New twist in the Nintendo Never Jokes With Its Intellectual Property series: The Japanese company has had scans of an old Super Mario 64 strategy guide removed. Yes, yes, scans…
If you follow Nintendo news closely, you know how uncompromising the Japanese company is with its intellectual property. With the smallest fan project articulated around one of its strong brands, the multinational acts with the aim of eliminating everything. To the point of ridiculousness… As reported in an article by Kotaku published on March 24, Nintendo had scans of a Super Mario 64 strategy guide removed outright.
The worst ? Said strategic guide is new to us: it was only published in Japan in 1996. Therefore, the only way to consult it is to find a copy on auction sites (at a very high price). These scans, offered by Comfort Food Video Games on the Internet Archive, were another way to access them – without paying anything. In short, Nintendo is not a gift at all.
Super Mario 64 Strategy Guide // Source: Kotaku
Nintendo’s intransigence
Comfort Food Video Games obviously regrets the verdict – irrevocably – given that it cannot challenge the might of Nintendo. He laments, “Honestly, I’d like to question its legitimacy as I’m wondering how Nintendo of America can be associated with a Nintendo of Japan-licensed strategy guide, but I can’t fight Nintendo’s legal team.” It’s really disappointing. »
The Super Mario 64 Strategy Guide archive page is empty
If Comfort Food Video Games fully understands the concept of intellectual property, he believes that these scans of a document that is more than 20 years old do not in any way harm Nintendo’s image. At worst, they penalized those who resold a physical copy of the guide for huge sums – which no one regretted. “I just wanted to show my love for this incredible guide and in turn my love for the company. I’m new to video game preservation and I find it depressing to see people spend time and money preserving history when companies like Nintendo aren’t doing anything to help. In reality, they are hindering this cause, “concludes the person concerned.
Nintendo’s decision is all the more unfortunate given that the strategy guide in question is a real nugget. It not only gives players valuable advice, but also offers a real overview of the levels thanks to photos of dioramas in 3D (the relief impression is sensational). It really is a great collector’s item worth archiving for fans to enjoy without owning it. Except that Nintendo doesn’t think so.