Nintendo President Satoru Iwata Dies At 55; Gaming Industry Mourns His Demise

Nintendo issued a statement on July 13, saying its President, Satoru Iwata passed away at the age of 55. His untimely death has been attributed to a bile duct growth, according to reports.

Iwata had also missed the 2015 Electronic Entertainment Expo due to health issues, reports Forbes. Iwata took over as the President of Nintendo in 2002 when he succeeded Hiroshi Yamauchi, who had been the company’s President for 50 years. Though Iwata was the fourth President in the history of the gaming company, he was the first outsider to take over the top position in the company, reports CNN Money.

Iwata joined Nintendo in 1980s where he worked on games like Earthbound and Kirby. During his tenure, the company witnessed huge successes like explosive sales of the DS and the Wii, but at the same time, the company had also faced hard times due to the underperforming GameCube and Wii U, reported Forbes. As per the publication, Iwata was a beloved figure in the gaming industry and was appreciated for his warmth and acceptability, despite holding a powerful position. He had always clarified that he was a gamer first. “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," the CNN Money report quoted Iwata saying at a conference for game developers in 2005.

Tributes from fans, gamers and even industry rivals were immediately noticed on social media, reports CNN Money.

Nintendo is expected to issue a detailed statement on Iwata’s death. Iwata’s future plans for Nintendo were aimed at gaining increased presence on the mobile market and new NX hardware, as per the report on Forbes.

Nintendo is yet to announce the successor of Iwata, however, the company said, in the interim, two other executives- Genyo Takeda and Shigeru Miyamoto would manage the company, reports CNN Money.

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