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Disrupting the Game: From the Bronx to the Top of Nintendo
Gaming legend and boss level disruptor Reggie Fils-Aim�, retired President and Chief Operating Officer of Nintendo of America Inc., shares leadership lessons and inspiring stories from his unlikely rise to the top. He mastered these lessons to build a long and storied career, and you too can leverage these lessons to springboard your own ultimate success and happiness.
Although he's best known as Nintendo's iconic President of the Americas--immortalized for opening Nintendo's 2004 E3 presentation with, "My name is Reggie, I'm about kicking ass, I'm about taking names, and we're about making games"--Reggie Fils-Aim�'s story is the ultimate gameplan for anyone looking to beat the odds and achieve success.
Learn from Reggie how to leverage disruptive thinking to pinpoint the life choices that will make you truly happy, conquer negative perceptions from those who underestimate or outright dismiss you, and master the grit, perseverance, and resilience it takes to dominate in the business world and to reach your professional dreams.
As close to sitting one-on-one with the gaming legend as it gets, you will
About the challenges Reggie faced throughout his life and career--from his humble childhood as the son of Haitian immigrants, to becoming one of the most powerful names in the history of the gaming industry.
What it takes to reach the top of your own industry, including being brave enough to stand up for your ideas, while also being open to alternative paths to success.
How to create vibrant and believable visions for your team and company.
How to maintain relentless curiosity and know when to ask questions to shatter the status quo.
Although he's best known as Nintendo's iconic President of the Americas--immortalized for opening Nintendo's 2004 E3 presentation with, "My name is Reggie, I'm about kicking ass, I'm about taking names, and we're about making games"--Reggie Fils-Aim�'s story is the ultimate gameplan for anyone looking to beat the odds and achieve success.
Learn from Reggie how to leverage disruptive thinking to pinpoint the life choices that will make you truly happy, conquer negative perceptions from those who underestimate or outright dismiss you, and master the grit, perseverance, and resilience it takes to dominate in the business world and to reach your professional dreams.
As close to sitting one-on-one with the gaming legend as it gets, you will
About the challenges Reggie faced throughout his life and career--from his humble childhood as the son of Haitian immigrants, to becoming one of the most powerful names in the history of the gaming industry.
What it takes to reach the top of your own industry, including being brave enough to stand up for your ideas, while also being open to alternative paths to success.
How to create vibrant and believable visions for your team and company.
How to maintain relentless curiosity and know when to ask questions to shatter the status quo.
224 pages, Kindle Edition
Published May 3, 2022
303 people are currently reading
2450 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 330 reviews
May 20, 2022
Reggie is surprisingly likeable, and well liked, despite his "kicking ass, taking names" persona. I guess he combines the virtues of being a passionate gamer and a driven businessman. After reading this book, it is apparent that having Reggie take over NOA was the best thing that could have happened to Nintendo at that time. The only caveat is that Reggie is great salesman, so the narrative of the book is undoubtedly self-serving, even self-aggrandizing. So, getting the full picture would require listening to the stories of all the people involved. However, no one can deny that the decision, for example, to bundle in Wii Sports with the Wii console at the U.S. launch was a game changing move. The collective net outcome of the various business and marketing decisions made by Reggie, or under his watch, was undoubtedly good for the company and good for gamers at large.
As a book, Disrupting the Game is unexceptional. It is rather short and to the point. It is a quick and fun read. It does not get too deep into the emotional life of its author. Reggie has described the book as a "business memoir" which means that it may not appeal to an average gamer. It is focused on providing a matter of fact account of the key moments in his career and life. The key focus, as the title implies, is on the role of "disruption" as a business, career, and leadership strategy. The best part of the book is the inspirational role that his career can serve for young people looking for meaning and purpose in their lives. Reggie ends each section with some takeaways and business lessons. To be honest, I found them pretty trite, ranging from "learn from your mentors" to "formulate your goals clearly." Not terrible lessons for newbies, but hardly that unique.
In the short list of decent books about the video game industry, Reggie's memoir is a welcome addition, but it is NOT the definitive history of Nintendo of America of that time period. Nor is it especially hard-hitting, revelatory, or inspirational as a memoir. It feels a bit too reserved and conservative to my taste - but maybe these are accurate reflections of the author? At any rate, I get a nagging feeling that many important details and people are being left out of the story. Here is hoping that some intrepid journalist goes in and writes a more in-depth follow-up. In the mean time, I am happy to see Reggie getting recognition as an industry leader, not only because he clearly deserves it, but also because it can inspire other "disruptors" to shake up the industry.
