Nintendo Software Planning & Development


, commonly abbreviated as Nintendo SPD, was a research, planning and development division housed inside the Nintendo Development Center in Kyoto, Japan. The division had two departments: Software Planning & Development Department, which primarily co-produced games with external developers; and Software Development & Design Department, which primarily developed experimental and system software. The division was created during a corporate restructuring in September 2003, with the abolition of the Nintendo R&D1 and Nintendo R&D2 departments.
The group had the task of independently developing innovative games, assisting other development teams on projects, and managing overseas production of first-party franchises. Both SPD and SDD departments were divided into four separate groups, which worked concurrently on different projects.
In September 2015, Nintendo SPD merged with Nintendo's other software development division, Entertainment Analysis & Development, becoming Nintendo Entertainment Planning & Development.

History

In 2004, then-Nintendo president Satoru Iwata created the Software Planning & Development division, appointing himself as its general manager. The goal of the newly created division would be to focus on co-producing and supervising external second-party video game development, with the goal of relieving the Entertainment Analysis & Development division, and its general manager Shigeru Miyamoto, to focus on internal development. Although that was the division's primary focus, it also went on to develop some video games titles internally.
On June 27, 2013, deputy general manager Shinya Takahashi replaced Satoru Iwata as general manager of the division, gaining a seat in Nintendo's board of directors in the process. A year later, on June 18, 2014, all of Nintendo's internal research and development divisions, including the SPD division, were moved from the Nintendo's headquarters in Kyoto to the newly built Nintendo Development Center, just 300 meters from the old building. By centralizing all of its developers in the new building, Nintendo hoped they would deeply interact with each other, regardless of which division and field they were working on, creating a synergy between hardware and software development.
On September 16, 2015, the division was merged with Nintendo's internal software development division, Entertainment Analysis & Development, becoming Nintendo Entertainment Planning & Development. As Shigeru Miyamoto retired as general manager of the EAD division and went on to become a Creative Fellow, former SPD general manager Shinya Takahashi took his place as general manager of the newly created EPD division, thus supervising all video games developed at Nintendo. The new division accumulated all of its predecessors roles as both developing video games internally and co-producing them with external developers.

Structure

The General Manager of the Nintendo Software Planning & Development Division was Shinya Takahashi, assisted by both Keizo Kato, the Assistant Manager and Kensuke Tanabe, the Executive Officer. The division was split into two different departments: the Software Planning & Development Department, which was split into four separate groups, which was supervised by Deputy Manager Yoshio Sakamoto; and the Software Development & Design Department which was split into three separate groups, supervised by Deputy Manager Masaru Nishita. All of the groups worked concurrently on different projects.

Software Planning & Development Department

Production Group No. 1

The Production Group No. 1's primary focus was the development and production of video game software and software applications for Nintendo home and handheld consoles, as well as software for peripherals developed for said consoles, both internally and in cooperation with second-party developers. The group manager and main producer was Nintendo-veteran Yoshio Sakamoto. The group is responsible for developing and producing games in the WarioWare, Rhythm Heaven, ', Tomodachi and the mainline Metroid series.
TitleSeriesGenrePlatform
2004'WarioWareAction, puzzle, rhythmGame Boy Advance
2004'WarioWareAction, puzzle, rhythmNintendo DS
2005Play-YanMP3 playerGame Boy Advance
2005Nintendo MP3 PlayerMP3 playerGame Boy Micro, Nintendo DS
2006Rhythm TengokuRhythm HeavenRhythmGame Boy Advance
2006'WarioWareParty game, puzzle, rhythmWii
2007Face TrainingExergamingNintendo DS
2007Nintendo DS Digital TV Tuner Television antennaNintendo DS
2007'Card HeroRole-playingNintendo DS
2008Rhythm HeavenRhythmNintendo DS
2008WarioWareActionNintendo DSi
2008WarioWareEndless runningNintendo DSi
2008'WarioWareAction, puzzle, rhythmNintendo DSi
2009Atsumeru EgaochoContact listNintendo DSi
2009WarioWareAction, puzzle, rhythmNintendo DS
2009WarioWareAction, puzzle, rhythmWii
2009Tomodachi CollectionTomodachiSocial simulationNintendo DS
2009'Card HeroRole-playingNintendo DSi
2009Nintendo DSi Instrument TunerInstrument tuningNintendo DSi
2009Nintendo DSi MetronomeMetronomeNintendo DSi
2009Face Training MiniExergamingNintendo DSi
2010'MetroidAction-adventureWii
2011Rhythm HeavenRhythmWii
2012Kiki TrickMusicWii
2013Tomodachi LifeTomodachiSocial simulationNintendo 3DS
2013Game & WarioWarioWarePartyWii U
2015Rhythm HeavenRhythmNintendo 3DS

