Hiroshi Yamauchi

Hiroshi Yamauchi was a Japanese businessman who led Nintendo from 1949 to 2002, steering the company from playing cards into toys and video games.

Nintendo: A Japanese entertainment company founded in 1889 that became a major producer of video game hardware and software. Yamauchi led Nintendo through its transformation from a card maker into a global game company.
Nintendo Entertainment Analysis & Development: Nintendo’s internal game-development division, responsible for many of its most influential titles. Yamauchi gave its designers room to create games while demanding commercially viable results.
Nintendo playing cards: Playing cards manufactured by Nintendo, whose business began with handmade hanafuda cards in Kyoto. Card manufacturing was the foundation of the company Yamauchi inherited and later diversified.
Atari: An American entertainment company that helped pioneer the commercial video game industry. Nintendo’s console strategy in North America differed from Atari’s approach before the 1983 crash.
Nintendo Entertainment System: A home video game console released by Nintendo in the 1980s. Its success in North America marked a defining achievement of Yamauchi’s leadership.
Shigeru Miyamoto: A Japanese video game designer and producer known for creating franchises including Mario and The Legend of Zelda. Yamauchi recognized Miyamoto’s creative talent and assigned him major projects.
Hanafuda: A Japanese playing-card genre whose cards depict flowers and other seasonal motifs. Nintendo’s original business centered on producing and selling these cards.
Sega: A Japanese entertainment company and video game publisher that competed with Nintendo in arcade and home gaming. Sega’s rivalry with Nintendo exposed competing approaches to hardware, marketing, and game audiences.
Game Boy: Nintendo’s handheld video game system, launched in 1989. Yamauchi backed a portable system whose long-lasting design reached a vast audience.
Gunpei Yokoi: A Nintendo engineer and designer associated with the Game & Watch, Game Boy, and Metroid. Yokoi’s products exemplified the practical, low-cost design approach Yamauchi supported.

Linked from 6 pages