Organizers have revealed that Satoru Iwata, president of Nintendo, will keynote the 2011 Game Developers Conference, held this March in San Francisco.
Coinciding with the 25th iteration of GDC, the world’s largest professionals only video game event for learning, networking, and inspiration, Nintendo’s Iwata will present a major keynote around this milestone entitled “Video Games Turn 25: A Historical Perspective and Vision for the Future.”
As a leading player during the last 25 years of the modern video gaming era, Nintendo has a unique perspective on what makes gamers grin, what defines the term 'gamer' and what is essential to ensuring industry growth. In this keynote address, Mr. Iwata will talk not only about how video gaming has evolved, but also his views on where we go from here.
A longtime friend of the GDC, Mr. Iwata first appeared on the keynote stage of the Game Developers Conference in 2005, where he gave developers the first information about the technology being used for the console then codenamed "Revolution" -- which has since become known as the Wii system.
He also appeared in 2006 where he spoke about "disrupting development," and introduced the Western development community to philosophies on engaging new players; and in 2009, where he debuted a new game in The Legend of Zelda franchise and a host of other notable insights.
"We are honored and pleased to welcome Mr. Iwata back to the keynote stage for our 25th conference," said Meggan Scavio, GDC director. "Nintendo continues to innovate and captivate developers and gamers alike, and we’re looking forward to their unique insights into both the history and future of the game business."
In 2002, Satoru Iwata was named president of Nintendo Co., Ltd. He joined Nintendo in 2000 as the head of the Corporate Planning Division, where he was responsible for Nintendo’s global corporate planning. Iwata was born in 1959 in the Hokkaido Prefecture of Japan.
He studied at and graduated from the Tokyo Institute of Technology University, where he majored in computer science. Shortly after graduating, Iwata joined HAL Laboratory, Inc. and in 1983 began coordinating the software production and development of Nintendo titles, such as the Kirby series. By 1993, he had become president of that company.
Registration and hotel booking is open for the 2011 Game Developers Conference (GDC 2011), the 25th edition of the event, produced by UBM TechWeb Game Network, as is this website. The event returns to the Moscone Convention Center from February 28-March 4 for five days of summits, tutorials, lectures, panels and roundtable discussions presented by leading industry experts.
In addition to the rich selection of sessions at the main conference, the event will host two days of summits and tutorials to start the week. Alongside the full schedule of activities at the conference, GDC 2011 will host a variety of special events, which include the 11th Annual Game Developers Choice Awards, the 13th Annual Independent Games Festival Awards, the GDC Expo, a Career Pavilion and many more. Full registration and conference information is available online at the official GDC website.