As a book, Disrupting the Game is unexceptional. It is rather short and to the point. It is a quick and fun read. It does not get too deep into the emotional life of its author. Reggie has described the book as a "business memoir" which means that it may not appeal to an average gamer. It is focused on providing a matter of fact account of the key moments in his career and life. The key focus, as the title implies, is on the role of "disruption" as a business, career, and leadership strategy. The best part of the book is the inspirational role that his career can serve for young people looking for meaning and purpose in their lives. Reggie ends each section with some takeaways and business lessons. To be honest, I found them pretty trite, ranging from "learn from your mentors" to "formulate your goals clearly." Not terrible lessons for newbies, but hardly that unique.
In the short list of decent books about the video game industry, Reggie's memoir is a welcome addition, but it is NOT the definitive history of Nintendo of America of that time period. Nor is it especially hard-hitting, revelatory, or inspirational as a memoir. It feels a bit too reserved and conservative to my taste - but maybe these are accurate reflections of the author? At any rate, I get a nagging feeling that many important details and people are being left out of the story. Here is hoping that some intrepid journalist goes in and writes a more in-depth follow-up. In the mean time, I am happy to see Reggie getting recognition as an industry leader, not only because he clearly deserves it, but also because it can inspire other "disruptors" to shake up the industry.
June 19, 2022
Nauseatingly corporate in its approach to writing and general thinking. Fils-Aimé has always seemed like such an approachable guy in his Nintendo appearances, and I guess I wanted a more personal book. This feels more like an extended resume than an autobiography, making sure to highlight all his strengths in the best light. There’s a thin veneer of self-help-style takeaways thrown in there, but the book still struggles with its identity throughout.
Fils-Aimé’s halting narration style, charming during Nintendo presentations, does not work for an audiobook at all. He often hits weird intonations for words, as if unfamiliar with the material he wrote himself. It really took me out of the experience.
At the end of the audiobook there’s a really heartfelt hour-long interview between Reggie and Geoff Keighley, where they share stories and express how much they mean to each other. It only made me wish the whole book was as authentic as that interview. [LIBRARY AUDIOBOOK]
Fils-Aimé’s halting narration style, charming during Nintendo presentations, does not work for an audiobook at all. He often hits weird intonations for words, as if unfamiliar with the material he wrote himself. It really took me out of the experience.
At the end of the audiobook there’s a really heartfelt hour-long interview between Reggie and Geoff Keighley, where they share stories and express how much they mean to each other. It only made me wish the whole book was as authentic as that interview. [LIBRARY AUDIOBOOK]
May 11, 2022
Some thoughts here: https://twitter.com/han_tani2/status/...
Fun overview of Reggie Fils-Aime's time before and at Nintendo. A lot of the 'takeaway' sections were kind of broad business-manager-self-help advice - so I can't say how useful it is as I don't oversee 1,000 employees - but I did gain an appreciation for some of the tricky decisions a marketing exec or president had at Nintendo throughout 2004-2019. It was interesting to read about Reggie's nervousness at doing the DS reveal in 2004, practicing a speech, etc.
In particular (assuming what the book says is true) it was interesting to see that Reggie and Iwata had to agree on regional pricing of things like consoles, but Iwata had the last say. Pricing indie games is always a tricky subject, so I imagine it's more nightmarish when deciding between $199 or $249 when you're managing a continent-wide market.
The book does vaguely criticize Nintendo of Japan a bit and its organizational structure as well as marketing/pricing techniques, which was interesting to say... but the book never gets very juicy, and there wasn't as much drama around the Wii U as I had hoped for.
Still, idk, it was a fun read especially if you're a little curious about the 2004-2014 era of Nintendo. I have a complicated relationship with Nintendo, on one hand I hate their current output and business tactics (especially around IP), on the other hand they're arguably responsible for my existence as a game designer (and I do prefer Nintendo's game design philosophy to Western AAA, even if nowadays I don't find their output that interesting) and the Switch is one of our games' best markets... so... I'll end ranting about Nintendo any more here, for now...
Fun overview of Reggie Fils-Aime's time before and at Nintendo. A lot of the 'takeaway' sections were kind of broad business-manager-self-help advice - so I can't say how useful it is as I don't oversee 1,000 employees - but I did gain an appreciation for some of the tricky decisions a marketing exec or president had at Nintendo throughout 2004-2019. It was interesting to read about Reggie's nervousness at doing the DS reveal in 2004, practicing a speech, etc.
In particular (assuming what the book says is true) it was interesting to see that Reggie and Iwata had to agree on regional pricing of things like consoles, but Iwata had the last say. Pricing indie games is always a tricky subject, so I imagine it's more nightmarish when deciding between $199 or $249 when you're managing a continent-wide market.
The book does vaguely criticize Nintendo of Japan a bit and its organizational structure as well as marketing/pricing techniques, which was interesting to say... but the book never gets very juicy, and there wasn't as much drama around the Wii U as I had hoped for.
