of Animal Crossing were introduced to the series with its supposed first installment, Animal Crossing, for the GameCube. However, not many people know that this was not the original version of the soon-to-be-iconic life simulation series from Nintendo. It actually began as Dōbutsu no Mori on the Nintendo 64, which was released earlier the same year as its GameCube counterpart.
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Although both versions of the game are identical, Dōbutsu no Mori, a.k.a. Animal Forest, the stalled release in the West until the GameCube version was due to Nintendo's own reservations with a game like this translating well for Western audiences, given how dialogue-heavy it is. By the time Animal Crossing: New Horizons was released on Switch in 2020, Nintendo had no hesitation about its success.
Captain Rainbow
A Superhero For Obscure Nintendo Icons
Captain Rainbow
- Released
- August 28, 2008
- Developer(s)
- Skip Ltd.
- Publisher(s)
- Nintendo
- Genre(s)
- Action-Adventure
- Platform(s)
- Nintendo Wii
Captain Rainbow has a very odd place in Nintendo's history. The Japan-exclusive Wii game combines the leisurely life simulation of Animal Crossing with high-octane action as players swap between ordinary Nick and his superhero alter ego, Captain Rainbow, whose interactions are all with lesser-known characters from Nintendo games, including Devil from Devil World, Lip from Panel de Pon, and Birdo from Mario.
Although the game got good reviews despite some criticizing its "vulgar" humor, Captain Rainbow never saw a Western release, and it was probably for the best. A game whose entire identity is centered around incredibly obscure, oftentimes non-Western-released classic Nintendo titles would probably be too weird for most American audiences. It's the kind of obscure game that's fun but only works well in Japan.
Sim City 64
If Only America Got The Nintendo 64DD
|
Released |
2000-02-23 |
|---|---|
|
Genre(s) |
Simulation |
|
Platform(s) |
Nintendo 64DD |
|
Publisher(s) |
Nintendo |
The Nintendo 64DD was an add-on to the Nintendo 64 that never saw a release outside of Japan, but allowed for some more technically advanced games to be released on the console. One of the most memorable releases for the 64DD was Sim City 64, the city-building franchise's introduction to 3D graphics that also introduced many quality-of-life changes to the series.
Among those quality-of-life changes were the ability to view the city at night, differentiation between people and vehicles, and the ability to import custom graphics from another 64DD release, Mario Artist: Paint Studio. Maybe it's not so surprising that Sim City 64 took a backseat at Nintendo, given that its developer, HAL Laboratory, was developing the next year's Super Smash Bros. Melee.
Fire Emblem: Genealogy Of The Holy War
A Franchise Gem That Deserves More Love
Fire Emblem: Genealogy Of The Holy War
- Released
- May 14, 1996
- Developer(s)
- Intelligent Systems
Even though the Super Smash Bros. Franchise has made Marth the most iconic character from the Fire Emblem franchise, it's surprising that the character has rarely ever appeared in Western releases of the strategy RPG series. While the very first Fire Emblem game saw a release in 2020 via Nintendo Switch Online, Fire Emblem: Genealogy of the Holy War for the Super Famicom never came out in the West.
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Especially compared to the more recent Fire Emblem games post-Awakening, Genealogy of the Holy War thrives on its simplicity while, at the time, still feeling like a fresh take on the strategy RPG genre. It even incorporates explorable hub bases that wouldn't return to the series until Fire Emblem Fates for the 3DS. If any other Fire Emblem game deserves the Fire Emblem Echoes treatment, it's this classic.
Freshly-Picked Tingle's Rosy Rupeeland
The Wannabe Fairy From Termina Got His Own Spin-Off
Freshly-Picked Tingle's Rosy Rupeeland
- Released
- September 2, 2006
- Platform(s)
- Nintendo DS
Tingle is weird. The supporting character from the Nintendo 64's Majora's Mask became somewhat iconic in the Zelda universe, reappearing in The Wind Waker and drawing divisive reactions from fans. Tingle's current status in Zelda is pretty dormant, but for a brief moment in the mid-2000s, he was popular enough to have his own spin-off game.
Freshly-Picked Tingle's Rosy Rupeeland (quite a mouthful, that name) was a Japan-exclusive DS game where players, controlling Tingle, must slowly build a tower by spending Rupees, which are gotten from adventuring in dungeons and bartering with civilians for items that players found. It's a fresh and interesting spin on the classic Zelda formula, even if Nintendo wisely decided to spare the states from more Tingle.
Super Mario Bros.: The Lost Levels
What If The Original NES Game Was Evil?
Super Mario Bros.: The Lost Levels
- Released
- August 2, 1993
WHERE TO PLAY
- Publisher(s)
- Nintendo
- Genre(s)
- Platformer
- Platform(s)
- Nintendo Entertainment System, SNES, Wii
For Western audiences, Super Mario Bros. 2 was an eclectic side-scrolling adaptation of Japan's Doki Doki Panic. However, Japan got their sequel only a year after the NES' original release, known in the West as Super Mario Bros.: The Lost Levels. Not only is this sequel utilizing the same engine as the original Super Mario Bros., but it's also significantly harder in a way that startled execs at Nintendo.
Among The Lost Levels' ways of frustrating gamers included Poison Mushrooms, warp zones that send players backward, not forward, and other hair-tearing obstacles that make a difficult game even more impossible. However, it did influence the future of Mario by introducing Luigi having the quirk of longer jumps than Mario, which has remained a constant in future games in the series.
The Mysterious Murasame Castle
America Deserved To Grow Up With This Soundtrack
The Mysterious Murasame Castle
- Released
- April 14, 1986
- Developer(s)
- Nintendo, Human Entertainment
- Publisher(s)
- Nintendo
- Platform(s)
- Nintendo Entertainment System, Nintendo Game Boy Advance
This Famicom title debuted the same year as iconic franchises like Metroid, The Legend of Zelda, and Kid Icarus, but for whatever reason, never got a Western release for the NES. Players control Takamaru, a novice samurai, who scales four towers in pursuit of powerful gems and defeats an evil entity. Gameplay is not dissimilar to the original Zelda, with a top-down perspective and various weapon types.
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The game had never made its debut outside of Japan until it was made available on the 3DS Virtual Console in 2014, and has since appeared on the Nintendo Switch Online service. It's worth a try for those who love classic Nintendo games on the NES, and Takamaru has even appeared as an Assist Trophy in Super Smash Bros. For Wii U & 3DS, with some hoping one day he could even be a playable fighter.
Mother 3
The One That Got Away For Many Nintendo Fans
Mother 3
- Released
- April 20, 2006
- Developer(s)
- HAL Laboratory, Brownie Brown
- Publisher(s)
- Nintendo
- Genre(s)
- RPG
- Platform(s)
- Nintendo Game Boy Advance
Earthbound was not a commercial success for the SNES, but it's become one of the most influential JRPGs in video game history, garnering a cult following. Sadly, this franchise's devoted fanbase has not been able to move the needle on Nintendo porting the Game Boy Advance sequel, Mother 3, to the West. Not even its protagonist, Lucas, being in Smash has been able to increase its popularity for Nintendo to try.
Obviously, the biggest obstacle to porting Mother 3 is the lack of an official English translation, though it remains pretty taunting for it to be currently available on Nintendo Switch Online for Japan only and not America. Maybe one day Nintendo will decide to let a new generation of fans fall in love with the Mother franchise, but until now, fans will only have emulators to get to experience this eclectic RPG.
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