Table of Contents
This is the 2005-2009 page of the Shigeru Miyamoto Archive.
1985-1989 | 1990-1994 | 1995-1999 | 2000-2004 | 2005-2009 | 2010-2014 | 2015-2019 | 2020-2024
2005
IGN – GDC 2005: Live at the Walk of Game
Publication Date: March 8, 2005
Subject(s): Mario, Link, his career
Format: Awards ceremony
People: Matt Casamassina, Bill Trinen, Shigeru Miyamoto
Link: https://www.ign.com/articles/2005/03/09/gdc-2005-live-at-the-walk-of-game
Archive Link: https://web.archive.org/web/20170203074301/https://www.ign.com/articles/2005/03/09/gdc-2005-live-at-the-walk-of-game
Notes: The Walk of Game was located at the Metreon shopping center in San Francisco for less than two years while Sony owned it. Each year four video game characters or series were inducted, and a lifetime achievement award was given to two people. It was very similar to the Walk of Fame, adding floor tiles each year for those honored.
In 2005 Mr. Miyamoto won the lifetime achievement award, and Mario and Link were both inducted. Bill Trinen, who often translates for him, accepted the award on his behalf and read a prepared speech written by Mr. Miyamoto.
Summary: Thank you for being interested in Mario and Link. He can continue to make games because of enthusiastic consumers.
Nintendo Official Magazine – Miyamoto Speaks His Brain
Publication Date: April, 2005
Subject(s): DS
Format: Transcribed interview
People: Unnamed Nintendo Official Magazine interviewer, Shigeru Miyamoto
Scans:
Summary: The DS is Nintendo’s third pillar and it allows them to make new kinds of software.
Namco is one developer that is excited by the DS. They have had the idea for Pac-Pix with no way to make it happen. There’s lots of excitement for the DS. Developers can have the option of using or not using both screens, wireless communication, the microphone, and the touch screen.
When he plays WarioWare: Touched! he uses a cotton swab as a stylus. It’s smooth and funny.
Their audience for the DS is everyone. It appeals to kids because they see their parents using a PDA. You could connect it to your wi-fi and then to instant messaging programs.
Playing with someone using Game Boys became more complicated over time because of cables. The DS’s wireless play is more simple.
The world became divided between people who play games and those who don’t. Mario games used to just have a button to jump, and now people are longing for a return to games that anyone can play. The DS allows players to feel like they are directly controlling their character and it brings new players to the same level as others.
Nintendo Official Magazine – A Message from Shigeru Miyamoto
Publication Date: April, 2005
Subject(s): DS
Format: Essay
People: Shigeru Miyamoto
Scans:
Notes: According to Cool Box Art this was printed on both sides of a piece of cardboard. It is suggested that this insert be folded in half, which would make it look like a closed DS and reveal the message when opened.
Summary: Thank you to Nintendo Official Magazine for the support. He hopes the magazine’s readers enjoy the Nintendo DS.
Nintendo of America – E3 2005
Publication Date: May 17, 2005
Subject(s): Nintendogs (26:59)
Format: Presentation/demonstration (spoken English)
People: Tina Wood, Shigeru Miyamoto
Video: https://youtube.com/watch?v=anRy0JeHeCY&feature=shares&t=1599
Notes: Uploaded by YouTube user CARSLOCK.
Summary: Even serious gamers should have fun with puppies. His Shiba is teaching Tina Wood’s pug new tricks.
IGN – E3 2005: Shigeru Miyamoto Interview
Publication Date: May 19, 2005
Subject(s): Wii, Nintendogs, DS, console power, The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess
Format: Transcribed interview, interview (dubbed)
People: Matt Casamassina, Tim O’Leary (translator), Shigeru Miyamoto
Link: https://www.ign.com/articles/2005/05/19/e3-2005-shigeru-miyamoto-interview
Archive Link: https://web.archive.org/web/20130927081606/http://www.ign.com/articles/2005/05/19/e3-2005-shigeru-miyamoto-interview
Video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=87df4f6sqa4
Notes: This interview took place May 18, 2005, during E3 2005.
Summary: They were able to show a lot of content at E3, including what they’ve been working on for the DS.
New Super Mario Bros. will allow for simultaneous two player play, Animal Crossing: Wild World allows for four players, and Mario Kart DS has eight player racing.
Brain Age: Train Your Brain in Minutes a Day! isn’t exactly a game, but it’s easy to get into. There is also a Japanese to English and English to Japanese dictionary, and something based on Japanese school tests.
He’s not worried about Sony and Microsoft’s plans, they aren’t going to influence Nintendo. They’re taking a different route.
It seems odd that technical power is considered the crux of success. Relying on power suppresses creativity. They’re asking why consoles are needed and what will make a family want one.
There will be a new Mario game for the Wii, but they’re doing tests now. It will not necessarily be Super Mario 128.
It’s not their intention to parallel the movie Ladyhawke with The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess. Adding animals makes the world more realistic.
They’ll be talking about the Wii at the next E3. Development kits have not been sent out. They can’t talk about the Wii and its controller yet so that the idea doesn’t get stolen. The analog stick, rumble, and Wi-Fi are now everywhere, so it has to be a secret.
The Wii will be small, quiet, and affordable. It’s irresponsible to tout your machine’s power before the boards are finalized.
They can sell any past game on the Wii, but which ones and how much they will cost hasn’t been decided yet.
They are working with a few third parties on Wii games. They want to make sure they don’t focus too hard on any genre though.
They want the Wii to appeal to casual gamers, hardcore gamers, and non-gamers.
Sony and Microsoft have chosen to go down the same road, while Nintendo has chosen the road less traveled.
SPOnG – Features// Nintendo at E3 2005 – Hands-on with Revolution and exclusive Miyamoto insight/Interviews// Nintendo’s Shigeru Miyamoto
Publication Date: May 19, 2005, May 25, 2005
Subject(s): Super Mario 128, Wii, New Super Mario Bros., cars, recipes, Sunday activities, typical work day
Format: Transcribed interview
People: Stefan Walters, Shigeru Miyamoto
https://spong.com/feature/10109293/Interview-Nintendos-Shigeru-Miyamoto
https://spong.com/feature/10109293/Interview-Nintendos-Shigeru-Miyamoto/2
Notes: This interview took place at E3 2005. I am combining these entries since the first article is more of a preview of the second, with slightly different different information about Super Mario 128.
Summary: Super Mario 128 will not release on the GameCube. They are working on a Super Mario game for the Wii, which started life as a GameCube game. This Wii Mario game could be Super Mario 128 or it could be something else. New Super Mario Bros. for the DS will have wireless play and is on the E3 show floor.
It was last year that they moved Super Mario 128 from the GameCube. The Wii is similar technologically to the GameCube so the new Mario game is going to be made of the same things. The code will be enhanced and optimized.
His first car was a Honda K: Z600 N360, which his friend upgraded to a N450. He painted “Bluegrass Express” on the sides, as well as a fireball. Now he drives a seven seat Nissan minivan. He’s always had four-wheel drive cars.
He watches his weight, but loves udon noodles.
He tries to spend as much time with his family on weekends as he can. He swims and takes his Sheltie for walks. Sometimes he goes into the mountains with his family. He practices playing the guitar and banjo and does some gardening.
At work he doesn’t stick to a time frame, he wanders in when he wants to, but he’s also one of the last to leave. He reads reports about games and goes to meetings. About a third of his day is spent on e-mails.
The things they announced at the pre-E3 press conference were things that people wanted. Games like Nintendogs have a broad appeal. The Game Boy Micro is impactful if you examine it.
They can offer whatever they want on the Virtual Console. Fees haven’t been decided, but it will be minimal if these is one.
CNN – Nintendo: Innovation is Dying Mario Creator Miyamoto Discusses What’s Wrong With the Video Game Industry Today
Publication Date: June 3, 2005
Subject(s): Wii
Format: Transcribed interview
People: Chris Morris, Shigeru Miyamoto
Link: https://money.cnn.com/2005/06/02/commentary/game_over/column_gaming/index.htm?cnn=yes
Summary: A lot of games are too long now, he doesn’t want to play many of them. If you’re not interested in spending time with Halo or Grand Theft Auto, you’re not going to play them.
The Wii will use cutting edge technology. They’re asking why a family would need a gaming console, and designing it around that.
He wants developers to make unique games.
Sony and Microsoft’s showings at E3 this year are just shiny graphics, how Nintendo uses technology will separate them. The Wii will deliver a different kind of experience.
Wired – The Man Who Keeps Nintendo Cool
Publication Date: June 15, 2005
Subject(s): The gaming industry, Nintendogs, New Super Mario Bros., Wii
Format: Transcribed interview
People: Chris Kohler, Shigeru Miyamoto
Link: https://www.wired.com/2005/06/the-man-who-keeps-nintendo-cool/
Archive Link: https://web.archive.org/web/20180530035702/https://www.wired.com/2005/06/the-man-who-keeps-nintendo-cool/
Notes: This interview took place at E3 2005.
Summary: The game industry as a whole is in trouble, not just in Japan. The United States is an exception. People used to be interested in games when they were new but they have lost interest. The industry has become shaped around the people who have stuck with it, which makes it difficult for others to come back to it.
Nintendogs has sold over 400,000 copies in Japan and should continue to sell. A third of the owners also bought a DS, so it’s getting people back into gaming. It’s not following a trend, it’s about something that’s appealing in general. When companies make less money they stuck to safe products. People may say they constantly make Mario and Zelda games, but they are always new and challenging. Nintendo is creative and profitable.
Takashi Tezuka and Toshihiko Nakago are working on New Super Mario Bros. 3D Mario games are more difficult to design. With New Super Mario Bros. they are using cutting edge technology and going back to the series roots.
They haven’t made a 2D Mario in so long because they’ve been making 3D games and they had Rare making 2D Donkey Kong Country games.
Super Mario 128 is floating around, they are doing tests. It might be a Wii game.
It’s technically possible to run every past Nintendo game on the Wii.
The Wii’s controller will drive game design and make Nintendo stand out, he can’t talk more about it yet.
Kikizo – Nintendo Video Interview Summer 2005
Publication Date: June 17, 2005
Subject(s): The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess, Mario Kart DS, Nintendogs
Format: Transcribed interview
People: Koji Kondo, Hideki Konno, Eiji Aonuma, Bill Trinen (translator), Tim O’Leary (translator), Shigeru Miyamoto
Link: http://archive.videogamesdaily.com/features/nintendo_videointerview_june05.asp
Archive Link: https://web.archive.org/web/20100130061830/http://archive.videogamesdaily.com/features/nintendo_videointerview_june05.asp
Notes: This Q & A took place at Grauman’s Chinese Theatre. The video recording of the interview is linked to at the bottom of the page.
Summary: His job was to help Mr. Aonuma right the tea table.
Realistic graphics are important for the story they are telling in The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess. Their skills at making realistic graphics have improved. They still need to improve on interacting with the characters.
This is the first The Legend of Zelda game with an orchestrated soundtrack.
They always want to make games that bring people together. That’s an important part of their DS strategy. Bark Mode is very popular in Japan, there’s blogs about it.
Mario Kart DS and Nintendogs appeal to people of all ages.
They have three dogs at their house.
His brain age has finally reached 20.
Electronic Gaming Monthly – Why is Shigeru Miyamoto so Damned Happy?
Publication Date: September, 2005
Subject(s): Super Mario 128, Wii, online gaming, DS, his family, Nintendogs
Format: Transcribed interview
People: Mark MacDonald, Shigeru Miyamoto
Scans:
Summary: He can’t talk much about the Wii games he’s working on, but they will use the inherent functionality of the system.
Donkey Kong Jungle Beat took his attention away from Super Mario 128. They have been running lots of experiments with its engine. They do lots of experiments when making a Mario game and Super Mario 128 has never gotten past that stage.
Nintendo has generally stepped back from online gaming due to the business model involving servers and monthly fees. It wasn’t consumer friendly. Their system is easy to use.
GameCube to Game Boy Advance connectivity was an interesting idea but it wasn’t communicated well. People thought it would be difficult to connect them. Everything is built in to the DS.
They don’t want developers to build games around the Wii, they want them to make interesting games. The point is to make unique, interesting experiences.
He wakes up between 7 a.m. and 9 a.m. He’s at work until 10 p.m. at least, sometimes he gets home at 1 a.m. At work he checks in on teams, meeting with the producers. He also has meetings with Satoru Iwata and the public relations department.
One of his children is in college, the other is in high school. Unfortunately they know where to watch him do something embarassing at trade shows like E3. His wife is hooked on Nintendogs. His dad stole his DS to play Brain Age: Train Your Brain in Minutes a Day!
