Nintendo are probably the most important and influential company in the history of video games consoles. They are frequently praised for there innovation in both hardware and software. Outside the industry franchises such as "Donkey Kong" and "Mario" are recognized by people who have never played or even seen the games.

Nintendo employee Shigeru Miyamoto is often referred to as the father of modern video games and is one of, if not the, most celebrated game designer of all time. 

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Nintendo Company, Limited is a Japanese multinational corporation founded on September 23, 1889 in Kyoto, Japan by Fusajiro Yamauchi to produce handmade hanafuda cards.

Nintendo has the distinction of historically being both the oldest intact company in the video game console market and one of the largest and well-known console manufacturers, as well as being the dominant entity in the handheld console market. As of 30 June 2007, Nintendo has sold over 453 million hardware units, and nearly 2.2 billion software units worldwide.

Electronic era (1975-present)

Nintendo at this time saw how successful video games were and began to dabble in them. Its first step in that field was to secure the rights to distribute the Magnavox Odyssey in Japan, which it did in 1975. At the time, home video game consoles were extremely rare — even the seminal Atari PONG console had yet to be produced.Nintendo's first video arcade game was 1978's Computer Othello; a large handful of others followed in the next several years, Radar Scope and Donkey Kong being among the most famous of these. 

The early 1980s saw Nintendo's video game division (led by Yokoi) creating some of its most famous arcade titles. The massively popular Donkey Kong was created in 1981 with Miyamoto as its mastermind, and released in the arcades and on the Atari 2600, Intellivision, and ColecoVision video game systems (although Nintendo itself generally had no involvement with these early console ports). This release method would be used on several later Nintendo arcade games of this same period, including the original Mario Bros. (not to be confused with the later Super Mario Bros.). In addition to this arcade and dedicated console game activity, Nintendo was testing the consumer handheld video game waters with the Game & Watch. Then, in 1985, Nintendo struck gold with its Nintendo Entertainment System and continued with the handheld gaming market with their highly successful Game Boy. Nintendo continued producing updates of these two concepts, leading it to become one of the world's most recognized video-game manufacturers.

Nintendo Entertainment System (NES) (1983 – 2003)

Nintendo Entertainment System, or NES, is an 8-bit video game console released by Nintendo in North America, Brazil, Europe, Asia, and Australia. Its Japanese equivalent is known as the Famicom (Family Computer). NES is the most successful gaming console of its time in Asia and North America, since Nintendo claims to have sold over 60 million NES units worldwide. It helped revitalize the video game industry following the video game crash of 1983 and set the standard for subsequent consoles in everything from game design (the platform game, Super Mario Bros., was the system’s first "killer app") to business practices. The NES was the first console for which the manufacturer openly courted third-party developers.

Super Nintendo Entertainment System (SNES) (1990 – 2003)

The Super Nintendo Entertainment System, also known as Super Nintendo, Super NES or SNES, is a 16-bit video game console released by Nintendo in North America, Brazil, Europe, and Australia. In Japan it is known as the Super Famicom (Super Family Computer). In South Korea, it is known as the Super Comboy and was distributed by Hyundai Electronics.

The SNES was Nintendo's second home console, following the Nintendo Entertainment System. Whereas the earlier system had struggled in the PAL region and large parts of Asia, the SNES proved to be a global success, albeit one that could not match its predecessor's popularity in Northeast Asia and North America—due in part to increased competition from Sega's Mega Drive console (released in North America as the Genesis). Despite its relatively late start, the SNES became the best selling console of the 16-bit era.

The SNES has sold over 49 million systems worldwide.

Nintendo 64 (N64) (1996 – 2002)

The Nintendo 64, commonly called the N64, was Nintendo's third home video game console for the international market.  The Nintendo 64 has sold over 32.93 million systems as of March 31, 2005.

Nintendo GameCube (GCN) (2001 – Present)

The Nintendo GameCube is Nintendo's sixth generation game console, the same generation as Sega's Dreamcast, Sony's PlayStation 2, and Microsoft's Xbox. The GameCube itself is the most compact and least expensive of the sixth generation era consoles. The GameCube is Nintendo's first game console to use optical discs rather than game cartridges. An agreement with the optical drive manufacturer Matsushita led to a DVD-playing GameCube system named the Panasonic Q, which was only released in Japan.

The Nintendo GameCube has sold 21.63 million systems as of June 30, 2007.

Wii (2006 – Present)

The Wii (pronounced as the word we, is Nintendo's seventh-generation video game console. 

The major feature of the Wii console is the console's wireless controller, the Wii Remote, that may be used as a handheld pointing device and can detect motion and rotation in three dimensions. The controller comes with a Nunchuk accessory which provides additional controls, including more motion sensing. The controller also contains a speaker and a rumble device to provide sensory feedback, and can be used to turn the console on and off. The console also features a stand-by mode entitled WiiConnect24, enabling it to receive messages and updates over the Internet while consuming very little electrical power. The console is bundled with a game, Wii Sports, unusual for a games console of its era. In the Japan region, the Wii Sports game is not included with the console but is offered as a standalone title. The Wii has sold over 7 million systems as of June 1, 2007. The Wii, like the Nintendo GameCube, is the smallest and most compact system in its generation. However, it does not have the ability to match certain aspects of its competitors in the peer generation, such as high-definition graphics.

By April 2007, the Wall Street Journal declared Nintendo had "become the company to beat in the games business" with the Wii outselling its home system rivals and overshadowing the better selling Nintendo DS portable.

Game Boy (1989 – Present)

The Game Boy line is a line of battery-powered handheld game consoles sold by Nintendo. It is one of the world's best-selling game system lines, with more than 188 million hardware units sold worldwide. The original Game Boy has sold 70 million units, while the Game Boy Color sold 50 million units. The Game Boy Advance has managed to sell 80.02 million units as of June 30, 2007. This latter system underwent two revisions without changing its game-playing functionality: a smaller SP model, which was the first Game Boy to including a back-lit screen and rechargeable battery, and an even smaller micro variant with a higher-quality backlit screen.

Nintendo DS (2004 – Present)

The Nintendo DS (sometimes abbreviated NDS or DS, also as iQue DS in China) is a handheld game console developed and manufactured by Nintendo, released in 2004. It is visibly distinguishable by its horizontal clamshell design, which is almost a throwback to the Game & Watch, and the presence of two displays, the lower of which acts as a touch screen. The system also has a built-in microphone and supports wireless IEEE 802.11 (WiFi) standards, allowing players to interact with each other within short range (30–100 feet, depending on conditions) or over the Nintendo Wi-Fi Connection service.

The letters "DS" in the name stand for Developers' System, which refers to the features of the handheld designed to encourage innovative gameplay ideas among developers. Nintendo stated that it can also stand for Dual Screen.

On March 2, 2006, Nintendo released the Nintendo DS Lite, a redesigned model of the Nintendo DS, in Japan. It was later released in North America, Australia and Europe.

The Nintendo DS and Nintendo DS Lite have sold 47.27 million units as of June 2007. In Japan, the sales ratio of the Nintendo DS to the PSP is about four or five to one, a figure maintained on a weekly basis.

Nintendo Entertainment System Software	Super Nintendo Entertainment System Software	Nintendo 64 Software

Nintendo Gamecube Software	Nintendo Wii Software	Nintendo Gameboy Software

Nintendo Gameboy Color Software	Nintendo Gameboy Advance Software	Nintendo DS Software

Nintendo Hardware