Nintendo: The Company and its Founders - Sharyland ISD

NINTENDO
GAME SHIFT
The success of the video game
industry appeared to peak in
the last years of the twentieth
century. Games were becoming
more complex and the
software development more
costly. At a 2000 conference,
Yamauchi explained his opinion
to industry analysts that
complex, costly game systems
were not good for the
video game industry. The shift
that Nintendo needed did not
come along until Iwata took
over the company in 2002.
The company rebounded with
the success of its consumerfriendly,
mainstream products
such as Brain Age, the Wii, and
the DS.
from the futuristic film 2001
Space Odyssey). As a graduate of
Tokyo’s Institute of Technology,
Iwata had the right background
for Nintendo’s high-tech game
development. He helped create
Kirby games, among others. He
also played an important role
in shaping the strategy of the
GameCube. In 2000, he became
the company’s head of corporate
planning. Iwata was the first
Nintendo president who was not
related to the Yamauchi family by
birth or through marriage.
Things changed a little at
Nintendo when Iwata became
company president. During the
Yamauchi years, only a few people
were allowed to speak to the
company president. The Iwata era
was different, because Iwata spoke
directly with employees, explaining
business objectives personally.
When asked what was different
about Nintendo without its former
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