When he got a dog he met a lot of other dog owners. It was interesting how people walking their dogs would stop to talk to each other. He had an idea involving dog collars exchanging information. They made a prototype dog game on the GameCube. He later realized the DS was a perfect fit for his idea.
The Luigi’s Mansion director really wants to make another one.
The Wii is a good fit for Pikmin
There’s a group called Tongari Kids that released a rap song called B-Dash that has Mario sounds in it. It’s popular right now.
If he saved Link from a burning building Mario and Donkey Kong could probably get out on their own. Link couldn’t, he’s too cute.
He doesn’t have a problem with making a violent game if the violence was a key component.
Japanese radio interview (reported on by Palgn)
Publication Date: September 4-5, 2005
Subject(s): The next Super Mario and The Legend of Zelda game
Format: Transcribed interview
People: Reported on by Chris Leigh, unknown interviewer, Shigeru Miyamoto
Notes: There is no information about which radio station this interview occurred on. It is unknown if the reporter of this article is the one who transcribed and translated the interview.
Summary: They’re always looking for new, unique things to do with Mario. They’re working on something special right now. It will surprise people, and there is a new character with him.
Super Mario 128 will be released for the Wii, under a different name. It had a big role in the Wii’s conception.
The next The Legend of Zelda game will be the last Zelda game as you know it. He’s worked on it more than he did The Legend of Zelda: The Wind Waker. They wanted to make the best Zelda game ever. It will be a GameCube game.
MTV – Nintendo Fans Swarm Mario’s Father During New York Visit
Publication Date: September 27, 2005
Subject(s): Super Mario Bros.’ 20th anniversary, Nintendogs, Wii Remote, appearing in Super Smash Bros.
Format: Transcribed interview
People: Stephen Totilo, Shigeru Miyamoto
Link: https://www.mtv.com/news/i9r9be/nintendo-fans-swarm-marios-father-during-new-york-visit
Notes: Mr. Miyamoto made a public appearance at the Nintendo Store in New York City on September 25, 2005, and then did this interview.
Summary: [At the signing event.]
He’s impressed that so many people are fond of his work, but it somewhat embarrasses him.
[At the interview.]
The owner of a warehouse that Nintendo of America used looked like the character they had made, and his name was Mario. The employees kept calling the character “Mario” and they made that the official name.
Nintendogs is about dogs because his family got a dog, a Shetland Sheepdog named Pikku, four years ago.
Nintendo doesn’t take the easy path, they always want to challenge themselves.
He’s been so involved with designing the Wii Remote that he’s barely had any time to work on games.
A lot of people have trouble with 3D games. The Wii Remote is intuitive and will allow people to be able to experience 3D games.
They have experiments where you use motion to control Mario.
It might be funny for him to appear in Super Smash Bros., there’s a 1% chance.
Nintendo Online Magazine
Publication Date: October, 2005
Subject(s): Super Mario Bros.’ 20th anniversary, Mario, Super Mario Bros., Super Mario World 2: Yoshi’s Island, Super Princess Peach, hobbies, ideas
Format: Transcribed interview
People: Unnamed interviewer, Shigeru Miyamoto
Link: https://shmuplations.com/mario20th/
Archive Link: https://web.archive.org/web/20150920143113/http://shmuplations.com/mario20th/
Japanese Link: https://www.nintendo.co.jp/nom/0510/interv/index.html
Japanese Archive Link: https://web.archive.org/web/20051214001638/http://www.nintendo.co.jp/nom/0510/interv/index.html
Translator: shmuplations
Notes: Nintendo Online Magazine was a part of Nintendo’s Japanese website styled as a magazine. There was some commotion over Mr. Miyamoto stating that Mario was 24 or 25 years old in this interview.
Summary: He doesn’t feel much about the 20th anniversary of Super Mario Bros., no special feelings.
It was lucky that they didn’t decide on details about Mario, like his favorite color or foods. All that’s been defined is that he’s 24-25 years old. They didn’t want to limit the ability to put him into other games. He’s glad Mario is used freely.
Third party developers have had great affection for Mario and strict regulations placed upon them. Regulations that make even him look lenient. With 2D games they had to check every sprite, but now they can just provide a single 3D model, which expands the kinds of games he can be used in. It’s fine for Mario to have new moves in Mario Tennis, but the platforming games get lots of scrutiny.
Staff at Nintendo couldn’t believe they were making another Mario game as they worked on Super Mario Bros. It was going to be the last game developed for cartridge and disk before switching to disk only.
Super Mario World 2: Yoshi’s Island might be the first game to star a supporting character from the Mario series. He wanted a game with a flutter jump and grabbing things with Yoshi’s tongue. They added Waluigi in the tradition of Wario, and it never would have happened if Mario hadn’t played tennis. Luigi might be more loved than Mario at Nintendo, so they made Luigi’s Mansion for them.
They wanted to make sure Peach was Peach-like in Super Princess Peach. She has a free optimism, she’s not protected by Mario.
Visually confusing design is the biggest no-no. It must also be fun to play. Yoshi Topsy-Turvy would have been rejected if it was a platformer.
Human life is busy so he finds ways to take breaks. He does have people to help him, though. People in charge of individual developments do most of the work. Life gets crazy in the last few months of development. He worked many late nights on Super Mario 64 DS. He rests and spends time with his family on the weekends. He walks his dog, gardens, does DIY projects, listens to bluegrass music, and plays guitar.
He goes to bluegrass festivals, where over 100 people will jam together, it’s a highlight of his life. He’s played for 30 years.
You’ll need technical skills to be a game creator. You should be good at programming, sound, graphics, something specific. You should play games but also do other things, expand your horizons. Have friends and talk to lots of people. He wishes he talked to more people in college, he had to repeat a year, which was good for him.
He usually gets ideas during meetings. Some people at the meeting won’t know what’s being talked about, and you can explain things to them, which makes the issue clearer to you. His bath ideas are good, but his bed ideas are bad.
Mario belongs to digital media. There was a poll in America that found Mario to be more recognizable than Mickey Mouse. It doesn’t make sense to compare a new character to one with as much history as Mickey Mouse.
Mario is his lucky star. After Super Mario Bros. the term “game creator” started to be used. Satoshi Tajiri made Pokémon to sell more copies than Mario. He’s made a lot of characters, but he draws Mario’s face beside his signature. Mario became so popular because games are about fun. It would have been the same if he’d been named Herio.
Engadget – The Engadget & Joystiq Interview: Nintendo’s Shigeru Miyamoto
Publication Date: October 3, 2005
Subject(s): Nintendogs, Wii Remote, Game Boy Micro, cell phone gaming, Mario games, Nintendo ON
Format: Transcribed interview
People: Peter Rojas, Shigeru Miyamoto
Link: https://www.engadget.com/2005-10-03-the-engadget-amp-joystiq-interview-nintendos-shigeru.html
Archive Link: https://web.archive.org/web/20051029153809/http://www.engadget.com/entry/1234000297061506/
Notes: The Nintendo ON video that is talked about.
Summary: A game usually takes one or two years of development, but you might have ideas in your head for years before that. His family got a dog about four years ago, which led to the idea of Nintendogs.
Nintendo wants to link players together. They wanted the DS to not require cables, and to allow for coincidental linking. With Nintendogs they also wanted to include the phenomenon where when you’re walking your dog people may stop to talk to you.
They wanted to be sure that Nintendogs would appeal to people who don’t usually play games, people that are intimidated by strategy and difficulty. It’s not the type of game where you clear levels. In the future there will be more games with different kinds of interfaces that appeal to a broad audience.
He’s very confident in the Wii and Wii Remote. The Wii Remote is the new controller, everything else a classic controller. The expansion slot will accommodate a classic controller that is more like the WaveBird. People used to classic controllers will have that, and also new experiences. First-person shooters work well with the Wii Remote, they feel clunky with traditional controllers.
They’re trying to have as many games that use the Wii Remote ready as possible for the launch. Wii development can be done with the GameCube development environment. Developers working on GameCube games will be able to move over the Wii easily.
To use cell phones for games you have to overcome battery life issues. It’s also difficult to play games on cell phones since they are designed for phone calls. The Game Boy Micro is cell phone-sized. It might be the smallest and best looking movie player. He thinks we’ll see more convergence of devices.
Sony and Microsoft have studied Nintendo. They push games further with technology. Nintendo takes ideas and turns them into entertaining products. One of their strengths is how closely their hardware and software teams work together.
His team makes Mario platform games and will continue to make high quality Mario games every few years. Mario is a Nintendo brand and lets everyone relate to video games, makes them feel comfortable. People are more likely to try a new genre if it has Mario. They’ve made baseline models for Mario characters that can be used across games.
He hasn’t seen the Nintendo ON video. They have done virtual reality experiments in the past, and could still make something like that some day.
Bloomberg News – Gaming’s Grand Master
Publication Date: November 6, 2005
Subject(s): Fan reactions, how gaming is viewed
Format: Transcribed interview
People: Kenji Hall, Shigeru Miyamoto
Link: https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2005-11-06/gamings-grand-master
Archive Link: https://web.archive.org/web/20240317172631/https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2005-11-06/gamings-grand-master
Summary: When he went to the Nintendo World Store in September a fan told him he was a god, which embarrassed him.
For the three months it took to make Donkey Kong it was all he thought about.
Nintendo wants their games to be played by people from five to 95 years old. Games should primarily evoke emotions.
When people think of video games they think of a child staring at a TV with a joystick, but they should be for the whole family.
BusinessWeek – Meet Mario’s Papa
Publication Date: November 7, 2005
Subject(s): Ideas, Wii Remote, Mario’s origins, movies
Format: Transcribed interview
People: Kenji Hall, Shigeru Miyamoto
Archive Link: https://web.archive.org/web/20051102024711/http://www.businessweek.com/magazine/content/05_45/b3958127.htm
Summary: The biggest innovation in games since the 1980s is 3D graphics. It allowed consoles to go from last to first place. They suddenly had 10 times the speed.
They want everyone to be able to start playing immediately. This is why the Rubik’s Cube is brilliant, you immediately know what to do.
Pikmin was meant to evoke sadness and happiness. People say no one would play a game that’s not about getting to the next area because it would be boring, but he disagrees.
Their games are for people from five to 95. Nintendo isn’t just for kids, women in their 20s are playing Nintendogs.
Games should be fun, and reward you when you accomplish something challenging. He never expected to be designing video games, he thought he’d be making toys.
Sometimes he uses his childhood memories for ideas, some are spontaneous, some come from notes he’s made. Ideas can also come from TV shows, or a story someone tells.
Super Mario Bros. came from the idea of a character that bounced around with a blue sky. Mario was too big at first so they made him smaller. But then they had the idea to make Mario shrink and grow. A magic mushroom from a forest could do such a thing.
People associate games with a child holding a joystick, but they should belong to families. He made the Wii Remote look like a remote so people would immediately know how to use it.
He only plays games when he spends 20 minutes testing the competition’s machines. He works around the house, walks the dog, gardens, and plays guitar on the weekends.
He wants to make a custom screen, one that fills a room.
Movies aren’t interactive like games are. He pays attention to how movies use music to create moods, and camera angles.
2006
Maxim – Nintendos & Don’ts
Publication Date: January, 2006 (approximate)
Subject(s): Wii Remote, The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess, creativity, hobbies
Format: Transcribed interview
People: Unnamed Maxim interviewer, Shigeru Miyamoto
Link: https://www.gamekyo.com/images0_4_13903.html
Archive Link: https://web.archive.org/web/20180605083411/http://www.gamekyo.com/images0_4_13903.html
Scan:
Notes: The website that scanned this also wrote a news article, in French, about it.
Summary: They wanted the Wii to have a controller everyone is comfortable with. It’s so free you’ll be able to get in each other’s way.
The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess has hardcore content. The Nunchuk controller works well with first-person shooters.
It’s a problem that there’s a split between who play games and those who don’t. They want to appeal to everyone.
Donkey Kong came from wanting a large character to run and jump around. He wanted to make something with more drama than Pac-Man.
He expected more creativity from American developers, but Japan has crazy games like Katamari Damacy.
He’s not sure why his artist friend wanted to make Electroplankton.
His weirdest idea that he never got to make was Stage Show. People in an audience can pay to go on stage and get applause for what they do.
He had a dream where he couldn’t breathe because he was coughing. He kept pulling a nose hair until his cough went away.
He plays bluegrass music and swims.
He was a basic employee who rode his bike to work until recently.
