Nintendo posts new trailers for upcoming Change video games on a regular basis on its YouTube channel, however not like this. On Wednesday morning, the corporate uploaded a teaser titled “Emio” that’s solely fifteen seconds lengthy, stars an individual with a creepy paper bag over their head, and seems to tease an unannounced horror sport coming to the hand-held hybrid someday sooner or later.
The brand new trailer was introduced on social media by the Nintendo of America account, with a tweet that merely learn “#WhoIsEmio?” and a hyperlink to the YouTube web page. That was the primary signal that one thing uncommon was happening. The second was that the web page was age-restricted, a uncommon transfer for the family-friendly gaming firm. Right here’s a take a look at the trailer itself:
A baby’s piano performs just a few creepy notes. An individual in a trench coat sporting a bag over their head with a smiling Jack-o’-lantern cutout pops into the body. You possibly can see their shadow solid in opposition to a wall that seems to be manufactured from cardboard, with a bit of duck tape operating down the center. The digicam all of a sudden cuts to the individual’s hand which seems to be lacking a finger. It then cuts to a close-up of their face earlier than reducing again to a shot of an individual sporting a distinct paper bag with a Cheshire cat grin on it. In line with fan translations, the Japanese characters that seem on the finish say “smiling man.”
Responses within the feedback on Twitter have been in every single place, with some gamers going “wtf?”, others joking that Nintendo had lastly caught a latest well-known online game leaker. Some are questioning if this can be a signal that Nintendo is making a first-party horror IP from the ground-up. The teaser exhibits all of the indicators of an tried viral alternate actuality sport (ARG) for a possible analog-style creep-fest.
Nintendo’s mission assertion is to “put smiles on the faces of everybody we contact.” Emio offers that healthful motto a brand new sinister twist.
Replace 7/10/2024 4:37 p.m. ET: The timing of the bizarre teaser occurs to coincide with a lately surfaced interview with Polish studio Bloober Group. CEO Piotr Babieno revealed on July 8 that the corporate at the moment remaking Silent Hill 2 can be engaged on a sport referred to as Challenge M for “Nintendo platforms.” It might be an entire coincidence but it surely has some speculating that Bloober might be concerned in no matter Emio is.