Still, idk, it was a fun read especially if you're a little curious about the 2004-2014 era of Nintendo. I have a complicated relationship with Nintendo, on one hand I hate their current output and business tactics (especially around IP), on the other hand they're arguably responsible for my existence as a game designer (and I do prefer Nintendo's game design philosophy to Western AAA, even if nowadays I don't find their output that interesting) and the Switch is one of our games' best markets... so... I'll end ranting about Nintendo any more here, for now...
May 30, 2022
Loved getting to read some fun Nintendo stories from Reggie. I need to go back and rewatch the 2004 and 2006 E3 press conferences now.
August 8, 2022
“My Name "My name is Reggie. I'm about kickin' ass, I'm about takin' names, and we're about makin' games." ― Reggie Fils-Aimé, E3 2004
Unfortunately they weren’t about making engaging books, from the former president of Nintendo of America and gaming icon at his time through his charming personality and humorous presentations named Nintendo direct, comes an about average business books with solid but shallow advise with some shallow anecdotes as well from his career starting from P&G all the way to the nintendo presidentship.
If you don’t mind fluff in your business books or memoirs then you might like this book, otherwise don’t bother 5/10.
Unfortunately they weren’t about making engaging books, from the former president of Nintendo of America and gaming icon at his time through his charming personality and humorous presentations named Nintendo direct, comes an about average business books with solid but shallow advise with some shallow anecdotes as well from his career starting from P&G all the way to the nintendo presidentship.
If you don’t mind fluff in your business books or memoirs then you might like this book, otherwise don’t bother 5/10.
December 31, 2024
This was a solid book to finish off 2024. It's a nice quick read and it's obvious Mr. Fils-Aime's background is in business writing. He is concise and gets his points across effectively. As a video gamer, I was primarily interested in reading about his time at Nintendo and he provided several interesting stories and great information about some of the inner workings of the company. It was fun getting to know the background on some of decisions and events that were already familiar to me. For younger readers, the book also provides some great tips on navigating the corporate world. Big thumbs up me from and would recommend this book.
April 19, 2022
Disrupting the Game by Reggie Fils-Aimé is a must-read for anyone who is from an entrepreneur to a business person or working for a business to a student; everyone should read the book. I had read other's reviews and I wanted to make sure to underline that Reggie Fils-Aimé if you've read the book was never "placed" in any position nor was he "given" a title, this person has such a clear and effective idea of himself and his path that he takes us through the mental process of how he made the moves and decisions he has made. This is an impressive read because of how humble Reggie Fils-Aimé is, how he is teaching us not only his process but the lessons he has learned, and how we can learn from his experiences and his own lessons. I picked up this book because of my child's interest and love for Nintendo and when I see Reggie Fils-Aimé I can see my child. Visibility is a wonderful thing and when my child is older I will pass down this book for them to read.
May 10, 2022
(3.5*)
Wasn't expecting such a business-practice heavy book, but I loved the insight and heart this book offered. It's at its best when Reggie is telling incredible stories from his life and career, but the pacing is constantly interrupted by his "So What" insertions.
Wasn't expecting such a business-practice heavy book, but I loved the insight and heart this book offered. It's at its best when Reggie is telling incredible stories from his life and career, but the pacing is constantly interrupted by his "So What" insertions.
August 16, 2025
While holding some fascinating tales of Reggie’s business acumen, it felt all pretty surface level fluff to me. He mentions several times not being afraid to make mistakes in his advice, but rarely do we hear of the mistakes he himself made on the job, or see tangible examples of how to come back and prosper in spite of them. Instead it’s a fair amount of stories where his vision triumphs in the end and immense success follows. Admittedly impressive, but doesn’t make for the most interesting of tales to listen to for a whole book.
May 19, 2022
While this book may not be as resourceful if you are not a business executive, to hear Reggie’s experiences, challenges and lessons that he learned throughout his career is enticing. For me, to hear stories about his time at Nintendo is what really sold me on this book, as I’m a big fan of the company. His leadership and charisma was always a pleasure to see at video game conferences or announcements. As you read or listen to the book, he delivers it in a way that he is talking directly to you. He tells you his journey at each company, but stops along the way to tell the lessons he learned and how you should apply them to your own career. As I said, it may not be as resourceful if you are not a business executive, but some of the lessons he learned can be applied to everyday life, making it more interesting.
May 25, 2022
A missed opportunity to start this book in-medias-res style with a "My body was ready" paragraph.
Seriously though, this book starts strong but quickly turns into a LinkedIn page read-aloud.
