A thread titled “Zelda’s 40th Anniversary — Is There Any Point to This?” went up on 5ch’s Hardware/Industry board (aka “Geha,” short for ゲームハード/game hardware), sparking a debate over Nintendo’s apparent plans for a Legend of Zelda 40th-anniversary push. The spark was a comparison to “Mario’s 40th,” which last year rolled out on a huge scale — a movie, a Nintendo Museum exhibit, a pro-baseball crossover, and more. Against the view that “anniversary campaigns for unpopular IPs are pointless,” other posters brought up counterexamples: the commemorative PS5 for PlayStation’s 30th anniversary (2024) and the Zelda-themed Game & Watch for Zelda’s 35th, both of which reportedly still have unsold new stock sitting around. As the thread went on, it drifted away from whether anniversary events matter at all and settled into a circular argument over one specific question: does an anniversary’s value depend entirely on how popular the IP is?
What people said
1AnonymousSep 7, 2026 11:54
I mean, 'Nishi-kun' [note: Geha board slang/mocking nickname for Nintendo fanboys] didn't participate in ANY of the Mario 40th stuff at all, did he?
'The Mario Movie,' 'Mario Galaxy 1+2,' 'Mario Tennis,' 'Mario Wonder for Switch 2,' 'Yoshi's Mysterious Picture Book,' 'Talking Flower,'
'Nintendo Museum,' 'T-shirts,' 'the pro baseball collab,' 'the Kyoto Marathon'
9AnonymousSep 7, 2026 12:01
Two years ago they put out the PS5 for the 'PlayStation 30th Anniversary Collection,' and after that came anniversary merch like 'the Bible,' 'the sacred idol,' 'the God's shoes' [sarcastic nicknames for PS-branded 30th-anniversary goods] — was there any point to that? It's all still sitting unsold, too.
13AnonymousSep 7, 2026 12:02
Re: #9 Nope, none. So I guess Zelda's anniversary is pointless too, then, yeah?
15AnonymousSep 7, 2026 12:04
Re: #13 Uh, comparing it to unpopular merch doesn't really prove anything lol
21AnonymousSep 7, 2026 12:07
Re: #13 Guess that means State of Play [Sony's PlayStation showcase event, commonly abbreviated 'StePure' in Japanese] is pointless too then lol
18AnonymousSep 7, 2026 12:05
I'm way too hyped for the Zelda Direct! Though I'm just a newbie who got in through Breath of the Wild ['BoTW' — commonly abbreviated 'Burewai' in Japanese].
20AnonymousSep 7, 2026 12:06
Re: #18 Most current fans probably got in through Breath of the Wild anyway.
26AnonymousSep 7, 2026 12:10
Re: #18 Honestly, it's fine to get into it anytime, from anywhere.
There's no such thing as 'newbie' or 'old-timer' about it.
It's fine if 'Breath of the Wild was fun' is as far as it goes for you.
It's also fine if Breath of the Wild gets you curious about the older games.
Live however you want — you're free.
19AnonymousSep 7, 2026 12:05
What does whether YOU personally participate have to do with whether they should do it or not?
24AnonymousSep 7, 2026 12:09
They can totally put out another Zelda Game & Watch [Nintendo's classic handheld toy line, periodically revived for anniversaries], I wouldn't complain.
39AnonymousSep 7, 2026 12:14
Re: #24 That Zelda Game & Watch from the 35th anniversary was a limited production run, and yet there's still brand-new stock left unsold…
25AnonymousSep 7, 2026 12:10
Zelda 40th Anniversary Direct (my prediction):
Intro — 3 min
Movie — 8 min
Universal Studios — 2 min
Twilight Princess — 4 min
Ocarina of Time — 10 min
Limited edition console — 1 min
New 2D title — 3 min
Releases 2027
31AnonymousSep 7, 2026 12:12
Re: #25 Doesn't it embarrass you, sitting there making up a whole fake rundown like this?
