Nintendo has exciting news for fans in Japan: a new official store, Nintendo Fukuoka, is set to open at the end of 2025. This will mark the company’s fourth official store in Japan, following the successful openings of Nintendo Tokyo, Nintendo Osaka, and Nintendo Kyoto. What sets Nintendo Fukuoka apart is its unique location on the southernmost main island of Kyushu, specifically in Fukuoka City, making it the first Nintendo store not on Honshu, Japan's largest main island.
The announcement has sparked a wave of excitement on X, with many users congratulating Nintendo and expressing their hope for more official stores across the country. Several commenters suggested that Sapporo, the largest city on Hokkaido, Japan’s northernmost island, might be a strategic next location for Nintendo's expansion.
However, not all reactions were positive. A significant number of users expressed disappointment over Nintendo's decision to bypass Nagoya, a major city in central Japan and the capital of Aichi prefecture. Known for its manufacturing prowess, Nagoya is the fourth largest city in Japan but often falls victim to the "Nagoya Skip" phenomenon, where events and tours overlook it in favor of nearby Tokyo and Osaka. This sentiment was highlighted in a 2016 survey conducted by Nagoya's government, which amusingly revealed that even its own residents ranked it third in attractiveness, behind Tokyo and Kyoto.
Nagoya’s situation was recently spotlighted again with the upcoming opening of a 17,000-person arena in July, which city officials and local media hope will help combat the "Nagoya Skip" trend (Chukyo TV).
Nintendo Fukuoka will be strategically located in a shopping mall within Hakata Station, Kyushu’s largest major railway hub. This prime location is connected by bullet train to Honshu and by plane to Fukuoka Airport, making it easily accessible for residents of surrounding prefectures and inbound tourists, particularly from South Korea, whose visits to Fukuoka have surged since the lifting of pandemic restrictions (Fukuoka Prefectural Government).
Nintendo's official stores are more than just retail spaces; they are hubs for events and hands-on experiences with new titles. With the anticipated launch of the Switch 2, Nintendo Fukuoka is poised to play a crucial role in showcasing and promoting this next-generation console to a broader audience.
Meanwhile, in the U.S., Nintendo recently opened its first West Coast store, Nintendo San Francisco. IGN had the opportunity to tour the store and speak with Nintendo of America's president, Doug Bowser, to learn more about this exciting development.
