New Kyoto Museum Exhibits Nintendo's Evolution from Cards to Consoles

Nintendo's iconic game consoles through the years are now available to visit at Kyoto's newly-opened Nintendo Museum.

The Nintendo Museum, which recently opened on Wednesday, is considered a nostalgia-packed exhibit. It displays game consoles starting on its very first model in 1983, which is the Famicom and the latest being the 2017 Switch.

Aside from game consoles, The Guardian reported that Nintendo's most popular games are also plastered at the front. At the back part, visitors can look at artifacts and cards from Nintendo before they started their video game business. But this is only the second floor, as visitors can access more interactive exhibits downstairs. This includes playing cards that are projected on the floor and giant controllers they can play.

Each visitor is given 10 virtual coins, which they can spend on interactive exhibits.

About Nintendo Museum

Nintendo Musem can be accessed in the company's old factory site just around Uji, and about 20 minutes from Kyoto. Built in 1969, the old factory previously produced toys and playing cards and later on became a center for console repair when Nintendo ventured into the video game industry. It closed in 2016.

Tickets cost 3,300 yen ($22) and are already sold out three months prior. Currently, estimates reveal that it can attract up to 2,000 visitors every day, with nearby towns adjusting their train stations to accommodate huge crowds.

Similar to Nintendo's secretive nature, the new museum has not revealed how consoles were made behind the scenes.

The Nintendo Museum is not the first of its kind to open in Japan. LIVE Japan Perfect Guide shared that fans have been visiting Tokyo. In Akihabar, there's a popular spot for retro game stores, anime-themed cafes and other electronics shops, and a Pokemon theme park. In Osaka, the Super Nintendo World theme park is the world's third most visited place in the world.