Nintendo of America President Reggie-Fils-Amie Will Retire In April: Doug Bowser Will Take His Place!

Today, a press release from Businesswire.com declared that Reggie Fils-Amie’s career as Nintendo of America President and COO will come to a close on April 15th. The gentlemen who will “succeed Reggie as President of Nintendo of America” will be “Doug Bowser, NOA’s current Senior Vice President of Sales and Marketing,” according to Businesswire.com.

Also, the Nintendo of America Twitter account posted a tweet featuring Reggie Fils-Aime himself–thanking fans for their support and love. To view that post, click here.

For those who are unaware, Reggie’s career at Nintendo of America started in 2003 as he was the “Executive Vice President of Sales and Marketing” and later “became its President and COO in May 2006,” according to Businesswire.com. Kicking off his career during the GameCube and Game Boy Advance era, Businesswire.com notes that his “management led to record-breaking sales for products like the Nintendo DS, Wii, Nintendo 3DS and Nintendo Switch systems.”

This achievement, along with his communicative approach toward larger audiences, helped him become the well-known, beloved figurehead many Nintendo fans view him as today. On that note, Reggie shared a few words about his experience with Nintendo and stated the following:

“Nintendo owns a part of my heart forever,” Fils-Aime said. “It’s a part that is filled with gratitude – for the incredibly talented people I’ve worked with, for the opportunity to represent such a wonderful brand, and most of all, to feel like a member of the world’s most positive and enduring gamer community. As I look forward to departing in both good health and good humor, this is not ‘game over’ for me, but instead ‘leveling up’ to more time with my wife, family and friends.”

On the topic of leveling up, Doug Bowser also shared his thoughts about Reggie’s retirement alongside his goals for his eventual position as Nintendo of America’s new president. Here’s what he said,

“It has been my great fortune to work with and be mentored by Reggie for four years at Nintendo of America,” Bowser said. “And rest assured, we will continue to build on his work to evolve and expand our brand, furthering Nintendo’s global mission of creating smiles. There are millions more of those to come.”

Businesswire.com also shared some information about Doug Bowser’s influence on the company and what fans could expect from him when he succeeds Reggie in April. To see Businesswire.com’s notes on Doug Bowser, click here.

Doug Bowser wasn’t only person to chip-in his thoughts about Reggie and his impact on Nintendo. President of Nintendo CO. Ltd Shuntaro Furukawa also had something to say to Reggie regarding his retirement. Here’s what Furukawa stated:

“I really appreciate everything Reggie has done for Nintendo,” said Shuntaro Furukawa, President of Nintendo Co., Ltd. “Inside and outside our company, Reggie is known as an exceptional leader. We are grateful that he is leaving the business in good shape with strong momentum. While we will miss him and we wish him the very best in his retirement, we are also pleased to have such an able successor ready to step into that role. Doug Bowser and the rest of the team will ensure a seamless transition and continued momentum for Nintendo.”

With Reggie’s retirement information made public, many Nintendo fans, including myself, were not ready to hear this news. To me, Reggie felt like an integral piece to Nintendo’s tri-force of awesomeness. Every-time he would appear in an Nintendo Direct or on a live-broadcast event via the Nintendo Power Podcast or even on live television, he’d never depart without leaving the viewer with a smile on their face.

Though his legacy with Nintendo may come to a close, I’m certain Doug Bowser will maintain or surpass the amount of energy, passion, and love Reggie had for Nintendo and its fan-base. With that, I want to thank Reggie Fils-Amie for all his love and dedication toward Nintendo and its fans, and I hope his next journey is a good one.

What do you think about this news? Will Doug Bowser be able to hold onto the mantle Reggie laid out for him? Let us know on Facebook and Twitter, and follow us for more Nintendo news, and everything gaming too.