When the Wii U GamePad was revealed way back in 2011, plenty joked about testing the range from the system to their bathroom. With the Nintendo Switch that's a thing of the past, with the portable aspect of the system ensuring that it can be played anytime and anywhere. Nintendo's decided that's a selling point it can't miss in its advertising.
A new official trailer for Mario Kart 8 Deluxe shows totally rad and rebellious students playing the game wherever they darn please. A lecture hall, a living room and, yep, that place.
It's nice to see Nintendo with a bit of humour around its Switch promotions, we reckon. After all, it's a joke that many people will make (and in some cases already have in parody videos) so the company might as well join in.
Do you like this ad, or would you rather it just got flushed away?
Comments 123
This alone is why the switch will succeed. It will become a must-have for nerds!
Yeah the first seven seconds of the ad are... yeah...
This is actually the number one feature 🤣
It's interesting how there aren't any kids featured in these Switch advertisements, it seems like they want to get the point across that it isn't just for kids. I definitely agree with that.
I'm honestly surprised Nintendo Life would use that subtitle. It is pretty funny for you.
Well played, Nintendo Life.
I loved it! Glad to see Nintendo putting out quality advertising. My only gripe is that so far I've only seen the videos on this website. Will be much better when I catch them on my TV.
@pAq "number two" ... get it?
Nintendo. You had one job. And that was to market the Switch well.
What the heck.
Like I said on Twitter, take a dump while dumping on someone! 😉
Good to see Nintendo has a sense of humour.
Take the p... out of itself.
Luckily they weren't playing 1, 2 Switch!
Feel that HD Rumble...oh wait.
I could see myself accidentally dropping a joy on down the toilet, or heck, the whole system! I think I'll steer clear of switching in the bathroom.
And you thought dropping your phone in the toilet was bad. I wonder if the warranty covers....all those kinds of problems.
I guess you'd get the classic, 'Buy a new system.'
Hahahaha.... :laugh:
I told ya !
Playing Switch inside toilet is also fun. XD
Taking care of business AND playing video games! XD
Edit: ...That tagline....can be read in more than one context.
Any word as to whether or not 8+-player "LAN" will be possible in TV Mode?
...Lol, Mario Kart's not the only place you'll find "Skid Marks"...
The best thing about portable gaming tbh.
I've done this several times with my Wii U... but the console itself does need to be in the room next to the toilet, and it does depend on the wall construction... brick starts to cause problems at around 5m, but timber can go further.
This comment section just proves Nintendo can't do anything right. Folks are always quick to take a dump on them. It takes the p*** right out of me!
(I'll see myself out myself out now. )
Who...does...Number Two...work for?!!!
@AirElephant Evacuation Complete
@Sir_JBizzle I could watch your pic forever.
What a crappy commercial; who plays Mario Kart in class?!
@Phin68 This ad is getting a whole lot of press from plenty of gaming/tech/news sites. I'd say the marketing is going fantastic.
How are you meant to game in the toilet?
I can only imagine getting 10 or 15 seconds into my game &by then I'm ready to wipe myself.
So really not long enough on the john to really worth bringing in my switch.
Oh Nintendo you know me so well.
My GBA got plenty of bathroom action.
It's only appropriate that I had to log in before commenting.
@nacho_chicken From what kind of gaming sites exactly? Nintendo -based gaming news sites, or broader ones like IGN and Gamespot? Because if it's the former, of course it would get positive rep. Ninty fans are very forgiving.
Bwahahahaha!!! I love it!
My WiiU gamepad is probably the filthiest thing in my house...besides me.
Apparently this isn't a first. Stolen from a Nintendo Everything post by Exy:
What a load of crap puns.
What is more disturbing to me are those students who should be paying attention to their professor instead of playing video games. Bad example Nintendo!
I told you people, the poo thing is the best feature this console has. LOL!!
I like that ad because it shows you exactly what Nintendo thinks makes the console special....snaps fingers Switch!!!
I'm cool with the toilet thing but it was poorly timed. It should've been the last clip, not the 1st. That's poor comedic timing. Otherwise, good commercial? 🤔
Decent I guess, though I haven't seen a single ad on tv. Will ninty market switch themed "sanitary wipes" for this scenario as well?
@Senpai_Bruh nobody dumb butt It's showing what the console can do with a touch of humor. Lighten your load
@Senpai_Bruh "What a crappy commercial; who plays Mario Kart in class?!"
To be fair, playing it (a full console version) in class wasn't possible before the Switch.
@Phin68 Just off of immediate Google results for "nintendo switch toilet", CNET, Eurogamer, GameSpot, TechCrunch, Business Insider UK all covered this ad. All super-positive.
Hahahahhahaha!!!!!!!!! Yes!
