Back when Nintendo first started as a hanafuda maker under President Yamauchi, they inhabited a much smaller office in Ohashi, Kyoto. That building is set to be renovated into a hotel by Summer 2021, according to Osumituki. [Thanks, Japanese Nintendo!]
As you might expect for a city that prides itself on cultural heritage, the building will remain as it is, including the famous Nintendo plate that marks the spot of the company’s first headquarters as a card company. However, with the hotel tentatively titled ‘Kabuyama Project’, the inside will be renovated into 20 guest rooms, as well as a bar, gym, and spa.
It should be clarified that the first building Nintendo opened in 1889 does not exist anymore. However, this building, ‘Yamauchi Nintendo’, is the company’s first true headquarters, and has remained since its opening in 1930. Nintendo would move their headquarters away from this building during its video game-making years, then to its present location in 2000.
