Gunpei Yokoi facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Gunpei Yokoi
横井 軍平 |
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Yokoi in 1995
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| Born | 10 September 1941 |
| Died | 4 October 1997 (aged 56) Komatsu, Ishikawa, Japan
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| Alma mater | Doshisha University |
| Occupation | Game designer |
| Years active | 1965–1997 |
Gunpei Yokoi (横井 軍平, Yokoi Gunpei; born September 10, 1941 – died October 4, 1997) was a famous Japanese video game designer. He worked for Nintendo for a long time. He is best known for creating the Game & Watch handheld system. He also invented the cross-shaped Control Pad. Yokoi was the original designer of the Game Boy. He also produced popular video game series like Metroid and Kid Icarus.
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Early Career at Nintendo
Gunpei Yokoi studied electronics at Doshisha University. After graduating, he joined Nintendo in 1965. His first job was to keep the machines running that made Nintendo's hanafuda cards. These were special Japanese playing cards.
From Toys to Games
In 1966, Nintendo's president, Hiroshi Yamauchi, visited the card factory. He saw a fun toy that Yokoi had made in his free time. It was an extending arm. Yamauchi was impressed and asked Yokoi to turn it into a real product. This toy became the Ultra Hand, and it was a huge success!
After that, Yokoi designed many other popular toys for Nintendo. These included the Ten Billion Barrel puzzle and a tiny remote-controlled vacuum cleaner called Chiritory. He also made a baseball-throwing machine called the Ultra Machine and a "Love Tester".
Creating Handheld Gaming
Yokoi worked on toys until 1974, when Nintendo started making video games. He became one of their first game designers. One day, while riding a train, Yokoi saw a bored businessman playing with an LCD calculator. This gave him an idea: a watch that could also be a small video game!
This idea led to the creation of the Game & Watch series. These were simple handheld electronic games with LCD screens. They were very popular from 1980 to 1991, with 60 different versions made.
Key Contributions to Gaming
Gunpei Yokoi played a big role in many of Nintendo's most famous projects. He helped shape the early days of video gaming.
Working with Shigeru Miyamoto
In 1981, Nintendo's president asked Yokoi to help with a new arcade game called Donkey Kong. This game was created by Shigeru Miyamoto. Yokoi taught Miyamoto a lot about how to design games. He also helped convince the president to approve Miyamoto's game ideas.
After Donkey Kong became a worldwide hit, Yokoi continued to work with Miyamoto. They worked together on the next Mario game, Mario Bros.. Yokoi suggested the idea of having two players play together. He also convinced Miyamoto to give Mario special abilities, like being able to jump from high places without getting hurt.
Designing the Game Boy
After Mario Bros., Yokoi produced several games for Nintendo's R&D1 team. These included Kid Icarus and Metroid. He also designed the robot toy R.O.B. and, most famously, the Game Boy. The Game Boy became a huge success all over the world.
Another one of his creations, the Virtual Boy, did not sell well. Nintendo said that this was not why Yokoi left the company later. They stated his retirement was "absolutely coincidental" to the Virtual Boy's sales. Some say Yokoi had planned to retire at age 50 anyway. It is also believed that Yokoi never wanted the Virtual Boy to be released in the way it was. Nintendo rushed it out to focus on the Nintendo 64.
After Nintendo
After the Virtual Boy's struggles, Yokoi left Nintendo on August 15, 1996. He had worked there for 31 years. He then started a new company called Koto with some of his co-workers. At Koto, Yokoi helped create the popular Tamagotchi toy. He also led the development of the Bandai WonderSwan handheld gaming machine.
Lateral Thinking with Withered Technology
Gunpei Yokoi had a special way of thinking about technology. He called it "Lateral Thinking with Withered Technology." This means using older, cheaper, and well-understood technology in new and creative ways.
Yokoi believed that toys and games don't always need the newest, most expensive technology. He thought that fun and new ways to play were more important. He felt that very expensive, cutting-edge technology could sometimes make it harder to create a new product.
Applying the Philosophy
The Game & Watch was a great example of this idea. When it was made, there were lots of cheap liquid crystal displays (LCDs) and computer chips available. Yokoi found a new and fun way to use this common technology.
The NES and Game Boy were also made with this philosophy. For the Game Boy, Yokoi chose a black-and-white screen instead of a color one. This made the battery last much longer. This choice helped the Game Boy win against other handhelds like Sega's Game Gear and Atari's Lynx, which had color screens but shorter battery life.
Satoru Iwata, who was Nintendo's CEO later, said that this philosophy is still part of Nintendo today. He said it was passed down to designers like Miyamoto. For example, the Nintendo DS and Wii consoles used this idea. The Wii's technology was similar to the older GameCube. It wasn't as powerful as the Xbox 360 or PlayStation 3. Instead, the Wii offered something different: motion controls. This changed how video games were played and brought gaming to many new people.
Death
On October 4, 1997, Gunpei Yokoi was in a car accident. He was riding in a car that hit a truck. After he got out to check the damage, he was hit by another passing car. Yokoi passed away two hours later.
Legacy
Gunpei Yokoi left a lasting mark on the world of video games. He is remembered as a true innovator.
In 2003, Yokoi was given the Lifetime Achievement Award by the International Game Developers Association. This award honors people who have made huge contributions to games. GameTrailers also listed him as one of the "Top Ten Game Creators." In 2010, an art gallery in Japan had an exhibit called "The Man Who Was Called the God of Games." It showed all his important work at Nintendo. In 1999, a series of handheld puzzle games called Gunpey was released as a tribute to him.
Images for kids
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Yokoi in 1995
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Yokoi is best known for his contribution in the creation of the Game Boy.
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Yokoi's Virtual Boy (1995)
See also
In Spanish: Gunpei Yokoi para niños
