Nintendo Software Planning & Development

Nintendo Software Planning & Development

Nintendo Software Planning & Development (or SPD, 任天堂 企画開発本部 Nintendō Kikaku Kaihatsu Honbu) is a research, planning, and development division inside of Nintendo Co., Ltd main central headquarters. The division was created during a corporate restructuring in late 2003 with the abolition of the old Nintendo R&D1 and Nintendo R&D2 teams. While several of the remaining Nintendo R&D1 designers reside in the division along with a staggered group of former Nintendo R&D2 and Nintendo EAD staff, the programmers and artists consist of a lot of new talent. The group has the task of independently developing small innovative games, assisting other development teams on projects, and managing overseas production of first-party franchises. It is currently split into four separate departments who work concurrently on different projects.