I love this approach actually. Everyone poops so they're appealing to everyone. Playing games while on the toilet is something a lot of gamers probably do but no one talks about. Nintendo is here to show us it's normal and okay to do.
Too funny. Also sad but true.
@nacho_chicken Ah. Well, there ya go.
oh well...
"Don't use this guy's Joy-Cons"
good point!, XD
That's why you never handle another man's Joycons
@WiiUxSnes Ummm...what? Could you not tell that I was joking? I said "crappy" because, you know why, and I said "who plays Mario Kart in class!?" because I was making it look like that was the problem of the commercial.
Surprised no one caught on with my joke.
@Lizuka Yeah, close enough.
The tricky part for me playing in the toilet is where to rest it when standing up to do what needs to be done.My phone I can rest next to my sink but the Switch will be too big for there.I wouldn't want to lay it down on the tiled floor and run the risk of being forgotten about then stood on,my cistern is curved and slippy so it would be a huge risk putting it on there.I'm pretty low on options for Switch resting places in my little bathroom.Maybe Hori will come up with a solution
Every time you docked the Switch to the TV, there should be a 'Wash your hands before playing' warning shown on the screen.
It's "Number Two" feature... I see what you did there.
@Qun_Mang
I knew about this one before it was cool. I am now automatically special.
Am I the only person on the planet who doesn't bring anything to the bathroom? Does nobody else in this universe focus on nothing else but their anal muscles when you need to take a crap?
The entire world needs to be entertained while they do everything!
@SH007ME Awesome!
@Senpai_Bruh Hey I'm New Here And I'm Just Joking Lol But I Thought I Would Try To Get Someone Riled up. Other than that I'm here on a good note 😂😃
@iGen For some people,it's one of the few places they get any real time alone.A quick crap can turn into a 15 minute pan sit ,a little respite from the chaos of family life outside that bathroom door.With a Switch in hand,now you have the perfect excuse for that extended toilet break.
"Jimmy,what are you doing in the toilet?"
"Give me 5 minutes,I'm in the middle of a Splatfest"
The European ads so far have been pretty good. Will be interesting to see the American ads...
Oh my goodness what's the range on the local lan? Hold on guys I gotta crap would just mean waiting til they got on the toilet not till they were done!
@OorWullie
TMI 😏
@Handy_Man The Switch is extremely child unfriendly. A child would easily lose the $50 USD joy cons to the Switch in tablettop mode and/or in the dock mode if you don't have a stand alone controller.
It's ok
Great to see they are sticking with the adult gamer as target audience. The problem with having kids as your target audience was that most kids grow up in a home that has an Xbox or playstation and the parents are more likely to just buy age appropriate games for the system they already have rather than buy a whole other system for their kids.
So what IS the target demographic again?? I'm confused who they are trying to sell to in this commercial!?! Ive not seen a child anywhere near their ads, it looks like they are aiming at young adults and student types..... In which case where are they showing these adverts as I haven't seen anything actually bon TV at all.
@OorWullie
just install a small shelf next to the toilet roll holder
I feel like Nintendo is giving the right message about this console, yeah i said the right one! I mean, look at this marketing push and think about what they did with Wii U, it's not even close! I'm so happy about this console and how Nintendo is working with it!
Now they just need to spend some money and put the ad on TV. It's no good sticking them on Youtube where us the hardcore will see them. Plaster the Switch ads all over TV like the competition do. Nintendo are notoriously stingy and bad when it comes to do this though.
I honestly thought that this ad was a joke until I realised that some of the footage could not have been faked by laymen... and that between-the-legs shot followed by almost-nudity...I mean, holy crap Nintendo.
A pic as old as the internet, this one. Not even gonna lie: when I go to the bathroom for, er, long breaks, I either take my notebook with me, my mobile, or, most often, my 3DS. That or any combination of the three. (Even my Wii U gamepad at times, for some off-TV gameplay - thankfully the signal somehow still works there!) So yeah, I'll gladly play Mario Kart at any time. Nintendo knows.
@ollyander @OorWullie
@Tingle_The_Great "Switching in the bathroom"? That sounds weird...
@Qun_Mang you laugh but during my first year in halls of residence with en-suite bathrooms I used to do just this! I'd wheel my TV unit around and just sit and play Metroid on the can.
@Kawaiipikachu I can easily spend 20 minutes on the khazi, reading a book, on my phone, playing 3DS. Does tend to lead to a major case of pins and needles in my legs when I get up, but it's all good.
...And yes, I am sitting on the toilet while I write this.
More or less what i do with my 3DS at work
We've all joked about it, but every Switch owner will do this!
