Satoru Iwata, President of Nintendo, passed away on July 11 at the age of 55 due to bile duct growth according to a statement released by the company. Iwata missed E3 in 2014 after having a surgery to remove the bile duct growth which was found in an early stage. Iwata joined HAL Laboratory, a video game developer closely affiliated with Nintendo in the 1980s, and would later become the director of the company in 2000. In 2002, he was appointed the President of Nintendo. Iwata succeeded Hiroshi Yamauchi to become the fourth president in the history of Nintendo, and the first outside of the Yamauchi family. He would be the man to unveil to the world the groundbreaking Nintendo Wii as well as the DS.
Iwata was a beloved figure not only among Nintendo fans but in the video game industry in general, and will surely be missed. The official Sony Playstation account tweeted, “Thank you for everything, Mr. Iwata.”
Rest in Peace, Mr. Iwata.
“Video games are meant to be just one thing. Fun. Fun for everyone!” – Satoru Iwata
Photo: Satoru Iwata at E3