Before Establishing a $60 Billion Global Empire, Nintendo Was Involved in an Unusual Business Which Might Surprise Millions

Nintendo is a big brand these days and has transformed into a gaming giant with iconic offerings like Mario, Zelda, and Pokemon. However, just like any other company, the Japanese publisher has a long history. And during the course of its run, so far, there existed a phase when Nintendo saw itself diving into an uncharted territory by trying out an unlikely business option.

It was around six decades ago when Nintendo began a taxi company. Yes, that’s true and quite strange to know about, especially for anyone who’s only aware of its games and consoles. But that wasn’t the case with the developer and publisher during the period of the 1960s.

When Nintendo ran a taxi company called Daiya!

A famous YouTube channel called Thomas Game Docs recently uploaded an interesting video on Nintendo and its history. In that clip, it was also mentioned how Hiroshi Yamauchi, who was the president of the company six decades ago, decided to go for a taxi running business so that the old card gaming giant could prosper.

It all started in October 1960, when Mr. Yamauchi founded ‘Daiya Taxi’. The word meant diamond in Japanese so when translated into English, it simply meant ‘Diamond Taxi’.

Surprisingly, this new-found business did pretty well for the first few months, with Daiya Taxi witnessing a fleet of nearly 40 vehicles at one point.

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But the good time didn’t last long as just a few months after it was founded, the company began to go through serious issues. And it looks like the former president of Nintendo, Yamauchi, was the cause behind an unwanted situation that emerged.

Going by the YouTube channel’s description, Hiroshi wasn’t a friendly person and was infamous for his temper during the 1960s.

When the taxi drivers, who ran the Daiya taxi vehicles, approached the Nintendo president for a raise in their payments, there erupted a clash between them and the company. Due to the matter going out of hand, it didn’t end up on a good note. Eventually, just after a few months, Nintendo sold this company and bid farewell to this business.

What are your thoughts on this throwback story about one of the world’s biggest gaming giants? Did you know about this part of Nintendo’s history already? Don’t forget to share your views. Let us know in the comments.

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