Nintendo Is Officially Investing in Game Preservation

Nintendo of America is seeking a digital archivist, signalling a formal investment in preserving the company’s records and history. The role could help safeguard material about legacy systems, at a time when much of gaming’s past is at risk and preservation groups say large rights holders need to be involved.

The job is a 12-month contract to organise technical records, engineering documents, source materials and institutional knowledge. The Video Game History Foundation estimates that 87% of classic US video games are critically endangered or lost; it criticised Nintendo’s 2022 Wii U and 3DS eShop closures. Nintendo’s archive is expected to be largely private, so the move may not give the public access to older games or records.