The "Iwata-San" Book May be Receiving an Official Translation
Recently, Shigesato Itoi‘s company, Hobonichi, released the book “Iwata-San” that detailed much of the late Nintendo President, Satoru Iwata’s, life. The book contains nine chapters in total, including:
- Iwata-san until the time he became the President (of Nintendo)
- Iwata-san’s leadership
- Iwata-san’s personality
- Iwata-san is a person you can trust
- The games Iwata-san aimed (to make)
- Talking about Iwata-san
- Iwata-san is this kind of person
Fans of Nintendo and of Satoru Iwata have been pleading for an official translation of the book, to which Hobonichi has now stated:
A note regarding the translated version of our latest book “Iwata-san”
We are honored to receive many inquiries and requests from our readers regarding the translated version of “Iwata-san.”Needless to say, it is our wish to spread the words and philosophy of Mr. Satoru Iwata to as many people of the world as we can.
Currently, nothing is definite yet, but we are preparing publication of “Iwata-san” in various languages in consultation with Tuttle-Mori Agency. We will make an official announcement as soon as we finalize the deals at this website and via the official twitter account as below:
We are sorry to keep you waiting. In the meantime, please note that translating this book into any languages for public distribution is a clear violation of copyright and will be subject to criminal charges. We ask for your understanding.
If you are publishers outside of Japan and interested in publishing the translated version of “Iwata-san,” please contact Ms. Manami Tamaoki at Tuttle-Mori Agency: nf@tuttlemori.com
The note towards the end is particularly interesting, reading “please note that translating this book into any languages for public distribution is a clear violation of copyright and will be subject to criminal charges.” Whether there have been attempts already, it is difficult to say.
We here at Switchaboo are thrilled that this book is looking to receive an official translation and will be keeping a sharp eye for any future announcements.