Looks like Mario finally won, because Bowser is out at Nintendo. It doesn’t seem to be due to any kind of controversy; Bowser wasn’t caught on a kiss cam with Princess Peach at a Coldplay concert or anything like that. Nope, instead we have a changing of the guard at the American headquarters of the Japanese gaming giant and they’re about to welcome in their first female CEO.
Since its founding in 1980, Nintendo of America has only ever had four presidents to this point. The first two, Minoru Arakawa and Tatsumi Kimishima were around before the days where social media and an online presence were part of a company’s image. The most well-known of their CEO’s, Reggie Fils-Aime became the third person to hold the office in 2006 and largely became the face of Nintendo for the 13 years he was in the position. Their most recent president, Doug Bowser, took over in 2019 and has overseen the big N during its arguably most successful years of the Switch and the launch of the Switch 2.
Doug Bowser is set to retire at the end of this year. He’ll be replaced by Devon Pritchard, the first woman to hold this position in NOA’s history. She’s been at Nintendo dating back to the start of Fils-Amie’s tenure in 2006 and has served in a variety of roles including everything from legal, to sales, to marketing. With that kind of tenure and experience in so many departments, it sounds like she’s a natural fit for the role, even if her last name isn’t synonymous with any Nintendo characters.
“Doug has been a fantastic mentor, and I look forward to building on the incredible foundation he has helped establish,” Pritchard said. “With characters and worlds that offer something for everyone, my focus will be continuing to build on Nintendo’s legacy of surprising and delighting our longtime fans, while at the same time welcoming new players into the Nintendo family.” She’s coming in at a good time for the company, with the success of the Switch 2 and how remarkably stable Nintendo has been in comparison to the ups and downs Microsoft and Sony have seen with fluctuating console prices, massive gaming flops (RIP Sony’s “Concord”) and the questionable sustainability that is Microsoft’s “Game Pass.” Given everything Nintendo in general is doing with lawsuits and patents, it probably doesn’t hurt to have a lawyer in charge either.
As for Mr. Bowser, we wish you a happy retirement sir. Take good care of the Koopalings and we hope you find some time to keep go-karting and playing various other sports with Mario and the gang.
