Nintendo of Japan last night issued a statement on Twitter confirming the passing of president, Satoru Iwata. The tweet stated that the 55 year old president of Nintendo had passed away due to a "bile duct growth" and was the first time they'd publicly spoken about his health issues since last year's E3 other than a statement that addressed fans' concerns from Iwata saying that he was "progressing well".

The gaming visionary, who was behind Kirby, Earthbound and Balloon Fight succeeded Hiroshi Yamayuchi as president of the company in 2002, where he ot only saw through the Wii's popularity, but also was magnanimous enough to take a salary cut in 2011 due to disappointing Wii U sales.

Nintendo have also named Genyo Takeda and Miyamoto as rpresentative directors, but no announcemant has been made about a new president yet.

We, at Split Infinity Radio extend our sympathies to Nintendo and its fans, and of course to the family of Satoru Iwata.