Bandai Namco has announced that Masaya Nakamura, the founder of, died on January 22.
The company only announced Nakamura's death via a press release today. founded Namco in 1955 originally under the name Nakamura Manufacturing, when the company constructed children's rides for department stores. The name Namco later came from the company's renaming to Nakamura Amusement Machine Manufacturing Company.
Masaya Nakamura, Namco Founder
Namco moved beyond rides to arcade games, and became responsible for developing and publishing influential titles like Pac-Man, Dig Dug, Xevious, and Pole Position. The company also acquired Japan's oldest film studio, Nikkatsu, in 1993.
Nakamura remained with the company in an honorary position when it merged with Bandai to become Namco-Bandai — the company would later be renamed Bandai Namco. He was awarded the Order of the Rising Sun by the Japanese government in 2007 for his contributions to the industry.
Nintendo of America released a statement via its Twitter account, saying "As a [third-party] partner Namco has been a big part of Nintendo's history, thanks in large part to Masaya Nakamura. He changed gaming for the better."
Games currently published by Bandai Namco include the Ace Combat, Dragonball Xenoverse, Dark Souls, and Narruto Shippuden series.
Jonathon Dornbush is an Associate Editor for IGN. Find him on IGN @jmdornbush.
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