Satoru Iwata, President of Nintendo, has passed away

**Grey Jorildyn** · 2015-07-13 14:28

I see miyamoto getting the call-up. He shared a lot of the "couch co-op is fun/VR is dumb" stuff that Iwata was behind. I didn't agree with the general direction Iwata was taking Nintendo but Miyamoto did and so I see him as the least wave-inducing successor.

I don't think he'll be any good at the PR stuff as is alluded to above. That's just not him.

**Anoat** · 2015-07-13 14:58

You gotta think they had a contingency plan in place knowing for so long that he was ill. I could see Miyamoto taking over in an interim role, but yeah, his place is making the games and not in the corporate world.

**Daydreamer** · 2015-07-13 14:58

I know this would pretty much never happen, but what if Miyamoto and Reggie took over as co-president? Seems like the best of both worlds.

**Sho** · 2015-07-13 15:26

Best case scenario will be installing Reggie as CEO. Reggie has both the business acumen and has the easiest and most direct connections between developers, the gamers, and the international market. However, this will never happen (they would never let a foreigner take over the business, even if it is in their best interests -- he's also not on the Board of Directors), so I expect Genyo Takeda to take over, since Miyamoto is aging and doesn't want to resume the role. I'd be surprised if he did however.

**Jaxzer** · 2015-07-13 15:46

Call me crazy but how about Yoshi P?

**SephYuyX** · 2015-07-13 16:05

Long time CEOs and similiar typically dont retire; Miyamoto wont ever trully retire, Iwata probably never would have retired.
Reggie will probably not have a problem going to another company or retiring however.

**Vandole** · 2015-07-13 16:21

Originally Posted by Jaxzer

Call me crazy but how about Yoshi P?

spit my coffee out laughing at this

**Gredival** · 2015-07-13 16:25

Originally Posted by Jaxzer

Call me crazy but how about Yoshi P?

Nintendo is already all about the casual market so I guess he couldn't ruin them like he did XI.

**SephYuyX** · 2015-07-13 17:01

I think it will be someone smaller in Nintendo, or someone from the outside (or board).

**Vandole** · 2015-07-13 17:26

obviously it will be anita sarkesian

**Kirin** · 2015-07-13 18:03

Shigesato Ito (Earthbound/Mother creator):

“No matter the farewell, I think the most appropriate thing to say is “we”ll meet again.” We are friends so we”ll see each other again. There is nothing strange about saying it. Yeah. We’ll meet again.
Even if you didn’t have the chance to put into words how sudden it was going to be, how far you’d be traveling, or how you went much earlier than expected, I know you went wearing your best.
You always put yourself second to others no matter what, helping anyone who needed it whenever they needed it. You were that kind of friend. Although you may have been a little selfish for the first time ever by taking this journey.
The truth is though that I still don’t believe any of it. I feel like I am going to receive a message from you inviting me out to eat at any moment. I wouldn’t mind if you were to ask me like always if I had some free time. If you did, I’d ask you as well.
Still, “we’ll meet again.” It would be great to hear from you whenever and wherever; I’ll being calling to you too. I’ll call if I have something to discuss or I want to tell you a great new idea I’ve had.
We’ll meet again.
Then again, you’re here with me now.”

Reggie Fils-Aime:

“Mr. Iwata is gone, but it will be years before his impact on both Nintendo and the full video game industry will be fully appreciated. He was a strong leader for our company, and his attributes were clear to most everyone: Intelligence, creativity, curiosity and sense of humor. But for those of us fortunate enough to work closely with him, what will be remembered most were his mentorship and, especially, his friendship. He was a wonderful man. He always challenged us to push forward…to try the new…to upset paradigms—and most of all, to engage, excite and endear our fans. That work will continue uninterrupted.”

Shigeru Miyamoto: (His quote sounds very much like someone who understands what he is about to inherit)

“I am surprised at this sudden news and overcome with sadness,” Mr. Miyamoto said in a statement issued through the company on Monday. He said he would maintain the game-development stance that he and Mr. Iwata established and work with developers to create the kind of future successes that the late president would have wanted."

Itoi's gets me right in the gut. The guy lost his friend, and maybe the person working at Nintendo who was closest to Iwata on a personal level.

As for the successor talk, I too agree Reggie would be best for the company long-term. But that won't happen at a Japanese and still very family-controlled company. Miyamoto I think is the most public face, even if he only serves in the role for a year or two to see them through the NX launch and then steps aside for someone he has trained or shadowed him in a COO/CEO role for a while.

**SephYuyX** · 2015-07-13 18:30

**Sho** · 2015-07-13 22:25

Originally Posted by Jaxzer

Call me crazy but how about Yoshi P?

It's not out of the realm of possibility, lol. I would think Yoshi-P getting on the Board of Directors of SE pretty much married him to Square forever, though.