<P> Nintendo started out as a small Japanese company , founded by Fusajiro Yamauchi on September 23 , 1889 , as Nintendo Koppai . Based in Kyoto , Japan , the business produced and marketed Hanafuda cards . The name `` Nintendo '' is commonly assumed to mean `` leave luck to heaven '' , but there are no historical records to validate this assumption . The cards , which were all handmade , soon began to gain in popularity , and Yamauchi had to hire assistants to mass - produce cards to keep up with the demand . </P>
who designed the first toy released by nintendo
Fusajiro Yamauchi