Rumor: Shigeru Miyamoto stepping down as General Manger of Nintendo EAD

Is Miyamoto going to work on smaller games?

According to a NeoGAF user, Nintendo president Satoru Iwata is planning to do a major restructure of the company, expanding R&D operations in Kyoto and Tokyo. The biggest news, however, is that Shigeru Miyamoto is supposedly leaving his post as General Manager of Nintendo's EAD Division by December 2012. Miyamoto has reportedly "expressed concern that his presence is over shining all the new producers and directors creating content in the EAD Division" (the largest of Nintendo's two gaming divisions) and wants to step aside to "create a third development sector where he could work with younger developers" and focus on making smaller games that don't require major resources.

Here is a quick summary:

2013 Expected Iwata Changes
+ Major shift in Kyoto development sources involving 3 R&D buildings
+ Shigeru Miyamoto stepping down as EAD General Manager
+ Takash Tezuka becoming new EAD General Manager
+ New Groups / New Producers announced for EAD Kyoto / SPD Kyoto
+ EAD Tokyo Expansion / Masahiro Sakurai Possibly Joining EAD Tokyo
+ New Division lead by Miyamoto with younger staff focused on smaller scale games
+ Miyamoto's Departure Inspiring New IPs for the EAD Kyoto Division

The NeoGAF user cites Guardian UK, Nikkei, and Wired as sources. This will be an interesting turn of events, if true. You can read the entire post via the source link below.

Source: NeoGAF