• Skip to main content
  • Skip to header right navigation
  • Skip to site footer
Gameranx

Gameranx

Video Game News, Lists & Guides

  • News
  • Features
  • Platforms
    • Xbox Series X
    • PS5
    • Nintendo
  • Videos
  • Upcoming Games
  • Guides

19th Century Photograph of Nintendo Headquarters Unearthed

January 24, 2018 by Katrina Filippidis

A thing that does not change with time is a memory of younger days…

Thanks to the stalwart preservational efforts of historian Isao Yamazaki, we are able to catch a glimpse of the visage of Nintendo HQ from back in the day.

French publishing house Omaké Books recently brought the public’s attention to what is presumably the earliest surviving photograph of Nintendo’s home base. Originally posted on “The Miracles of Kyoto, 150 years after Meiji”, a website dedicated to archiving Kyoto’s past, it is dated at approximately Meiji 22 or 1889 in the Gregorian Calendar. The external appearance has certainly changed quite significantly over the course of 200 years.

Nintendo HQ during the Meiji Era (1889): Surviving black and white photograph of the “Marufuki Nintendo Card Co.” Before video games, Nintendo was a “flower card” manufacturing business. Image: Omaké Books
Nintendo office.jpg
Nintendo HQ, Kyoto. Photograph taken in 2006. Image: Wikipedia

The timing of this discovery is very curious, indeed. Nintendo, a company that began its journey selling paper cards, is now launching specially perforated cardboard toys designed to interact with the Nintendo Switch. History repeats itself.

Share this post:

FacebookTwitterLinkedInPinterest

Recent Videos

Top 25 NEW Action RPGs of 2026

Top 25 NEW Action RPGs of 2026

10 Gaming Ideas They Thought Were Good...BUT NO

10 Gaming Ideas They Thought Were Good...BUT NO

10 DLCs That BROKE THE GAME

10 DLCs That BROKE THE GAME

NEW Post-Apocalyptic Game Looks Insane, Another GTA 6 DELAY? & More

NEW Post-Apocalyptic Game Looks Insane, Another GTA 6 DELAY? & More

Top 20 NEW PS5 Games of 2026

Top 20 NEW PS5 Games of 2026

10 Video Game Things That DIED in 2025

10 Video Game Things That DIED in 2025

20 Game REMAKES That We Are LOOKING FORWARD TO

20 Game REMAKES That We Are LOOKING FORWARD TO

10 Side Quests BETTER Than The Main Story

10 Side Quests BETTER Than The Main Story

Evolution of Bosses in Video Games

Evolution of Bosses in Video Games

Category: UpdatesTag: Nintendo, Nintendo Archive Project, Nintendo Headquarters, Nintendo HQ

Sidebar

Recent Posts

  • Embark CEO: ARC Raiders Is Not About Shooting Other Players
  • 3rd Party Switch 2 Joy-Cons Are Now Available From China
  • GOG Is Not Competing For AAAs Vs. Steam – But They Are Getting The Latest Titles Like Clair Obscur: Expedition 33
  • Red Dead Redemption 2 / GTA Online Mystery Deepens As Fans Find Two Literal Question Marks
  • Avowed Is Now Up For Pre-Order On PS5 Alongside Price Drop To $ 49.99

Copyright © 2026 · Gameranx · All Rights Reserved · Powered by Mai Theme