“Nintendo is a company that never gets carried away, no matter how good things get” says former Zelda, Star Fox veteran 

Independent game creator Takaya Imamura recently gave an interview to 4Gamer about his youth and different eras of his career. Naturally, this included insights into Nintendo, where the developer worked for an impressive 32 years, serving as art director and designer on The Legend of Zelda, Star Fox and F-Zero franchises. 

Imamura joined Nintendo back in 1989. This was incidentally the year Nintendo marked its 100th anniversary (yes, Nintendo is that old). Describing the atmosphere back then, Imamura comments, “This was a time when society as a whole was very euphoric and lived extravagantly. Corporations would organize trips and parties as soon as they got new hires to keep them from getting snatched up.” 

However, Nintendo resisted the feverish momentum of Japan’s bubble economy, keeping its own pace. Through laughter, Imamura comments, “Nintendo did nothing of the sort. We didn’t even celebrate our 100^th anniversary. It’s a company that never gets carried away.” 

Imamura attributes this firm corporate culture to the philosophy of Nintendo’s late Hiroshi Yamauchi. Yamauchi was the company’s third CEO, and the president who nurtured Nintendo into a global force with the success of the NES. 

According to Imamura, Yamauchi’s policy was to “stay composed in the face of success and keep calm in the face of failure.” No matter how well things were going for the company, Yamauchi would be just as strict with his employees, Imamura recalls.  

He attributes this stance to Yamauchi having experienced failure many times in the past, and comments that in a business as unpredictable as video games and toys, Yamauchi’s approach was ultimately correct. “Hearing his strict and persuasive words brought home to me that unless you make good and entertaining products, you won’t sell.”