A shocking statement from Nintendo has announced that CEOSatoru Iwata has passed away on July 11. The Nintendo Chief was 55.
“Nintendo Co., Ltd. deeply regrets to announce that President Satoru Iwata passed away on July 11, 2015 due to a bile duct growth,” reads the statement.
Although it is difficult to accept that medical complications have taken Iwata’s life at the age of 55, we have been aware of his health concerns. Iwata took some time off last year in order to undergo a surgery to remove a tumor and had since returned to his post.
We remember Iwata as a programmer who initially freelanced for HAL Laboratory, a subsidiary of Nintendo, before joining HAL full-time after college. During Iwata’s time at HAL, he had worked on games including Balloon Fight, the Kirby franchise, and Earthbound franchise. Eventually, Iwata became the president of HAL in 1993. Later, Iwata took over as Nintendo president from boss Hiroshi Yamauchi in 2002.
Under Iwata’s leadership, Nintendo had delivered successful products including the Nintendo DS and Wii consoles as well as the GameCube and Wii U. Not too long ago, Iwata also shared his plans for Nintendo to make moves into the mobile gaming market. In addition, Iwata has revealed plans to develop a “Quality of Life” program as well.
Adored by many, the statement from Nintendo has ignited an immense number of reactions and responses from fans.
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