The most disappointing part IMO was the part that's actually dedicated to one of Nintendo's greatest comebacks - from the pits of the Wii-U era to the Switch era, an era in which Reggie led Nintendo of America - is less than one chapter. It doesn't contain any juicy details or even just plain strategy intakes. Very disappointing if you hoped to distill a strong message about, you know, disruption.
This book is also very innocent in its presentation and doesn't tackle some of the recent year's hot potatoes related to Nintendo like its attitude towards Indie developers, content creators, and modders.
It's a fun and inspiring read though.
Seriously though, this book starts strong but quickly turns into a LinkedIn page read-aloud.
The most disappointing part IMO was the part that's actually dedicated to one of Nintendo's greatest comebacks - from the pits of the Wii-U era to the Switch era, an era in which Reggie led Nintendo of America - is less than one chapter. It doesn't contain any juicy details or even just plain strategy intakes. Very disappointing if you hoped to distill a strong message about, you know, disruption.
This book is also very innocent in its presentation and doesn't tackle some of the recent year's hot potatoes related to Nintendo like its attitude towards Indie developers, content creators, and modders.
It's a fun and inspiring read though.
September 30, 2023
Who knew that Reggie "My Body Is Ready" Fils-Aimé had such a varied backround in Pizza Hut, Panda Express and beyond?
January 5, 2023
I bought this book, to learn a little bit more about a legend within Nintendo’s business world.
*Review coming soon*
*Review coming soon*
May 1, 2022
This is a very digestible read and going to have a lot little tidbits Nintendo diehards will enjoy. For those unfamiliar with these kinds of leadership/business books they can feel a bit generic at times. That being said, it's solid advice that's applicable to your own life no matter where you are in it.
The books starts off on a very heavy note with Reggie attending Mr. Iwata's funeral. It's deeply personal and pulls the reader in. Also, the book is very inspirational given Reggie's background and how much he struggled to achieve what he did in life.
For Nintendo fans there is a ton of interesting information about our favorite game company and the decisions they made. Seeing the behind the scenes to some of our favorite moments, E3 2004, Wii's launch etc is really cool and informative.
That being said, even though this book does talk about Nintendo's short-comings. It often feels like a bit too much of a victory lap. The Wii U's failure and 3DS struggles could have been discussed in more depth. Even successful platforms, like the Wii's shortcomings weren't discussed much. Such as Nintendo Wifi Connections limitations, poor software attach rate etc. We do learn from some of Reggie's failings, but I think a bit more could have been written about shortcomings even in success, and learning from that.
Overall, it was pretty interesting and very easy to read. I would happily recommend it to any Nintendo fan, or anyone trying to learn how to be a better leader and communicator.
The books starts off on a very heavy note with Reggie attending Mr. Iwata's funeral. It's deeply personal and pulls the reader in. Also, the book is very inspirational given Reggie's background and how much he struggled to achieve what he did in life.
For Nintendo fans there is a ton of interesting information about our favorite game company and the decisions they made. Seeing the behind the scenes to some of our favorite moments, E3 2004, Wii's launch etc is really cool and informative.
That being said, even though this book does talk about Nintendo's short-comings. It often feels like a bit too much of a victory lap. The Wii U's failure and 3DS struggles could have been discussed in more depth. Even successful platforms, like the Wii's shortcomings weren't discussed much. Such as Nintendo Wifi Connections limitations, poor software attach rate etc. We do learn from some of Reggie's failings, but I think a bit more could have been written about shortcomings even in success, and learning from that.
Overall, it was pretty interesting and very easy to read. I would happily recommend it to any Nintendo fan, or anyone trying to learn how to be a better leader and communicator.
May 11, 2022
Wonderful man with some great stories about his career. I wish he had elaborated more of the Nintendo Switch creation years, but i had a great time and ended up ordering Chinese and Pizza because of his stories involving them
May 8, 2022
I very much enjoyed this, a lot more than I was expecting. It's a quick read -- I got through it over a weekend -- and that means that you can really take in all of the learnings Fils-Aimé has to share in one big chunk. And there are indeed lots of great business learnings here -- in fact, that's what I enjoyed most, that as he describes his journey, he pauses to explain how they illustrate various aspects of his beliefs in how to do business. Very much recommended.
May 4, 2022
An excellent if not condensed look into how someone starts and pushes themselves into a position to succeed. Reggie and Nintendo have always been mythical figures in the video game industry and reading this has been a wonderful insight into those worlds.
September 6, 2025
Truly baffling. Listen, there's only one reason people are going to pick this book up, and it's because they're Nintendo fans. Reggie is a cult hero, an icon in his field, so I thought this would make a lovely, light read. It turns out that this is 50% business advice, 40% autobiography, and maybe 10% games.
