Media Create mentioned last week that Wii U bundles have been helping move hardware units in Japan. The Splatoon and Super Mario Maker sets gave the system a big push in particular during the week of December 7, and that has continued since then.
Nintendo has recently restored Wii U Mario Kart 8 and Splatoon online after five months of being offline.
Game Rant Writes "Mar10 Day is a fun yearly celebration of the Super Mario series, and Splatoon may warrant a fan-designated day of celebration in its own right."
How, exactly, did Splatoon reach heights rivalled only by Pokémon in Japan? New IPs from the House of Mario appear as often as shiny Pocket Monsters, yet typically move comparatively mediocre numbers or fall into relative obscurity behind the premium marques of Mario, Animal Crossing, Zelda, and Pokémon. Take Pikmin and ARMS, for example, which we adore but struggle to compete with the tentpole franchises when it comes to sales numbers or mainstream mindshare.
So, again, how has Splatoon risen to become one of Nintendo's most important series in Japan?