NIntendo’s Head of Indie Outreach Leaves the Company

If you've been following Nintendo' promotion of indie developers, you've more than likely heard the name Dan Adelman. He was the Head of Digital Content and Development for Nintendo of America since November 2005, and during his tenure, he helped launch all of Nintendo's digital platforms beginning with WiiWare and helped countless small-scale teams get their software out on those platforms. And now he has chosen to leave:

Happy to announce I reached an arrangement w/ @NintendoAmerica whereby I can tweet again. Arrangement includes my not working there anymore.

— Dan Adelman (@Dan_Adelman) August 4, 2014

Adelman's final day with Nintendo was actually last Friday, according to this interview with Kotaku. He stresses that he's leaving on good terms, but that's not to say that the last year or so hasn't been met with a few roadblocks. Adelman remained mostly behind the scenes until he started making frequent public appearances; unfortunately, his habit of speaking his mind made certain people at Nintendo very nervous. This led to his Twitter priveleges being revoked late last year following a string of sensitive remarks — when he commented that Nintendo was changing its outdated policy of requiring developers to have an office outside the home, when he expressed disappointment that The Binding of Isaac was denied release on 3DS and Wii U, when he shared his thoughts on Nintendo's region-locking policies, and so on.

Despite his departure, Nintendo will continue to reach out to indies. Meanwhile, Adelman will work with indies on a more personal level, offering business advice and so on through his website and various other capacities. He's proud of the work he's done with Nintendo, believing that without him there would be no indie program within the company. With his duty complete, he's ready to move on.

I've had the great opportunity to personally interview Mr. Adelman at PAX Prime last year, so though I'm saddened by his departure, I know he'll do well no matter where he goes next.