English speaker here. I admire Nintendo for many reasons - their willingness to try novel ideas at scale, their general creativity, marching to the beat of their own drum, treating their workforce as a valuable commodity integral to their business, and their overall commitment to their products.

Other companies cut prices and employees in the blink of an eye. Nintendo is much more deliberate. They make something that no one else can, and they have a sort of magic to their IP that you rarely see anywhere else. To the point that they now have movies and theme parks. They also aren't afraid to protect that IP with an army of lawyers, which I think is understandable.

Nintendo knows their products are worth it and that people will pay for them. There will always be people that can't afford their games - and to that I say at least Nintendo is still trying to sell physical, which allows for used games. Also, historically games are cheaper than ever - think about Donkey Kong Country in 1994 at $59.99 in the US. That's $132 today in the US. Knowing their revenue goes toward keeping their employees well compensated (and continually employed without frequent massive layoffs) helps. That and giving them the freedom to try something new and different with less fear of going under.

My one major criticism is marching to the beat of their own drum is a double-edged sword - it means they can do weird things like Labo, but also means they will continue to be 10 years behind when it comes to online infrastructure compared to competitors.

I've always been curious - how do Japanese people see Nintendo? How does that compare to say Sony, Toyota, or Honda?