I never understood the playing games or doing anything on the toilet thing, then again I never understood why some people spend so much time on the can. For me it takes 20 seconds max to take a and another 20 seconds or so to wipe my butt. Also haven't spent a day without doing No. 2 in years.
@Kawaiipikachu I see we share a similar inquiry.
Need to "switch" that toilet paper lol
I mean, who didn't see this coming?
@Gauchorino Yes. This was shown in the Switch Reveal at the Splatoon Tournament. I expect Super Bomberman R will reveal more about how it works for that game.
@Handy_Man It's not that is isn't for kids, its that kids dont know what nintendo is, any kid aged 10 and under. It is also quite likely that kids 10-15 would be wound up in playstation and not want Nintendo because "its for little kids" or "its graphically poo - and Wii u = wii poo"...
Their marketing strategy is to get young adults and 30 somethings who grew up on nintendo to get their own kids into it. Follow that up with theme parks and movies again, and you have a new generation of nintendo kids. Kids want to do whatever mum and dad are doing on the weekend, if its family gaming on a switch, then kids will want their own.
Very good marketing. Going at kdis right off the bat would fail, they have no brand recognition for nintendo, they need to build that first.
This is marketing 101, brand recognition & KNOW YOUR DEMOGRAPHIC.
The next stage will be for nintendo to gain the install abse they need, and then they need to hit the teenage and tweens demographic with the more serious games. These will come once the install abse is high enough for the AAA producers to bring their AAA game to the switch. Initially though that isnt the market Nintendo needs because that amrket is saturated by PS4 and XBONE. In time, Nintendo will get a shoe in there too though.
@OorWullie this is what the kick stand is for
It's funny to see how few people get the pun in the title
@cfgk24 Thought that was just conceptual and didn't realise it had been officially confirmed (yet). Thanks for the tip!
@buffaloballet They could be students on a video game design course. I know I had a couple of moments like this in my first and second years of Uni. Though by then, the lecture was over and we had free time to work on coursework or just hang out.
@The-Chosen-one #83
OMG! You're completely right!
A great advert!
I'm getting the feeling that the marketing campaign is going to avoid any casual games! Which also makes me believe that games like 1-2 without a bundle tie in, will die a death shortly after launch.
(With many opting not to buy 1-2 due to its casual nature, and the lack of marketing push from Nintendo)
@G-Boy
"Taking a Switch" or "Switch happens" just wouldn't fly, I guess.
Off topic, but argos are taking pre-orders still for the 3rd and they are actually going straight to back order! I order neon at the beginning of the week thinking 'great, secured for release' but when text alerts came through confirming the games and not the console got suspicious! Anyway if anyone sees this just be aware!
Great advert Nintendo !! Just ignore all the PC brigade and the Health and Safety stormtroopers, they try to suck all the fun out of everything.
http://gonintendo.com/system/file_uploads/uploads/000/022/109/original/tumblr_inline_okf82kLMDv1rmjx4g_500.jpg
Nintendo has it covered. Nintendo themed wet wipes.
@AirElephant Watch out - or you'll get locked up!
Never thought I'd see the day that Nintendo would show a dude on the crapper. The new age has dawned my friends.
I saw this and was like oh wow, did Nintendo really go there lol?
That's how I played Batman Arkham City:AE. Couldn't let it go so I switched to Gamepad only when away from the TV. Small apartment. Worked perfectly.
Hand your fried a joycon and share the joy of bathroom bacteria together LOL
Can do this in 2 bathrooms but not the 3rd.
Though why bother, as my gaming room was "designed" as a Master Bedroom it ended up becoming an en-suite Man Cave. Just open the door and the TV is present ahead.
Liked the advert; quickly shows the many multiplayer opportunities as well as the fact you can play mobile. Maybe though should have started with him playing on the TV and then realising nature calls; yet you can quickly "portabalise" the Switch.
It's all about your Toilet Discipline which is like Trigger Discipline but revolves around making sure you don't touch your tablet after you've touched your butt.
Fun until a joy con controller falls into oblivion! Anyways, they kind of need these funny commercials, but many people (the nintendo haters) will say that nintendo themselves are saying that it's Poop. Anyways, glad to see that they'll be advertising it, and they need a lot more commercials for it, but start showing off 3rd party games too, to keep them afloat. Super Bowl is coming up, and I'm hoping to see some nice Switch commercials during it...we all know PS4 and XBONE will be advertising during that time, so get people ready with the Switch nintendo!!!!
I wouldn't want to borrow his joy cons after that advert.
@WiiUxSnes Are you new here? Then, in that case, welcome! Also if that was your intention, nice job
@Senpai_Bruh I took my Wii U into school and played Mario Kart in Chemistry a few times.... Probably why I ended up with a D in my GCSE
I wonder if two Switches with two tvs between them also would connect wirelessly and allow for eight players locally.
