REDMOND, Wash.--Jan. 7, 2002--Minoru Arakawa, President of

Nintendo of America Inc. (NOA) for the past 22 years, today announced

his retirement effective immediately.

After many months of consideration, Arakawa felt the timing was

appropriate to turn the office over to new leadership.

"The U.S. video game industry is extremely strong and NOA's

position within the industry has never been better," said Arakawa.

"The recent impressive marketplace successes of both Game Boy Advance

and the NINTENDO GAMECUBE coupled with NOA's unparalleled financial

and management resources allow me the opportunity to pursue new

endeavors."

Nintendo of America Board Member Howard Lincoln, currently CEO of

the Seattle Mariners said: "Minoru Arakawa's significant contributions

to the success of NOA and the development of the U.S. video game

industry are unequaled and widely acclaimed. Many of Arakawa's

initiatives have become industry standards, largely responsible for

the unprecedented strength of interactive entertainment today."

In a separate announcement made in Kyoto, Japan, Nintendo Co.

Ltd., the parent company of NOA, announced Mr. Arakawa would be

succeeded by Mr. Tatsumi Kimishima.

Mr. Kimishima has been with NCL for the past two years serving

most recently as Chief Financial Officer of The Pokemon Company and

President of Pokemon U.S.A., Inc. A native of Japan, Mr. Kimishima

spent over 25 years with the Sanwa Bank in several management roles

including nearly seven years in New York and California. Mr. Kimishima

will assume his new responsibilities effective immediately.

As the worldwide leader and innovator in the creation of

interactive entertainment, Nintendo Co. Ltd., of Kyoto, Japan,

manufactures and markets hardware and software for its popular home

video game systems. The systems include Game Boy(R), Nintendo(R) 64,

Game Boy Advance and NINTENDO GAMECUBE. Since the release of its first

home video game system in 1983, Nintendo has sold more than 1.4

billion video games worldwide, creating enduring industry icons such

as Mario(TM) and Donkey Kong(R) and launching such franchises as

Zelda(TM) and Pokemon(R). As a wholly owned subsidiary, Nintendo of

America, Inc., based in Redmond, Wash., serves as headquarters for

Nintendo's operation in the Western Hemisphere.

For more information on Nintendo, visit the company's Web site, www.nintendo.com.