Visionary Sega hardware designer Hideki Sato has passed away at age 77. According to his biography on Mobygames, he started his career at Sega in the early 70s, worked on arcade titles and hardware, and came to lead the R&D department in the early 1990s. Sato had a major role in shaping nearly all of Sega’s home consoles, and he served as company president in the early 2000s, before his eventual departure in 2008. He even earned the nickname “the Father of Sega Hardware.”
Sega’s X account posted a tribute to Sato yesterday:
“We are deeply saddened to learn of the passing of Hideki Sato, who served as President of Sega from 2001 to 2003. Sega would like to offer its condolences to his family and friends. Starting his career with the development of arcade machines, Mr. Sato was instrumental in the development of iconic home consoles, including the SG-1000, SC-3000, Mega Drive/Sega Genesis, Sega Saturn, and Dreamcast.”
“His leadership helped lay the foundation of Sega, and his contributions had a significant and lasting impact on the entire gaming industry. We will always remember his contributions to our company, and all of us at Sega extend our deepest condolences as we honor his memory.”
In addition to his hardware development accolades, Sato has executive producer, senior executive director and/or executive management credits on a number of beloved games, including Sonic CD, Sonic Adventure, Burning Rangers, the GBA version of ChuChu Rocket, and more.