Nintendo says generational handover is going smoothly – “We have young and brilliant developers” 

At Nintendo’s 84^th annual shareholders meeting held on June 27, 10 AM JST, one of the company’s representative directors Shigeru Miyamoto addressed concerns about his own age and health, as well as that of Nintendo’s active game developers.  

Miyamoto, the creator of some of Nintendo’s best-selling franchises such as Mario and The Legend of Zelda, joined the company back in 1977, and will turn 72 this year. Although Miyamoto has yet to announce his retirement, the topic is of interest to shareholders. 

A big creator’s retirement can leave an unfillable void for game companies and their ongoing franchises, leading to a loss of key skills and know-how accumulated through years of experience. This is why developers leaving without sufficient handover processes is a concern often addressed to companies with long legacies, like Nintendo. 

According to an attendee of this year’s meeting for Nintendo’s shareholders, Miyamoto was asked about the issue of creators aging, and whether he will continue to be at the helm of game development projects considering his age. In response, Miyamoto remarked, “I consider (Nintendo’s) generational handover to be progressing smoothly. We have developers that are young and brilliant.” 

Expressing gratitude for the inquiry about his wellbeing, Miyamoto notes that he is working comfortably, and that while he is leaving most of the practical development work to younger generations, he is not detached from the process either. The creator also emphasizes that he is fully involved in Pikmin Bloom’s development. 

According to Miyamoto, he has successfully transferred know-how to the next generation, but since this generation is also growing older, he wants to make sure generational handover expands to encompass even younger employees.