I really can't express how funny I found the business guru parts. I am not here to take advice from you Reggie. You're clearly an intelligent guy, but just tell me about Twilight Princess please. They're made all the more hilarious by being targeted at... fellow high-level executives of billion dollar companies? As the owner of a GameCube, I'm really thankful that I've learned how to unify strategy within a global business. I can't imagine a single person in his target audience actually bought this book.
The autobiography side is fine; Reggie came from a humble background and worked hard to achieve success, good for him. It's very much a whistlestop tour of his life though, with little detail on the more interesting parts. The gaming side is infuriatingly brief, with only minor details of the behind-the-scenes Nintendo stuff that everyone actually wants. Most of the anecdotes are structured as so:
"Mr. Iwata, we should really do my good idea."
"Reggie, we cannot do this."
"Mr. Iwata, I am Reggie Fils-Aimé."
"Reggie, we will do your really good idea."
We did my idea. Nintendo made 8 trillion dollars and the Wii U became president.
I had a much better time with Console Wars, despite all its flaws. I floated the idea of giving this one star, but it did make me unintentionally laugh, and only took up a few hours.
Sorry Reggie, my body was not ready.
I really can't express how funny I found the business guru parts. I am not here to take advice from you Reggie. You're clearly an intelligent guy, but just tell me about Twilight Princess please. They're made all the more hilarious by being targeted at... fellow high-level executives of billion dollar companies? As the owner of a GameCube, I'm really thankful that I've learned how to unify strategy within a global business. I can't imagine a single person in his target audience actually bought this book.
The autobiography side is fine; Reggie came from a humble background and worked hard to achieve success, good for him. It's very much a whistlestop tour of his life though, with little detail on the more interesting parts. The gaming side is infuriatingly brief, with only minor details of the behind-the-scenes Nintendo stuff that everyone actually wants. Most of the anecdotes are structured as so:
"Mr. Iwata, we should really do my good idea."
"Reggie, we cannot do this."
"Mr. Iwata, I am Reggie Fils-Aimé."
"Reggie, we will do your really good idea."
We did my idea. Nintendo made 8 trillion dollars and the Wii U became president.
I had a much better time with Console Wars, despite all its flaws. I floated the idea of giving this one star, but it did make me unintentionally laugh, and only took up a few hours.
Sorry Reggie, my body was not ready.
March 11, 2022
Note: I received this book for free from the publisher in exchange for an honest review. Reggie comes off as someone who deserves the positions he's been placed in. The ideas he presents are always backed up with an explanation of why it worked for him, and for a burgeoning executive, that seems to be the missing link in autobiographies like this. The only thing that seems off about this book is that he doesn't discuss learning from any mistakes.
The only "mistakes" he talks about making are not being persuasive enough to push his idea that would have fixed everything. It may be that Reggie is just a near-perfect person, but I could have used more here.
Also, not enough info on the Bigfoot Pizza.
Lots of easily digestible lessons about working with different cultures and different markets that are really interesting and lots of info on behind the scenes decisions at Nintendo, so I got what I wanted from it.
The only "mistakes" he talks about making are not being persuasive enough to push his idea that would have fixed everything. It may be that Reggie is just a near-perfect person, but I could have used more here.
Also, not enough info on the Bigfoot Pizza.
Lots of easily digestible lessons about working with different cultures and different markets that are really interesting and lots of info on behind the scenes decisions at Nintendo, so I got what I wanted from it.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
November 20, 2023
This is great paired with the audiobook through Libro.FM
Reggie Fils-Aime is the former President of Nintendo of America and his book is a testament to his climb up the corporate ladder. Sprinkled with his own business suggestions, learning about his way from the Bronx to the top of NoA and his relationships with Satoru Iwata and other various video games figures was incredibly eye-opening. His marketing experience within Nintendo helped form their success with the DS, the Wii, and later on with the beginning of the Switch. Any game lover, in the industry or not, would love to give this a read!
Reggie Fils-Aime is the former President of Nintendo of America and his book is a testament to his climb up the corporate ladder. Sprinkled with his own business suggestions, learning about his way from the Bronx to the top of NoA and his relationships with Satoru Iwata and other various video games figures was incredibly eye-opening. His marketing experience within Nintendo helped form their success with the DS, the Wii, and later on with the beginning of the Switch. Any game lover, in the industry or not, would love to give this a read!
December 31, 2022
Unfortunately; the fun, Nintendo stories of this book could be a brief article published on a website. Everything else is the self-aggrandizing story of a man that got what he wanted through being verbally and physically forceful, who also is more than willing to complain and name people that got in his way for the few times he did not get his way.
If you’re interested in reading business buzzword salads, or maybe resumes, check this one out.
If you’re interested in reading business buzzword salads, or maybe resumes, check this one out.
