As Kutaragi grew into childhood, they actively encouraged the young boy to explore his mechanical abilities in the plant, and he worked after school there.

[citation needed] In 1983, he was watching his two-year-old son play a Famicom and realized the potential that existed within video games.

"[5] Despite being considered a risky gamble by other Sony executives, Kutaragi once again had the support of Ohga and several years later the company released the original PlayStation.

The PlayStation 2 extended Sony's lead in the following generation, at one point holding a 65% market share with 100 million units shipped.

[6] Kutaragi was recognized by many financial and technological publications for this success, most notably when he was named one of the 100 most influential people of 2004 in TIME magazine[7] and the "Gutenberg of Video Games".

[9] Ohga's successor Nobuyuki Idei promoted Kutaragi to Deputy Executive President, Sony-Global chief operating officer, and Vice-Chairman in 2003.

In addition to other management changes, Kutaragi was promoted to chairman of SCEI, and retained his position as chief executive officer of the group.

Kutaragi relinquished active management of the business he created and built in 2007, when he stepped down as executive chairman and group CEO of Sony Computer Entertainment.

Idei assigned Kutaragi the tedious task of turning around the consumer division, which had already been falling behind competitors such as Samsung in the LCD market.

[9] Kutaragi's rival for the top position, Howard Stringer, was given the less difficult assignment of the content business and his success at Sony BMG Music Entertainment resulted in his promotion.

This can be attributed partially to the over-saturation of the video game market and price wars that caused the PS2 to lose the top sales position for a time.