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Nintendo is founded
Founded by Fusajiro Yamauchi in Kyoto, Japan first making handmade hanafuda cards. -
Period: to
Timeline of Nintendo
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Becomes Nintendo Playing Card Co Ltd
Started to mass produce Western-style playing cards and became Japan's top card company -
Hiroshi Yamauchi Becomes President
Hiroshi Yamauchi, the grandson of Fusajiro Yamauchi just at 22 became the president after his grandfather stepped down and tried different businesses like toys and taxis before focusing on video games. -
Early Toys & Innovation
Created toys like the Ultra Hand, Love Tester, and Light Gun. Hired Gunpei Yokoi, who later invented Game Watch and Game Boy. -
Color TV-Game releases
Nintendo’s first home console series (only in Japan) and played simple games like Pong. -
Game and Watch is made
Portable handheld games with a single built-in game.
also Introduced the D-pad controller. -
Donkey Kong Arcade Game
Was Designed by Shigeru Miyamoto and Introduced Jumpman (later Mario), Donkey Kong, and platform gameplay. -
1983 (Japan) / 1985 (U.S.) – Famicom / NES
First major home console from Nintendo, used game cartridges and saved the gaming industry after the 1983 crash some famous games are Super Mario Bros., Zelda, Metroid. -
Gameboy is released
Nintendo's first portable gaming system with swappable cartridges, long battery life, launched with Tetris and Designed by Gunpei Yokoi. -
Super Nintendo (SNES) is released
Better graphics, stereo sound, and Mode 7 3D effects, added shoulder buttons. Popular games include Super Mario World, Zelda: A Link to the Past. -
Nintendo 64 hits selves
First major 3D console with analog stick and rumble with a unique 3-pronged controller. Notable Games include Mario 64, Zelda: Ocarina of Time. -
Gamecube is released
Used mini discs and had a Portable design with handle. Big games: Luigi’s Mansion, Metroid Prime, Smash Bros. Melee and Pikmin. -
Satoru Iwata becomes the president
Satoru Iwata takes Hiroshi Yamauchi place after he steps down -
Nintendo DS releases
Dual screens, one touchscreen with a Microphone and Wi-Fi to play local-play. Had huge success with games like Mario Kart DS and Animal Crossing. The Nintendo DS is Nintendo's most successful handheld console, having sold 154.02 million units. -
Nintendo Wii is released
Motion controls with Wii Remote and Nunchuk and included Wii Sports as well as Introduced Mii avatars. -
Nintendo 3DS is released
Glasses-free 3D top screen, Touchscreen bottom screen and Added second stick on New 3DS version. Big Games include Pokémon X/Y, Mario 3D Land. -
Wii U hits the market
GamePad with touchscreen that could play games without TV and had Good games but poor sales. Big Games are Mario Kart 8, Splatoon. -
Satoru Iwata Passes Away at 55
On July 11, 2015, Iwata died of bile duct cancer at age 55. Succeeded by Tatsumi Kimishima -
Nintendo Switch Releases
Hybrid TV and handheld console and Detachable Joy-Con controllers. Big Games: Breath of the Wild, Super Mario Odyssey. The Nintendo Switch is the best-selling home console from Nintendo, with 150.83 million units sold. -
Shuntaro Furukawa becomes president
Shuntaro is the sixth and current president of Nintendo. -
Super Nintendo World Opens in U.S.
At Universal Studios Hollywood and the First Nintendo theme park outside Japan -
The Super Mario Bros. Movie hits theaters
Was a massive hit Earned over $1 billion worldwide making it one of the highest grossing animated movies. -
Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom released
Announced at E3 2019 Tears of the Kingdom and Released May 10th, 2023 it sold 10 million copies in in three days. -
Nintendo Announces Nintendo Switch 2
On January 16th, 2025 Nintendo announced the successor to the Switch called Switch 2 and is set to release on June 5th, 2025