May 21, 2022
Great, pragmatic book on applied learnings. As a huge Christensen admirer and Nintendo fan, finding out that The Innovator's Dilemma and Blue Ocean Strategy have been part of Nintendo's strategy for years felt cathartic to me.
I would recommend this to any game industry enthusiast interested in seeing the world from the Reggienator's "disruptor lenses".
I would recommend this to any game industry enthusiast interested in seeing the world from the Reggienator's "disruptor lenses".
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
May 20, 2022
As a Nintendo fan, I found this book fascinating and a real page turner. Most business biographies are about successful founders or familiar names on top of Forbes list so it’s refreshing and more relatable to read a book about a “normal employee”
Key Takeaways
-In a corporate setting you must have the support of your superiors to succeed. A key to Reggie’s long success at NOA is due to Iwata’s trust, support and friendship. Building personal relationships and rapport with top executives is a must.
-Authenticity garners respect; Reggie always stuck to his guns and pushed for his ideas. Although he became less brash and learned the importance of building consensus: the need to garner support from peers and superiors as he progressed through his career.
-To win in business you must have a competitive spirit. A strong drive to win more customers, quickly grow revenue and profits, and beat out the competition. Which of course will help get those big promotions. Reggie is always dissatisfied when working on slow growth products or for conservative leaders.
-Keep your ego in check, don’t argue just because you think you are right. Present ideas with logic, proof and data. And know that even if your idea is right, poor execution, change of circumstance or change of mind from investors or executives could rob you of success and you’ll need to find new opportunities elsewhere. If that happens remember bitterness does no one good, be respectful and move on.
-Praise in public, criticize in private. Be extremely mindful of your boss’s emotions and state of mind. Give them time to digest your suggestions. If they disagree don’t keep presenting the same info, address their objections, find new angles and new evidence to persuade them.
What surprised me is Reggie did not proactively look for employment at Nintendo or other video game companies. A recruiter reached out to him! I guess we should all plan for our future but keep our eyes, ears and mind wide open for unforeseen opportunities.
-Executives are presented with challenges they are not familiar with all the time. To be successful the executive needs to have a clear vision, what does the end result look like? Will this delight the customer? Second is to get help from subject matter experts and experienced insiders to learn as quickly as possible and have them help you execute.
-Reggie is truly an advocate for the customer inside Nintendo. He pushed to have more content bundled and lower prices on hardware. When Nintendo announced price drop on the 3DS he pushed for the Nintendo Ambassador program which gives early adopters who paid full price free games as an appreciation of their loyalty.
Questions
-Did Reggie become famous because he was the head of NOA or because he is a great marketer? If Reggie became the CEO of P&G would he be as famous?
-Is Nintendo going to become a conservative and siloed company once again now that Iwata passed and Reggie retired? This insight from the book really surprised me, as I thought such an innovative and creativity driven company cannot be so conservative and hierarchical.
Key Takeaways
-In a corporate setting you must have the support of your superiors to succeed. A key to Reggie’s long success at NOA is due to Iwata’s trust, support and friendship. Building personal relationships and rapport with top executives is a must.
-Authenticity garners respect; Reggie always stuck to his guns and pushed for his ideas. Although he became less brash and learned the importance of building consensus: the need to garner support from peers and superiors as he progressed through his career.
-To win in business you must have a competitive spirit. A strong drive to win more customers, quickly grow revenue and profits, and beat out the competition. Which of course will help get those big promotions. Reggie is always dissatisfied when working on slow growth products or for conservative leaders.
-Keep your ego in check, don’t argue just because you think you are right. Present ideas with logic, proof and data. And know that even if your idea is right, poor execution, change of circumstance or change of mind from investors or executives could rob you of success and you’ll need to find new opportunities elsewhere. If that happens remember bitterness does no one good, be respectful and move on.
-Praise in public, criticize in private. Be extremely mindful of your boss’s emotions and state of mind. Give them time to digest your suggestions. If they disagree don’t keep presenting the same info, address their objections, find new angles and new evidence to persuade them.
What surprised me is Reggie did not proactively look for employment at Nintendo or other video game companies. A recruiter reached out to him! I guess we should all plan for our future but keep our eyes, ears and mind wide open for unforeseen opportunities.
-Executives are presented with challenges they are not familiar with all the time. To be successful the executive needs to have a clear vision, what does the end result look like? Will this delight the customer? Second is to get help from subject matter experts and experienced insiders to learn as quickly as possible and have them help you execute.
-Reggie is truly an advocate for the customer inside Nintendo. He pushed to have more content bundled and lower prices on hardware. When Nintendo announced price drop on the 3DS he pushed for the Nintendo Ambassador program which gives early adopters who paid full price free games as an appreciation of their loyalty.
