Satoru Iwata Quotations

Nintendo has strong views on how we should run our company. We consider ourselves, above all else, as a gaming company. We believe other companies (in the console marketplace) see themselves primarily as technology companies.

If we continue down the same path as we have in the past, people may become tired of gaming,

Software sales have traditionally been dominated by console games, but the situation changed dramatically towards the end of the year, and games for portable devices overwhelmed console games.

If all we were to ever do is just continue to make sequels and not do anything new or different, people would view us as a very conservative company and a company that is unwilling to really take new initiatives and embark on new adventures. That's not the type of person I am and not the kind of company I want Nintendo to be.

I was a developer for many years before my current role, but I've never been a very good gamer. I've never been able to control a first-person shooter, but as soon as I used the Revolution controller, I found it very easy to control the game. So, I think that's a genre that's particularly well suited for the controller.

Recently I have gained a little bit of interest in getting more involved in game development again.

Our mission is to revive the gaming industry by increasing our user base, ... If we can't do that, we might as well stand back and watch the market die off.

We hope that our user base will become even wider with our software lineup, which we believe has enough teeth for experienced players.

We hope to make it a simultaneous worldwide release as much as it's possible.

We want to help you create the next one.

We thought it was the requirement of moving right and left fingers separately and nimbly that was creating a psychological barrier, ... To expand the gaming population, it was needed for us to design a pad so that any family member would see it on the living room table, think that this was something relevant to them and pick it up.

We thought about how everyone in the family uses the TV remote, but some people don't want to even touch the game controller.

We believe we know what makes a good game better than anyone else.

These products propose a different use for the DS in entirely new fields.

There would be no paperbacks, no romance novels, no magazines.

This new approach is like stepping onto an unexplored continent for the first time, with all the potential for discovery that suggests. No one else can match the environment we're creating for expanding the game experience to everyone. Our path is not linear, but dynamic.

We do not run from risk. We run to it. We are taking the risk to move beyond the boundaries of the game industry to reach new players and current players.

This is an extremely exciting innovation -- one that will thrill current players and entice new ones.

In the US, we're going to see the next generation cost an awful lot. I really don't think that there's going to be a lot of acceptance by current customers of the $60 price tag. They may allow that for a limited number of premium titles, but not all.

The next generation is a place where the best idea, not the biggest budget will win,

The feeling is so natural and real, as soon as players use the controller, their minds will spin with the possibilities of how this will change gaming as we know it today. This is an extremely exciting innovation --one that will thrill current players and entice new ones.

It's designed like a TV remote because that's familiar to everyone, including those who are intimidated by a two-handed controller. Its intuitive form allows both experienced and new gamers to stand on the same starting line.

It's designed like a TV remote because that's familiar to everyone including those who are intimidated by a two-handed controller, ... Its intuitive form allows both experienced and new gamers to stand on the same starting line.

I really don't think that there's going to be a lot of acceptance by current customers of the $60 price tag.

The game has changed, ... and the way the game is played has to be changed.

The development of this game came from our belief that people wanted something new. In this case, the game took the form of a treadmill for the mind.

The key here is not what you are playing but how you will be playing. Revolution will also create entirely new genres to expand the definition of video games.

We don't think it's necessary to do the simultaneous worldwide launch simply because others are doing this.

To achieve this rapid growth, we were required not only to go after frequent game players, but to reel back people who had left games and to make video games enjoyable for those who had not played games at all.

I cannot imagine any first party title could be priced for more than $50.

I can only say that it's coming out during 2006, but it will be after the current fiscal year.

For the controller to be placed on the table at all, we had to make it compact - I believe that this will be possible for this controller. Also, just like a TV remote control, it can be manipulated with one hand.

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.

If we stay in one place, we will become outdated

Video games are meant to be just one thing. Fun. Fun for everyone!

For young players, classic games are brand new. For older players, they bring back memories and make you feel good.

