Japanese business news site Nikkei recently conducted an interview with the current Nintendo president Shuntaro Furukawa. Plenty of interesting tidbits were revealed in this interview, including insight on Nintendo's design philosophy, but one of the most notable aspects was Furukawa speaking of his influence from past Nintendo presidents.
Furukawa became president of Nintendo in 2018, succeeding interim president Tatsumi Kimishima. He joined the company in 1994, working his way up the ranks through positions in marketing, the Pokemon Company, and more. Despite Nintendo's long and storied history, he is only its sixth president ever.
In this interview, translated by NintendoEverything, Furukawa speaks about how he learned from the philosophies of Hiroshi Yamauichi and Satoru Iwata throughout his time at the company. Yamauichi was Nintendo's president from 1949 to 2002, right as Nintendo shifted from making hanafuda cards to revolutionizing the games industry. While Furukawa hadn't interacted directly with Yamauichi, he learned much about him from his successor, Iwata. Yamauichi believed that "entertainment is valuable because it's different than other things we do in life," a philosophy Furukawa tries to carry on with modern-day Nintendo.
Furthermore, Furukawa said he learned many things from Iwata as well. Iwata is one of the most beloved and influential presidents in Nintendo's history, known for being a gamer at heart who always had the best interests of his employees in mind. However, Furukawa refused to mention specifics about Iwata's advice, stating he wouldn't approve of employees repeating "I learned this from Mr. Iwata." Furukawa goes on to say that, instead of trying to replicate Iwata's tenure, Furukawa chooses to manage things in his "own way" as well. He chooses to remember the legacies of the past, but not solely rely on them.
While Furukawa may be blazing his own path as Nintendo's latest president, it is heartening for fans to know that Iwata's legacy lives on. Iwata was a unique president, so it makes sense for Furukawa to not imitate him, but instead use his advice to move the company forward in new ways. Seemingly, his strategy is working, as Nintendo has been more successful than ever during the Switch era. The Nintendo Switch has sold 80 million units since its launch in 2017, outselling the Nintendo 64, GameCube, and even 3DS. The future of Nintendo is in trustworthy hands, and it wouldn't be in this position without the leadership of Furukawa and the presidents to come before him.
Source: NintendoEverything