Iwatani was born in the Meguro ward of Tokyo, Japan. He joined a computer software company called Namco in 1977, where he started his career in the video game business. There, he came up with the idea for a game called 'Puck-Man' and in 1979, he, along with programmer Hideyuki Mokajima and three other Namco employees, finished the game. It was released to the Japanese public on October 10 of that year, where it became a huge success. It caught the attention of arcade-game manufacturer Bally/Midway, who bought the United States rights for the game and released the game in the U.S. as 'Pac-Man', fearing that kids may deface a Puck-Man cabinet by changing the 'P' to an 'F'. Its success in North America, and later around the world, solidified its place in the history of video games.
Iwatani went on to create a few other other video games, including Libble Rabble, but none of them reached the amount of success that Pac-Man did. He was promoted within the ranks of Namco, and still works there today overseeing the administration of the company.
External links
Interview with Pac-man designer - Toru Iwatani (http://retrogamer.merseyworld.com/iwatani.htm) from Retrogamer.
Puck-Man fan page (http://www.vanschip.com/puck-man/)
ToruIwatani (born January 25, 1955) was a video game designer in the 1980s, and created one of the most popular arcade games of all time, Puck-man, better known by its American title Pac-man.
Iwatani was born in the Meguro ward of Tokyo, Japan.
Iwatani went on to create a few other video games, including Libble Rabble, but none of them reached the amount of success that Pac-Man did.
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