Unknown (Chevalier dans l’Ordre des Arts et des Lettres award ceremony and interview, untranslated from French and Japanese)
Publication Date: March 13, 2006
Subject(s): Chevalier dans l’Ordre des Arts et des Lettres award
Format: Award ceremony, interview
People: Renaud Donnedieu de Vabres, unknown interviewer, Shigeru Miyamoto
Video: https://youtube.com/watch?v=OLebDeUZvB4&feature=shares&t=180
Notes: Mr. Miyamoto was the 106th person to receive the Chevalier dans l’Ordre des Arts et des Lettres from the French Ministry of Culture. This video contains footage of the award ceremony and an interview. It is unknown what outlet the interview was for, and there is no French dub or subtitles. Game developers Michel Ancel and Frédérick Raynal were also knighted during this ceremony. Game Developer has an excellent writeup of the occasion. Uploaded by YouTube user Kevin.
Nintendo of Europe
Publication Date: March 15, 2006
Subject(s): Chevalier dans l’Ordre des Arts et des Lettres award, typical work day, New Super Mario Bros., DS, Wii, The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess
Format: Transcribed interview
People: Unknown interviewer, unnamed translator, Shigeru Miyamoto
Archive Link: https://web.archive.org/web/20071012121309/www.landofthelegend.net/Hyrule/?grab=z15interv-noe-sm-032k6
Notes: The original source of this interview is only given as “Nintendo of Europe”. It’s likely it originally appeared on Nintendo of Europe’s website, which unfortunately is excluded from the Internet Archive. It is mentioned that the interview took place in a Paris hotel with other journalists and that he is about to head to London to answer questions on webchats, which you can read here.
Summary: He recieved the Chevalier dans l’Ordre des Arts et des Lettres award on behalf of everyone he works with.
Video games have about 20-25 years of history, we’re just entering the stage where everyone recognizes it. How people deal with new technologies is vital to how the industry evolves.
He used to ride his bike to work, but he was ordered not to when he became an executive, for risk management.
He’s not very punctual to work but he stays until late at night. About half of his time is spent giving feedback on games and testing them.
They always try to challenge themselves to make something new and New Super Mario Bros. is going to be important. The DS is very successful thanks to their Touch Generation line up. The DS is many people’s first gaming system, so New Super Mario Bros. could be many people’s first game.
Some of the staff had different ideas for the story of New Super Mario Bros., but he told them that they don’t need one so he cut it down to half of what they had planned.
New Super Mario Bros. is made with 3D graphics, so players will find astonishing visuals. You might see an ultra super jump. The Super Giant Mushroom will make him gigantic. You can also play as Mario and Luigi simultaneously with someone, cooperating or competing in multiplayer mode. The minigames from Super Mario 64 DS will be in the game, too.
They are trying to incorporate some old tricks for nostalgia.
Progress is going well on The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess, you will be able to use the Wiimote to play it.
The Wii will have a lot of sequels, but the Wii’s applications will make it important to the household. Almost everything about the Wii will be revealed at E3.
The Guardian – Shigeru Miyamoto Interview
Publication Date: March 16, 2006
Subject(s): Online gaming, DS, importance of graphics and variety, Playstation 3
Format: Transcribed interview
People: Greg Howson, Shigeru Miyamoto
Link: https://www.theguardian.com/technology/gamesblog/2006/mar/16/shigerumiyamot
Archive Link: https://web.archive.org/web/20140921205623/http://www.theguardian.com/technology/gamesblog/2006/mar/16/shigerumiyamot
Summary: They are responsible to their shareholders and they haven’t seen any way to make money from online gaming. There has to be something interesting about them to be worthwhile. As a game designer he wants to make new games, but an online game would require him to spend all of his time on it. Since the Nintendo wi-fi service is doing well they are ready to improve it.
Since it’s difficult to keep their current audience they need to include the general public. They need to make hardware with easy interfaces. They call the DS a new gadget, not a better Game Boy Advance. They need to appeal to new markets. Many Nintendogs players are women in theirs 20s.
The DS was redesigned to make it more portable. It’s lighter and the screen is brighter.
When he started they had to think about how to make entertainment with what they had, like the Game & Watch’s LCD screen with tiny dots. Now they can express themselves much better.
Games can’t be improved by making the graphics better. Nintendo is concerned about the industry, and they’d rather focus on what makes them unique.
There’s a problem in the industry with making games that are similar to one another. Variety matters more than quantity. Shareholders are worried that different games are risky. You don’t always need a big budget, as with Brain Age: Train Your Brain in Minutes a Day!, which was a big success. He wants game makers to know that Nintendo has the money if they have the idea.
Customers see the PlayStation 3 as competition to Nintendo, but Nintendo doesn’t. Nintendo is taking a different direction.
Webchats.tv
Publication Date: March 17, 2006
Subject(s): DS, Mario Kart DS, Nintendogs, the future of gaming
Format: Interview (dubbed)
People: Maury Norton, Yasuhiro Minagawa (translator), Shigeru Miyamoto
Video:
Archive Link: https://archive.org/details/WebchatstvMiyamotowebchat_0
Notes: Nintendo advertised this event and asked people to send in questions, so it was likely an official event and the interviewer may have been an employee of Nintendo. Uploaded by YouTube user Kevin.
Summary: He was flabbergasted that 11,000 questions were sent.
He likes to make games based on his hobbies, and sometimes Satoru Iwata tells him what to make. He talks about game ideas with colleagues who may then make a prototype, they then test the prototype, and then there are further discussions.
He likes to move his body when playing games. He wants people to feel like they are doing the physical exercises. The Wii has an innovative controller.
The Wii will drastically change video games, specifically the controller. You can just point at the TV screen. They are doing experiments with Mario jumping, and in Zelda games you could swing the controller to swing Link’s sword.
The want New Super Mario Bros. to appeal to everyone, just like the original did. They’re worried Mario games are too complicated for new players.
He thought he was good at Mario Kart DS until he played it online.
Mario may look chubby, but he is muscular. Mario can be his role model in losing weight.
Downloadable items will come to Animal Crossing: Wild World in Europe, but he doesn’t know when.
He doesn’t remember his initial brain age, but he’s gotten it to 20 years old.
He made Nintendogs after getting a dog and realizing a lot of people near him also had dogs.
The DS Lite is only available in Japan right now and its selling out very quickly.
Games require a lot of people and a long time to make now, but Brain Training took a short time with a small number of people to make.
No one had a career as a game designer, game creator, game director, or game producer when he was young. To get into making games now you should be a professional in a specific area.
Recently in France he was conferred knighthood in the Order of Arts and Letters but he received it as a representative of the colleagues he has worked with.
In his spends his spare time with his family and practicing guitar.
No one knows what will happen in 10 years. Computers are evolving quickly. Computers may have a different shape in the future, we may have more devices, we may not be carrying around physical discs.
Edge – His life in your hands
Publication Date: May, 2006
Subject(s): DS, Animal Crossing, New Super Mario Bros., Nintendogs, the video game industry, Wii, important figures in the video game industry
Format: Transcribed interview
People: Unnamed Edge interviewer, Shigeru Miyamoto
Scans:
Notes: This interview is described as taking place during a European press tour, and shortly after Mr. Miyamoto was awarded Chevalier dans l’Ordre des Arts et des Lettres, so it likely took place in March.
Summary: The DS is selling to all kinds of people, for many it’s their first game system. Some at Nintendo worried that they would only be interested in games like Brain Age: Train Your Brain in Minutes a Day!, but many are moving to more traditional games.
The first two Animal Crossing games sold about 600,000 copies, but Animal Crossing: Wild World on the DS has sold about 2 million.
They are making New Super Mario Bros. since they can’t just rely on casual gamers. They are going back to 2D with some 3D aspects so new gamers and old gamers alike will recognize something.
There are some games they haven’t been able to release outside of Japan. Nintendogs is the only Touch Generations title. In Japan they just asked people if they liked dogs, they didn’t tell them when Nintendogs came out and for what price. When you ask someone what they ate two days ago they have to think hard about it, which shows how relevant Brain Age: Train Your Brain in Minutes a Day! is to daily life.
It’s not healthy for everyone in an industry to move the same way. He’s concerned that making a great game keeps requiring more money and more developers. One or two people with great ideas can’t enter the market, they have to work on someone else’s idea. Nintendo wants to make a new platform that allows small teams to make great games.
The Wii will be unique and people will want to copy it. They always want to be the best creators on their platforms, to be a role model.
Satoru Iwata has been supportive of him choosing how to spend his time. He doesn’t have to do as many PR tours.
Japan understands what kind of company Nintendo is, thanks to the success of the DS. The next year will be important for the rest of the world.
They want to call the Wii a “new-generation” console, not a “next-generation” one. They want every TV to have one connected to it, to create a new relationship between people and their TVs.
He admires Sony’s endeavor to make enough chips to drive the manufacturing cost down and Microsoft’s development kits.
Hiroshi Yamauchi may be the most important figure in the video game industry, he understood entertainment. Mr. Yamauchi gave him a lot of money, which he spent on making games.
Nintendo of America – E3 2006
Publication Date: May 9, 2006
Subject(s): Wii Sports (57:42)
Format: Presentation/demonstration (spoken English, live translator)
People: Reggie Fils-Aimé, Satoru Iwata, Scott Dyer, Bill Trinen (translator), Shigeru Miyamoto
Video:
Notes: Before Mr. Miyamoto’s segment Reggie Fils-Aimé talks about a sweepstakes they held with AOL to determine who will get to play Wii Sports first, on stage. Uploaded by YouTube user CARSLOCK.
Summary: Control is intuitive, even your mom can play. You can hit forehands, backhands, lobs, and add top or backspin. Scott Dyer is the sweepstakes winner.
[Scott joins Mr. Miyamoto against Reggie and Mr. Iwata.]
Nintendo Power – Super Smash Bros. Brawl Developer Interview
Publication Date: May 11, 2006
Subject(s): Super Smash Bros. Brawl
Format: Q & A
People: NOA_Andy, Masahiro Sakurai, Shigeru Miyamoto
Archive Link: https://web.archive.org/web/20060525003834/http://e3src.nintendo.com/news/shigeru_miyamoto_and_masahiro_sakurai_talk_smash_b/
Notes: This seems to be a report of a Q & A held by Famitsu, see the next entry for the full thing.
Summary: The Wii has the possibility of reviving older franchises, but he barely has time to work on all the new ideas he has.
They are experimenting with a two player mode for Super Mario Galaxy where one person controls Mario and another helps or hinders them. He’s having a lot of fun playing Wii Sport’s tennis. He’s become very used to using the Wii Remote for The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess and can’t go back to the GameCube version. Super Mario Galaxy will be released within six months of the Wii launch.
He has disagreed with Mr. Sakurai about how much of a single-player mode Super Smash Bros. should have. He just wanted the Nintendo 64 version to get out the door, but now there is more time for an in-depth single player campaign.
Famitsu – Miyamoto and Sakurai: Investigating the Newest Smash
Publication Date: May 11, 2006 (translated November 19, 2015)
Subject(s): Wii, Wii Remote, gamer stereotypes, high definition
Format: Q & A
People: Unknown Famitsu interviewer, Bill Trinen (translator), Masahiro Sakurai, Shigeru Miyamoto
Link: https://sourcegaming.info/2015/11/19/investigating-the-newest-smash/
Archive Link: https://web.archive.org/web/20151121082844/http://www.sourcegaming.info/2015/11/19/investigating-the-newest-smash/
Japanese Link: https://www.famitsu.com/game/event/2006/05/11/264,1147329626,52988,0,0.html
Japanese Archive Link: https://web.archive.org/web/20060616123552/http://www.famitsu.com/game/event/2006/05/11/264,1147329626,52988,0,0.html
Translator: Brando, with assistance from Soma and Crane043, for Source Gaming
Notes: I have not summarized the parts that were covered in the previous entry unless there was a bit more information. There was a video of this Q & A on Famitsu’s website, but it is gone now.
Summary: They want to revitalize two groups with the Wii: people that have enjoyed their games before and people that don’t play them because they are too difficult. They don’t want to make new advancements, they want to make new ideas.
Mario games have gotten more complicated. He has found himself wanting a more direct way to move the camera. The Wii is a fresh start for controls, everyone in the world will have the same sensation.
There are lots of possibilities for reviving old franchises, like Kid Icarus or Star Fox. Using the pointer could create new options for the Virtual Console.
It’s been a challenge making Zelda play like Zelda, but he doesn’t want to scare people away with too many buttons. He’s given a lot of thought to the button’s number, size, and position.