Would be spectacular for tounaments.
Double-Dash!! hooked up multiple systems through LAN for up to 16 players to compete.
"Hey, when you gotta go, you gotta go"
To those saying how Nintendo aren't marketing the Switch at kids, this is EXACTLY what marketing at kids looks like (done well).
You convince them that the product puts them in the league of rad-college-dudes-with-attitude, whilst ultimately entertaining them with footage of a man doing a poo.
Kids want to simultaneously be told they're not kids, and that it's okay to laugh at poo jokes.
It's probably the most childish advert Nintendo has done in years, and yet the buzz in the YouTube comments is that it signifies a "new, grown-up Nintendo". In other words, job well done.
@Phin68 I'd change your examples a bit. Not that I don't agree with your point, but IGN is pretty much considered a lousy news site in general.
If I didn't know anything about the Switch and I saw this ad, I would easily interpret it as a portable console.
We may never do that, folks around this site, but your average casual viewer could totally see this as a portable based on this ad.
I do like the first part of the ad though, reminds me of the bolder years of Nintendo's marketing teams (i.e. N64 and GameCube).
@Nik-Davies You're a legend. Also my post was just a joke. I was making it sound like the college kids playing Mario Kart in class was the problem of the commercial (which it wasn't, it was obviously the guy on the toilet).
I'm just glad to see Nintendo, at least in the UK, continuing the marketing trend of edgy socialite young adults they debuted with in October. It's a far more poignant market than the young kids with their parents ads and middle schooler segment the WiiU seemed to target.
@gatorboi352 Yeah, this entirely focused on handheld aspects only. But I think that's kind of the point of switch. Not to sell EVERYBODY on the hybrid nature of it, but for it to be able to adapt it's image to EVERYBODY. That gives them leeway to send different marketing messages to different market segments. They want to target the usually out & about with friends college and high school with the systems portability and group play, target the parental gamers with fun in the living room, target the core gamer with the hybrid aspect.
I also imagine in Japan it will focus almost entirely on the handheld aspect, as well as in the UK where Nintendo's just never a serious contender for a home console. I imagine in NA and EU territories they will focus more on either the hybrid of home console aspects, where portables just don't have as much appeal as the console category.
Switch is like a politician. It changes its entire message depending on what group it's speaking to
@Maxz True on very many counts. OTOH, those "mommy and daddy and the 3 beautiful kids of perfect idealistic ages in the shag carpeted minimalist living room smiling and grinning in their sweater vests as they enjoy wholesome family time together." had to have been the most out of step Rockwellian advertising imagine they could have come up with. Even in 1955 the little twerp would have been sticking gum in his sister's hair
Still everything you say brings this chestnut to mind (hopefully I'm posting the image correctly):
I said it before. I'm not going to touch anyone's switch console.
We knew this is where most people are going to play it.
@NEStalgia well put.
To me, Switch is deliberately being marketed to Millenials and a little older, just trying to get it in living rooms and...wherever else so that the rest of the family (i.e., kids) will take interest. Should work but they're going for a slow burn that way.
Mwah, not that good. I rather have more gameplay, though I get they also have to promote the concept. Also, cheap rock-music. Yuck!
@LemonSlice "Also haven't spent a day without doing No. 2 in years."
Great health, congratulations!
Am I the only one the feels weirded out but this type of conversation topic everyone?!!
@AlexSora89 don't keep them in the bathroom all the time, the humidity!
One word: "EW!"
@LemonSlice It's the one place where, unless you have inconsiderate family members, where you won't be bothered. Sure, it takes you only a few seconds to actually use the bathroom. But no one is gonna really tell you to get out unless they really have to go.
As for the scene taking place in the classroom, I can say the closest I've ever done anything like that was secretly playing Pokemon Silver in my Advanced Algebra class back in high school. How I eventually got any work done, I couldn't tell you. But I was so obsessed with it, I wasn't gonna let a little ole thing like Algebra class stop me
@Decapre
they shoulda been the last 7 seconds so it was like a punchline instead of a key feature lol (though let's be serious, it IS a key feature lol)
@Savino time will tell!
@Meowpheel
I don't always bring any of those three with myself - often, not always.
Please do not play your Switch in a public or shared restroom. There are people waiting to use the facilities.
Seriously, we've gotta GO.
Disgusting
@NEStalgia
That image is pure perfection distilled into a mix-and-match table and I will physically fight anyone who dares to say otherwise.
First thing that came to mind...
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VMOiwA0yytc
@CircuitWrangler3 Mario kart 7 is just as full of a version as a console one. Lots of 3ds games are imo console games.
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