Nintendo Research & Development No. 2 Department,[a] commonly abbreviated as Nintendo R&D2, was a Japanese team within Nintendo that developed software and peripherals. While usually occupied in system operating software and technical support, the team would come back to early development in the 1990s where several new designers got their start at game development, the most famous being Eiji Aonuma who developed Marvelous: Another Treasure Island.
 Nintendo's logotype, used during R&D2's existence | |
 Exterior of the former Nintendo headquarters in Kyoto, Japan, which housed the department | |
Native name | 任天堂開発第二部 |
|---|---|
Romanized name | Nintendō Kaihatsu Daini Bu |
| Company type | Department |
| Industry | Video games |
| Genre |
|
| Predecessor | Nintendo Research & Development |
| Founded | 1978 |
| Founder | Hiroshi Yamauchi |
| Defunct | 2004 |
| Fate | Absorbed into Nintendo Software Planning & Development |
| Successor | Nintendo Software Planning & Development |
| Headquarters | Kyoto , Japan |
Number of locations | 1 (Kyoto) (2004) |
Key people |
|
| Owner | Nintendo |
| Parent | Nintendo Manufacturing Division |
R&D2 was originally led by Masayuki Uemura, who previously worked for Sharp Corporation, using an idea of Sharp's solar technology Uemura's department went on to develop the popular Nintendo beam gun games, selling over 1 million units. Kazuhiko Taniguchi took Uemura's position in 2004. Nintendo R&D2 was later merged into Nintendo SPD.[1]
History
editIn the 1970s, Nintendo created the R&D2 department.[2]
In 2004, the department's general manager Masayuki Uemura retired from Nintendo.[3][4] Following his retirement, he became a professor at the Ritsumeikan University in Kyoto, and served as an advisor to Nintendo Research & Engineering.[5]
Products developed
editElectronic games
edit| Year | Name | Ref. |
|---|---|---|
| 1977 | Color TV-Game 6 | [6] |
| Color TV-Game 15 | [6] | |
| 1978 | Color TV-Game Racing 112 | [6] |
| 1979 | Color TV-Game Block Breaker | [6] |
| 1980 | Computer TV-Game | [6] |
Video game consoles
edit| Year | Name | Ref. |
|---|---|---|
| 1983 | Family Computer | [6] |
| 1985 | Nintendo Entertainment System | [6] |
| 1990 | Super Famicom | [6] |
| 1991 | Super Nintendo Entertainment System | [6] |
| 1995 | Satellaview | [6] |
Video games
editNotes
editReferences
edit- ^ "Iwata Asks: New Super Mario Bros. Wii". Nintendo. 2011-02-18. Archived from the original on February 18, 2011. Retrieved 2018-03-25.
- ^ "Iwata Asks: Game & Watch: 1. When Developers Did Everything". Nintendo of Europe GmbH. Retrieved 2019-01-23.
- ^ "Nintendo has always been like that, we are like indies". GamesIndustry.biz. Retrieved 2019-01-24.
- ^ Archive, Japan Media Arts Festival. "UEMURA Masayuki | Special Achievement Award | 2015 [19th]". Japan Media Arts Festival Archive. Retrieved 2019-01-24.
- ^ "Iwata Asks: Super Mario Bros. 25th Anniversary: The Super Mario Preservation Society". iwataasks.nintendo.com. Retrieved 2019-01-24.
Masayuki Uemura: [...] Currently, he has a seat at Nintendo as an advisor in the Research and Engineering Department, and as a professor at Ritsumeikan University he researches video games and teaches students.
- ^ a b c d e f g h i j Mago, Zdenko (April 5, 2018). "The "Father" Of the Nintendo Entertainment SystemIn Slovakia for The First Time - Interview With Masayuki Uemura" (PDF). Acta Ludogica. 1: 52–54.
Due to the growing demand for development, he was in charge of the management of the Research & Development 2 Division in which they worked on the development of several hardware devices such as games for colour televisions, Nintendo Family Computer (Famicom), Nintendo Entertainment System (NES), Super Nintendo Entertainment System or BS-X Satellaview.
- ^ Vacuum, Works｜Sporadic. "Nintendo Archive - Works｜Sporadic Vacuum". Hirokazutanaka.com. Archived from the original on August 8, 2014. Retrieved September 16, 2017.
- ^ a b c d "Iwata Asks: New Super Mario Bros. Wii: Volume 2: It All Began In 1984". iwataasks.nintendo.com. Retrieved 2019-01-25.
I worked on a wide variety of titles together with R&D2, including Donkey Kong, which was released at the same time as the Famicom, Donkey Kong Jr., Mahjong and Donkey Kong Jr. Math.
- ^ Nintendo Research & Development 2 (1991). NES Open Tournament Golf. Nintendo. Scene: Staff Credits.
Producer: Masayuki Uemura
{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link) - ^ a b c d e f g "GameSpy: Nintendo R&D2".
- ^ "Marvelous: Mōhitotsu no Takarajima". Mobygames. Retrieved 2019-02-25.
- ^ "BS Zelda no Densetsu: Inishie no Sekiban". Mobygames. Retrieved 2019-03-28.
- ^ "Sutte Hakkun". Mobygames. Retrieved 2019-03-28. Co-developed together with indieszero.
- ^ Nintendo Research & Development 2 (May 1, 1999). Super Mario Bros. Deluxe. Nintendo. Scene: Staff Credits.
Producer: Masayuki Uemura, Kazuhiko Taniguchi
{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link) - ^ Nintendo Research & Development 2 (August 23, 2000). Super Mario World: Super Mario Advance 2. Nintendo. Scene: Staff Credits.
Producers: Masayuki Uemura, Kazuhiko Taniguchi
{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link)