He wants to encourage people to join in after watching someone play the Wii, and not feel embarrassed. They want to erase the stereotype of a child sitting in a dark room with the TV reflecting on their face.
Going high definition would upset the balance. They want to aim for the majority of the TVs in the world.
Joystiq – The Engadget & Joystiq Interview: Nintendo’s Shigeru Miyamoto (again!)
Publication Date: May 11, 2006
Subject(s): Wii, what he does at Nintendo, motion controls, high definition graphics
Format: Transcribed interview
People: Ryan Block, Vlad Cole, Shigeru Miyamoto
Notes: There was a video version of this interview which can no longer be downloaded. It was apparently available via BitTorrent, but it seems to be lost now.
Summary: The Wii’s greatest strength is that you can make intuitive games for it. That’s the idea behind Wii Sports. Being able to point at the screen allows players to interact with games directly.
He doesn’t have ideas that he keeps in his head for a long time, his focus is what he’s working on at the moment. 3D games have become too complicated for people who don’t play games, the Wii Remote will help with that.
He is overseeing a large number of games, but also focuses on two or three.
Mario and The Legend of Zelda are two of his most important franchises, he always oversees them. Six young directors are responsible for each of the Wii Sports games.
His biggest contribution to development might be recognizing errors before a lot of work is spent working on the wrong thing. It’s also important to speak to the directors as a group.
Some people play testing The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess found that their aim moved a bit as they released the button to fire arrows. Rather than implementing auto aim he told the team that it added realism and challenge.
You don’t have to do big sweeping motions for something like swinging a tennis racket, but a lot of people find that more fun. It’s also important that playing the game looks like fun to others watching.
They will have games that use the Wii Classic Controller.
Their competitors are becoming more PC-like with extra features, but the Wii connects to the TV and everyone can have fun with it. Wii Connect24 makes the Wii the only hardware device always connected to the Internet. They don’t want to include extra things that raise the price.
Eventually everyone will have a high definition television, but for now the interface you use, how you connect to the Internet, and how the whole family uses the hardware is more important.
Using HD graphics won’t expand their audience, and the video game audience will continue to shrink. The touch screen and microphone were important to the DS’ success. It also has games that are appealing to people who haven’t played games before.
He hasn’t been to Tokyo Games Show in several years, so he’d say he prefers E3.
New Super Mario Bros. Podcast – Interview with Shigeru Miyamoto
Publication Date: May 22, 2006
Subject(s): New Super Mario Bros.
Format: Interview (dubbed)
People: Daylan, Bill Trinen (translator), Shigeru Miyamoto
Archive Link: https://archive.org/details/new-super-mario-bros-podcast/Shigeru_Miyamoto_interview_AVC.mp4
Notes: Nintendo released a series of “video podcasts” to promote New Super Mario Bros., one of which was an interview with Mr. Miyamoto. These were probably posted on Nintendo’s website. This interview took place at E3 2006.
Summary: He intended to use Mario in many different games as a cameo.
New Super Mario Bros. appeals to the nostalgia of people who played Super Mario Bros.
Nintendo wants to appeal to people of all ages. They have found that games are harder to get into as they become more complex. They want New Super Mario Bros. to go back to the simpler design of Super Mario Bros. The Mega Mushroom will make Mario so big he nearly takes up the whole screen.
He usually starts on the next game as soon as one is done, but he might take some time off to play the Wii with his family.
MTV – Video game legend reveals details about ‘Super Mario Galaxy,’ motion-sensitive controller and his unique creative process.
Publication Date: May 26, 2006
Subject(s): Wii, controls, gamer stereotypes, Super Mario Galaxy
Format: Transcribed interview
People: Stephen Totilo, Shigeru Miyamoto
Summary: People immediately knew what buttons to press on the Nintendo Entertainment System. It wasn’t like a computer keyboard, there were only a few options. More and more buttons were added over time to allow the player to do more and more things. The Wii allows to players to do these things with motion controls, making it more intuitive.
The Wii Remote gives players feedback with the rumble feature and speaker. The sound of a tightening arrow string in Zelda gives players the feeling they are having a direct response.
He has been concerned about the stereotypical image of the gamer for some time. We need to break free it to become part of the worldwide culture.
The focus of Super Mario Galaxy is running around on spheres or planets. You can move without the usual camera issues. It makes Mario a running around game rather than a jumping game. You can point directly at things on the screen, which is more intuitive.
Getting older has not really affected his tastes or approach. He doesn’t feel older.
Electronic Gaming Monthly – Revolutionary Warfare
Publication Date: June, 2006
Subject(s): Wii, online services, Wii Remote
Format: Transcribed interview
People: Unnamed Electronic Gaming Monthly interviewer, Satoru Iwata, Shigeru Miyamoto
Scans:
Summary: They are looking at ways to use the Wii’s always-online functionality for The Legend of Zelda. They have a lot of ideas involving sending information to the console whether it’s awake or asleep.
There is basic speaker in the Wii Remote. They tried other ideas involving cameras and microphones. Yoot Saito said it could ring like a phone. A headset microphone would have to be attached to the controller, which would make it complicated to use.
He’s not familiar with what Xbox Live is doing. They are evolving the Wi-Fi Connection that the DS uses. They’ll talk more about their ideas later this year.
The Virtual Console will take advantage of the higher resolutions and crisper displays of modern televisions, but they won’t be redoing the art of older games.
He’s been playing a lot of DS games since you can play them in short spurts. He’ll need to reconsider his schedule when The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess comes out.
The New York Times – Q & A: The Forces Behind Wiii[sic]
Publication Date: June 4, 2006
Subject(s): Wii, graphics versus creativity, appealing to a wider audience, music, the shrinking game market
Format: Transcribed interview
People: Seth Schiesel, Satoru Iwata, Shigeru Miyamoto
Link: https://www.nytimes.com/2006/06/04/arts/04NintendoQnA.html
Archive Link: https://archive.ph/f8VEZ
Notes: This interview took place at E3 2006.
Summary: Hardware and controllers have gotten more complicated over time. Nintendo tries to think of a person who has never seen a game controller, and tries to make it welcoming. The old style of controller limited their audience.
Nintendo takes feedback about what people want, but they always describe their desires using existing frameworks. This has led the industry to focus on graphics, while game play doesn’t change. Game designers have relied on graphics rather than creativity.
For the Wii they’ve analyzed the average household and television. They want to figure out fun ways for a household to interact with the TV. The Wii Remote looks natural on a coffee table. They want to change the image of a gamer being someone in a dark room holding a controller with two hands.
Interactivity sets games apart from other media.
He doesn’t try to recreate things from other media for a video game. His own bad idea is better than remaking someone else’s work. His personal experiences do inspire him, though.
He likes bluegrass and plays guitar. He listens to David Grisman, Emmylou Harris, and some Japanese pop bands.
His corporate role is making creative new products. He doesn’t spend much time on corporate or management duties.
In Japan and the rest of the world there is a perception that gaming is something young children do. In Japan, and to a degree around the world the gaming market is shrinking. The DS has caused more people to play games in Japan.
Digital Trends – Gaming Legend Shigeru Miyamoto Speaks
Publication Date: June 18, 2006
Subject(s): Wii, expanding the gaming market, Wii Remote
Format: Transcribed interview
People: Chris Zimmerman, Shigeru Miyamoto
Link: https://www.digitaltrends.com/gaming/gaming-legend-shigeru-miyamoto-speaks/
Archive Link: https://web.archive.org/web/20230306202413/https://www.digitaltrends.com/gaming/gaming-legend-shigeru-miyamoto-speaks/
Summary: The attention he gets is both flattering and embarrassing. Some designers like it, but he finds interviews unnerving. He’d rather let his work do the talking.
No one is trying to expand the gaming market, they forgot to innovate and they’re just targeting the same core group. Nintendo wants to bring gaming to the mass market.
He’s pleased with the name “Wii”. They wanted a name that was different from everything else. Non-gamers will be turned off if something sounds like a game system. Everyone will remember it and it will spark their interest.
The Wii provides a new interface, gives game developers a new interface, and it challenges traditional game design. Anyone can pick it up and play so it will create a new audience.
Developers like to make the same games repeatedly to play to a user base. But eventually you have to engage the player’s imagination and consider what the people watching them play think of the game. It should be fun to play or watch
He doesn’t like the term “next-generation”, he prefers to refer to it as the new generation that Nintendo is working on.
They’re creating a cultural shift and taking the next step to bring gaming to a new level. They want to push the boundaries, women are only the start.
The Wii Remote is simple and subconscious and you won’t have to worry about your arms getting tired.
Nintendo does things differently, you can’t just do the same thing.
Nintendo Dream (reported on by IGN, partially untranslated from Japanese)
Publication Date: July, 2006 (assumed) (reported on August 21, 2006)
Subject(s): Super Mario 64, Super Mario 128, Super Mario Galaxy
Format: Transcribed interview
People: Reported on by Anoop Gantayat, unknown Nintendo Dream interviewer, Shigeru Miyamoto
Link: https://www.ign.com/articles/2006/08/21/miyamoto-opens-the-vault
Archive Link: https://web.archive.org/web/20130422105210/http://www.ign.com/articles/2006/08/21/miyamoto-opens-the-vault
Summary: They had Mario and Luigi together on screen when making Super Mario 64 but couldn’t get it to work.
The parts used for running around the surface of Super Mario 128 ended up in Super Mario Galaxy. The camera in Super Mario Galaxy won’t cause nausea, it’s good for people who haven’t played 3D games before.
Shigesato Itoi and Tsunekazu Ishihara got too busy to complete Cabbage, but some design techniques for it ended up in Nintendogs.
They stopped working on Marionette, but they are preserving the story. They wanted to use the Nintendo 64 controller in interesting ways.
Level (partially untranslated from Swedish)
Publication Date: Unknown (reported on July 6, 2006)
Subject(s): Game difficulty, music, controls
Format: Transcribed interview
People: Unknown Level interviewer, Shigeru Miyamoto
Link: https://www.neogaf.com/threads/new-miyamoto-interview.109003/#post-3775916
Archive Link: https://web.archive.org/web/20190221071949/https://www.neogaf.com/threads/new-miyamoto-interview.109003/
Translator: SantaC for NeoGAF
Notes: This is not a translation of the entire interview. Unfortunately, SantaC does not link to the interview source and I have been unable to find it.
Summary: He made Donkey Kong alone, Nintendo has grown a lot.
He tries to make games for new and experienced players, but it’s difficult.
He gave some advice and perspective in the development of the DS.
To know if a game is good or not he studies people while they play. The Super Mario Club also gives feedback.
He plays CDs for the music team to give them an idea of what kind of feelings and genre to go for. Those are more important than melodies to him.
Super Mario 128 was an experiment. He has a habit of abandoning projects. He had a prototype for a Nintendo 64 game with Mario and Luigi.
It’s too complicated to move a camera in 3D while still performing other complicated actions. They want to get away from that with the Wii and its motion controls.
Many people start by playing simple games on the DS, then move on to Super Mario 64 DS, and eventually Zelda games.
Some times have been tough but he has always loved his job.
Iwata Asks – Wii Remote
Publication Date: September 11, 2006
Subject(s): Wii Remote
Format: Transcribed interview
People: Satoru Iwata, Genyo Takeda, Kenichiro Ashida, Akio Ikeda, Shigeru Miyamoto
Link: https://iwataasks.nintendo.com/interviews/wii/wii_remote/0/0/
Archive Link: https://web.archive.org/web/20220826090009/https://iwataasks.nintendo.com/interviews/wii/wii_remote/0/0/
Japanese Link: https://www.nintendo.co.jp/wii/topics/interview/vol2/index.html
Japanese Archive Link: https://web.archive.org/web/20150715043311/http://www.nintendo.co.jp/wii/topics/interview/vol2/index.html
Summary: He was in charge of the new graduates at Nintendo entering the industrial design part of the company and created a pecking order. He always recommends Nintendo hire people with a background in industrial design because it gives them a creative grounding. With the Wii the industrial design people had to convince the people used to traditional interfaces.
More than 10 years ago he said that Mario games were not meant to be played with one hand. He wanted the Wii’s controller to make people curious about trying it, accessible, while also being usable with older games. Deciding on the shape and that it should be one-handed solved a lot of problems. Connecting controllers was cheaper than using wireless.
Code names are rarely kept, but the Nunchuk was. Satoru Iwata insisted the main controller be called a remote. He sometimes wished there were more buttons while working on Zelda, but he also told people to move on from adding more buttons. The Nintendo Entertainment System worked for everyone.
