Ex-Nintendo of America Boss Doug Bowser Joins Hasbro, Owner of Dungeons & Dragons and Magic: The Gathering

Doug Bowser, former president and chief operating officer at Nintendo of America, has joined the board of directors at Hasbro.

Bowser departed Nintendo on December 31, less than a month ago. He had served more than a decade at the company, and six years as Nintendo of America’s final boss, following the departure of previous president Reggie Fils-Aimé. Bowser’s time at the company was notable as he oversaw the success of Nintendo Switch and then the record-breaking launch of Switch 2, while gamely acknowledging all the jokes about his surname.

Nintendo’s former chief will be joined as a newly-installed member of the Hasbro board by Carla Vernón, CEO of The Honest Company.

“We are delighted to have Doug and Carla join our seasoned and dynamic Board of Directors,” said Rich Stoddart, Chair of Hasbro’s Board of Directors. “Doug and Carla bring extensive leadership experience across consumer brands and franchise management. Their expertise and guidance will be invaluable as Hasbro continues to execute its long-term innovation and growth strategy.”

Hasbro owns a swathe of major entertainment franchises, including Dungeons & Dragons, Magic: The Gathering, Monopoly, Transformers and Peppa Pig.

The company’s profits have swelled in recent years due to the spike of interest surrounding D&D, and the breakout success of Baldur’s Gate 3, developed by Larian — which has now moved on to work on Divinity, rather than work on a sequel.

Previous comments from Hasbro have suggested that another Baldur’s Gate game will follow at some point, once a studio to make it has been found.

Bowser was replaced as Nintendo of America president by Devon Pritchard, a 19-year veteran of the video game industry and long-standing member of the NOA leadership team. In addition, Satoru Shibata has joined NOA in the vacant role of CEO, while continuing his roles as Managing Executive Officer and Corporate Director, Member of the Board at Nintendo Co., Ltd. (NCL).

Image source: Adam Gray/Bloomberg via Getty Images.

Tom Phillips is IGN’s News Editor. You can reach Tom at tom_phillips@ign.com or find him on Bluesky @tomphillipseg.bsky.social