Nintendo’s latest release is just as surprising as the shadowdrop of an Among Us-inspired Fire Emblem game. On Tuesday, Nintendo released the animated short film “Close to You,” without notice and without any kind of explanation. It’s a big swerve from a company that loves to swerve.
But what is it? Why did Nintendo release “Close to You” on the Nintendo Today app, YouTube, Instagram, and X with little fanfare?
First, let’s get into what “Close to You” is. The nearly four-minute animated video shows a toddler playing with their mother and enjoying the soothing effects of a pacifier. Then, things get a little weird; toys, rattles, and the tot’s pacifier start moving, seemingly on their own. The child takes its first steps in pursuit of the floating, bobbing pacifier, much to the delight of their mother. No visible Nintendo characters appear in the short, which has the fidelity and charm of a Pixar production.
At first blush, viewers of “Close to You” probably expected to see a bunch of tiny Pikmin emerge from behind the child’s blocks. Or maybe they’ll posit that this is an origin story for Rosalina from Super Mario Galaxy, which was recently re-released on Nintendo Switch and Switch 2. But while the blonde hair implies a young Rosalina, the eye color appears slightly off. Maybe this is a subtle teaser for next year’s The Super Mario Galaxy Movie?
While watching, we also expected that “Close to You” could be a subtle promotion for Nintendo’s nascent My Mario line of toys, accessories, and apps for children. But no; there’s zero mention of My Mario.
One possible explanation is this: “Close to You” is Nintendo being Nintendo, delivering something unexpected to spur conversation, express its creativity, and gauge audience response. Nintendo has, after all, released multiple Pikmin-themed animated shorts, largely because game designer Shigeru Miyamoto just wanted to. The action in “Close to You” certainly has Pikmin vibes. But are we entering the age of invisible Pikmin?
Nintendo has its own dedicated animation team. Nintendo announced it had acquired Dynamo Pictures in 2022 “to strengthen the planning and production structure of visual content in the Nintendo group,” renaming the studio to Nintendo Pictures. The studio’s goal, Nintendo says, is to “focus on development of visual content utilizing Nintendo IP.”
“Close to You” may simply be Nintendo (and Nintendo Pictures) saying, “Look what we can do now.” As Nintendo invests more in feature films with The Super Mario Galaxy Movie in 2026 and The Legend of Zelda movie in 2027, it may also be exploring homegrown film and TV production, making it less reliant on partners like Illumination and Sony Pictures to bring its projects to fruition.
Polygon has reached out to Nintendo for more information on “Close to You,” including who is responsible for it and why it exists. We’ll update when the company responds.
