Satoru Iwata, President of Nintendo; Dead at age 55

[Mr.Mattress]

He died July 11th [http://kotaku.com/nintendos-president-has-passed-away-1717386412]...

Nintendo has just issued a short statement announcing that president Satoru Iwata has passed away at the age of 55.

The statement reads:

Nintendo Co., Ltd. deeply regrets to announce that President Satoru Iwata passed away on July 11, 2015 due to a bile duct growth.
Iwata was forced to skip last year?s E3 due to his poor health, and shortly afterwards underwent surgery to remove the bile duct growth.

Iwata first joined Nintendo in the 1980s, where he worked on games like Balloon Fight and EarthBound. He became a Director of the company in 2000, and in 2002 was appointed as only the fourth President of Nintendo.

This is a very sad day. I knew he was sick, but I didn't know he was at risk of dieing. This is going to hurt Nintendo.

 

[Dango]

Damn.

Rest in Peace, Satoru Iwata.

 

[dragongit]

Holy hell, this came out of left field. I was just looking through the comments on the Red Ash Kickstarter and someone mentioned he died. I still don't know what to think of this, if it's a hoax or not, but, if it's true... RIP man.

 

[Chessrook44]

Requiesat En Pacem. I may not be a huge Nintendo fan and don't know what may be the best way to pay tribute, but I can at least pay my respects towards him in that way.

Oh yes, and if anyone's curious... Nintendo has their official notice about it here...

http://www.nintendo.co.jp/ir/pdf/2015/150713e.pdf

 

[Metalmacher]

Wow... Words aren't coming to me right now... Absolute insanity for a man such as himself to die so young... Just... damn...

 

[Aiddon_v1legacy]

The only words I can think of are these: I am just preparing for when the internet turns tasteless with it. Because we all know how petty people were with Iwata.

 

[totheendofsin]

I honestly don't know what to say, the man worked on Earthbound, Pokemon, he's left a huge mark. The gaming world is lesser without him

 

[chozo_hybrid]

We just lost one of the titans of the games industry. I'm sad to hear you go Mr Iwata, I don't know what else to say except thank you for all the awesome stuff you've help give to us.

 

[Erttheking]

The only words I can think of are these: I am just preparing for when the internet turns tasteless with it. Because we all know how petty people were with Iwata.

*Sigh* the internet handles everything with the grace of a drunk rhino.

RIP man. I wasn't never overly fond of Nintendo's policies, but you were freaking saints compared to the rest of the industry. You cared, and that made a huge difference.

 

[Andy Shandy]

One of the best, gone far too soon.

RIP Iwata-san.

 

[Rad Party God]

Saw this on Destructoid and I'm still pretty fucking shocked by this.

You'd may think you'll never care about the death of an executive from a videogame company, but man, he just wasn't a generic CEO, he truly was one of the faces of the company and he did so much for the industry as a whole.

Please understand, may he rest in piece.

 

[Neverhoodian]

Well damn, THAT was unexpected. Rest in peace, Mr. Iwata. Truly, you were one of the industry's greats.

The only words I can think of are these: I am just preparing for when the internet turns tasteless with it. Because we all know how petty people were with Iwata.

Why wait? The internet has no time for decency and taste.

Spoiler: WARNING: May cause loss of faith in humanity

http://www.ign.com/boards/threads/any-good-satoru-iwata-dead-jokes-yet.454527255/

 

[Chester Rabbit]

Wait, as in Mr.Please Understand? O.O Wuuuuh....the fuuuuuu....k.. Seriously 2015. Stop being such a shit year!

 

[Foolery]

The only words I can think of are these: I am just preparing for when the internet turns tasteless with it. Because we all know how petty people were with Iwata.

Already happening. Plenty of people talking about the future of the company and how it's going to be better without him at the helm. Never met the man, but I won't forget his accomplishments. Like programming all of Kanto into Pokemon Gold and Silver. Seemed like a very nice dude all-around and his enthusiasm and good humour in the games industry will be missed.

 

[Aiddon_v1legacy]

Already happening. Plenty of people talking about the future of the company and how it's going to be better without him at the helm. Never met the man, but I won't forget his accomplishments. Like programming all of Kanto into Pokemon Gold and Silver. Seemed like a very nice dude all-around and his enthusiasm and good humour in the games industry will be missed.

And that is why I think gaming forums need to start banning any business discussion because it's quite clear the community is not yet ready for that type of discussion. Though we all know their cheers are futile considering his successor will be aligned with his philosophy anyway. Good times.

 

[Hero of Lime]

I'm just sad, really, really, sad. What I loved about Iwata was his background in game development, and his business skills. Even if his leadership had its ups and downs, he really was an ideal CEO of a game company. He understood both sides very well, and I hope Nintendo does not let his ideals die.

I also never thought that playing Splatoon would get me teary eyed. But, seeing all the Miiverse posts honoring him was so touching. As one of the posts said, "I hope he goes directly to heaven." I hope so too. Goodbye Mr. Iwata.

 

[Twintix]

What?

...WHAT?!

I...Oh god, did these news come out of nowhere. I'm not going to pretend that I know much about the industry and the people in it, but Iwata seemed like a really pleasant and funny man. To think that he was that sick... Oh man, now I'm sad.

RIP Mr. Iwata.

 

[Danny Dowling]

Not sure what to think at this time personally. No doubt a very powerful and positively influential asset to the gaming industry.

However, we can't ignore the times we were surprised he was once again voted CEO, or the times decisions were made that made no sense. This is a good opportunity for Nintendo to address some issues. It is however no doubt a shame that opportunity comes from a loss of life.

RIP to him.

 

[Silvanus]

Never met the man, but I won't forget his accomplishments. Like programming all of Kanto into Pokemon Gold and Silver.

That was his project? That was one of the nicest touches I'd ever come across in a game.