Foundation: 1889
Headquarters: Kyoto
President: Shuntaro Furukawa
Executive Summary: Nintendo is a multinational video game company headquartered in Kyoto, Japan, renowned for its development of video games and consoles. Originally founded in 1889 by Fusajiro Yamauchi as Nintendo Karuta, the company initially specialized in producing handmade hanafuda, traditional Japanese playing cards. It gained international fame with the introduction of the Donkey Kong arcade game, the Nintendo Entertainment System (NES), and Super Mario Bros.
Since these early successes, Nintendo has consistently launched some of the most iconic and successful gaming consoles, including the 8-bit Game Boy, the Super Nintendo Entertainment System, the Nintendo DS, the Wii, and most recently, the Nintendo Switch. Beyond hardware, Nintendo’s ventures into video game development have been equally lucrative, spawning numerous major franchises like Donkey Kong, Super Mario Bros., Pokémon, Kirby, and many others.
While most of Nintendo’s research and development occurs at its headquarters in Kyoto, the company has expanded internationally, setting up R&D facilities around the world. Nintendo has also formed significant distribution partnerships, notably with Tencent in China, to market and distribute its products there following the end of the Chinese console ban in 2015. Its annual revenue is in the range of US$11 billion.
