“Animal Crossing: New Horizons” characters Isabelle (middle), with Tommy and Timmy, on display at the new Nintendo store at 331 Powell St., Union Square in San Francisco on Tuesday, May 13, 2025.
Adding to the retail legacy of The City’s historic shopping district, Nintendo San Francisco promises a unique shopping experience for video-game fans of all ages, including items exclusive to San Francisco and the U.S. such as tried-and-true Mario plushies and Pokémon cookware.
Like the opening sequences in Nintendo’s games, walking into the store feels like entering another realm. Human-sized statues of classic characters such as Mario (surrounded by tableware) and window decals of Princess Peach draw you into a red-and-white wonderland, perfectly evoking Nintendo’s branding.
It is indeed a store designed for shopping, but for anyone who has played “The Legend of Zelda” or “Animal Crossing,” for example, it’s a chance to celebrate their love of those games.
“We want it to be much more than just a store — we want it to be an immersive experience,” said P.J. Vallasco, senior manager of the Nintendo America Retail Team during a preview tour prior to the store’s opening. “We want to immerse you in our characters, within our worlds, and we want to do that through experiences and the products that we’re going to go through.”
People outside waiting to preview the new Nintendo store at 331 Powell Street, Union Square in San Francisco on Tuesday, May 13, 2025.
Craig Lee/The Examiner
The two-level store is organized by game franchise, beginning with Mario, who shares space with location-specific merch displaying the “Nintendo SAN FRANCISCO” logo such as hoodies, water bottles, and t-shirts. Zelda’s Kingdom of Hyrule can be found downstairs near the Pokémon goodies, and perhaps most newsworthy, “Animal Crossing” lovers will finally have a place to shop.
“‘Animal Crossing’ was a huge, huge title for us,” Vallasco says, referring to the status of “Animal Crossing: New Horizons” as the second best-selling Nintendo Switch game. “But it’s been an underserved area for fans in terms of products, so for us to create and bring these franchises to life is going to speak to that customer.”
The “Animal Crossing” products play into the coziness of the games, with themed cookie jars, cute stationery and lifelike (but not edible) fuzzy peaches for sale.
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“Animal Crossing: New Horizons” characters Isabelle (middle), with Tommy and Timmy, on display at the new Nintendo store at 331 Powell St., Union Square in San Francisco on Tuesday, May 13, 2025.
Craig Lee/The Examiner
The San Francisco store also offers chances to play games on a range of screen sizes. There is also a Switch customization zone, where customers can choose from joystick colors never before offered in the United States. Games, Switch accessories, and rare collectible figurines can also be found on both levels of the store.
Nintendo is not the first video-game company to offer a retail experience in San Francisco — Sony had a strong presence at the Metreon with its PlayStation Store, which closed in 2009. It’s also not the first to bring magical characters to life in a retail storefront in Union Square: The Disney Store used to occupy a corner building only a block away. So it was a no-brainer for the Japanese video game giant to set its sights on The City’s best-known shopping district.
“Union Square just made sense, because it’s an iconic location, it’s a great spot, and it attracts locals and tourists,” Vallasco said.
Inside the new Nintendo store at 331 Powell St., Union Square in San Francisco on Tuesday, May 13, 2025.
Craig Lee/The Examiner
Nintendo’s other U.S. store has been next to 30 Rockefeller Plaza in New York City for 20 years. Vallasco said the goal in opening a West Coast location was to create balance across the country.
“We focused on another type of destination that has worldwide appeal and a great local fan base,” he said.
Beyond shopping and game playing, members of the Nintendo team say they hope the new store will bring people together.
“[The brainstorming process] was how can we build the local community?” Vallasco said. “How can we make it a space where people can come in and talk about the things that they love?”