28AnonymousSep 7, 2026 12:11
Re: #15Re: #9 is the one who started the comparison in the first place.
40AnonymousSep 7, 2026 12:14
Re: #28 Huh? It's simple:
– Anniversary merch/events for a popular IP have value.
– Anniversary merch/events for an unpopular IP don't.
That's really all there is to it.
44AnonymousSep 7, 2026 12:15
Re: #40 So how much of the super-popular Mario anniversary merch did YOU buy? You went to the stadium for the pro-baseball collab too, right? Show me proof.
49AnonymousSep 7, 2026 12:17
Re: #44 Bought two of each.
55AnonymousSep 7, 2026 12:18
Re: #44 You're the self-proclaimed Mario fan here — YOU show proof first. If you run away, that's another loss for you.
34AnonymousSep 7, 2026 12:13
Are you basically saying 'Even if they do a Zelda 40th, it's pointless so I'm not even jealous!'?
41AnonymousSep 7, 2026 12:14
Re: #34 It's a view based on the data that Nishi-kun didn't participate in the Mario 40th at all. If you disagree, feel free to show proof you participated in Mario's.
46AnonymousSep 7, 2026 12:16
Re: #41 I couldn't care less whether Nishi-kun participated or not. Go ahead and keep bashing away, if that's what you enjoy.
106AnonymousSep 7, 2026 13:01
Re: #41 Even assuming NOBODY on Geha participated, if it's a hit with the general public, doesn't that still make it worthwhile? Why are you only checking with Geha regulars?
43AnonymousSep 7, 2026 12:15
Zelda's got some popularity with a certain slice of hardcore gamers, but it's basically nothing to the general public.
47AnonymousSep 7, 2026 12:17
Re: #43 For what it's worth, Ocarina of Time held a Guinness World Record for most pre-orders for a video game.
54AnonymousSep 7, 2026 12:18
If you're already this worked up before the Direct even airs, aren't you gonna keel over? You doing alright?
62AnonymousSep 7, 2026 12:20
Still no proof. Nishi-kun loses.
64AnonymousSep 7, 2026 12:21
Re: #62 The guy who brought it up ran off without showing proof, which makes YOU the Nishi-kun here — so you lose.
103AnonymousSep 7, 2026 12:58
Re: #62 Aren't you always the one losing?
83AnonymousSep 7, 2026 12:35
In human terms, it's like asking 'is there any point to birthdays?' or 'is there any point to weddings or funerals?'
Every civilization throughout human history has had similar rituals.
Not being able to intuitively grasp why that's necessary seems like a serious lack of social sense.
Though I get it if you're just asking rhetorically, to put the reasoning into words.
92AnonymousSep 7, 2026 12:40
Re: #83 It's not that deep, honestly — it's just marketing convenience.
'Half-anniversaries' are a good example.
At this point 'anniversary' is basically just a clearance-sale banner.
Background and Key Points of This Discussion
The Legend of Zelda first released in 1986, putting it right around its 40th anniversary in 2026. The thread’s point of comparison, “Mario’s 40th anniversary,” was a large-scale 2025 celebration with a movie, museum exhibits, and merchandise; “PlayStation’s 30th anniversary” refers to the real commemorative-design PS5 that shipped in 2024. The actual argument here isn’t really about whether anniversary events are worth doing in general — it boils down to one specific question: does the value of an anniversary campaign depend on whether the IP is popular? Skeptics point to leftover stock from the old Game & Watch and the anniversary PS5 as proof that “if the merch doesn’t sell out, it wasn’t worth it,” while defenders fire back with “show us the receipts” on actual sales, and the exchange never really resolves either way. Note: “Nishi-kun,” used throughout, is stock slang on the Geha board for Nintendo’s fanbase — board-specific ribbing, not an attack on any real individual. Separately, one string of replies that singled out and mocked a specific regular poster by name has been left out of this excerpt, since it has no bearing on the actual topic.
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