Topic: What is it with Nintendo and Islands?

If you notice, most of Nintendo's recent and upcoming games, for Wii U and 3DS, involve the characters exploring through islands.

Mario & Luigi: Dream Team- the game takes place on Pi'illo Island
The Legend of Zelda: The Wind Waker HD- an HD remake of a game about a flooded, oceanic Hyrule with many islands
Super Mario 3D World- Mario and friends explore through at least seven island worlds in the Sprixies' dimensional kingdom
Donkey Kong Country: Tropical Freeze- After being banished from their home, Donkey Kong, Diddy Kong, and Dixie Kong must explore through five islands to get back to Donkey Kong Island
Mario Party: Island Tour- Mario and friends play on different game boards that are located on different islands
Yoshi's New Island- the title says it all

I just find this funny. Will Zelda U and Yarn Yoshi involve islands as well? Islands have always been common places in Nintendo games, but lately it seems to be a major theme.

I loves islands, I wants to live on one.

In the end we're all living on islands...

Nintendo is secretly hinting to us that they're gonna buy an island and call it Nintendo Land!

Well, Nintendo is in Japan, which is an island, well actually it's like four or five islands, but whatever.

all gta games have been on islands as well.

They were going to set all them games under the sea,but they though islands would be better

Looks like a fitting thread for what I just posted on MiiVerse

AHHHH! this is the life... Nothing beats just chillin' out at my island hideaway... I am the MASTER... Doing it like a boss

islands provide a quick way to be able to toss existing characters into a radically new setting.

If you think about it, it's more than just islands, it's also new planets, new countries, new cities to explore. sometimes it's easier to create new territory to delve into instead of twisting existing territory into something that will provide a fresh experience for the player.

Islands also provide with a sensitive way to limit the movements of the player in many games, they are easy to decorate and design and the Japanese simply love islands because they live in one surrounded by many others... It's part of their culture.

I'd say it's for three reasons (two technical, one cultural):

1. For the cultural one, Japan is an island country. So I guess they're designing what they know, island regions where most of the population lives in a couple of large cities rather than spread out over tons of landmasses.

2. For the technical... islands provide a nice way to limit the player from going out of bounds and having to render more than one 'world' at a time. Like how in many games with such a setting, you don't have to explain why the player can't visit neighbouring regions or try and limit them with artificial crap like mountain barriers and impassable desert sandstorms. You can just say 'here's the explorable land and here's the ocean, stay on the former'.

3. Also technical, island works are easier to design. Why? Because you don't need to figure out how the areas are connected together. You just make a whole bunch of completely seperate 'areas' with themes and stick 'em in a vague ocean landscape.

Everyplace on Earth that's land is an island. There is no size limit to an island. I think that the reason that Nintendo likes islands is because of coconuts. I like coconuts, Mario likes coconuts, Luigi doesn't like coconuts and that's why he went insane from the sea water and is afraid of everything.

Multiply that by like 100, and you're right on.

Japan=Island
Nintendo=Japan
Setting for Nintendo games? The region they are in (island)
If you look at a lot of western developers they use big massive locals that aren't islands, but appear to be part of a major continent for example mainland Europe or USA.

i own an island, i dont see the big problem

Everyone knows Ninty's fascination lies not with islands, but with giant, bulbous eyeballs.

Nintendo is in japan
which is an island
which is several islands
then the rivers make like 10 islands
if you make a moat in a sandbox thats like 3 more islands
and humans are self contained ecosystems for microbes
so thats another planet
which has like 40 islands
and all the atoms
are like islands
so
whats an island
?

Can't forget Kirby Mass Attack's Popopo Islands!

delfino island is, in fact an island too

Nintendo's developers are great storytellers. Islands are wistful, sometimes mysterious places that can evolve as worlds of their own. So it's a natural setting for a story.