Iwata joined gaming because computers 'were going to change the world'

During a GameCenter CX and Iwata Asks crossover, Nintendo Global President Satoru Iwata revealed that he joined the gaming world based on his faith in computers.

"You see, I believed computers were going to change the world," Iwata told GameCenter CX host Shinya Arino.

"My first interest was computers. At the time, there were no personal computers, so the very first computer I bought was a calculator — a calculator capable of programming. It only displayed numbers, but with a calculator that only displays numbers, I somehow made games and played them with friends."

While Iwata attended college, the Space Invaders boom took over, and Iwata's interest for making fun games grew. After graduation, Iwata took a job working at a small development company.

"The first company I worked for was HAL Laboratory," said Iwata. "It was a tiny company. When I began there, I was one of only five workers."

Eventually, Iwata learned of Nintendo's plans to release a game console. Although he had never programmed Famicom games, he approached and was hired by Nintendo.

"I told them, ‘I think I could program Famicom games, so please let me program for the Famicom,'" Iwata said.

The full interview is available with English subtitles, thanks to the team over at SomethingAwful.