2017 was a banner year for Nintendo fans. We got the launch of the Switch and some of the platform’s most well-loved titles, including Splatoon 2, Mario Kart 8 Deluxe, Super Mario Odyssey, and, of course, Breath of the Wild. According to former Nintendo staffers, however, when the 2017 awards season came around, the company was concerned that they may have had too much of a good thing on their hands.

Former Nintendo staffers Kit Ellis and Krysta Yang of the Kit & Krysta Podcast recently sat down to tell their behind-the-scenes story about the nerve-wracking lead-up to The Game Awards 2017. Ellis and Yang hold a combined 25 years of experience working for Nintendo and created the hit web show Nintendo Minute. Their insights on the 42nd episode of their podcast shed some light on what staffers were feeling in 2017 after both Super Mario Odyssey and Breath of the Wild were nominated for Game of the Year.

According to Ellis, right before the awards, one Nintendo staffer left other employees feeling frazzled when they suggested that Super Mario Odyssey and Breath of the Wild might split the Game of the Year vote. Horizon Zero Dawn was then posited by staffers as the subsequent winner in this doomsday scenario for the company. After weeks of furious planning for the event and two outstanding games to highlight in 2017, Nintendo was in a rare mood to soak up the spotlight for the first time in a long time, said Yang.

Once the shadow of doubt about the Game of the Year results was cast, Yang further explained:

“There was mass panic. I had never seen something that was from such a high to a low like that before. Again, right before this theory was put out there, people were riding high, making pocket squares, feeling good, we’re writing acceptance speeches, we’re practicing all those big moments. We were really focused on, ‘Yeah, one of these games is going to win,’ and that was the mentality. Then when this theory got introduced, it was like this crash of emotions… It was like literal panic.”

With the knowledge that Breath of the Wild did indeed go on to win Game of the Year in 2017, the mass panic described may sound silly. Ellis and Yang said they themselves never felt too swayed by the theory even in the moment, and felt more irritation with the chaos disrupting the company’s workflow as they prepared winning presentations and acceptance speeches more than anything else.

You can find Ellis and Yang’s full breakdown of The Game Awards 2017 and their behind-the-scenes story on the Kit & Krysta Podcast Episode 42 (specifically minutes 9:32 to 47:46).

The Game Awards 2022 will stream December 8th, 2022 at 7:30 PM EST/4:30 PM PST across all major digital, social, and gaming platforms. This year, Nintendo has 11 total nominations, including Xenoblade Chronicles 3 for Game of the Year, Bayonetta 3 for Best Action Game, Pokémon Legends: Arceus for Best Role Playing Game, and The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom for Most Anticipated Game.

What did you think of this story of “mass panic” at The Game Awards 2017? Do you think staffers’ concerns were legitimate, or just the product of some classic last-minute pessimism? Let us know what you think down below in the comments!

Source: Kit & Krysta Podcast (via Nintendo Everything)

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