Nintendo President Not Coming to E3 on Doctor's Advice

Nintendo president Satoru Iwata will not attend next week's E3 in Los Angeles on the advice of his physician, a company representative told GameSpot. There's no reason to be alarmed, however, as the company says it's "business as usual" for Iwata.

"You won't be seeing Mr. Iwata at E3 next week. He's been instructed by his physician not to travel overseas in the immediate future, and so he will not be making the trip to Los Angeles," the representative said. "Please understand that it is business as usual for Mr. Iwata, and he continues his normal duties as president of Nintendo Co., Ltd. while he remains in Japan. As always, he will be actively involved in all of Nintendo's activities at the show."

The nature of Iwata's health issue is unknown.

Unlike press conferences for Microsoft, Sony, Electronic Arts, and Ubisoft, Nintendo's briefing this year is not a live event, but will rather take the form of a pre-recorded video. As such, Iwata isn't expressly needed in-person, for Nintendo's briefing at least, in Los Angeles. Still, he's long been a staple of the event, famously photographed last year arriving at the show alongside Shigeru Miyamoto, Reggie Fils-Aime, and a costumed Luigi.

Nintendo's "Digital Event" takes place at E3 on June 10 at 9 a.m. PDT. GameSpot will bring you all the news from the show as it happens. For more on this year's E3, check out GameSpot's dedicated E3 hub.

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