We are all too keenly aware that those of you who supported us by purchasing the 3DS in the beginningmay feel betrayed and criticize this decision [to cut the console's price]…

Please understand, I am not saying that technology is unimportant. I understand that technology is important. But if we are just focusing on technology and investing in an IT manufacturing plant to come up with higher performance processing [chips], we will not succeed.

If you do the same thing as others, it will wear you out. Nintendo is not good at competing so we always have to challenge the status quo by making something new, rather than competing in an existing market.

The entire Nintendo group will carry on the spirit of Mr. Yamauchi by honoring, in our approach to entertainment, the sense of value he has taught us -- that there is merit in doing what is different -- and at the same time, by changing Nintendo in accordance with changing times

Engineering is not quite as important as imagination

Small developers can compete on creativity not on scale or staff size.... Nintendo is willing to help bring these ideas to life,

Today, if you don’t understand the controller, you’re not able to enjoy video games. … We expect the Revolution [Wii] controller to become the standard in video game controls.

No one else can match the environment we're creating for expanding the game experience to everyone. Our path is not linear, but dynamic.

Although many believe that technology automatically enables more realistic expression, I believe that is just not correct.

If you want our world-known names, you can't have them unless you own the Nintendo machine.

Consumers will purchase high quality products even if they are expensive, or in other words, even if there are slightly reasonable discount offers, consumers will not purchase products unless they truly understand and are satisfied with the quality. Also, product appeal must be properly communicated to consumers, but advertisements that are pushed on consumers are gradually losing their effect, and we have to take the approach that encourages consumers to retrieve information at their own will.

Some argue that our success is short-lived and temporary. So, we now need to make efforts to constantly expand the player base by offering services and titles that can appeal, not only to those who have never played games, but also to those who play them hard.

Customers do not want online games.

The profitable part of the online business is very likely several years away. Entering the business because it's the hot topic of the day doesn't make a profitable business nor satisfied customers, ... That's why it will be a part of Nintendo's strategy, not the mainstay, as other companies are attempting to do. There still are too many barriers for any company to greatly depend on it.

In order to expand the gaming population, it is taken for granted that we need to offer games to satisfy veteran gamers. At the same time, I believe that we need to make a new proposal, so that those who do not play games can say, 'I can do it' and, 'I want to touch it.'

We are sorry about [the E3] media briefings, specifically for those who were expecting to see Nintendo show something about ‘Super Mario’ or ‘Legend of Zelda.’

At the moment, most customers do not wish to pay the extra money for connection to the Internet, and for some customers, connection procedures to the Internet are still not easy.

With the DS and Wii, following the titles that were released at launch, the momentum dropped when there was a gap in software releases. We're making plans so that this type of thing won't happen.

I've never been able to control a first-person shooter, but as soon as I used the Revolution controller, I found it very easy to control the game. So, I think that's a genre that's particularly well suited for the controller.

In order to realize the goal of creating a new starting line that anyone can instinctively understand we have come up with a design that differs greatly from any of today's controllers. We have also made bold innovations in play style as well.

Throughout the history of game development, the game control mechanism has become more and more sophisticated, ... Perhaps those who have quit gaming or who have never played games look at the game controller and think it's too difficult to play, even before they dare to touch it.

I apologize to those supporting Wii U about the lack of new titles from Nintendo in January and February but please understand we will have new titles to offer from March onward.

Our mission is to revive the gaming industry by increasing our user base,

As we learned a bitter lesson with the launch of the Nintendo 3DS, we are trying to take every possible measure so that the Wii U will have a successful launch.

Selling five million units in less than 14 months means DS is the fastest among any game machines ever launched in Japan to hit that level. To achieve this rapid growth, we were required not only to go after frequent game players, but to reel back people who had left games and to make video games enjoyable for those who had not played games at all.

Except for its backward compatibility with existing Wii software and accessories, we have so far failed to make propositions worthy of Wii U's position as a successor to the Wii system.