He was obsessive about the appearance of the sensor bar, and decided against using batteries for it. He was on edge when first showing the Wii, but relieved they were the only ones doing anything new. It’s important for Nintendo to fight against being conservative, they are at their best with innovative products.
Bloomberg – Nintendo: Wii Want To Expand Games’ Appeal
Publication Date: September 13, 2006
Subject(s): Wii, the competition
Format: Presentation
People: Kenji Hall, Satoru Iwata, Shigeru Miyamoto
Link: https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2006-09-13/nintendo-wii-want-to-expand-games-appeal
Notes: I don’t know what Tokyo event this article is covering.
Summary: The Wii is more powerful than the GameCube, but you don’t need the power of their competitors to make fun games.
The media talks about next generation consoles competing, but Nintendo has a different strategy.
Unknown (footage used in Game On! The Unauthorized History Of Video Games and The Rise Of Nintendo, possibly incomplete)
Publication Date: Unknown (earliest showing of footage was November 15, 2006)
Subject(s): Donkey Kong’s name, aging
Format: Interview (dubbed)
People: Unknown interviewer, Bill Trinen (translator), Shigeru Miyamoto
Videos:
Notes: CNBC has aired two video game documentaries (Game On! The Unauthorized History Of Video Games on November 15, 2006, and The Rise Of Nintendo on April 12, 2020) that use footage of the same interview with Mr. Miyamoto, though different parts of this interview are seen in each. The original source of the interview is unknown.
Summary: [From Game On! The Unauthorized History Of Video Games footage.]
He thought to have a guy chasing a gorilla who has kidnapped a girl.
He wanted the name to mean “dumb monkey”. The word “kong” is associated with gorillas in Japan. He heard somewhere that “donkey” means dumb.
[From The Rise of Nintendo.]
He thought he’d always be young, but somehow he’s now the oldest guy in the room.
Business Week – The Big Ideas Behind Nintendo’s Wii
Publication Date: November 16, 2006
Subject(s): Wii development, DS
Format: Transcribed interview
People: Kenji Hall, Kenichiro Ashida, Shigeru Miyamoto
Archive Links: https://web.archive.org/web/20061201013947/http://www.businessweek.com/technology/content/nov2006/tc20061116_750580.htm
Summary: They started working on the Wii around the time the GameCube was released. They decided power wasn’t everything, too many ferocious dinosaurs could lead to extinction. If it was powerful it would have cost $450, used a lot of electricity, and been so noisy that moms would be against it. They thought about what would get a mom to buy a console for their child. By early 2005 they decided on the Wii Remote’s shape, motion sensor, and button layout. He wanted it to cost $100. Satoru Iwata wanted it to be able to play every Nintendo game.
The DS influenced the Wii, it had traction with non-gamers.
Game controllers came to dictate how games were made, it was stifling. The DS had loosened creativity. The infrared pointer took a long time, they had to test it in different conditions. They had worries that the sensor bar wasn’t simple enough. They don’t use focus groups.
2007
Talk Asia – Shigeru Miyamoto Talk Asia Interview
Publication Date: February 15, 2007
Subject(s): Joining Nintendo, Wii, DS, Wii Sports, taking risks, women playing games, violence in games
Format: Interview (dubbed)
People: Anjali Rao, Shigeru Miyamoto
Video:
Link: http://www.cnn.com/2007/WORLD/asiapcf/02/14/miyamoto.script/index.html?section=cnn_latest
Notes: The linked article has a full transcript of the interview. Talk Asia appeared on CNN International.
Summary: There was no such thing as game making at Nintendo when he joined. He wanted to make toys. He was an industrial designer so he drew boxes for games. His first game developing job was Donkey Kong, which led to game design being recognized as a big thing at Nintendo. He is a director at Nintendo, and still making games.
He enjoys making unique games. He gets inspired by watching people playing games. He and his staff are motivated by trying to make something unique, not what will sell.
The original Mario design had to be small but recognizably human. He has a mustache so they wouldn’t have to draw a mouth. They gave him big hands so he’d be distinctive.
Game makers and game players grew up together, going through the history of video games. Everyone can enjoy games and he’s been trying to make games that even veterans like him can enjoy. He tries to make DS games appeal to all ages and have a new theme. Anyone can enjoy Nintendogs. Everyone can enjoy golf, tennis, and bowling on the Wii. He’s trying to get back to the basics.
They are too conscious of the competition. Nintendo should be unique and become incomparable. They can make games that are accepted for a long time.
[Mr. Miyamoto plays Wii Sports with Anjali Rao.]
It took one or two years to make Wii Sports. It is a simple game but he hopes people enjoy it. People will watch and want to give it a try.
Japanese people have a habit of abbreviating names, like with the Family Computer. They decided to name the Wii something that couldn’t be abbreviated. It’s short and can be combined with other titles, like “Wii Sports”.
New markets open when you make something unexpected. Nintendo is a company that takes risks. Nintendo puts as much money into big projects as possible.
His wife has never been interested in games until recently. They are starting to tear down the walls that have prevented women from playing video games, starting with the DS. He hopes women will enjoy games more. He thinks their target will be mothers, who take the lead in family entertainment.
Some shy away from video games because they have to plug them into the TV, or because of the shape. Nintendo is trying to diversify in themes and genres, which will help more people relate to games.
He’s careful about excessive violence in his games. His parents were worried about the comics he was reading. Nintendo has many ways to entertain people without using violence.
He will take in fan suggestions that are useful. He predicts how players will react to games he’s making, but people have different views on everything. Rather than read blogs he’d rather stand behind someone playing a game and observe them. He always tries to think about how to surprise the people who play his games.
GDC 2007 Lifetime Achievement Award acceptance speech
Publication Date: March 7, 2007
Subject(s): His career
Format: Award ceremony (live translator)
People: Bill Trinen (translator), Shigeru Miyamoto
Video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4bTndFnL1DM
Notes: Uploaded by YouTube user digitalreporter.
Summary: He’s been surrounded by young people during his career, sucking up their life force. He has a fondness for America and its spirit of taking on challenges. This award is an incredible honor and he looks forward to the future.
2007 GDC Keynote
Publication Date: March 8, 2007
Subject(s): Gaming’s reputation, Wife-o-Meter, Animal Crossing, DS, tenacity, Miis, Super Mario 128
Format: Presentation (spoken English, live translator)
People: Unnamed GDC staff member, Bill Trinen (translator), Shigeru Miyamoto
Videos:
Notes: The official GDC channel has not uploaded an official version of this speech. Nintendo uploaded a video of this speech to a website that doesn’t exist anymore. This keynote speech was reported on in detail on several sites such as here, here, and here. Uploaded by YouTube user CARSLOCK.
Summary: When he started making games people were talking about games like these.
[An image of Pac-Man appears in the Wii’s Photo Channel.]
And this was the image of gamers.
[An image of two children playing games appears.]
When he gave his GDC speech in 1998 Nintendo released the best selling game of the year, GoldenEye 007. Gamers didn’t have a bad image at the time. By 2004 none of the best selling games were by Nintendo. Reporters around this time kept asking him about the effect games had on people. Sales went up, but gaming’s reputation went down. Players just seemed to want the same kind of game. Nintendo had to reflect on its vision.
There are three elements to Nintendo’s vision. One is expanded audience, which can explained with the Wife-o-Meter. Playing Super Mario Bros. or Pac-Man may have been an important moment for you, but they were not for his wife. When his daughter played The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time, his wife started watching. He told her that Animal Crossing had no enemies to fight and she was happy to send letters and cut down trees.
He loves dogs and his wife loves cats.
[An image of a poll on the Wii’s Everybody Votes Channel appears.]
About 64% of Wii owners agree with him that dogs are better, 90% in Guatemala.
[Images of his dog appear.]
His dog Pick is six years old and sleeps on a better mattress than he does. He’s made friends with other dog owners. When he showed Nintendogs to his wife, she saw games in a new light, but Brain Age turned her into a gamer.
Women give chocolate to men on Valentine’s Day in Japan. He came home late from work on Valentine’s Day and thought she had stayed up to give him chocolate, but she was voting on the Everybody Votes channel. She downloaded the channel on her own. His wife brags that she can beat him the Dr. Mario game in Brain Age. The Wife-o-Meter jumped up. She’s made Miis for everyone.
The second part of Nintendo’s vision is its devotion to entertainment. They don’t worry about expanding into other things. Everyone understands entertainment. Programmers and engineers can meet face to face and collaborate.
As an industrial designer he has worked on every Nintendo controller, but everyone works on them together. Designing the Wii required different departments with different viewpoints to work together. One team was focused on innovation, the Zelda team wanted to make sure their franchises would work on the system, another group focused on making sure third-party games could be played. Software designers were enthusiastic but also concerned, they didn’t want to turn away from Nintendo’s heritage. They made dozens of prototypes of Wii controllers.
[Images of prototype Wii controllers appear.]
The final controller is a collaboration between several departments.
It’s important that their hardware can play games meant for other systems, but it’s more important that it can create new experiences.
There’s a museum in Kyoto dedicated to Hyakunin Isshu cards with poetry and he was put in charge of making the attractions. Visitors are given a DS that keeps track of visitor’s locations. The DS can be used to change the card displayed on the screens that make up the floor. These kinds of poems are mostly interesting to older people, but younger people are entertained by the interactivity.
The last element of Nintendo’s is risk. Hiroshi Yamauchi always encouraged them to take risks. The DS and its interface was a risk, but the Wii was their biggest risk. The GameCube was a half step, but he wanted it to appeal to a wide audience. He wanted the A button larger and a different color so anyone would know how to start playing, but it was still too complicated. When they saw the satisfaction of people who played the Wii at E3 2006 they knew the risk was worth it.
He’s often asked about specific things in his games, but his focus is on the core element of fun within the game. He imagines the face of the player as they play it. They recorded some footage of people playing the DS for the first time.
[Footage of people in Japan playing the DS.]
People watching get caught up in the excitement too. He wants the reaction to be something positive, like surprise, happiness, or glee. Other developers work with fear, horror, or violence, and that’s fine too.
They have to make games from the viewpoint of the player that knows nothing about the game. He has to upend the tea table if they aren’t delivering on that.
When someone sees another person in their household having fun with a game they may be inspired to give a try too. Wii Play may seem too simple for core gamers, but they enjoy it because they can play with their non-gaming friends.
Communication is an important topic, but not all games include it, like solitaire or Tetris. They are popular because they create a personal sense of fulfillment. The Legend of Zelda was not intended to be a game like that. It didn’t do well in Japan at first because it confused people. Rather than make it easier and more linear he made it so that you don’t start with a sword anymore. This would encourage people to think about what they were going to do, and to communicate with other players.
That became the basis of Animal Crossing, a game totally based on communication. Many hardcore gamers like Animal Crossing too.
Every developer has the same complaint: not enough. They don’t have enough people, budget, or time. It’s natural to think that they have to add more content and better graphics to please the player. Satoru Iwata tells him “too bad”.
Baseball in Wii Sports has one stadium, there’s no licenses, you can’t bunt, you can’t steal bases, you can’t control the fielders, and the game is three innings long. Miis are based on a type of Japanese wooden doll and don’t have limbs. At Nintendo they decided that the way to make the game feel realistic was in pitching and hitting.
The final aspect of his vision is tenacity. When the Famicom Disk System came out he wanted to make a game where you draw faces. He had prototype made, but everyone asked how it was a game. The 64DD had Talent Maker, which was only sold to rand.net members.
[Footage of Talent Maker starts playing.]
There were clothing options and a movie editor. He thought everyone would like it at Nintendo, but that wasn’t the case. He thought the eReader would finally be the answer.
[Footage of Stage Debut starts playing.]
He thought it would be a hit, but people at Nintendo didn’t. During the development of the Wii Iwata told him that another team was working on something similar, which he joined. Making Miis didn’t need to be a game and they didn’t need to make them more and more involved and complex as he had been doing. His tenacity worked out after he looked at it from another perspective. New things can be made when you wait for technology to come along that fits your vision.
He’s working on a new Mii channel that will have contests.
He’s always asked about Super Mario 128. That demo was to show how the GameCube could change Mario games. Most people have played Super Mario 128 in Pikmin, which had large numbers of creatures. It’s also playable in Super Mario Galaxy, which is possible now with the Wii.
[A Super Mario Galaxy trailer plays.]
His main message is that creative vision is the essence of game design. He has a lot of faith about the future of the video game industry after seeing the independent games nominated for Game Developer’s Choice Awards.
A measure of success of games is when they breach the world of video games. They can’t just make games for gamers, they have to reach out to more people. The vision of the typical gamer is changing.
