Nintendo Entertainment Planning & Development
Nintendo Entertainment Planning & Development Division, commonly abbreviated as Nintendo EPD, is the largest division within the Japanese video game company Nintendo. The division focuses on developing and producing video games, mobile apps, and other related entertainment software for the company. EPD was created after merging their Entertainment Analysis & Development (EAD) and Software Planning & Development (SPD) divisions in September 2015.
Exterior of the Nintendo Development Center in Kyoto
Nintendo Entertainment Analysis & Development
Nintendo Entertainment Analysis & Development Division, commonly abbreviated as Nintendo EAD and formerly known as Nintendo Research & Development No.4 Department, was the largest software development division within the Japanese video game company Nintendo. It was preceded by the Creative Department, a team of designers with backgrounds in art responsible for many different tasks, to which Shigeru Miyamoto and Takashi Tezuka originally belonged. Both served as managers of the EARD studios and were credited in every game developed by the division, with varying degrees of involvement. Nintendo EAD was best known for its work on games in the Donkey Kong, Mario, The Legend of Zelda, F-Zero, Star Fox, Animal Crossing, Pikmin, and Wii series.
Exterior of the Nintendo Central Office in Kyoto, where the division was housed for most of its existence
The success of Shigeru Miyamoto's Donkey Kong arcade game was a deciding factor in the creation of Nintendo R&D4.
Katsuya Eguchi, Deputy General Manager of the Nintendo EAD division in Kyoto
Yoshiaki Koizumi became manager of a second department of the Nintendo EAD division in Tokyo after 2007.