Satoru Iwata
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- "On my business card, I am a corporate president. In my mind I am a game developer. But in my heart, I am a gamer."
- — Satoru Iwata
- — Satoru Iwata
Satoru Iwata was a famed game developer working for HAL Laboratory and subsequently Nintendo.
Bio[edit | edit source]
Joining HAL in the 1980s, Iwata became the companies president by 1993 and held that post until 2000, when he became head of the corporate planning division of Nintendo proper. In 2002, he became Nintendo's president - the first person to hold that office that was not related to the family of the company's original founders since its origins in 1899. Compared to the relatively conservative corporate style found in most Japanese companies, Iwata was supremely unorthodox, occasionally staring at a banana for a few moments before addressing the audience.
Segata's natural talent for programming and game design meant he played a pivotal role in the development of numerous titles, ranging from early works like Balloon Fight and Earthbound to his contribution to Pokemon Gold/Silver, for which he developed a compression tools utilized by the in-game graphics. Other games influenced by him include Super Smash Bros, Super Mario Sunshine, Animal Crossing, and probably just about every other popular Nintendo title you ever heard of.
Iwata's untimely demise on July 11th 2015 from complications of a bile duct tumor sent shockwaves across the gaming industry. A particular point of regret was the hostile reaction many fans displayed over Nintendo's stagnation during his last public appearance in 2014, where Iwata asked the audience to "please understand". They understand now. When even the faceless mass of Anons across various imageboards is reduced to snot and tears, everyone understands.
In 8chanmania[edit | edit source]
Iwata debuted in 8chanmania XXXVI, where he first faced off against the rival Segata Sanshiro. The fight between the two took nearly an hour before Iwata finished the business with a crashing KO. Perhaps due to exhaustion from this battle, Iwata himself suffered a KO at the hands of Kazuma Kiryu only one minute and 18 seconds into the next match; although it is implied he willingly lost the match to let Kiryu take care of Ouya-tan.
For 8chanmania XXXI, the random hand of fate saw Iwata teamed up with Segata Sanshiro. Unfortunately, the two were physically removed from the ring by Ren and Squilliam Fancyson.
Trivia[edit | edit source]
- Satoru is developing games in heaven now.