The Mercury News – Q&A: One-On-One With Shigeru Miyamoto
Publication Date: March 19, 2007
Subject(s): Wii, unique features
Format: Transcribed interview
People: Dean Takahashi, Bill Trinen (translator), Shigeru Miyamoto
Archive Link: https://web.archive.org/web/20070929140812/http://blogs.mercurynews.com/aei/2007/03/qa_one-on-one_with_shigeru_miyamoto.html
Notes: This interview took place after Mr. Miyamoto’s 2007 GDC keynote speech.
Summary: Their focus is always to do something different. Miis use the Internet, but that isn’t the focus. They have looked into making game makers and editors. People said that interest in Wii Sports would fade quickly, but people are still playing it.
The Wii can sustain momentum by being something people bring out when they are together. It is always connected to the Internet, it’s something you interact with every day and use naturally like a TV. Lots of third parties are making a wide variety of Wii games. They are not focused on competing with others on an epic scale, just on unique ideas that can only be done on the Wii.
Dragon Quest IX: Sentinels of the Starry Skies was released on the DS because of its unique features.
GamePro – Miyamoto: I was worried about US Wii launch/Nintendo’s Miyamoto looks back to look ahead/A Moment with Miyamoto (partially incomplete)
Publication Date: April 2, 2007/June, 2007
Subject(s): Getting into game design
Format: Transcribed interview
People: Vicious Sid, Shigeru Miyamoto
Archive Links: https://web.archive.org/web/20071011165434/http://gamepro.com/news.cfm?article_id=107842
Scans:
Notes: On April 2, 2007 an interview with Mr. Miyamoto was posted to GamePro’s website, spanning two pages with two headlines. The second of these pages was not not preserved in the Internet Archive. In the June, 2007 issue there is a small interview with Mr. Miyamoto that encourages readers to read the rest on their website.
Summary: He’s happy that the Wii is selling well in America.
When making games it’s important to find a unique idea that uses their interface.
His impression is that game developers have more say in Japan than in America, where the sales team makes decisions.
Nintendo’s next big challenge is online entertainment. There’s a lot of possibilities with the Wii’s always-online functionality.
He got an interview at Nintendo thanks to his father’s friend.
Students have to compete with each other, but don’t get a chance to make something and have people criticize it, which is important to game design. It can be frustrating, but you have to use it to improve.
Students interested in game design should not focus on programming and should have interests other than video games. Expose yourself to different genres and fields while in college.
He was worried that people who liked cutting-edge video games might not like Wii Sports. They didn’t bundle it with the Wii as an extra, it’s because they want everyone to play it. It may convince hardcore gamers that it’s fun, and they may promote the Wii.
Some people in their sales group said they couldn’t bundle Wii Sports.
Newsweek (reported on by Game Developer and Gamezone, incomplete)
Publication Date: Unknown (reported on April 3, 2007)
Subject(s): Third party developers, PlayStation Home, Miis
Format: Transcribed interview
People: Reported on by David Jenkins and kombo, N’Gai Croal, Shigeru Miyamoto
Links: https://www.gamedeveloper.com/console/miyamoto-talks-third-party-developers-online-gaming
https://www.gamezone.com/originals/miyamoto-industry-will-grow-by-doing-things-different/
Archive Links: https://web.archive.org/web/20220516130632/https://www.gamedeveloper.com/console/miyamoto-talks-third-party-developers-online-gaming
Notes: This interview took place at GDC 2007.
Summary: Third parties can succeed on Wii if they look at examples of new interfaces, use their technical know-how, and use new ideas only possible on the Wii. Sometimes it seems games are developed by third or fourth string teams, but Nintendo uses their number one teams.
He’s happy to see something like PlayStation Home and wants video game companies to try new things. He’d be worried if the industry all went in the same direction.
People at Nintendo are interested in expanding on Miis and making a Sim-type experience. Making Miis is almost like game development.
The more people try unique things the more possibilities the industry has.
Entertainment Weekly – The man who made ”Mario” super
Publication Date:
Subject(s): Dealing with societal issues in games, creativity, Halo, The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess
Format: Transcribed interview
People: Geoff Keighley, Shigeru Miyamoto
Link: https://ew.com/article/2007/05/08/man-who-made-mario-super/
Archive Link: https://web.archive.org/web/20150213224022/http://www.ew.com/article/2007/05/08/man-who-made-mario-super
Summary: Letters from Iwo Jima and Flags of our Fathers are thought-provoking films. He saw Defcon, a game about nuclear war, and thought it was a very powerful message to put into a game.
It really upsets him how young people will not give up their seats to the elderly or pregnant women on the train. He also doesn’t like when freelancers don’t pay their taxes. These are real-world issues he would consider putting into a game.
When he plays Wii Fit to get exercise it feels like he’s at work.
He could have made Halo, he just chose not to. He never looks for what people want, he creates new experiences. He would like people to make games like he does, games they want to create, not something focus grouped. He doesn’t ask people’s opinions when they play test games, he watches their faces.
He has been disappointed in some F-Zero and Star Fox games they partnered with other developers on. He is disappointed The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess isn’t doing well in Japan. He thinks people buying Wiis are not the type who would want to play a big role-playing game like that.
His son is not interested in making games.
Nintendo Power – Miyamoto on Multiplayer/Power Profiles
Publication Date: June, 2007
Subject(s): Multiplayer, starting at Nintendo, current duties, real life experiences, hobbies, ideal superpower
Format: Transcribed interview
People: Unnamed Nintendo Power interviewer, Shigeru Miyamoto
Scans:
Summary: [From Miyamoto on Multiplayer.]
They aren’t focusing on multiplayer Wii games, they are trying to make new, unique, and fun games using the Wii’s interface that also entertain others in the household and make them want to pick up a Wii Remote.
[From Power Profiles.]
When he joined Nintendo he started by doing art for arcade cabinets, and some pixel art.
He oversees about half of Nintendo’s games, but he’s taken on more managerial roles. He is more involved in hardware decisions than he used to be.
As you flesh out a project it’s important to reflect on your experiences. The more you can find overlaps, the better the process goes. It’s important for Nintendo fans to have real life experiences. He wants to people to go outside when it’s nice out.
It’s important to him to find gameplay elements that are fun to people who have never played games. He starts with an idea for fun gameplay, not with a character. Once they have an idea of what the game is going to be like they decide which franchise would fit.
In elementary school he wanted to be a puppeteer, in middle school he wanted to be a comic book artist.
It’s fun to have an idea and realize it’s going to be great. The most exciting part of game design is combining all those ideas into a game.
When you’re stuck on something, sit and think about what the central problem is. He’s seen as negative sometimes because he’ll find where the problems within the problem are.
He was a fan of movies with lots of special effects, but he’s more interested in smaller scale performances now.
He likes carpentry and home repair.
Knowing what someone is thinking would be a fun superpower.
Official Japanese DS Website – Miyamoto Interview: Phantom Hourglass
Publication Date: Unknown (translated June 16, 2007)
Subject(s): The Legend of Zelda: Phantom Hourglass
Format: Transcribed interview
People: Unknown interviewer, Shigeru Miyamoto
Translator: Patricia for thehylia.com
Notes: I could not find an archive of the original interview on the Japanese DS website.
Summary: The game didn’t lose its Zelda essence when made for stylus control. It’s intuitive, if you touch a pot, Link will lift it. You don’t have to remember which button does what. You can write a path for the boomerang to follow. You can write notes directly instead of needing a notepad. This game is another evolution of the Zelda franchise. To his sister he would like to say that Link is cute, he’d like her to watch the animated characters. This game doesn’t use the complicated cross pad.
Nintendo of America – E3 2007
Publication Date: July 11, 2007
Subject(s): Wii Fit (1:00:04)
Format: Presentation/demonstration (live translator)
People: Sharon, John, Josephine, Reggie Fils-Aimé, Bill Trinen (translator), Shigeru Miyamoto
Video:
Notes: Uploaded by YouTube user CARSLOCK.
Summary: The game he wanted to introduce at E3 2007 wasn’t Super Mario Galaxy, The Legend of Zelda: Phantom Hourglass, or Mario Kart DS, it was Wii Fit. They saw the Wii as a device for the living room, so it should be relevant to everyone in the household. The subject to achieve that was health. They have three fitness trainers on stage to demonstrate, starting with Sharon who will do a one-legged stretch. The calibration seems off. You’re trying to stay balanced while doing the stretch. John will do step aerobics. There are blue icons that show when you need to step to the side. Josephine is doing a sideways twist. The onscreen indicator shows your balance, ensuring you do it correctly. It’s not moving as smoothly as it should.
Wii Fit has four genres: aerobics, muscle conditioning, yoga poses, and balance. There are over 40 activities. The Wii Balance Board is very thin and can measure your weight and your balance. Your full body movement can be used as a controller. Today we’ll do a body check on Reggie. The idea is to do this once a day. Reggie doesn’t seem to have a big belly. You can make graphs of you and your family’s data. The development team is competing to see who can get the slimmest.
GamesRadar+ – E3 07: Miyamoto talks about “strange videogame fanatics”
Publication Date: July 11, 2007
Subject(s): Casual games versus hardcore games
Format: Transcribed interview
People: Matt Cundy or an unknown GamesRadar+ interviewer, Shigeru Miyamoto
Link: https://www.gamesradar.com/e3-07-miyamoto-talks-about-strange-videogame-fanatics/
Archive Link: https://web.archive.org/web/20230105054721/https://www.gamesradar.com/e3-07-miyamoto-talks-about-strange-videogame-fanatics/
Notes: This interview took place at E3 2007.
Summary: They wanted to show games are for everyone at E3 2007. Nintendo will continue to make hardcore games. Maybe in the future parents won’t complain about their kids playing games all the time.
IGN – E3 2007: Nintendo Developer Roundtable/Nintendo World Report – E3 2007 – Roundtable with Shigeru Miyamoto
Publication Date: July 12, 2007
Subject(s): Super Mario Galaxy, Wii Balance Board
Format: Presentation/demonstration, Q & A
People: Matt Casamassina, Steven Rodriguez, unnamed members of the press, Bill Trinen (translator), Shigeru Miyamoto
Links: https://www.ign.com/articles/2007/07/12/e3-2007-nintendo-developer-roundtable
https://www.nintendoworldreport.com/interview/13932/e3-2007-roundtable-with-shigeru-miyamoto
Archive Links: https://web.archive.org/web/20121026055241/http://www.ign.com/articles/2007/07/12/e3-2007-nintendo-developer-roundtable
Summary: He didn’t need to make any changes to The Legend of Zelda: Phantom Hourglass because it was so good.
Yesterday’s E3 press conference was for a wide audience, they’re showing traditional games today.
Wii Fit and Super Mario Galaxy are both meant to be accessible to everyone. One of the ways Mario Galaxy does that is assist mode, which allows a second player to stun enemies.
Super Mario Galaxy will have many types of gravity and spheres, with ideas from Super Mario 128. There will be about 120 stars to collect. The spherical levels make it hard to get lost.
The bee is fluffy thanks to fur-shading.
You won’t need to get all the stars to beat the game.
Super Mario Galaxy feels new the way that Super Mario 64 did, and it has more simple controls than Super Mario Sunshine.
They won’t stop making traditional games.
Third parties and the medical industry are interested in the Wii Balance Board.
Super Mario Galaxy is being made by the team which made Donkey Kong Jungle Beat, they started development right after they finished. The team size has gone from 30 to 50.
He’s been more directly involved with the design of Mario Galaxy than Super Mario 64.
Many at Nintendo think Super Mario Sunshine was too hard, while others liked that difficulty. They recently made Mario Galaxy harder.
IGN – Shigeru Miyamoto Nintendo Wii Interview – E3 2007 Interview
Publication Date: July 12, 2007
Subject(s): Retirement, Super Mario Galaxy, Wii Balance Board, Super Smash Bros. Brawl
Format: Interview (dubbed)
People: Unnamed IGN interviewer, Bill Trinen (translator), Shigeru Miyamoto
Video: https://www.ign.com/videos/shigeru-miyamoto-nintendo-wii-interview-e3-2007-interview
Notes: This video was uploaded to YouTube by FFXIgaiaknight here as well.
Summary: If he had to be one of his characters he might be Mario, since he’s straightforward and at ease.
He’s having a lot of fun and working with younger developers so he doesn’t see himself retiring for now.
The Wii is well-suited to Pikmin.
The Mii Channel was made by the director of Animal Crossing.
The Wii allows you to store data on an SD card, and you can delete games from the eShop and re-download them later.
The Legend of Zelda games take around three years to make, so it’s possible there will be another Zelda game after The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess on Wii.