Production Group No. 2

The Production Group No. 2 is led by manager and video game producer Hitoshi Yamagami. The group is primarily responsible for co-producing and supervising video games published by Nintendo and developed by third-party developers from Japan. They're responsible for producing and supervising games in the F-Zero, Legendary Starfy, Fire Emblem, Dr. Mario, Endless Ocean, Fossil Fighters, Style Savvy and Xenoblade Chronicles series.
In addition to co-producing games, the group also supervised the development of the following video games: Drill Dozer, developed by Game Freak.
TitleSeriesGenrePlatform
2004Densetsu no Stafy 3The Legendary StarfyPlatformGame Boy Advance
2004Pokémon EmeraldPokémonRole-playingGame Boy Advance
2004'Fire EmblemTactical role playingGame Boy Advance
2004'F-ZeroRacingGame Boy Advance
2004Pokémon DashPokémonRacingNintendo DS
2005Yakuman DSYakumanPuzzleNintendo DS
2005'Fire EmblemTactical role-playingGameCube
2005Nonono Puzzle ChalienPuzzleGame Boy Advance
2005'WarsTurn-based tacticsNintendo DS
2005'Music, exergamingGameCube
2005Jump Super StarsFightingNintendo DS
2005Dr. Mario & Puzzle LeaguePuzzleGame Boy Advance
2005PokémonPuzzleNintendo DS
2005Super Princess PeachMarioPlatformNintendo DS
2005PokémonRoguelikeNintendo DS
2006Tetris DSTetrisPuzzleNintendo DS
2006Densetsu no Stafy 4The Legendary StarfyPlatformNintendo DS
2006Mawashite Tsunageru Touch PanicPuzzleNintendo DS
2006'Graphic adventureNintendo DS
2006Chōsōjū Mecha MGFightingNintendo DS
2006Wi-Fi Taiō Yakuman DSYakumanPuzzleNintendo DS
2006Pokémon Diamond and PearlPokémonRole-playingNintendo DS
2006Jump Ultimate StarsFightingNintendo DS
2007'WarioPlatformNintendo DS
2007Picross DSPicrossPuzzleNintendo DS
2007'Fire EmblemTactical role-playingWii
2007Planet Puzzle LeaguePuzzle LeaguePuzzleNintendo DS
2007Kurikin Nano Island StoryRole-playingNintendo DS
2007'Brain AgeEdutainmentNintendo DS
2007Ganbaru Watashi no Kakei DiaryDigital diaryNintendo DS
2007Endless OceanEndless OceanAdventure, simulationWii
2007Zekkyō Senshi SakebureinBeat 'em upNintendo DS
2007'PokémonRoguelikeNintendo DS
2007'Tactical role-playingNintendo DS
2007DS Bungaku ZenshuuE-readerNintendo DS
2008Wii ChessWiiChessWii
2008'WarsTurn-based tacticsNintendo DS
2008Dr. MarioPuzzleWii
2008Fossil FightersFossil FightersRole-playingNintendo DS
2008Yakuman Wii: Ide Yosuke no Kenkou MahjongYakumanPuzzleWii
2008The Legendary StarfyThe Legendary StarfyPlatformNintendo DS
2008Tsuushin Taikyoku: Hayazashi Shogi SandanPuzzleWii
2008Tsuushin Taikyoku: Igo Dojo 2700-MonPuzzleWii
2008'Fire EmblemTactical role-playingNintendo DS
2008Pokémon PlatinumPokémonRole-playingNintendo DS
