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Nintendo fans who hold the game in their hands
By: Kailen Hicks
Some in the corner-to-corner line stretching along Rockefeller Street had waited as long as five hours to get access to this year’s Nintendo Direct watch-party, the company’s livestream of its most anticipated new game series.
The fanatics in that line who were lucky enough to get inside game-maker Nintendo’s flagship store in Manhattan had gathered in front of the second-floor screen. Some screamed, some cried actual tears. One person passed out.
“It’s a bonding experience,” said Steven Paterno, who came to the store cosplaying as bounty hunter Samus Aran, the titular protagonist of Metroid. That character is from one of Nintendo’s longest-running series.
The in-person activity at Nintendo New York came as Nintendo reported that its digital download sales, in 2025, eclipsed physical game sales for the first time, accounting for 53% of all purchases. That reflected a continuing, decade-long decline, said gaming analyst Mat Piscatella. Physical sales of the Nintendo Switch 2, however, were higher than digital sales during the last year, Piscatella told WCCF Tech.
Some of the company’s largest releases in recent years are only available as downloads.
However, Nintendo New York has kept fans flocking, by drawing them to watch parties, midnight releases, and tournaments.
“It’s the community … people see everyone’s videos and all of their stuff online,” Dylan Miller said. “It’s what keeps people coming out.”
Miller arrived at the store nearly four hours before the 10 a.m reveal trailer for Kingdom Hearts IV to secure a seat. He fainted as it was shown. He’s been coming to Nintendo New York, which opened in 2001, for years.
The Nintendo events often include the sale of custom merchandise, display of large-scale props and access to exclusive benefits of the My Nintendo Rewards program, granting discounts on purchases.
Gabe Torres has been a part of Nintendo New York’s gaming scene for almost a decade, starting with when he camped out, waiting to snag an original Nintendo Switch.
“Everybody would tell me, ‘I saw you from back in the day,’” Torres said. “The community wants me here and I love the community. They’ve supported me since I was 15. Ten years later, I’m happy. I’m seriously happy and I love this community and I want this community to be booming.”
While many community events, merchandise, and watch parties still drive fans to Nintendo New York, Torres said, the former midnight releases for physical titles now happen in the mornings, during typical store hours. That last midnight release, involving the Nintendo Switch 2, happened a year ago. Torres said the change detracts from the magic that characterized older events.
The pricing changes have reduced gamers’ incentive to visit traditional game stores for new releases. The physical PlayStation 5 is $100 more expensive than the digital-only version. The physical Nintendo Switch 2 costs $10 more than the digital one.
For dedicated collectors of physical media, the drive to actually possess the cartridge remains, despite the economics.
“I know so many collectors in this space that just have boxes all on their walls. And they don’t even play the games mostly,” Torres said. “They just like having a collection.”