Super Mario Galaxy is an evolution of Super Mario 64, it will please hardcore gamers.
Third parties are devoting more resources to their Wii games, so their games should improve.
There’s potential for Wii Connect 24 and Wii Fit to work with a doctor or fitness specialist. It would be easy to make a snowboarding game that uses the Wii Balance Board.
There will be fencing in Mario & Sonic at the Olympic Games. Apologies to Sega if he wasn’t supposed to say that.
He can’t talk about Super Smash Bros. Brawl, all announcements will be done on Smash Bros. DOJO!!.
Wii Sports 2 isn’t part of their plans, but if they were to do it, it would likely have a different flavor, something like “Wii Winter Sports”.
He feels they may have made too many Mario sports games. He wants Wii Sports to go a different direction.
Nintendo has acquired a few companies and built relationships with others that are good at making hardcore games.
Tampa Bay Times – Video Games Taking Aim at Us
Publication Date: July 14, 2007
Subject(s): Bringing video games to a wider audience
Format: Transcribed interview
People: Unnamed Associated Press interviewer, Shigeru Miyamoto
Link: https://www.tampabay.com/archive/2007/07/14/video-games-taking-aim-at-us/
Archive Link: https://web.archive.org/web/20240107201753/https://www.tampabay.com/archive/2007/07/14/video-games-taking-aim-at-us/
Notes: This interview was by the Associated Press and appeared in a few different newspapers. It occurred at the E3 Media and Business Summit and may have been a presentation to an audience rather than an interview.
Summary: He’ll know he’s succeeded when his relatives talk to him about video games.
He doesn’t see Sony and Microsoft as competition, he wants to make games more relevant.
Time – 10 Questions for Shigeru Miyamoto
Publication Date: July 19, 2007
Subject(s): Wii, casual versus hardcore, gaming in pop culture, competitors, high definition graphics
Format: Transcribed interview
People: Shigeru Miyamoto
Links: https://content.time.com/time/subscriber/article/0,33009,1645158,00.html
https://content.time.com/time/subscriber/article/0,33009,1645158-2,00.html
Archive Links: https://web.archive.org/web/20211013172845/http://content.time.com/time/subscriber/article/0,33009,1645158,00.html
Notes: Even though it’s called 10 questions there are 20. The 20 questions were all sent in by readers.
Summary: In 10 years he hopes people look back on the Wii and DS that redefined what a video game is.
Hardcore gamers play casual games too, and he would like to break down the barrier between hardcore and casual.
He focuses on the emotions players experience, but the Zelda producer includes messages about good and evil.
Space Invaders revolutionized the industry, he wasn’t very interested in video games until he saw it.
Video games used to have a relevant place in pop culture, and he would like the Wii and DS to bring them back to relevancy.
He can’t announce any changes in price to the Wii, but technology generally gets cheaper.
He doesn’t have much time to actually play games, but Super Mario Galaxy and Wii Fit might his favorite because he had a lot of fun working on them.
He doesn’t see Sony and Microsoft as competition, it’s about making entertaining experiences.
He wanted to be a puppeteer when he was younger.
It was more important to make an approachable system than one with high definition graphics.
GameSpot – GameSpot E3: Shigeru Miyamoto Interview
Publication Date: July 19, 2007
Subject(s): Super Mario Galaxy, Wii Fit
Format: Interview (dubbed)
People: Unnamed GameSpot interviewer, Bill Trinen (translator), Shigeru Miyamoto
Video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-OHJgO-PGsU
Notes: This interview took place at E3 2007.
Summary: As a member of Nintendo’s executive board he has some management responsibilities, but he’s mostly involved in game development.
Mario games have become more difficult to play, not as many people could play them. They wanted to change that with Super Mario Galaxy with the Wii Remote. A second player can shoot Star Pieces and hold enemies in place. The Bee Suit can hover, which is useful for jumping across platforms.
Super Mario Galaxy has Mario traveling to different planets with different gravity. There are some 2D areas. There are lots of levels, though they are a bit smaller. They had ideas to use Miis, but he thinks they will only be used as icons for your save data.
Wii Fit was one of the first ideas they had for the Wii. It’s important that when someone sees a person playing a game that they want to play too.
People at Nintendo will tell him they want to make a game from a particular franchise, and several will be coming to the Wii.
Wired – E3 Interview: Nintendo’s Shigeru Miyamoto
Publication Date: July 19, 2007
Subject(s): Super Mario Galaxy, Wii, Wii Fit, Wii Zapper, Wii Wheel, game prices, WiiWare, Touch! Generations, video games in popular culture
Format: Transcribed interview
People: Chris Kohler, Shigeru Miyamoto
Link: https://www.wired.com/2007/07/e3-interview-ni/
Archive Link: https://web.archive.org/web/20221207091235/http://www.wired.com/2007/07/e3-interview-ni/
Notes: This interview took place at E3 2007.
Summary: They’ve felt a lot of people had difficulty playing 3D Mario games, and they wanted Super Mario Galaxy to be one everyone could play. People sitting and watching you play may tell you where to go and what to do, with the two-player mode that person can point at things.
The gravity mechanic and running on spheres was something they’ve been working on since Super Mario 128. The spheres make the camera less of an issue, which makes it easier for people.
They wanted the Wii to be in the living room and for everyone to use it. They also wanted the Wii to be a set of interactive channels. You won’t necessarily sit down and play it for hours. That thinking is how Wii Fit came to be.
The Wii Zapper and Wii Wheel are designed to be inexpensive. Compare the cost of the Wii Balance Board to exercise equipment rather than to a game.
They have teams doing experiments that can eventually become WiiWare games. It gives a lot of freedom to the developer.
It was difficult to release cheap cartridges. If they release a disc-based game cheaper than the others it affects the consumer’s idea of what a game should cost.
Some Touch! Generations games are geared towards the Japanese market, but it’s possible for American developers to make such games aimed at the American market.
When he plays Guitar Hero he wants something more complicated since he knows how to play guitar, but it does feel good to get into the rhythm.
Wii Music and Mario Kart Wii should release next year.
The video game market was too focused on itself, they weren’t talked about in popular culture. DS and Wii games are reclaiming that status. His job is to continue that. The biggest concern with video games has been violence, but it’s like society considers games a nuisance. As video games become a topic of popular culture people will see what they’re about.
The Mercury News – An interview with Nintendo’s super game designer Shigeru Miyamoto
Publication Date: July 29, 2007
Subject(s): Wii, Wii peripherals
Format: Transcribed interview
People: Dean Takahashi, Bill Trinen (translator), Shigeru Miyamoto
Notes: This interview took place during E3 2007, in a hotel room.
Summary: People around the world are taking notice of video games again because of the Wii. He typically works on games near completion, right now he is working on Super Mario Galaxy and Wii Fit. His job is to reassure developers and help them see the path to completion.
No one before has created a device that measures weight and balance. Holding a Wii Remote can make your arm tired, the Wii Zapper causes less fatigue. Nintendo wants to make approachable, intuitive devices. There is no technology in the Wii peripherals, they are cheap enough to pack in with games. Every other game system requires putting two hands on the controller, but your hands can be separated with the Wii.
He doesn’t see his job as making new characters as much as it is making new experiences. Nintendo doesn’t think it terms of markets, they want to appeal to everyone. They don’t think of casual versus hardcore. Creating a device dedicated to entertainment, unlike a cell phone, you can make more entertaining experiences. The Wii Fit Balance Board isn’t something you’d see on PC.
Wired Japan – Nintendo’s Shigeru Miyamoto talks about new ideas for games (untranslated from Japanese)
Publication Date: August 8, 2007
Subject(s): Super Mario Galaxy, Super Mario 128
Format: Transcribed interview
People: Unnamed Wired Japan interviewer, Shigeru Miyamoto
Japanese Link: https://wired.jp/2007/08/08/shigeru-miyamoto-2/
Japanese Archive Links: https://web.archive.org/web/20150722165627/http://wired.jp/2007/08/08/shigeru-miyamoto-2/
https://web.archive.org/web/20150722165633/http://wired.jp/2007/08/08/shigeru-miyamoto-2/2/
https://web.archive.org/web/20150722025121/http://wired.jp/2007/08/08/shigeru-miyamoto-2/3/
https://web.archive.org/web/20150722025351/http://wired.jp/2007/08/08/shigeru-miyamoto-2/4/
Notes: The title I have used is a machine translation.
Famitsu (reported on by GamesRadar+, incomplete)
Publication Date: Unknown (reported on August 15, 2007)
Subject(s): Game difficulty
Format: Transcribed interview
People: Reported on by Mike Jackson, unknown Famitsu interviewer, Shigeru Miyamoto
Link: https://www.gamesradar.com/fun-less-challenging-games-are-the-future-says-miyamoto/
Archive Link: https://web.archive.org/web/20230105065606/https://www.gamesradar.com/fun-less-challenging-games-are-the-future-says-miyamoto/
Notes: Unfortunately, this is GamesRadar+ reporting on a next-gen.biz report about a Famitsu interview.
Summary: Core gamers play casual games too. Balancing difficulty for core players is difficult. He thinks the future is games that are more fun to play more than they are difficult. They need to release more games that feel like games. Players should feel the fun in the first level.
GameCenter CX – Aim For 100! “The Quest For Kai”
Publication Date: September 20–23, 2007 (recorded, air date unknown)
Subject(s): Super Mario Bros.
Format: Award ceremony, presentation/demonstration
People: Shinya Arino, Unknown award presenters, Shigeru Miyamoto
Video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4j_vylF10ys
Translator: SA-GCCX
Notes: GameCenter CX is Japanese show about retro games and you can watch the full episode subtitled here. This segment seems to have taken place during a “Retro Game Awards” portion of the Tokyo Game Show in 2007. Super Mario Bros. wins the award and Mr. Miyamoto accepts it. Uploaded by YouTube user Will.
Summary: He’s happy Super Mario Bros. won by popular vote.
[Mr. Miyamoto plays Super Mario Bros. on stage.]
B dashes?
He always hits every block.
Iwata Asks – Volume 4: Shigeru Miyamoto (Super Mario Galaxy)
Publication Date: October 4, 2007
Subject(s): Super Mario Galaxy
Format: Transcribed interview
People: Satoru Iwata, Shigeru Miyamoto
Link: https://iwataasks.nintendo.com/interviews/wii/super_mario_galaxy/3/0/
Archive Link: https://web.archive.org/web/20220826090010/https://iwataasks.nintendo.com/interviews/wii/super_mario_galaxy/3/0/
Japanese Link: https://www.nintendo.co.jp/wii/interview/rmgj/vol4/index.html
Japanese Archive Link: https://web.archive.org/web/20220921230030/https://www.nintendo.co.jp/wii/interview/rmgj/vol4/index.html
Summary: Cooperative gameplay has been on his mind for many years. Single player mode became cleaner after moving some things to Co-Star Mode. He wanted to make sure the second player had fun and was part of the experience.
People felt distanced from 3D games because they got lost or motion sick. Playing with gravity would be a new experience, something new for a 3D game. Not having adjustable camera angles allows for less motion sickness, and a spherical field allows the camera to always be in the right place. They tried to put the idea into Doshin the Giant, but it was too late.
He video conferenced with the team in Tokyo from Kyoto and wrote to the whole team about the essence of Mario. He told the orchestral musicians who made the music how many people were going to hear this music. Playing the same level multiple times is supposed to be fun, but checkpoints allow players to progress more quickly, so levels are less memorable.
Nintendo Investor Relations – Corporate Management Policy Briefing/Semi-Annual Financial Results Briefing for the 68th Fiscal Term Ended March 2008
Publication Date: October 29, 2007
Subject(s): Quality control, random access speeds, attach rates, what is Nintendo-esque, Wii Remotes, inspiration
Format: Investor Q & A
People: Unnamed investors, Nintendo executives including Shigeru Miyamoto
Link: https://www.nintendo.co.jp/ir/en/events/071026qa/index.html
Archive Link: https://web.archive.org/web/20201021220528/https://www.nintendo.co.jp/ir/en/events/071026qa/index.html
Japanese Link: https://www.nintendo.co.jp/ir/events/071026qa/index.html
Japanese Archive Link: https://web.archive.org/web/20221230112909/https://www.nintendo.co.jp/ir/events/071026qa/index.html
Summary: First priority is making something brand new. They are always trying to make something new while maintaining quality. It takes courage to make something new. Managers can’t control new developers too much.
A play tester for Super Mario Galaxy thought the game was running on a ROM and not a disk. They have concentrated on making disk based games appear to be ROMs, but this is rarely noticed. The Wii will be more comfortable to use within five years.
