Satoru Iwata - The Happiness Behind Nintendo

Satoru Iwata passed away yesterday, July 11, 2015. Nintendo has released a statement that he passed away due to a tumor in his bile duct at the age of 55.

I never got to meet Iwata-san. Truth be told, I knew about him as the President and CEO of Nintendo, my favorite gaming company. He worked on games that became part of the childhood of millions like Earthbound, Kirby, Balloon Fight, and would later work on Pokemon, Legend of Zelda, and Animal Crossing. Take a moment to look at the titles I listed. I guarantee you can recall at least one character from those franchises combined, whether it be Link, Pikachu, the Villager, Meta Knight or Ness.

Iwata is one of the main reasons that Super Smash Brothers Melee finished on time, and he was the reason Pokemon Gold/Silver/Crystal had a second region to go to, the Kanto Region from the original Red/Blue/Yellow. Linger on that thought, it was the only major Pokemon game to date to feature two regions and 16 badges.

I find myself at a loss when I think about all the things that Iwata has done for Nintendo, for all the fans he indirectly had by making the games that would be apart of the childhood of millions. I was born in 1994, so I was lucky enough to play Pokemon Yellow when it came out. I remember buying it from Costco and getting a Purple Gameboy Color to boot. I still have them sitting next to me. I play it from time to time, just because it was such a classic. I also play Crystal, because it is the only 2^nd Generation Pokemon game I have, besides Heart Gold for the DS, that I can play. I remember being completely blown away that I could get 16 badges. That was so cool to me. And it was his idea.

Super Smash Brothers Melee was the first true party game that I played, and I was introduced to it because of my cousin. After that, I was hooked on Nintendo. I was able to see all of these cool characters, and instantly bought the games they were from. I was enthralled by Legend of Zelda, laughed and enjoyed Kirby’s Nightmare in Dreamland, fascinated by Star Fox and obviously obsessed with Pokemon.

To think one man had such an impact on an entire company, industry, and audience completely blows my mind. I wish I got to meet you Iwata-san. Thanks for everything, I never met you, but you made my childhood amazing.