Sad news today as Nintendo of Europe has released news of the passing of Nintendo’s Global President, Satoru Iwata at the young age of 55. Mr. Iwata passed away on July 11th, 2015 with the cause of death being a bile duct growth, but that seemed to have not affected his work as up until recently Mr. Iwata had been vocal in how Nintendo would be entering the mobile gaming space.
However, as it turns out Mr. Iwata actually ended up missing this year’s E3 2015 because of these health issues and he underwent surgery shortly afterwards to remove the growth. Mr. Iwata has had a hand in just about every department of Nintendo, ranging from game programmer to Director, and eventually Global President. He also helped revitalize Nintendo’s handheld gaming sector as well, which before his involvement was having problems. He also worked on many of Nintendo’s major franchises at one point or another, including Mario, The Legend of Zelda, and Animal Crossing.
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. – Satoru Iwata
If you follow the news here on DroidGamers, Mr. Iwata has been a key part in vocalizing Nintendo’s strategy in regards to their future plans with their entry into the mobile gaming industry on Android and iOS finally. This was just the latest project Mr. Iwata would be overseeing in his time. Unfortunately he won’t get to see to come to life here on Earth, but you can bet he’ll be watching from the heavens. He was survived by his wife Kayoko. Funeral services are planned to be held on July 17th.
He will be missed by everyone in this industry we all love. Rest In Peace.
