Terrible news. My heart sank to the floor when I heard this late last evening. Like you mentioned Loco, Nintendo has basically been a mainstay in my game room ever since I was a child. Satoru Iwata had a big hand--oftentimes his own two hands---in creating the games that I enjoyed over the years. May he rest in piece.

A big part of me feels like most gaming company Presidents are brought in as corporate mouthpieces and PR spinners to mitigate disaster and increase company stock value. Iwata never gave off that vibe to me. A big part of that is because he started off a game programmer and designer, creating the things that we all love. He chose to work in that profession because he enjoyed making games. He probably played them, himself. He was a gamer's President. Never did I see a quote or a presentation from him that made me think, "Oh, he's just in this business for the money."

I hope that his legacy lives on and Nintendo appoints a suitable successor to his position. They won't ever find a replacement for him.