A Small Tribute to Satoru Iwata
- michellericks95
- Jul 17, 2015
- 2 min read

In regards to the death of Nintendo’s CEO, Satoru Iwata, we feel a great loss for him. He died due to complications of bile duct cancer surgery and was only 55-years-old. The Gamer was very stunned by the news on Sunday. All week we have been playing games that Iwata helped with.
I wasn’t particularly familiar with Iwata and his work. Since starting this blog, I have paid more attention to Nintendo, especially their Nintendo Directs. Iwata would always start the event off and appeared to be genuine, loving and kind to any type of gamer.
Here’s a little background information on him:
Iwata loved to play video games. He developed an interest in creating them in high school and started making simple games on an electronic calculator to share with his friends. He went to the Tokyo Institute of Technology, majoring in computer science. He worked at HAL Laboratory and became the company’s coordinator of software production in 1983.
He became Nintendo’s CEO in 2002 and helped push the production for the Nintendo DS and Wii. He was the executive producer for popular and well-known game series such as Balloon Fight, EarthBound, Kirby, Pokémon, and a little bit of Mario and The Legend of Zelda.
To many he was very friendly and wasn’t afraid to push the limits of video games. Here are a few of the most popular quotes found on various websites these past several days.
"We do not run from risk. We run to it. We are taking the risk to move beyond the boundaries of the game industry to reach new players and current players."
Remember how evolutionary the Wii was? Iwata helped with that console, a console that changed the perception of gaming. It allowed an entire group or family be involved in a gaming experience. It was easy to use and most important, fun.
"I've never once been embarrassed that children have supported Nintendo. I'm proud of it. That's because children judge products based on instinct. Everyone wants to appeal to people's instincts, but it's not easy."
Iwata nailed it. Kids shouldn’t be shunned from their opinions and ideas because they are kids. They have the best minds because they haven’t been corrupted or shot down from the world and its viewpoints.
“Above all, video games are meant to just be one thing: Fun for everyone.”
Amen.
“On my business card, I am a corporate president. In my mind, I am a game developer. But in my heart, I am a gamer.”
I think this really shows how a CEO should be. They shouldn’t forget why they started their career and what it has led them to become.
We love you Iwata and we join the entire gaming community in telling you thank you.


We'll see you next week
Image Credits
https://twitter.com/meowza/status/620392917358645249/photo/1
https://twitter.com/SmashingRenders/status/620703466919448578/photo/1
Comments