[Gabbin’ with Gamers] Danny & Felia from The Nintendo Power Couple
Are you ready for two AMAZING guests on the latest Gabbin’ with Gamers? Danny and Felia aren’t just a happy married couple, but also the stars of The Nintendo Power Couple! This highly entertaining duo create videos that truly showcase Nintendo’s latest and upcoming games, items, and more! Whether it’s previews, reviews, special events or more, their channel has something for everyone! Plus, when we learned that they both got to try out the Nintendo Labo, we just had to learn more! So sit back, relax, and enjoy our conversation with The NPC!
Danny and Felia, thank you so much for taking the time to speak with The Switch Effect today. Can you share a bit of background about yourselves?
DANNY: Absolutely! I’m a lifelong gamer and collector born and raised in New Jersey. I studied filmmaking in college which just so happens to be where I met Felia. I love playing video games and watching movies; some of my favorite movies are old slapstick comedies. I am a huge fan of Charlie Chaplin, the Marx Brothers, the Three Stooges and Abbott & Costello. I also have been collecting video games and video game-related toys since I was little. Aside from collecting video games, I also collect vintage cameras and own over 100 unique photography and film cameras! One day I’d love to write and direct my own feature film and/or work on creating video games for Nintendo.
FELIA: I was born and raised in the Caribbean, in Trinidad and Tobago, and it wasn’t until I was 13 years old that I moved to America. Growing up we didn’t have much, but it was really a great experience being that close to nature; maybe that’s why I love the Zelda series so much! It also taught me how to be creative and self reliant as I often fashioned my own toys from old hand-me-downs or even bamboo from the empty lot across from our house. This combined with my love for any of Jim Henson’s creations, Star Wars and playing Nintendo games has given me a lifelong obsession with the magical worlds we can create with just our imagination. I would absolutely love to be a part of creating something of that scope one day. Whether that’s through producing an imaginative film or series and/or working on a video game directly with Nintendo, my life has taught me that anything really is possible and with hard work dreams can become reality!
What the first console/game you ever owned?
DANNY: The first gaming console I owned was the original NES. I was about two or three years old when I first picked up a controller and jumped into the Mushroom Kingdom! The Super Mario Bros/Duck Hunt combo cartridge that was packed in with the system was the first game I owned and I loved it! Along with the SNES, I can only play the NES with the controller upside-down; that’s how I played as a child and somehow it still works today!
FELIA: The first console my family owned was the Super Nintendo Entertainment System! Our first game was Super Mario World and I absolutely fell in love from the first play. This game was especially significant to me as a kid because the main theme song uses the Steel Pan, an instrument that was created in Trinidad and Tobago. Knowing that this super cool game I just played also had music from my where I lived somehow made me feel special and connected to the world in a bigger way. Even to this day I have a strange sense of pride when I hear that classic theme.
Do you have any fond childhood memories based around gaming?
DANNY: I think all of my fondest childhood gaming memories center around whenever my parents would play the games with me and my little brother. I remember one thanksgiving where my dad jumped into our game of Goldeneye 64 and although he had no idea how to play, it was the fact that he tried that really meant a lot to us.
FELIA: One of my fondest childhood memories, from when I was really little and just getting started with gaming, was playing Mario Paint. This was the first game I ever got to pick out myself and I was so excited because I got to bring it home and be the first to play it. In a big family, that was kind of a big deal. Ha! I spent countless hours painting, coloring and creating silly music on that game. Still one of the games that’s closest to my heart.
It’s time to dive into The Nintendo Power Couple. You two are a married powerhouse that create content aimed at promoting Nintendo and Nintendo-related products. How did you two come up with the idea for The Nintendo Power Couple?
THE NPC: We both worked in television and film production out of college. We love writing short films, directing actors and getting our hands on the camera. The last production job we worked on was America’s Got Talent, for two years and although it definitely had its highs and lows, there were times toward the end where it was brutal. Once the season ended and they went back to LA, we decided we would take some time away from pursuing film and television work and instead try to use our background in filmmaking to do something for ourselves. We had a lot of conversations imagining what we could create if we worked just as hard for ourselves as we did for others.
We decided to combine our two passions, gaming and filmmaking, and venture into YouTube to make gaming videos from the perspective of a married gaming couple, something we didn’t see too much of at the time. We focus on showcasing the world of Nintendo because of the impact it has had on both of our lives in a very real way. Nintendo has honestly been one of those things that have, time and time again, brought us closer to the people in our lives.
What has the experience been like working and sharing your passion together?
THE NPC: It’s been incredible! Back in film school before we even dated, we used to work together on each other’s short films all the time. So taking that experience and now working together from the comfort of our own home has been incredible. The great part is over our years of friendship we really got to learn how to work with each other on a professional level so it was such an easy transition to working with each other on the show now.
For someone looking to learn more about Nintendo or just enjoy all they have to offer, your channel has it all! From “Let’s Play” videos to game reviews, special events, and more, there is no shortage of content. Can you describe the process on how you two collaborate as to what should be featured on your channel?
THE NPC: It’s funny, we really don’t have a big process on how we decide what to feature on our channel. It mainly comes up from conversations while playing games or having dinner. We will talk and then someone will say “what if we did a video about this?” or “wouldn’t it be a cool segment to go and film this?”
