10 Nintendo Games That NEVER Left Japan
“Excitebike: Bun-bun Mario Battle” (1997)
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When it comes to games left stranded in Japan, we should probably start with a Satellaview game. “Excitebike: Bun-bun Mario Battle” was released via the Super Famicom attachment Satellaview and was released in 4 episodes. Each episode added a new character, with the exception of episode 4, which for some reason replaced Luigi with Yoshi. “Excitebike: Bun-bun Mario Battle” plays just like the classic Excitebike on the NES, moving up and down the track to avoid hazards and reach the finish line as fast as possible. Being on the SNES instead of the NES, the game looks great and has a style similar to Super Mario All-Stars. Obviously this never left Japan due to being released exclusively on the Satellaview which never left Japan either. It’s a shame we never got a release on the Virtual Console or Nintendo Switch Online.
“Nintendo Wars” Series (1988-98)
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Most know about “Advance Wars”, the GBA military strategy game, but what if I was to tell you that the series dates all the way back to 1988? The Nintendo Wars series started back on the Famicom with Famicom Wars. The first entry is playable even if you can’t read Japanese, but later entries will prove to be a little difficult if you can’t. There were a total of 6 games released before “Advance Wars” on 3 different consoles, Famicom, GameBoy, and Super Famicom. I wonder if the series would’ve gotten as popular as it did if we would have seen NES Wars or SNES Wars. Probably not, as the main draw of “Advance Wars” was the iconic characters.
“Mario Artist” Series (1999-2000)
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The Nintendo 64 DD was an amazing add-on that could’ve been a big thing, but of course failed. With the DD never leaving Japan, there are a handful of interesting titles that never made it outside of the country either, one of them being the Mario Artist series. Similar to “Mario Paint” on the SNES, the Mario Artist series was more art program than an actual game. 4 Mario Artist games were released. Paint Studio which is essentially Mario Paint with a new coat of paint. Talent Studio took players' pictures and added them to 3D models which could then be animated. Communication Kit allowed players to share creations from all Mario Artist titles - sadly, this was only live for a year. Finally, Polygon Studio gave players the ability to create 3D characters and explore a world with their creations to unlock more items to create with.
“Starfy” Series (2000-06)
While we already have a hyper cute Nintendo character in Kirby, Starfy could’ve easily taken his spot. There were 4 games in the Starfy series before the 2008 DS game The Legendary Starfy made its way outside of Japan. The GBA series was a cute platformer mainly being played under water, but does have some on land platforming. While underwater, Starfy’s movement is a bit more free, moving left, right, up, and down. When on land the game plays like a traditional platformer. The first 4 games can easily be played by anyone since Starfy isn’t story heavy and if you’re able to get your hands on a copy I’m sure you’ll love it. Also play the DS game, it’s great!
“Wrecking Crew ‘98” (1998)
Let's take the original 1985 “Wrecking Crew” and turn it into a puzzle game. “Wrecking Crew ‘98” did just that and it’s great! Similar to games like “Tetris”, “Wrecking Crew ‘98” is a falling block puzzle game where Mario must demolish all the high-rises Bowser is building in the Mushroom Kingdom. The most interesting thing about “Wrecking Crew ‘98” is how it was originally released. The game was released on a Nintendo Power flashable cartridge before having a full retail release. “Wrecking Crew ‘98” made its way to the Wii U virtual console, but this was also exclusive to Japan.
“Mario & Wario” (1993)
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We need more reasons to use our Super Nintendo Mouse. “Mario & Wario” is a puzzle game where Wario throws a bucket over Mario's head and we have to guide him to the exit with Wanda, using only the Super Nintendo Mouse. I suppose it actually would’ve been the Super Famicom Mouse, but you get the point. The odd thing about this release was that it was planned to make it to other regions, even being shown off in gaming magazines and being entirely in English. With the unique controller, I think it’s safe to say we may never see this get re-released.
“Pokémon Card GB2: Team Great Rocket is Here!” (2001)
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Digital card games are a blast. It’s the thrill of collecting but without spending a boat load of actual money on random packs. In the late 90’s and early 2000’s, Pokémon cards were at their peak of popularity and so was the GameBoy. So why wasn’t “Pokémon Card GB2” released outside of Japan? Probably due to translating all the text that comes along with a card game. The game plays similar to the first game with a few additions and tweaks to the gameplay. Probably the most useful feature is the deck diagnosis, which will give players tips on building a deck and even critique your current deck. Luckily, if you really want to play this there is a fan translation out there.
“Tingle” Series (2006-09)
Tingle is such a weird character. Very Japanese if you ask me. So it makes sense that his games never left Japan. There were 4 games in the Tingle series. “Freshly-Picked Tingle’s Rosy Rupeeland” was the first game in the series, with players collecting rupees to get into Rupeeland. This game was released in Europe and fully translated in English. “Tingle’s Balloon Fight DS” is “Balloon Fight”, just with Tingle, and was only available through the Japanese Club Nintendo. “Too Much Tingle Pack” was a DSiWare exclusive app that had a few applications within it. Some of the apps were a calculator, timer, coin flipper, and a dancing Tingle. Finally “Ripened Tingle’s Balloon Trip of Love” is a point and click game where Tingle gets sucked into a different world and must dance with the princess to go back home.
“Donkey Konga 3” (2005)
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Just like the Super Nintendo Mouse, can we please have another reason to break out our Donkey Konga bongos? “Donkey Konga 3” is just more of the same fun Donkey Konga gameplay. Play the songs to the beat with your bongos. The third and final installment had 50 songs spanning from J-Pop, Classical, Western, and even Famicom songs. I’m not totally sure why this never left Japan, but if you can find your way through the menus, it’s easily played without knowing Japanese. I think I might have to get my hands on this… I really want to play “This here is Mona Pizza”.
“Captain Rainbow” (2008)
Sometimes we forget about old Nintendo characters. Ironically, “Captain Rainbow” is an exclusive Japanese Wii game that has you playing as Captain Rainbow and going around the world to help forgotten Nintendo characters fulfill their dreams. Little Mac put on a few pounds after not getting a new game and it’s our job to help him get back into boxing shape. The devil from “Devil World” wants to become the top baddy again. Birdo wants to become a “Sexy Dynamite Monster”, yes that’s actually in the game. “Captain Rainbow” was a game that celebrated Nintendo's forgotten history and it’s a shame it never made its way out of Japan. We could have seen the Famicom Wars Soldiers finally become good at volleyball, which could be a good spin-off.
