Mario Kart Creator Hideki Konno Has Left Nintendo
Nintendo has lost another veteran. Hideki Konno, the creator of Mario Kart and one of the key developers in the publisher's history, has left the company. He left Nintendo six months ago, but the information only became known now after updating his page on the social network.
It was previously reported that Kensuke Tanabe, who worked at Nintendo for about 40 years and participated in the creation of The Legend of Zelda: A Link to the Past, Donkey Kong Country, and Metroid Prime, had also left. According to Famiboards, these events are not related.
Hideki Konno joined Nintendo in 1986. He was the director of Ice Hockey for NES, assistant director of Super Mario Bros. 3, creator of Super Mario Kart, director of Super Mario 64, author of the Luigi’s Mansion series, and producer of several installments of Mario Kart, including Mario Kart 8 Deluxe.
Konno will turn 61 in 2026, and age may have influenced his decision. A change of generations continues at Nintendo: developers who started their careers in the NES era are gradually approaching the end of their professional journey. Shigeru Miyamoto will turn 74 this fall.
