Sep 04
Ultra Hand, the toy that saved Nintendo
Nintendo’s history stretches all the way back to the late 1800s when they it was first started as a playing card company. Since then, the company eventually became the largest card maker in Japan at one point. However, with the decline of card sales and a variety of failed ventures threatening to destroy the company, Nintendo was dealt a good “hand”.
In 1970, former Nintendo president Hiroshi Yamauchi was visiting a Nintendo factory when he noticed an extendable hand. It turns out that the hand was made by the company janitor/maintenance man Gunpei Yokoi. Yokoi was ordered to make the hand production ready. The final product was the Ultrahand which would go on to sell over 1 million units and would be one of the earliest smash hits for Nintendo. This simple hand would set Nintendo on the course to become to gaming empire that it is today!
-Derek
