Former President of Nintendo of America, Reggie Fils-Aimé will collect the Andrew Yoon Legend Award at the 9th annual New York Game Awards.

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The Andrew Yoon prize is awarded to those who "exhibit a significant, sustained body of work that shows exceptional achievement and innovation". Speaking to IGN via email, Fils-Aimé said:"It’s an honor to be recognized by the New York Game Awards for my work in an industry that I’ve committed so many years to. But, it’s not just about the time I’ve committed to the gaming industry and specifically to Nintendo, it’s about the people along the way I’ve had the opportunity to lead, influence and inspire. Receiving this honor is a great reminder that my goal of being (and remaining) a strategic and leading force in the industry is recognized by my peers."New York Videogame Critics Circle founder, Harold Goldberg explained the reasoning behind the Legend Award's latest recipient: “We present Reggie with the organization’s Legend Award as a sign of our continued gratitude and admiration for his positive and lasting impact on the video game industry. Never before have we seen such a dynamic and captivating, yet approachable executive lead a gaming company and create such change in the industry.”He'll collect the prize at the New York Game Awards on January 21, 2020. Past recipients include Google's Jade Raymond, Bethesda's Todd Howard, and Rockstar Games.The hugely popular ex-president retired from Nintendo in April this year , and subsequently joined the New York Videogame Critics Circle as a director, as well as becoming a Leader-in-Residence at Cornell University Speaking about his decision to join the New York Videogame Critics Circle, Fils-Aimé told IGN:"Last fall, I joined the NYVGCC at the DreamYard Preparatory School in the Bronx where members of the organization mentor students and teach courses. As you may know, I’m from the Bronx, so the experience was particularly moving to mentor kids from my hometown. And as I contemplated my retirement from Nintendo, I thought about how I want to invest my time and effort. The answer is to mentor -- whether it is the next generation of CEO’s through non-executive board service, or youth through my activities with the Critics Circle."In joining the board of directors of the NYVGCC , I can see great potential for the organization. Certainly there will be in-person mentoring and sharing my business knowledge within the organization. A lot of the work the NYVGCC does is fundraising for grants and growing the courses they’ve created, and I’m excited to be a part of keeping this good work going. I have an admiration for the work that the NYVGCC has accomplished in giving back to communities since its inception and can’t wait to jump in and contribute to the success of the organization."For more on Reggie, I spoke to him about his career in light of receiving this award , and we've also got a round-up of his best moments over the years

Joe Skrebels is IGN's UK Deputy Editor, and he fondly remembers the Wii U Chat video . Follow him on Twitter