Hideki Sato, Designer of Sega Consoles, Passes Away

Hideki Sato, the designer of all major Sega consoles, passed away at the age of 77 on February 13.

The Japanese outlet Beep21 reported his passing on its social media channels. He is widely regarded as the “Father of Sega Hardware.” He served as director of Sega’s Research and Development department during the heyday of the console war between Sega and Nintendo.

セガハードの父として知られる
佐藤秀樹氏が昨日ご逝去されました。

日本のゲーム史
そして世界中のセガファンを魅了された
本当に偉大な方でした。

あの時代のワクワクと挑戦心は、
未来永劫、永遠に多くのファンの
記憶に残っていくことと思います。
心よりご冥福をお祈りいたします。

Beep21

— Beep21 (@Beep2021) February 14, 2026

Hideki Sato’s Reflections on Sega Genesis Design

Speaking about the launch of the Sega Genesis, known as the Mega Drive outside of America, Sato told Famitsu in a Sega retrospective that there was a belief that customers would appreciate video games in the same way they had with music. As such, they chose to make it look like an audio device.

“Since the Mega Drive was a machine that you put in front of your TV, our concept was to make it look like an audio player. So we painted the body black and put the “16BIT” lettering in a gold print. That gold printing, by the way, was very expensive. (laughs) But we really wanted to play up the fact that this was the very first 16-bit home console,” he said.

Sato Wanted Wireless Controllers for the Sega Dreamcast

The Sega Dreamcast was Sega’s final hardware release. When discussing the platform, he noted some of his wishes for the console. He noted that he wanted a more cube-shaped design, similar to the Nintendo GameCube, but he really wanted wireless controllers.

“Personally, I wanted a more cube-shaped design like the Nintendo Gamecube, but we ultimately ended up with what you see today. One thing I truly wanted was wireless controllers. Those long cords are annoying. Next time, it will be wireless for sure! (laughs)”

That was a generation ahead, as wireless gameplay would not become the pack-in standard until the PS3 and Xbox 360 generation. A true innovator.

Insider Gaming sends its condolences to the family and friends of Hideki Sato.

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