Skip to main content
  1. Home
  2. Gaming
  3. News

Who says print is dead? Nintendo turns its attention to kids’ activity books

By

super mario bros
Nintendo

Nintendo and book publisher Random House have partnered to produce a series of activity books for children. Nintendo announced the partnership in a post on its website. The books will feature well-known franchises like Super Mario and The Legend of Zelda, and will be published by Random House Books for Young Readers in the U.S., a Random House Children’s Books imprint, and Penguin Random House U.K. overseas.

Recommended Videos

“We are thrilled to be partnering with Nintendo to bring the whimsy and adventure of these worlds to the imaginations of our young readers,” said Dennis Shealy, the imprint’s editorial director.“These activity books will let both new and established fans experience Nintendo characters in a whole new way.”

Nintendo of America’s senior vice president of strategic initiatives added, “This publishing partnership is an exciting way to bring the colorful worlds of Nintendo to young readers while encouraging creativity. We are always looking for ways to share our fun-loving characters with kids and families in unique ways.”

It’s apparent that this partnership has been in the works for awhile. Earlier this year, Random House published a pair of sticker books, one Mario, one Zelda, aimed at youngsters. The books included oodles of stickers and activities for kids. Both books currently have five star ratings on Amazon.

The first titles that will release following the partnership announcement will be Mario Time! and Link’s Book of Adventure. Both books release on July 3 in hardcover for $10. Additionally, the Splatoon Official Sticker Book will land in trade paperback format on July 24 for $13. All books in the series include full color pages, a variety of activities such as mazes, puzzles, and trivia, and stickers. Activity books based on the Animal Crossing franchise are also in the pipeline.

The books are aimed at young children from the ages of 4 to 9. While there’s no shortage of activity and coloring books out there, parents of young Nintendo fans are sure to be excited for this series. Nintendo has occasionally licensed children’s books like the 1990 Golden Book Super Mario Bros.: Trapped in the Perilous Pit, but never activity books. Unsurprisingly, there’s no shortage of unlicensed knockoffs available for purchase online. We imagine the officially licensed Nintendo activity books will be the way to go, though.

Topics
Steven Petite
Steven Petite
Former Digital Trends Contributor
Steven is a writer from Northeast Ohio currently based in Louisiana. He writes about video games and books, and consumes…
Bravely Default HD Remaster shows the party potential of Switch 2’s mouse controls
An airship flies in Bravely Default: Flying Fairy HD Remaster.

If I had to describe 2012’s Bravely Default, the very last term I’d use is “party game.” In fact, the Nintendo 3DS RPG is the anti party game. It’s a long, winding adventure that requires a tremendous amount of patience to get through. So it came as a bit of a surprise when the first thought I had after demoing its upcoming Switch 2 version, Bravely Default: Flying Fairy HD Remaster, is that it really sells the party potential of Nintendo’s new console.

That’s not because the RPG has changed in any way; it more has to do with its new side content. During a hand-on demo, I tried my hand at the remaster’s two new minigames, which are available as bonuses from the main menu. Both are designed to use the Switch 2’s mouse controls in incredibly clever ways that left me even more eager to see what developers can do with the unique two joy-con scheme.

Read more
NYT Crossword: answers for Wednesday, May 14
New York Times Crossword logo.

The New York Times has plenty of word games on its roster today — with Wordle, Connections, Strands, and the Mini Crossword, there's something for everyone — but the newspaper's standard crossword puzzle still reigns supreme. The daily crossword is full of interesting trivia, helps improve mental flexibility and, of course, gives you some bragging rights if you manage to finish it every day.

While the NYT puzzle might feel like an impossible task some days, solving a crossword is a skill and it takes practice — don't get discouraged if you can't get every single word in a puzzle.

Read more
Wordle Today: Wordle answer and hints for May 15
Someone playing Wordle on a smartphone.

We have the solution to Wordle on May 15, as well as some helpful hints to help you figure out the answer yourself, right here. We've placed the answer at the bottom of the page, so we don't ruin the surprise before you've had a chance to work through the clues. So let's dive in, starting with a reminder of yesterday's answer.

This is just one of the great NYT games you can play daily, so let us help you solve Connections, Strands, Crossword, and the Mini Crossword too!
Yesterday's Wordle answer
Let's start by first reminding ourselves of yesterday's Wordle answer for those new to the game or who don't play it daily, which was "BONGO." So we can say that the Wordle answer today definitely isn't that. Now, with that in mind, perhaps take another stab at it using one of these Wordle starting words and circle back if you have no luck.
Hints for today's Wordle
Still can't figure it out? We have today's Wordle answer right here, below. But first, one more thing: Let's take a look at three hints that could help you find the solution, without giving it away, so there's no need to feel guilty about keeping your streak alive -- you put in some work, after all! Or just keep scrolling for the answer.

Read more