The man responsible for bringing Nintendo's video games into global relevancy and demand has died at age 85. At the time of his death, he ran the Nintendo firm for 53 years (from 1949 to 2002) and was the company's second-largest shareholder. Yamauchi was president of Nintendo during the release of the NES, SNES, the Gameboy, the N64, and the Gamecube.
"In that time, he took what was a small-time collectable trading card company and built it into one of the most recognisable-- and successful-- video games brands today," says Dave Lee, BBC Technology reporter.
"He understood the social value of play, and economic potential of electronic gaming. Most importantly he steered Nintendo on its own course and was unconcerned by the actions of his competitors. He was a true visionary."
Rob Crossley, Associate Editor of Computer and Video Games magazine, told the BBC: "You cannot overestimate the influence the man had on the games industry."
Under Yamauchi's direction, he hired Shigeru Miyamoto (maker of Donkey Kong), who was responsible for bringing Super Mario, Legend of Zelda, and Starfox to households everywhere in the world. Yamauchi remained on the Nintendo board of directors, overseeing the launch of the Wii console and then retiring in 2005.
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