“But this year we will Iwata san?” . The request made to Andrea and Francesca Nintendo Italy was a must before you begin to organize the trip to the annual E3, the video game trade show in Los Angeles. The super-Nintendo president, who died last Saturday for a cancer that gripped him for several months, missing the Electronic Entertainment Expo last two years and also his appearances to Direct company were increasingly entrusted to simulacra. But the question was not formal, far: Iwata was “the only Japanese with whom it is worthwhile to talk about.” A crude phrase, that ran as part of video games, but certainly real in its true meaning: Iwata was the sole manager of the Rising Sun who knew the value of his thought and believed that business logic or custom could be a valid impediment to express it.
This is not because Iwata was an “Americanized”, as with Kazuo Hirai , former president of Sony Playstation and now global, thinker Japanese fulminant in its digital vision. Iwata was fully adherent to the style of his company, born and raised in Kyoto, the old capital that had all the “prudence”. Although covering video games. That in Japan have a cultural and social value much higher than here, where are immeritevolmente considered a fun – even low-value and even dangerous – only for kids. And this despite the fact the gaming world has been fortunate to have a Satoru Iwata. The man who changed the electronic games forever.
If possible, I tried to meet him every year in Los Angeles, for the reasons given above . Hard to get a better overview of where they were going about his video games. In 2009 there was the best interview, Iwata was on overload: its Wii, the car that had broken the barriers, was at the peak of his career and the entire video game industry was heading in the direction outlined by Iwata. I was always struck by the respect that the “rivals” had of him: Sir Howard Stringer, then president of Sony Playstation, said he was honored to have slipped to third place in the ranking of the console, because before there were those who had detonated the market beyond the limits that Playstation had never been able to cross. Even less Xbox.
Then the two giants had bet with decision towards revolution Wii , with control systems of the games that were more natural motion systems. Those who Iwata – bad player, by his own admission – was donated to the console was born in 2006, thus opening the doors made of video games to the families, then everyone. It was a blue ocean that only rare nantes Kyoto dared begin to cross. And then, in 2009 in fact, was already becoming a Red Ocean, the waters of battle, ready to fill with blood metaphor Shinto typical of Nintendo and Iwata san had done his. So much that it has become his. The blue ocean was unexplored territory for novelty and conquest, one where since 1889 he is always pushing Nintendo to look for new ways to play and entertain their fans. A strategy, which in recent years was also a necessity turned into a virtue because of competition with the two giants with whom Nintendo has never been able to compete on equal terms. Wii was the most spectacular diving in the ocean. Who once turned red but turned out to be fatal for the Kyoto company, constantly looking for a new blue. It may be perhaps the console Nx, the last creature willed by Iwata, which some say could be a tablet or a smartphone the Nintendo. To play, but not only.
Why Nintendo, in search of the blue, with Iwata was also bowing to the need to sail the waters red . So give evidence of the cabinet, to which the President had opened more than a crack. Then accept, reluctantly, that at age 30 the figliol0 SuperMario was time to come out of the house. To become a Nintendo brand around the world, in amusement parks but also on non-proprietary platforms (as is the case with Donkey Kong figurine given to Activision for Skylanders). To talk about this jolt to the Big N, in Los Angeles this year was Shigeru Miyamoto, the creative genius of the house, what Iwata was strategic. The two together were better than Mario and Luigi, with the necessary support of overseas Reggie Fils-Aime (Donkey Kong?). Now Miyamoto will remain alone, and later this awareness the inventor of Mario and everyone else had it in mind in June: he knew that the farewell to Iwata was imminent. Not a smile during the interview, but warm and friendly after years of frequent visits, or a gag her, a laugh out of line Japanese. Miyamoto was serious, especially in answering the question on virtual reality, using words and concepts to their Iwata: “Interesting, but not for us: we want to put people on the couch at home and make her play and laugh together.” We do not know what the future of Nintendo, but meanwhile the creative Miyamoto is studying the style of the visionary Iwata. But not enough to make people feel less its lack, to any industry sector and gamers. Who fondly thank you.
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