!!!'''WebVideo/NintendoDirect-specific Moments of Awesome should [[Awesome/NintendoDirect go on that page]].'''

* How about single-handedly bringing the entire American video game industry BackFromTheDead after market over-saturation caused by Creator/{{Atari}} and its ''many'', ''many'' competitors caused the MediaNotes/TheGreatVideoGameCrashOf1983? Say what you want about some of the company's draconian policies during the era, but there's no denying that Nintendo paved the way for the continued future of home console gaming in America, allowing for [[Creator/{{Sega}} other]] [[Creator/{{Sony}} major]] [[Creator/MicrosoftStudios players]] to enter and help keep the industry going.
* Nintendo showed why they were top banana after Universal Studios tried to sue them for VideoGame/DonkeyKong. Nintendo tried to be reasonable and offer a partnership. Universal refused, hoping to destroy the video game company. At a formal dinner where Universal expected Nintendo to agree to pay profits from their game, Nintendo of America stated their intent to take them to court. A court case that the small company ''won'' thanks to the fact that the characters and story of Film/KingKong were actually in the public domain.[[note]]meaning copyright had expired and that no single individual or corporation can claim ownership, e.g. Shakespeare[[/note]]
** Universal's loss is even more {{iron|y}}ic when you learn that that they had a case prior to that with a similar topic, which they won in the exact same way: [[HoistByHisOwnPetard by succeeding to prove that King Kong was public domain]].
** Now Universal is working with Nintendo on a new theme park attraction at Ride/UniversalStudios called ''Ride/SuperNintendoWorld'', as well as ''WesternAnimation/TheSuperMarioBrosMovie'' via Creator/IlluminationEntertainment, with Creator/ShigeruMiyamoto co-producing. The two companies have definitely buried the hatchet since that case.
* The page image for MadeOfIndestructium is a Game Boy that still worked after being inside a building that was bombed during the Persian Gulf War. And in a SugarWiki/{{Heartwarming Moment|s}}, Nintendo sent the nurse who owned it a free replacement.
* The year is 2006. Nintendo has been lagging behind the competition since 1995, when Sony's Platform/PlayStation overtook the video game industry. The PSX beat Platform/Nintendo64 by a landslide, and the Platform/NintendoGameCube threw the company into last place behind both the [[Platform/PlayStation2 PS2]] and newcomer Microsoft's Platform/{{Xbox}}. People were wondering what Nintendo had up their sleeve to stay in the home console race. About a week before E3 2006, Nintendo finally announced their next console (codenamed "Revolution") would be called the Platform/{{Wii}}. [[MyGodYouAreSerious Yes, the Wii]]. It would be only slightly more powerful than the [=GameCube=] (in fact, it's famously said to basically be two [=Gamecubes=] taped together, specs-wise). It will utilize a freaking remote control instead of a traditional gamepad as its main controller. Many laughed it off as marketing suicide. Then E3 came and went, and once everyone had gotten the laughter out of their system, they were starting to admit that it could be pretty cool. Come the system's launch that autumn and the Wii quickly became one of the biggest mainstream success in the video game industry, putting Nintendo at the top of the heap for the first time in a decade. And even three years later, it was still the top seller, with everyone and their grandmother (''quite literally'') owning one. The Wii wasn't Nintendo committing suicide; it was their ultimate comeback story.
** So a group of MoralGuardians were bashing Nintendo for releasing ''VideoGame/MadWorld'' on the Wii console despite Nintendo saying that the Wii was meant for everyone. Their response: that the Wii is indeed for everyone... and gamers that play games like ''[=MadWorld=]'' [[ExactWords are included with everyone.]]
* E3 2010. Microsoft was going gaga over the Kinect, while had Sony showed little of note (outside [[FollowTheLeader Playstation Move]]). Come Nintendo's press conference, where the public was expecting the [[{{Waggle}} waggling]] and casual games of prior years, Nintendo instead announced and showed off [[VideoGame/DonkeyKongCountryReturns AAA]]-[[VideoGame/KirbysEpicYarn title]] upon [[VideoGame/MetroidOtherM AAA]]-[[VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaSkywardSword title]] upon [[VideoGame/KidIcarusUprising AAA]]-[[VideoGame/GoldenEyeWii title]], and topped it off with the announcement of the Platform/Nintendo3DS! Sure, some of those games are now divisive within their fanbases, and the 3DS had a slow start, but at that time it was nothing less than awesome and proved why Nintendo should still be considered relevant to hardcore gamers. Saying that the fandom rejoiced is an understatement. Summed up [[http://www.penny-arcade.com/comic/2010/06/16 here]]. (Slightly NSFW)
* At the end of the E3 2014 Smash Bros. Invitational, Reggie congratulated the champion and officially sums up his MemeticBadass status with this:
--->'''Reggie:''' "And next time, I'll come kick your [[PrecisionFStrike ass]]!"
** Better yet, one year later, in 2015, Reggie FOLLOWED THROUGH ON HIS PROMISE AND CHALLENGED HUNGRYBOX TO A MATCH! He ended up on the receiving end of a CurbStompBattle, but given that this is a corporate executive against a professional gamer, he did reasonably okay.