Questions
-Did Reggie become famous because he was the head of NOA or because he is a great marketer? If Reggie became the CEO of P&G would he be as famous?
-Is Nintendo going to become a conservative and siloed company once again now that Iwata passed and Reggie retired? This insight from the book really surprised me, as I thought such an innovative and creativity driven company cannot be so conservative and hierarchical.
June 10, 2022
I’m a big fan of Reggie’s. I would always tune in whenever he would give a showcase for Nintendo because he had a way of drawing you in and bringing excitement about the latest Nintendo device. Unfortunately, this book is not the same experience.
Disrupting the Game, as it turns out, is more of a business memoir and it reads like one: very sterile and to the point. It’s a double edged sword in that regard as I appreciated the brevity of each chapter (interspersed with reasons why he would share the story he did and what it means for the reader in a business setting) but I found the writing very dull. Reggie gives you just enough to get the picture but not the full picture as it feels like there are some things missing. Understandably, there’s some things he probably is unable to share; I get that.
If you’re looking for a book where Reggie does nothing but share stories and humorous anecdotes about his time at Nintendo, you’ll get a little of that but that isn’t what the book is. I’ve a feeling that gamers coming in to this book will be turned off by the style it’s written in and how much it’s geared towards equipping people in a corporate environment. Overall, it’s a fine read but a bit too reserved and dull for my liking.
Disrupting the Game, as it turns out, is more of a business memoir and it reads like one: very sterile and to the point. It’s a double edged sword in that regard as I appreciated the brevity of each chapter (interspersed with reasons why he would share the story he did and what it means for the reader in a business setting) but I found the writing very dull. Reggie gives you just enough to get the picture but not the full picture as it feels like there are some things missing. Understandably, there’s some things he probably is unable to share; I get that.
If you’re looking for a book where Reggie does nothing but share stories and humorous anecdotes about his time at Nintendo, you’ll get a little of that but that isn’t what the book is. I’ve a feeling that gamers coming in to this book will be turned off by the style it’s written in and how much it’s geared towards equipping people in a corporate environment. Overall, it’s a fine read but a bit too reserved and dull for my liking.
August 25, 2022
Reggie Fils-Aimé is a fascinating person. As the President of Nintendo of American he had a larger than life personality that was so fun to see in E3 Presentations and other public events. Hearing about his childhood as the son of Haitian immigrants and his journeys through college, to Proctor and Gamble, and Pizza Hut on the way to Nintendo are really interesting.
Obviously, I listened to this book to hear about Nintendo and his relationship with Satoru Iwata. And because Reggie is the reader on the audiobook version! There is also a lot more practical business and management advice in the book than I was expecting. But it is all wrapped around vignettes from his various careers and very grounded and practical.
I think if you are coming at this book wanting to learn about Reggie and Nintendo, you will be satisfied. And if you are hoping to pick up some sound managing technique dos and don'ts you will also be satisfied. Plus, the audiobook version at least, contains a surprise extra interview after the Epilogue! Even more Reggie. My body is ready.
Reggie remains always, The Regginator.
Obviously, I listened to this book to hear about Nintendo and his relationship with Satoru Iwata. And because Reggie is the reader on the audiobook version! There is also a lot more practical business and management advice in the book than I was expecting. But it is all wrapped around vignettes from his various careers and very grounded and practical.
I think if you are coming at this book wanting to learn about Reggie and Nintendo, you will be satisfied. And if you are hoping to pick up some sound managing technique dos and don'ts you will also be satisfied. Plus, the audiobook version at least, contains a surprise extra interview after the Epilogue! Even more Reggie. My body is ready.
Reggie remains always, The Regginator.
January 25, 2023
As a lifelong Nintendo fan I'll gobble up anything that has to do with the company and Reggie was a big part of that Nintendo I grew up with, in that sense I'm a little disappointed this book doesn't go more in depth about the company and his time there we get a glimpse here and there but I was looking forward to more stories like the one about the time he took Miyamoto San to the whiskey place in NY , more of his personal time with Mr Iwata ect also this books gives us a look at the good with a very short glimpse at the bad the WiiU was a colossal failure and I'm sure Reggie has a lot to do with that the lackluster E3 showing bad marketing campaign underpowered hardware I would've like for Reggie to talk more about this and his role in all of it sadly we get a very short chapter leaving a lot to be desired.
