Kimishima
Image: Nintendo

Nintendo has released the official translations of its recent investor's Q & A, which re-iterates a number of points previously covered, namely that the company won't put those dreaming of a 3DS successor out of their misery by confirming either way, and that everything is awesome - don't worry, it's all going to be ok.

Sadly there were no comedy questions from investors complaining about the venue or the lack of a buffet, or if they were asked they weren't published by Nintendo.

Beyond some promising remarks around the partnership with NVIDIA helping with ports of PC-centric projects - which is obvious but nevertheless nice to hear - the Q & A closed with a question posed directly to company President Tatsumi Kimishima. He was asked about his goals in terms of preparing and identifying a successor to lead the company, and he moved on to outline his desire to place the company on a firm footing, in order to move forward with confidence.

I believe that my personal role is to consider how to create an internal structure that will allow Nintendo to continue to release entertaining products in the future.

When I took on the President position, it was still too early to reveal the full details of Nintendo Switch, our smart-device business and our efforts to use Nintendoʼs IP. I have been working with both Fellows since then to make sure that these business ventures could get off to a successful start.

We have to bring in the next generation to ensure the continuity of the company into the future, so it is important to create an organizational structure where young people can take on more responsibility and flourish. This is true not only in considering my own successor, but in regards to all of the organizations and structures within the company, and one of my main roles is to create that type of system.

I believe Nintendo constantly needs to undertake new endeavors. The integrated hardware and software business is at the heart of Nintendoʼs business and I believe it is important that we continue our strong commitment to that business, but it is also my mission to expand the smart-device and Nintendo IP businesses, and to find and nurture the seeds of new entertainment experiences as new technologies emerge.

Nintendo has plenty of talented employees and leaders in each department who oversee these employees. I think it is my responsibility to find a person who will be able to oversee those leaders and who will be skilled at running the overall organization.

That aside, the company has certainly reshaped itself in interesting ways, as Kimishima-san didn't attempt to inherit the hands-on leadership of Satoru Iwata. As an executive with greater expertise in core business he established 'Fellow' roles for Shigeru Miyamoto (Creative) and Genyo Takeda (Technical), allowing them to oversee broad areas suited to their expertise. By extension, Miyamoto-san and Takeda-san have also previously emphasized their roles in nurturing and developing young talent at the company. Elsewhere in the Q & A, Miyamoto-san shared his desire for Nintendo's employees to all truly understand "Nintendoʼs DNA".

In terms of planning for the future and ensuring the company's core values and beliefs are maintained, there's reason for Nintendo fans to be optimistic that pieces are being put in place.

[source nintendo.co.jp]