2008'Action-adventureWii
2008Style SavvyStyle SavvySimulationNintendo DS
2008Dr. Mario Express
A Little Bit of... Dr. Mario 		Dr. MarioPuzzleWii
2008100 Classic Book CollectionE-readerNintendo DS
2009Puzzle League ExpressPuzzle LeaguePuzzleNintendo DSi
2009Yōsuke Ide no Kenkō Mahjong DSiPuzzleNintendo DSi
2009'PokémonNintendo DS
2009Sparkle Snapshots
2009Pokémon RumblePokémonWii
2009'PokémonWii
2009Ganbaru Watashi no Osaifu OuendanNintendo DSi
2009Metal TorrentShooterNintendo DSi
2009Pokémon HeartGold and SoulSilverPokémonRole-playingNintendo DS
2009Endless OceanAdventure, simulationWii
2009Sin and PunishmentShoot 'em upWii
2009'PokémonWii
2010Zangeki no ReginleivWii
2010Xenoblade ChroniclesXenoblade ChroniclesAction role-playingWii
2010'Fire EmblemTactical role-playingNintendo DS
2010ThruSpace
2010Pokémon Black and Pokémon WhitePokémonRole-playingNintendo DS
2010'Fossil FightersRole-playingNintendo DS-
2011The Last StoryAction role-playingWii
2011'PokémonNintendo DS
2011Pandora's TowerAction role-playingWii
2011Pokédex 3DPokémonNintendo 3DS
2011Ketzal's CorridorsNintendo 3DS
2011Kirby's Return to Dream LandKirbyWii
2011'PokémonWii
2011'3D ClassicsRacingNintendo 3DS
2011'3D ClassicsShoot 'em upNintendo 3DS
2011'3D ClassicsFightingNintendo 3DS
2011'3D ClassicsShoot 'em upNintendo 3DS
2011'3D ClassicsPlatform, actionNintendo 3DS
2011'3D ClassicsAction, platformNintendo 3DS
2012'Fire EmblemTactical role-playingNintendo 3DS
2012Pokémon Black 2 and Pokémon White 2PokémonRole-playingNintendo DS
2012Pokémon Dream RadarPokémonNintendo 3DS
2012Pokédex 3D ProPokémonNintendo 3DS
2012HarmoKnightRhythmNintendo 3DS
2012'Style SavvySimulationNintendo 3DS
2012Wii Karaoke UWii U
2012'PokémonNintendo 3DS
2013Pokémon Rumble UPokémonAction role-playingWii U
2013The Wonderful 101ActionWii U
2013Pokémon X and Pokémon YPokémonRole-playingNintendo 3DS
2013Dr. LuigiPuzzleWii U
2014'KirbyNintendo 3DS
2014'Role-playingNintendo 3DS
2014PokémonNintendo 3DS
2014Pokémon Art AcademyNintendo 3DS
2014Dedede's Drum Dash DeluxeKirbyNintendo 3DS
2014Kirby Fighters DeluxeKirbyNintendo 3DS
2014BayonettaBayonettaWii U
2014Bayonetta 2BayonettaWii U
2014Pokémon Omega Ruby and Alpha SapphirePokémonRole-playingNintendo 3DS
2015Pokémon ShufflePokémonPuzzleNintendo 3DS
2015'Turn-based strategyNintendo 3DS
2015Pokémon Rumble WorldPokémonAction role-playingNintendo 3DS
2015'Style SavvySimulationNintendo 3DS
2015Xenoblade Chronicles XXenoblade ChroniclesAction role-playingWii U
2015Fire Emblem FatesFire EmblemTactical role-playingNintendo 3DS
2015Devil's ThirdAction-adventure, hack and slash, shooterWii U
2015Real Dasshutsu Game x Nintendo 3DSNintendo 3DS

