RTA In Japan, the largest video game speedrunning community in the country, has confirmed why no first-party Nintendo games will be featured at its upcoming August event. According to officials at RTA, Nintendo wants the speedrunning group to apply for licensing agreements for each individual Nintendo game moving forward, which RTA will do for future events.
In June, RTA revealed the games that would appear during its Summer 2025 livestreamed speedrunning event. And almost immediately, fans and the media noticed a lack of any first-party Nintendo games. This was odd, as at previous RTA events, Nintendo games like Super Mario 64 had drawn large audiences and were some of the most popular games played during the week-long speedrunning showcase. Fans speculated as to what had happened and why the games were missing. But now, RTA has officially explained the reason Super Mario 64 won’t be played during the speedrunning event later this month.
RTA in Japan における任天堂株式会社のゲームの利用に関するお知らせ｜RTA in Japan https://t.co/Zf7qrShyiT
— RTA in Japan (@RTAinJapan) August 4, 2025
On August 4, as reported by Automaton Media, RTA posted an announcement on the group’s official website, finally explaining what was going on. RTA confirmed that on June 13, it had received a direct communication from Nintendo informing them that because RTA is a “legal entity,” it would have to “ask for permission in advance” to feature any Nintendo games at any of their events. Nintendo also told RTA that its previous usage of Nintendo games during past streams was considered “unauthorized.” The problem seems to be that in 2020, RTA in Japan officially became a non-profit general incorporated association. This seems to have caused some problems for Nintendo’s lawyers, who are now forcing RTA to negotiate individual licensing and permission agreements to use Nintendo’s first-party games, like Super Mario 64 or Ocarina of Time, ahead of any future events.
Sadly for those hoping to play or watch some Nintendo games at this summer’s RTA event, none will be featured, as it took some time for the group to figure out its course of action and how to properly work with Nintendo. In the future, RTA will submit requests in advance to play Mario and other Nintendo games at speedrunning livestreams. The organizers apologized for any problems this situation might have caused and will share more information on changes to its guidelines and rules soon.