We do have a board where we map out future episodes and topics for the NPC Power Hour, but we’re very flexible with it and if we come up with a cooler idea in the meantime, we will feature that idea in a video first.
You two are also Nintendo Brand Ambassadors! How did this partnership form and what has it been like to be a voice for Nintendo?
THE NPC: Becoming a Nintendo Brand Ambassador has been a dream come true for us. When we first started the Nintendo Power Couple it was something we talked about wanting to achieve, but had no idea how to come about it.
Then in January of 2017, we got invited to a private event by Nintendo where we were told we would be playing Poochy and Yoshi’s Woolly World for the 3DS. However, when we arrived, they revealed it was a private gaming session with the Nintendo Switch and we had about two hours to play Breath of the Wild and 1-2 Switch. It was an out-of-body experience for sure!
Later we came to find that our session was part of a surprise episode for The Nintendo Minute! Once that happened, Nintendo started sending us games and a few months later they made it official.
We are actually planning an episode of the NPC Power Hour where we will be giving advice for others on how they might be able to become Nintendo Brand Ambassadors as well so be on the lookout for that!
Where do you see the channel growing into and what can fans look forward to in the future?
THE NPC: Our plans for this year is to continue growing our newest format, The NPC Power Hour, and branching out to doing live-streaming with the community as well. The NPC Power Hour is great for us and for our community because we treat it as a Nintendo variety show. Each week we have a new topic for discussion and we do exciting things like feature interviews with others in both the industry and from the community.
Our larger goals with the show is to use it as a platform to connect people, much like ourselves, through our shared love of gaming together. We also want to start including more charity-based work with our Nintendo content. We both are passionate about animals and have ideas to raise funds for animal shelters and conservation efforts.
Let’s “switch” gears slightly. We at The Switch Effect are obviously huge fans of Nintendo’s newest console. What are your thoughts on the Nintendo Switch?
DANNY: I absolutely love the Nintendo Switch! The Switch is the first system where I’ve bought so many 3rd party games for and our collection is full of Nindies. I think they fit perfectly with the portability of the Nintendo Switch. Plus there’s so many fantastic first-party titles (Breath of the Wild, Splatoon 2, Super Mario Odyssey) that we find there’s never nothing to play on it. When I first saw the Switch reveal trailer, I wasn’t sold because, with working at a moving company, I didn’t see a reason why I’d play in handheld mode. However, once we got it, I play handheld all the time! I can lie back on the couch, lie in bed or take it out when we travel for events and play these incredible games anywhere. It turned into my favorite feature!
FELIA: I’ve been really loving the Switch, it’s been surprising at every turn! The Nintendo Switch is the very first console that I’ve even had in hand right at release! Starting off with the Breath of the Wild launch and diving right into such a vast and fantastic game really made me fall in love with it from the get go.
And by the end of last year I was totally blown away by the sheer number of awesome games we already owned. We were having so much fun playing Splatoon 2 together we actually ended getting a second Switch so we could play together!
Recently, you were able to demo the Nintendo Labo. What were your thoughts of Nintendo’s newest invention?
THE NPC: We had a blast with it! The concerns we had about durability of the cardboard and how much fun it would be to build the Toy-Con were gone the moment we began creating. We only got to build the Fishing Rod and the RC Car but we got to play around with the rest of the Toy-Con. The Robot was easily our favorite since it really made you feel like you were a giant robot smashing through the city.
We cannot wait to see what happens when it launches in April. It looks like it’ll be a huge hit for children, schools and those “kids-at-heart” gamers like us who want to build and play together!
Which new games are you looking forward to the most?
DANNY: I am really excited to play some Yoshi! Yoshi’s Woolly World was the perfect couple’s game for the two of us: it had fun co-op, wasn’t too challenging and the music was just so soothing and relaxing! We’re hoping the new Yoshi game has that same effect! Oh and as for unannounced, I really want an Animal Crossing on the Switch! That or Luigi’s Mansion 3!
FELIA: I’m dying for a new Animal Crossing game! I know they haven’t announced anything yet, but I can’t help but hope and dream! Danny introduced me to Animal Crossing New Leaf a couple years back and I fell deeply in love with it all, from the charming characters to the relaxing gameplay. We definitely need a new Animal Crossing on the Switch so Danny and I can build neighboring towns and visit each other all the time.
I can see I’ve run you through the gauntlet so I’ll end with this last question: Is there anything else you’d like to share?
THE NPC: These past two years, creating our Nintendo videos on YouTube and getting such positive reactions from the community, has really been an amazing experience for us. We have known some of our Power Players since the beginning and it’s always a treat to interact with everyone on social media. Getting to know all these amazing people from different parts of the world and connecting over our shared joy for gaming and collecting has really been the most rewarding part of this entire experience.
We are also overjoyed and humbled that all the amazing people over at Nintendo have been so generous and kind in inviting us to events and been so supportive of our show. We have made a lot of wonderful friends and hope to one day be able to work more directly with Nintendo to create even more positive change in the world.
We hope newcomers to our channel enjoy our content and our positivity! We are extremely grateful to each and every viewer that takes the time out of their busy day to share a moment with us and enjoy a bit of gaming together!
Thank you for such awesome questions, we had a pleasure being interviewed!
Make sure to follow the Nintendo Power Couple by using the links below!
