Inside Nintendo EPD: The Numbered Teams Behind Mario, Zelda and Mario Kart
Most of Nintendo's biggest games come from one division split into production groups with numbers instead of names. Here is who makes what, who leads it, and what the teams shipped in the Switch 2's first year and a half.
Ask who made Donkey Kong Bananza and the answer on the box is simply "Nintendo". Inside the company, the answer is more specific: Production Group No. 8, based in Tokyo, the same team that made Super Mario Odyssey. Nintendo's games are famous, but the teams behind them are some of the least publicised in the industry.
Almost all of them sit inside Nintendo Entertainment Planning & Development, or Nintendo EPD. It is Nintendo's largest division, and since the Switch 2 launched in June 2025, it has shipped Mario Kart World, Donkey Kong Bananza and a steady flow of new games and upgrades.
Where EPD came from
Nintendo EPD was created on September 16, 2015, by merging two older divisions: Entertainment Analysis & Development (EAD), the legendary team that grew around Shigeru Miyamoto, and Software Planning & Development (SPD). The merger was part of a company-wide restructuring under then-president Tatsumi Kimishima, a few months after the death of Satoru Iwata.
EPD is based mainly in Kyoto, Nintendo's home city, with a second location in Tokyo. It is led by Shinya Takahashi as executive general manager, with Yoshiaki Koizumi as senior general manager.
Who makes what
EPD is organised into production groups, most of them known by numbers. According to Nintendo's own credits and interviews:
- No. 3: the main Zelda series, including Breath of the Wild, Tears of the Kingdom and Echoes of Wisdom.
- No. 4: casual and experimental games, such as Ring Fit Adventure, Nintendo Switch Sports and 2026's Tomodachi Life: Living the Dream.
- No. 5: Animal Crossing and Splatoon, plus 2025's Drag x Drive.
- No. 6: games made with outside studios, such as Metroid Prime, Paper Mario and Luigi's Mansion.
- No. 8 (EPD Tokyo): 3D Mario and 3D Donkey Kong, from Super Mario Odyssey to Donkey Kong Bananza.
- No. 9: Mario Kart, including Mario Kart World, and Arms.
- No. 10: 2D Mario and Pikmin, including Super Mario Bros. Wonder and Pikmin 4.
- Co-Production Group: Nintendo-published games made by partners, including Pokemon, Xenoblade, Fire Emblem and Kirby.
There is also a Smart Device group for mobile games such as Super Mario Run, and shared management groups for programming, design and sound.
The Switch 2 era so far
EPD's output since the Switch 2 launch has been strong. Mario Kart World (2025) scored 86 on Metacritic and became the system's best-selling game. Donkey Kong Bananza (2025) scored 91 on OpenCritic and had sold 5.05 million copies by September 2026.
In 2026, the division's releases have included the Super Mario Bros. Wonder Nintendo Switch 2 Edition with the new Meetup in Bellabel Park, Tomodachi Life: Living the Dream, Rhythm Heaven Groove, Splatoon Raiders and a Pikmin 4 Switch 2 Edition. In 2027, Metroid Ravenous is next.
There has been at least one notable departure: long-time producer Kensuke Tanabe, who oversaw the Metroid Prime series and other partner projects, left in 2026.
Why it matters
Understanding EPD helps explain why Nintendo's games feel the way they do. Each group has years, sometimes decades, of experience with one series, which is why a new Zelda or Mario Kart tends to feel both fresh and familiar. It also explains the gaps between releases: there is only one Zelda team, and it does not hurry.
For Switch 2 owners, the practical lesson is simple. When a numbered group finishes one game, its next one is usually years away, and the best way to guess what is coming next is to ask which team has been quiet the longest.