Nintendo is planning to create a movie in a bid to further boost its business.
The Japan-based video game maker, which currently makes the Nintendo 3DS hand-held machine and the Nintendo Wii U home console, is mulling filmmaking as one of its investments down the road as soon as it sells its stake in MLB team Seattle Mariners.
AP reports that Nintendo's spokesman Makoto Wakae recently said that, while details are still undecided at the moment, the company will soon push out a movie release, either a theater or DVD release.
It's no secret that, in the past, Nintendo has already licensed its game characters, such as in Pokemon movies. Now, it wants to produce its very own film content, though it does not want to become a full-fledged film studio.
AP cites a report from Asahi, a Japanese daily newspaper, saying that the company might be considering a 3D animation for its upcoming movie. It likewise said that Nintendo is currently in discussions with quite a few movie firms on a possible partnership.
Wakae told AP that Nintendo will soon announce more details in regard to the company's plan to make a film, along with more information on the Seattle Mariners sale.
Tatsumi Kimishima, Nintendo's President, confirmed to Asahi that it is in talks with many production companies on the expansion of its video content business, particularly in making movies.
"We're talking with various partners," Kimishima told Asahi, as posted by Reuters. "I think we'll be able to decide something in not-too-distant future."
So, when will the company make its official announcement on its future projects? Kimishima declined to disclose a specific date to the Japanese daily. However, it also said that it would not be as far off as five years.
This move from Nintendo is viewed as part of the company's effort in diversifying its operations to respond to its sagging game console business. The company logged a $216 million loss in the first quarter of 2016. This figure is way bigger than what the company reported in the same quarter of 2015. During the fiscal year that ended March 31, the company managed to earn $148 million, down 61 percent as compared with how much it racked up from the earlier fiscal year.
At any rate, if the plan turns out well, movies like The Legend of Zelda and Mario Kart might soon be hitting theaters in different parts of the globe.
