Namco founder and "father of Pac-Man" Masaya Nakamura dies at 91

A gaming pioneer who helped develop one of the world's most influential video games has died.

Japan's Masaya Nakamura, also called "the father of Pac-Man", died at the age of 91 on January 22.

Nakamura founded the Tokyo-based company Namco in 1955, which focused on children's rides. (The company later merged with Bandai in 2005 to become Bandai Namco Entertainment.)

When Nakamura recognized the potential for arcade-style video games, one of the first games developed by his company was Pac-Man, created by video-game designer Toru Iwatani. It was first released in Japan in 1980.

The game, in which players control a yellow circular character who eats dots in a maze while being chased by ghosts, became one of the highest-grossing video games of all time and the Pac-Man character is universally recognized.

The company also produced games such as Galaxian, Galaga, Xevious, Pole Position, and Dig Dug.