If 2025 taught the games press one thing, it was that Nintendo could still command the conversation — for better, worse, and everything in between. A year that felt quiet at a glance ended up being packed: a long-rumored new console, surprise Directs, big releases and a handful of internet arguments that refused to die.
According to an industry wrap-up cited across outlets, Nintendo topped the list of most-covered game companies in 2025 with roughly 236,000 articles mentioning the company. That’s an astonishing volume for any single publisher and it wasn’t accidental. The Switch 2’s reveal and launch were the headline magnets — and the media followed, dissected and amplified almost every move.
A hardware story that pulled headlines
Hardware still matters. The Switch 2’s announcement turned months of rumor into concrete headlines, and the platform’s early months generated steady updates: compatibility patches, developer support notes and two Direct presentations that gave outlets plenty to cover. Nintendo’s own responses — adjusting forecasts, clarifying release plans — kept the narrative rolling; see how the company later raised its Switch 2 sales forecast as momentum built and reconfirmed a staggered release cadence to reassure partners and players.
That combination of novelty and ongoing news is a journalist’s dream. A console launch creates endless verticals: hands-on impressions, technical teardowns, store discounts, peripheral reviews, game roundups, and yes, the occasional hot take about whether the platform was "doomed" from day one. Those hot takes created more copy than the hardware alone — critics and defenders alike kept the debate in the headlines.
Games, trailers and an odd stat line
It’s funny to note that while Nintendo was the most-covered company overall, the company’s software didn’t dominate every conversation. Only one Nintendo title — Mario Kart World — landed in the top ten most-covered games of the year, at #10. Still, big moments like the Metroid Prime 4 'Survive' trailer and marquee Switch 2 launches supplied regular hooks for outlets to revisit Nintendo’s strategy and catalog. And not every mention was praise: controversy and legal questions occasionally surfaced, which feeds more reporting.
Even the quieter wins mattered. Free updates and platform-specific upgrades (Animal Crossing’s 3.0 free update and a Switch 2 edition, for example) drove stories that kept players clicking and sharing; Nintendo’s ability to layer fresh content on familiar franchises helped maintain a steady drip of coverage rather than a single launch spike. You can see that dynamic playing out in coverage timelines for major updates like Animal Crossing’s Switch 2 edition and 3.0 patch.
Why Xbox came second
It wasn’t just Nintendo hogging ink because it was good news. Xbox finished second in coverage, but much of that attention stemmed from corporate drama — speculation about strategy, leadership shake-ups and questions about long-term direction. Public missteps and uncertainty often generate as much copy as big product reveals, and Microsoft’s year provided plenty of both.
Media attention doesn’t equal universal approval. High coverage can reflect excitement, controversy, or both. For Nintendo, that mix — a hardware launch, a steady pipeline of games and updates, and an ecosystem of passionate fans and critics — produced a relentless news cycle.
Journalists will keep watching. For players and developers the practical result is simple: more headlines mean more scrutiny, quicker fixes, and louder fan feedback. For Nintendo it’s both a headache and a popularity contest — but after a year like 2025, the company is unquestionably back at the center of the conversation.