* E3 2015. The revival of the VideoGame/NintendoWorldChampionships on its 25th anniversary! 'Nuff said.
** The reveal of ''VideoGame/StarFoxZero'' as this as it starts with ''Muppets'' of Satoru Iwata, Reggie Fils-Amie and Shigeru Miyamoto preparing for an announcement before ''transforming'' into the Star Fox crew (Peppy for Iwata, Falco Reggie and Fox for Miyamoto himself) before they pose triumphantly.
-->'''Peppy:''' Hey Fox, DoABarrelRoll!\\
'''Falco:''' Yeah, c'mon Fox! Do a barrel roll!\\
'''Fox:''' Barrel roll? I can do ''better'' than that! Check this out! ''(zoom in on Fox's face before it switches to the Star Fox Zero trailer)''
* A fan-related example: [[http://www.ibtimes.co.uk/nintendo-satoru-iwata-amiibo-figure-raises-1900-charity-ebay-1523219 A fan-made Satoru Iwata Amiibo sold for 1900 dollars, all going to charity]].
* In 2016, Nintendo raised a lot of eyebrows when they said the only game they'd be bringing to E3 was the then-unnamed ''VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaBreathOfTheWild''. Many were skeptical of the idea, even after Nintendo stated that some smaller games would be featured the following day during Nintendo Treehouse. After all, putting all your focus on a single game for the bulk of your E3 presence? That's insanity. [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ahMRnlWf2P0 Then the game was revealed and suddenly Nintendo didn't seem so crazy]].
* In the [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=f5uik5fgIaI announcement trailer]] for Platform/NintendoSwitch, a guy is shown playing ''VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaBreathOfTheWild'', which so far showcases nothing special. Then his dog barks at him, telling him that it wants to go out. Does the man save the game and turn the console off? No, [[WhamShot he removes both sides of his controller, places them on both sides of a tablet inside the console, takes said tablet out of the console, and continues playing as he and his dog go out]]. This marked the moment when we all knew that this was not going to be your usual gaming platform. The Switch became a runaway success that [[https://www.polygon.com/2018/1/31/16954676/nintendo-switch-sales-hardware-numbers-wii-u surpassed the lifetime sales of the Wii U]] in only ten months' time and is on track to surpass the lifetime of the Platform/NintendoGameCube by the end of its second year. Hell, by December 2018, it [[http://www.vgchartz.com/article/394082/nintendo-switch-outsells-original-xbox/ outsold the original XBox at roughly 25 million units]], and as of February 2022, the Switch has outsold the Wii’s lifetime sales at 101.88 million units sold, compared to the Wii’s 101.63 million units! And if even ''that'' is not impressive enough, by May 2023 Switch's sales exceeded those of both [=PlayStation=] 4 and the original ''Game Boy'' itself - '''rising to the whopping 125 million units!'''
* You'd think all the rivalry between the fandoms of two major video game companies would get in the way of general platitudes? [[https://twitter.com/NintendoAmerica/status/798652273849081856 Yeah, nope.]] Doubles as a SugarWiki/{{Heartwarming Moment|s}}.
* E3 2017's ''{{VideoGame/ARMS}}'' Invitational put the game in a bit of a tight spot -- skill didn't seem to matter next to just spamming the grab move, and gameplay was ''really'' boring to watch. [[CurbStompBattle ENTER]] [[AuthorsSavingThrow MR.]] [[SugarWiki/MomentOfAwesome YABUKI]], who not only ''proved'' that the game he directed was indeed a game of skill, but did so only using the grab FOUR times.
** Nintendo and ''Creator/MicrosoftStudios'' both got positive publicity when it was announced that multiple titles, including Rocket League and ''{{VideoGame/Minecraft}}'', would support cross-network multiplayer between the Switch, Xbox One, PC, and, in ''Minecraft's'' case, mobile versions of the games. The announcement was positively-received and both companies were praised for bringing more players together, with many deriding competitor {{Creator/Sony}} for not joining in.
* While there are assorted moments of awesomeness from E3 2017 from the various games announced, there is one very unstated one that PC fans have taken notice of: the Switch runs ''VideoGame/Doom2016''. One of the most brutally system-intensive games on the PC, one that the [[Platform/PlayStation4 PS4]] and Platform/XboxOne can barely manage to run at 60fps, '''[[SugarWiki/GeniusProgramming works on the Switch]]'''. That sound you heard in the background is the PC port floodgates '''shattering''' under the pressure of this revelation, as this essentially means that with proper optimization, just about any game can work on the Switch as well, a point which was reinforced when ''VideoGame/MortalKombat11'' came out afterwards: while it did come with some graphic losses (especially on the Krypt mode, with its terribly small draw distance), Creator/NetherRealmStudios took the lesson as seriously as possible when they did everything in their power to port the game without leaving anything out, or sacrificing framerate in the fights. Similarly, one of the most notable announcements at E3 2019 for Nintendo was that ''VideoGame/TheWitcher3WildHunt'' was going to be released on the Switch, something which took many, many gamers by surprise. Come its release, and the general consensus from reviewers is that even with the sacrifices made, the port runs very smoothly, looks visually great, and still plays well.
