Nintendo is a Japan-based multinational video game manufacturer and developer. It was founded in 1889 by Fusajiro Yamauchi as a maker of Japanese handmade hanafuda cards. The company tried various industries over the next century before turning to toys in 1966 and video games in 1977. It became one of the most popular and most influential in the world. It is also Japan’s third most valuable company, with a value of almost $100 billion. The company website says ‘Nintendo’ means ‘Leave luck to Heaven’. A game developer called Shigeru Miyamoto was hired by Nintendo and he changed the company’s fortunes with successes like Donkey Kong and Super Mario. Miyamoto is now a gaming superstar. The introduction of the Nintendo DS and the Wii game console further established Nintendo as a major player.