Now if you're into market stuff and business this book has good pointers and advice it goes from his childhood to his retirement days and everything in between
Now if you're into market stuff and business this book has good pointers and advice it goes from his childhood to his retirement days and everything in between
May 24, 2022
Disrupting the Game is not a typical autobiography and is focused on Reggie's learnings as a business executive over the years. There is definitely a lot more in the way of immediately applicable knowledge here than in your typical business big-wig memoir. While the more exciting content is found in the chapters detailing Reggie's time at Nintendo, the most useful knowledge is in his formative years at other companies. This might be an unfair reaction, but it seemed like he lost interest in the book as he went along. It could have benefited from more depth, especially since it focuses mostly on his successes and examples of good decision-making. I would have liked to read more of his insight into the failure of the Wii U, for instance, but it was almost completely glanced over. Reggie clearly has great instincts, and that simply isn't something you can teach.
September 5, 2022
Reggie provides a fascinating blend of history and advisement in DISRUPTING THE GAME, which chronicles his journey from childhood to President of Nintendo America and into his eventual retirement.
As an avid fan of the gaming industry and Nintendo’s titles, I found myself perking up the most when Reggie details his experiences playing Zelda, co-hosting E3 2006, and launching the Wii.
While I myself have little interest in operating on a corporate level such as Reggie did, his wisdom and experience still provided a thorough examination of the trials and tribulations inherent to both the gaming industry and the world of business.
The tales of debuting the trailer for Twilight Princess, battling the President of Nintendo over the price of the DS, and exploring the brilliant creative and marketing decisions that led to the Switch’s mammoth success stood out as a few select favorites.
As an avid fan of the gaming industry and Nintendo’s titles, I found myself perking up the most when Reggie details his experiences playing Zelda, co-hosting E3 2006, and launching the Wii.
While I myself have little interest in operating on a corporate level such as Reggie did, his wisdom and experience still provided a thorough examination of the trials and tribulations inherent to both the gaming industry and the world of business.
The tales of debuting the trailer for Twilight Princess, battling the President of Nintendo over the price of the DS, and exploring the brilliant creative and marketing decisions that led to the Switch’s mammoth success stood out as a few select favorites.
January 20, 2023
This book is less about Nintendo and more about business. I didn't want to read about business but even after it became clear that's what I was getting, I told myself I'd put it down once it got boring and then accidentally finished it.
This book is absolutely a businessman writing his own mythology but it's not a "I'm a millionaire douchebag and so can you" type of book. There's a real earnestness to it. At its heart, it is about how important it is to work where you can grow and how to help foster that kind of environment. You can tell he really cares about the work he's done and it's infectious enough to hook the reader into caring about his Panda Express and Pizza Hut exploits too.
There's a lot of interesting stories about how various business decisions were made and how sometimes seemingly unrelated innovations in another industry influenced the course of a project. I also loved how much the tone completely changed every time he had the chance to fawn over The Legend of Zelda games. Because, yeah, same.
Overall, there were instructive but interesting business lessons, some endearing personal stories, and about 1/2 a book's worth of Nintendo anecdotes, all delivered in what I've come to find out is this man's usual off-kilter, weird voice. I liked it a lot. I would probably read it again. I will definitely be putting it on some of my friends' radars because there's lots of angles to enjoy this book from.
This book is absolutely a businessman writing his own mythology but it's not a "I'm a millionaire douchebag and so can you" type of book. There's a real earnestness to it. At its heart, it is about how important it is to work where you can grow and how to help foster that kind of environment. You can tell he really cares about the work he's done and it's infectious enough to hook the reader into caring about his Panda Express and Pizza Hut exploits too.
There's a lot of interesting stories about how various business decisions were made and how sometimes seemingly unrelated innovations in another industry influenced the course of a project. I also loved how much the tone completely changed every time he had the chance to fawn over The Legend of Zelda games. Because, yeah, same.
Overall, there were instructive but interesting business lessons, some endearing personal stories, and about 1/2 a book's worth of Nintendo anecdotes, all delivered in what I've come to find out is this man's usual off-kilter, weird voice. I liked it a lot. I would probably read it again. I will definitely be putting it on some of my friends' radars because there's lots of angles to enjoy this book from.
July 17, 2022
Accidentally, this turned out to be the first business-focused book I've ever read (or in this case listened to). Still, hearing Reggie's stories told by himself proved to be quite an interesting experience. While the book all in all is quite tame, it seems to me as if most of his advice is actually quite good and certainly in line with his on-screen persona that we could observe over his tenure at Nintendo.
On a different note, his explanations about his personal and professional relationship with Satoru Iwata were incredibly touching and it certainly leaves one wondering, where Nintendo would stand today if both of them would have continued to lead the company till today. (Switch Pro, BOTW2, the abysmal switch online experience etc.).
On a different note, his explanations about his personal and professional relationship with Satoru Iwata were incredibly touching and it certainly leaves one wondering, where Nintendo would stand today if both of them would have continued to lead the company till today. (Switch Pro, BOTW2, the abysmal switch online experience etc.).
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