* The directs. Instead of relying on con, interviews, and shows Nintendo has taken to hosting half-hour long presentations to give their consumers ideas of whats being done and what games are coming and updates on existing games. It doesn't sound like much but, unlike their competitors, it allows them to control the hype and keep it from dying. There is also the added benefits of allowing them to have Directs to be about one thing ie; just Smash, Bayonetta, Pokemon, Zelda and so on. And then [=COVID-19=] hit the world hard, forcing lots of people to stay at their own homes and shuttering large-scale public events like E3; while other companies had their individual growing pains dealing with a COVID world, Nintendo had the infrastructure in place already and, save for shorter durations to spread out the distribution of news and events, the Directs continued as if nothing ever happened.
* As of September 13th 2018, Nintendo and Square Enix seem to have buried the hatchet[[note]]except where it concerns ''Final Fantasy'''s standing in ''VideoGame/SuperSmashBrosUltimate'', but that's something else[[/note]], with all the [=PlayStation=]-exclusive ''Franchise/FinalFantasy'' titles (''[[VideoGame/FinalFantasyVII VII]]'', ''[[VideoGame/FinalFantasyIX IX]]'', ''[[VideoGame/FinalFantasyX X]]'', ''[[VideoGame/FinalFantasyX2 X-2]]'' and ''[[VideoGame/FinalFantasyXII XII]]'') being ported to the Switch (with ''[[VideoGame/FinalFantasyVIII VIII]]'' being missing most likely due to the Source Code being gone, although E3 2019 has revealed that its own remaster is on the way). While some players got frustrated that the Switch version of ''VII'' wouldn't get the ''Remake'' treatment of the other competing consoles, instead being a straighter port from the [=PSOne=], this is nevertheless a win for Nintendo as ''VII'' is notable for being the game which led Square to break away from Nintendo and start to favor Sony.
* On January 24th 2019, Nintendo shows how much respect they have for their consumers and fans of the Metroid series by openly admitting about ''Metroid Prime 4'''s sudden drop and restart in development.[[note]]Nintendo didn't feel that the game's current development was meeting the standard of the previous titles of the series and has decided to restart from scratch with the original dev team who worked on the Prime series, Retro Studios.[[/note]] The announcement has been met with utter understanding of the situation from the fans and said fans have been praising Nintendo for being completely transparent about the whole situation.
* Prior to E3 2019, Nintendo sent a cease & desist letter to somebody who was threatening to reveal their E3 lineup. Nintendo pretty much prevented their entire line-up from being spoiled, and ruining the surprises that year. [[VideoGame/SuperSmashBrosUltimate And]] [[Franchise/DragonQuest considering]] [[VideoGame/WorldOfMana what]] [[VideoGame/TheWitcher3WildHunt surprises]] [[Franchise/ResidentEvil they]] [[VideoGame/NoMoreHeroes had]] [[VideoGame/PanzerDragoon in]] [[VideoGame/SpyroReignitedTrilogy store]] [[VideoGame/BanjoKazooie for]] [[VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaBreathOfTheWild everyone]], it was a good thing none of it was leaked.
* The game library for the Switch is something to behold. Prior to the Switch, games had been split between consoles and handhelds, with games like the 3D ''Franchise/SuperMario'' and ''Franchise/TheLegendOfZelda'' titles mainly receiving their major releases on home consoles, while franchises like ''Franchise/{{Pokemon}}'' and ''Franchise/FireEmblem'' being relegated to handhelds. With the Switch, however, players are now able to receive the best of both worlds now that all of Nintendo's franchises are united under one specific platform, and some of those series' most acclaimed/best-selling games being released for the Switch. And when you take into account the endless amount of third party support for the Switch, with games like the ''VideoGame/DevilMayCry'' series, the mainline ''Franchise/{{Persona}}'' series, both ''VideoGame/{{Portal}}'' games, ''Franchise/TheWitcher'', ''VideoGame/DarkSouls'', ''VideoGame/BioShock'' and ''VideoGame/FiveNightsAtFreddys'' making their debuts on Nintendo consoles, ''Franchise/FinalFantasy'', ''Franchise/MortalKombat'', ''VideoGame/{{Doom}}'' and the ''Franchise/BatmanArkhamSeries'' returning to Nintendo consoles after many years or several years, indie titles like ''VideoGame/{{Cuphead}}'', ''VideoGame/{{Shantae}}'' and ''VideoGame/ShovelKnight'' receiving more and more mainstream attention and even [[Creator/XboxGameStudios Xbox]] games like ''VideoGame/OriAndTheBlindForest'' and ''VideoGame/{{Minecraft}}'' being featured on a rival platform, then you have one of the strongest libraries for any gaming console in history with more and more games coming to the console itself, ''period''.
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