Nintendo's CEO Satoru Iwata Passes Away of Cancer at 55

The first president from outside the Yamauchi family since it started selling cards in the late 19th century has passed away of a bile duct growth.  Iwata died on Sat. July 11th according to Nintendo’s notification.

He started off as a programmer, was named director in 2000, president of Nintendo in 2002 and CEO in 2013

Last year, Iwata said he would slash his salary in half for several months to atone for the downturn as Microsoft and Sony overpowered them in sales.

Last year, Iwata took a leave for surgery to remove a bile-duct growth.

“Iwata made a great contribution to the industry,” said Hideki Yasuda, an analyst at Ace Research Institute in Tokyo. “It’s a great loss for Nintendo.”

“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.”  Iwata, said at the Game Developers Conference in 2005

News Reporter

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