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Nintendo originally made hanafuda, traditional Japanese playing cards. Founder Fusajiro Yamauchi began manufacturing and selling them in Kyoto in 1889, decades before Nintendo became known for video games.
What did Nintendo originally make?
Nintendo’s first business was manufacturing and selling hanafuda playing cards—not consoles or video games. The company’s official history says Fusajiro Yamauchi began the business in Kyoto in 1889. Nintendo’s company history describes the original product as Japanese playing cards, Hanafuda.
When and where did Nintendo begin?
Yamauchi started the card business in Kyoto in 1889. Nintendo’s corporate profile gives the founding date more specifically as September 1889. Nintendo’s company profile lists that founding month and year, and Nintendo UK’s history page also identifies the company’s 1889 beginnings with Hanafuda card manufacture and sale.
What are hanafuda?
Hanafuda is a type of Japanese playing card. That is the relevant distinction for this trivia question: Nintendo’s original product was a card deck, while its later identity became closely associated with video games. The cited company histories establish the product category, founder, place, and year; they do not establish details such as the original deck’s construction or the specific games played with it.
Quick Recap
Best Value
- Unisex
- Recommended Ages: 10 years and up
- A very popular product. Quality guaranteed!
Rank #4
- Nintendo
- Japanese Playing Cards Game
- Body size (approximately): [per sheet] vertical 5.3 ~ 3.2 ~ horizontal thickness 0.1cm
- Quantity: 48 cards, one empty card
- Color: Black
Rank #3
- Good for children
- Good for Teenagers
- Color: Black
- Package size (approx): width 4.5 ~ back 6 ~ high 7 cm
Rank #2
- Color: red
- Size (approximately): one length 5.3cm ~ width ~ 3.2cm ~ 0.1cm thick
- Material: paper
- full-scale flower card
- Great for Gifts!
#1 Best Overall
- Nintendo Japanese Playing Cards Game Set Hanafuda Marufuku TENGU Black
- full-fledged Japanese playing cards.
- Color: Black
- Package size (approximately): width 32 ~ back 6 ~ height 65mm
- Quality is high
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