Synopsis

“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.” —Satoru Iwata

Satoru Iwata was the former Global President and CEO of Nintendo and a gifted programmer who played a key role in the creation of many of the world’s best-known games. He led the production of innovative platforms such as the Nintendo DS and the Wii, and laid the groundwork for the development of the wildly successful Pokémon Go game and the Nintendo Switch. Known for his analytical and imaginative mind, but even more for his humility and people-first approach to leadership, Satoru Iwata was beloved by game fans and developers worldwide.

In this motivational collection, Satoru Iwata addresses diverse subjects such as locating bottlenecks, how success breeds resistance to change, and why programmers should never say no. Drawn from the “Iwata Asks” series of interviews with key contributors to Nintendo games and hardware, and featuring conversations with renowned Mario franchise creator Shigeru Miyamoto and creator of EarthBound Shigesato Itoi, Ask Iwataoffers game fans and business leaders an insight into the leadership, development and design philosophies of one of the most beloved figures in gaming history.

Enjoy this oil painting, a little bit of art inspiration for my office that I’ve been working which features some of my favorite Nintendo characters:

Review

Ask Iwata: Words of Wisdom from Satoru Iwata, Nintendo’s Legendary CEO by Satoru Iwata

My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Such a lovely book! I absolutely love Nintendo and got a lot out of it. There was a lot to glean from this book ranging from creative inspiration and design to business commentary from tasks to shaping business culture, and lot of self-reflection along the way. It made this book so much more personal than I expected. I’d recommend it to all Nintendo lovers out there of course, as well as anyone looking for some approaches from a personal point to view when it comes to innovation, successes and failures in business ventures, and personal life challenges and achievements. It would make a great birthday and high school or college graduation gift and even an interesting, non-overwhelming pick for a book club or palate cleansing book due to its short size.

The Story
There was so much personal application, adaptability, relatability, and universal emotion contained in this little book.

I enjoyed reading about company philosophy and practicality.

I loved the bits about the intent for Yoshi’s design, super interesting.

The Writing
The style was very much like a diary, non-pretentious, easy to digest.

Overall it was very uplifting and personal, sentimental, and one I will be gifting around.

Favorite Lines
“None of my experience has turned out to be a waste of time.”

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