Production Group No. 3

The Production Group No. 3 was led by producer Kensuke Tanabe and responsible for overseeing the development of titles from the Metroid Prime, Battalion Wars, Super Mario Strikers, Mario vs. Donkey Kong, Excite, Paper Mario, Fluidity, and Donkey Kong Country series.
TitleGenrePlatform
2004Mario vs. Donkey KongPlatform, PuzzleGame Boy Advance
2004'Action-adventureGameCube
2005'PlatformNintendo DS
2005Chibi-Robo!Platform, adventureGameCube
2005GeistAction-adventureGameCube
2005Battalion WarsAction, real-time tacticsGameCube
2005Metroid Prime PinballPinballNintendo DS
2005'PlatformGame Boy Advance
2005Super Mario StrikersSportsGameCube
2005Hamtaro Ham-Ham ChallengeNintendo DS
2006Metroid Prime Hunters
2006Mother 3
2006Magical Starsign
2006bit Generations series
2006Freshly-Picked Tingle's Rosy Rupeeland
2006'
2006Custom Robo Arena
2006'
2006Excite Truck
2007Super Paper Mario
2007Mario Strikers Charged
2007'
2007'
2007Theta
2007Battalion Wars 2
2008Super Smash Bros. Brawl
2008Captain Rainbow
2008'
2008Kirby Super Star Ultra
2008Art Style series
2009New Play Control! Metroid Prime
2009Picross 3D
2009'
2009Bonsai Barber
2009'
2009Punch-Out!!
2009'
2009'
2009New Play Control! Chibi-Robo!
2009Okaeri! Chibi Robo! Happy Richie Dai Souji
2009Irodzuki Tingle no Koi no Balloon Trip
2009Rock N' Roll Climber
2009Metroid Prime Trilogy
2009Art Academy
2009'
2009'
2009'
2009A Kappa's Trail
2010Aura-Aura Climber
2010Face Pilot: Fly with your Nintendo DSi Camera!
2010Art Academy
2010'
2010Donkey Kong Country Returns
2010Fluidity
2011Pilotwings Resort
2011'
2011Kirby Mass Attack
2011'
2011Pushmo
2011'
2012Dillon's Rolling Western
2012Kirby's Dream Collection
2012'
2012'
2012Crashmo
2012'
2012SiNG Party
2013Nintendoji
2013'
2013'
2013Donkey Kong Country Returns 3D
2013Chibi-Robo! Photo Finder
2014
2015Kirby and the Rainbow Curse
2015Chibi-Robo! Zip Lash

Production Group No. 4

Group Manager: Hiroshi Sato
Production Group No. 4 was responsible for overseeing the development of titles from the Mario Party, Donkey Kong, and Wii Party series.
TitleGenrePlatform
2001Kuru Kuru KururinGame Boy Advance
2002Mario Party 4GameCube
2003Mario Party 5GameCube
2004Kururin Squash!GameCube
2004Mario Power TennisGameCube
2004Mario Party 6GameCube
2005Mario Party AdvanceGame Boy Advance
2005DK: King of SwingGame Boy Advance
2005Mario Party 7GameCube
2006Elite Beat AgentsNintendo DS
2007'Nintendo DS
2007Mario Party 8Wii
2007DK: Jungle ClimberNintendo DS
2007Donkey Kong Barrel BlastWii
2007Mario Party DSNintendo DS
2009'Wii
2010'Nintendo DS
2010Wii PartyWii
2012Mario Party 9Wii
2013Wii Party UWii U
2013'Nintendo 3DS

Software Development & Design Department

Deputy Manager: Masaru Nishita

Nintendo Software Development & Design was an experimental software development team assembled by Nintendo Co., Ltd. president Satoru Iwata. The team was originally assembled as a System Service Task Force that would develop all the unique internal system software for the Nintendo DS and Nintendo Wii. The team was responsible for all the additional Wii Channels, the Nintendo DSi system software and more recently, the Nintendo 3DS system software. Nintendo SDD also went on to develop several innovative retail games. The philosophy behind development was to think out of the box and create unique software in a timely manner with smaller development resources. The development staff was composed of Koichi Kawamoto, who was the original programmer of WarioWare, and Shinya Takahashi, who was a longtime designer at Nintendo EAD. The department was also responsible for developing several subsequent WiiWare and DSiWare software.

Software Development Group

Manager/producer: Kiyoshi Mizuki

Software Development Group was responsible for developing software from the Jam with the Band and Brain Age series, among additional Touch! Generations titles with partner developers.
TitlePlatformProducer
2004Band BrothersNDSShinya Takahashi
2005DS Easy DictionaryNDSShinya Takahashi
2005Band Brothers: Request SelectionNDSShinya Takahashi
2005'NDSShinya Takahashi
2006'NDSShinya Takahashi
2006English Training: Have Fun Improving Your SkillsNDSShinya Takahashi
2006Kanji Sonomama Rakubiki Jiten DSNDSShinya Takahashi
2007More English TrainingNDSShinya Takahashi
2008'NDSShinya Takahashi
2008Jam with the Band/Band Brothers DXNDSShinya Takahashi
2008Band Brothers DX RadioWiiShinya Takahashi
2008Brain Age ExpressDSiShinya Takahashi
2009Touch SolitaireDSi
2009Photo DojoDSiTomoaki Kuroume
2009How The Economy Works DSNDSShinya Takahashi
2011AR Games3DSTomoaki Kuroume
2011StreetPass Mii Plaza3DSShinya Takahashi
2012'3DSKouichi Kawamoto
2013Band Brothers P3DS
2014Rusty's Real Deal Baseball3DSKouichi Kawamoto