© Ben BertoliOne of the most famous buildings in Nintendo’s long history is to be converted into a hotel, it has been confirmed.
The ‘Kabuyama Project’ will turn the ‘Yamauchi Nintendo’ headquarters – a Kyoto building which has become something of a mecca for Nintendo fans visiting Japan – into a 20-room hotel complete with restaurant, bar gym and spa.
The building – which still has the company’s sign bolted to the wall – will be completely transformed by 2021. It was Nintendo’s main HQ back when the firm was primarily in the business of manufacturing Hanafuda playing cards.
© GoogleIt would take the ambitious Hiroshi Yamauchi to change Nintendo into the company we know today; under his watch, the firm ventured into making toys, board games and gadgets aimed at children, before stepping into the world of video games with arcade titles, LCD-based handhelds and home consoles.
If you want to visit Nintendo’s old HQ before the alterations begin, you’d better make it snappy.