He’s not sure if Wii Fit fits the definition of video game. Since they want the Wii in as many ordinary living rooms as possible they must make games that will appeal to people that don’t pay attention to video game ads. The more people have a Wii, the more their software lineup can include non-traditional video games. Under such a system a traditional attach rate metric may not be useful.
He refrains from calling video games “a piece of work”. Nintendo is making commercial works and wants people to experience them how Nintendo wants people to experience them. It is as if they are asking people to take care of their babies. He doesn’t let directors explain their games to play testers, because that is not the experience the final customer will have.
The Wii Balance Board works as a controller for the Wii. The Wii Zapper and Wii Wheel are housings for the Wii Remote. Third parties can create peripherals that connect to the Wii Remote.
He has no new hobbies that he can share. Game development used to involve looking at what games exist in the market, the target audience, and other market factors. Developers now instead ask what would be useful or enjoyable to people in their daily life. If Japan can seek themes instead of the usual way of deciding which game to make next then Japanese developers still have great potential.
Iwata Asks – Vol 1: A New Creation (Wii Fit)
Publication Date: November 8, 2007
Subject(s): Wii Fit, Wii Balance Board
Format: Transcribed interview
People: Satoru Iwata, Shigeru Miyamoto
Link: https://iwataasks.nintendo.com/interviews/wii/wii_fit/0/0/
Archive Link: https://web.archive.org/web/20221019040254/https://iwataasks.nintendo.com/interviews/wii/wii_fit/0/0/
Japanese Link: https://www.nintendo.co.jp/wii/interview/rfnj/vol1/index.html
Japanese Archive Link: https://web.archive.org/web/20220826090011/https://iwataasks.nintendo.com/interviews/wii/wii_fit/0/0/
Summary: When he graduated college and joined Nintendo he put on weight. He started swimming at 40 to lose weight and because of back pain. He quit playing pachinko and smoking. Eventually he started putting on weight again and got a better scale that measured body fat. He recorded the data on graph paper. Wii Fit started as a weight measuring prototype called “Health Pack”. He thought about storing data on what you ate in the DS.
Someone brought in two scales and it was fun to try to put even weight on both, so they added balance as a theme of fitness. There were many reasons against the project, but he felt it was worth it, he was convinced measuring your weight could be fun. After scale manufacturers backed out they realized they’d have to make their own. A square shape was uncomfortable, and a rectangle would allow users to do pushups on it. Eventually they dropped the body fat sensor to focus on balance. He was extra picky about the manual. You can use the Wii Channel without the disc so you don’t have to wait for the game to start up. Wii Fit isn’t for getting fit, it’s for gaining awareness of your body.
Foglight Entertainment – Hollywood Goes Gaming
Publication Date: November 26, 2007
Subject(s): Story in games, Mario’s name
Format: Interview (dubbed)
People: Unnamed Hollywood Goes Gaming interviewer, Bill Trinen (translator), Shigeru Miyamoto
Video: https://youtu.be/YBI9ARU4jR4?t=1175
Notes: The 2007 Edge interview seems to be the full transcript of an interview that is only briefly shown here. Segments with Mr. Miyamoto start at 19:35 and 21:11. This was part of the Starz Inside documentary series.
Summary: He realized video games were a good medium for creativity. He applied some story to help people understand his games.
Mario was originally called Jumpman in Donkey Kong. Nintendo of America’s warehouse was owned by someone named Mario, and he thought it sounded like a catchy name.
Edge – MIYAMOTO: THE INTERVIEW
Publication Date: November 27, 2007
Subject(s): Youth hobbies, Mario’s origins, Super Mario Bros. (the movie), influences, the movie industry, Wii
Format: Transcribed interview
People: Unnamed Hollywood Goes Gaming interviewer, Shigeru Miyamoto
Archive Link: https://web.archive.org/web/20090416103022/http://www.edge-online.com/features/miyamoto-the-interview
Notes: This is the full version of the interview that briefly appears in Hollywood Goes Gaming. The end of this interview says it was “supplied by” John Gaudiosi.
Summary: He’s been a fan of comics since he was young so he had the idea to add a bit of story to Donkey Kong to explain the concept of the game. He also made flip book animations and puppets.
His goal with Mario, originally Jumpman, was to include him in many games. He got the idea from comics that did this. People called him Mario because he resembled a landlord of Nintendo of America’s warehouse who was named Mario. He decided it was a catchy name.
During talks about the Super Mario Bros. movie he emphasized that Mario games are fun as games, so the movie should be fun as a movie, and not be a translation of the game. He regrets that the movie tried to get too close to what the games were. It was a movie about a video game. He wasn’t very involved with it.
Disney gave them a pitch, which they approved. Things started to shift once the movie started production, but he wasn’t very involved since video games are his specialty.
What makes movie adaptations of video games difficult is that they require different things to be good. Movies are passive, while games are active. They are structured differently. Video games have a simple flow, and movies have complex stories.
Many people who make video games are also fans of movies, and they are influenced by Hollywood. In both mediums new technologies allow for new things to be done.
It’s difficult to name a TV show or movie that has influenced him. Comedy dramas and their tools have been influential.
Making video game graphics and movie special effects are both very intensive. He thinks they will be able to share resources.
Nintendo is an entertainment company, and entertainment is for everyone. Technology has become more complex over time, which has shrunk its potential audience. They needed to solve that to bring their products to a mass market. With Nintendo’s software and hardware departments working together they made the Wii appeal to a wide audience.
They wanted video games to be for everyone to enjoy. People were afraid of complicated controllers.
2008
Official Nintendo Magazine – An Audience With… Shigeru Miyamoto
Publication Date: January, 2008
Subject(s): Super Mario Galaxy, Ratchet & Clank
Format: Transcribed interview
People: Chris Scullion, Shigeru Miyamoto
Link: https://tiredoldhack.com/2015/04/23/my-first-miyamoto-interview-from-2007/
Archive Link: https://web.archive.org/web/20150429074412/http://tiredoldhack.com/2015/04/23/my-first-miyamoto-interview-from-2007/
Scans:
Notes: This interview was conducted over e-mail and part of it originally appeared in Official Nintendo Magazine. Several years later the interviewer, Chris Scullion, posted the full interview, including the original Japanese response, on his website. The summary uses the full version found on Chris’s website.
In October 2007 Ryan Schneider of Insomniac Games said he was flattered that Super Mario Galaxy had been inspired by Ratchet & Clank: Going Commando and Ratchet & Clank: Up Your Arsenal.
Summary: It’s important to please both old players and new players, which the Wii has a lot of.
There was no major upending of the tea table with Super Mario Galaxy. The game may have been even better if someone like Takashi Tezuka had done so.
He wishes he could go to outer space and look at the Earth and experience zero gravity. The idea with Super Mario Galaxy wasn’t to recreate space, it was create new experiences with the gravity mechanic.
The 2D sections show that 2D and 3D can be switched between when needed. He would like to make another 2D Mario game when he has more ideas.
Yoshiaki Koizumi wanted make a new universe for Mario to vacation in with Super Mario Sunshine.
The orchestral music was important for the majesty of space.
Since the GameCube they have been working on reducing load times.
He hasn’t heard of Ratchet & Clank. The idea for spherical worlds and anti-gravity came up after Super Mario 64, and they have experimented with it since then.
Fantasy adventure games don’t sell well in Japan unless they are from one of a few role-playing series. Role-playing game fans don’t always like The Legend of Zelda because of its action elements. Traditionally in Japan role-playing games sell well initially, but not afterward.
They need new characters when they make a new game. How much people like Rosalina and Luma will determine if they are used in the future.
He is proud that Super Mario Galaxy can be enjoyed by beginners, and of the cooperative two-player.
Iwata Asks – Mario Kart Wii
Publication Date: April 3, 2008
Subject(s): Mario Kart Wii, Wii Wheel
Format: Transcribed interview
People: Satoru Iwata, Kenichiro Ashida, Hideki Konno, Shigeru Miyamoto
Link: https://iwataasks.nintendo.com/interviews/wii/mariokart/0/0/
Archive Link: https://web.archive.org/web/20220614112710/https://iwataasks.nintendo.com/interviews/wii/mariokart/0/0/
Japanese Link: https://www.nintendo.co.jp/wii/interview/rmcj/vol1/index.html
Japanese Archive Link: https://web.archive.org/web/20210418222722/https://www.nintendo.co.jp/wii/interview/rmcj/vol1/index.html
Summary: When he is listed as general producer in the credits, as he is in Mario Kart Wii, it usually means he had little to do with it. He gave some input to the Wii Wheel and Nintendo Wi-Fi Connection.
Super Mario Kart did not start as a two-player F-Zero, the goal was a game that displayed the screen for two players at the same time. It was not a racing game originally.
In regards to the Wii Wheel, he wanted to make something that came in a big box. You get a lot of bragging rights if you do well with the wheel.
He agreed right away about adding a motorbike, to make the Mario world a bit more for boys. Mario Kart Wii is a communication tool.
MTV – Top Nintendo Designer Shigeru Miyamoto Talks ‘Wii Fit’ And Appealing To Unhealthy Americans
Publication Date: April 21, 2008
Subject(s): Wii Fit
Format: Transcribed interview
People: Stephen Totilo, Shigeru Miyamoto
Notes: This is the first part of a two part interview.
Summary: When he started making video games he was not thinking about what was down the road and he never envisioned Wii Fit. He’s never focused on an American or Japanese audience, he’s usually designing for himself. He wanted Wii Fit to make it easy to use on a regular basis. Rather than exercise with Wii Fit everyday it’s more important that people are aware of their health. Wii Fit is interesting if you live with your family and can compare your stats with each other.
Even with almost 2 million sold there have been very few incidents with people falling off the Wii Balance Board. The step aerobics music wasn’t popular with Nintendo of America.
MTV – Miyamoto To MTV: Why ‘Wii Fit’ Is Not ‘Mario Fit’ — Also Talks The Pleasure Of Goals, Hardcore Gamer Complaints And New Characters
Publication Date: April 22, 2008
Subject(s): Wii Fit, Wii Balance Board
Format: Transcribed interview
People: Stephen Totilo, Shigeru Miyamoto
Link: https://www.mtv.com/news/uzvl8c/miyamoto-why-wii-fit-is-not-mario-fit
Archive Link: https://web.archive.org/web/20230124182901/https://www.mtv.com/news/uzvl8c/miyamoto-why-wii-fit-is-not-mario-fit
Notes: This is part two of a two part interview.
Summary: They’ve always been focused on making new experiences but the Wii is the first time they’ve focused on the living room. He doesn’t think of the end benefit as much as finding new ways to surprise and entertain. Wii Fit is about drawing others into the experience of setting your own goal. He saw his BMI improve dramatically after using Wii Fit. They wanted to make the Wii Balance Board as unobtrusive as possible, and its competition is not other games, its scales.
The Wii Balance Board became a character because Wii Fit needed to feel fun, fresh, and a bit silly. Adding Mario to Wii Fit may have limited its broad appeal. They want to expand the gaming population with Wii Fit.
Iwata Asks – Link’s Crossbow Training
Publication Date: April 24, 2008
Subject(s): First-person shooters, Link’s Crossbow Training, Wii Zapper
Format: Transcribed interview
People: Satoru Iwata, Shigeru Miyamoto
Link: https://iwataasks.nintendo.com/interviews/wii/crossbow/0/0/
Archive Link: https://web.archive.org/web/20221019040254/https://iwataasks.nintendo.com/interviews/wii/crossbow/0/0/
Japanese Link: https://www.nintendo.co.jp/wii/interview/rzpj/vol1/index.html
Japanese Archive Link: https://web.archive.org/web/20150713201612/http://www.nintendo.co.jp/wii/interview/rzpj/vol1/index.html
Summary: He’s always been into first-person shooter games, they feel natural and comfortable and even proposed a first-person perspective for The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time. He felt there was room in the gap between advanced and casual first-person shooters. He talked to staff about making a The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess side story for people that wanted to continue to play in that world. He eventually proposed a game based around the Wii Zapper, which met some resistance. He told the staff not to create anything unnecessary, don’t make a movie, and keep levels under three minutes long. He wanted the focus to be on the journey, not the rewards.
Someone working on The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess rigged up a sort of Wii Zapper and showed it to him. He liked how it felt and got started working with the hardware people on the real thing. Link’s crossbow has rapid fire abilities because it is fun, even if it doesn’t make sense.
The Times – Exclusive: Working out the future with Shigeru Miyamoto
Publication Date: April 27, 2008
Subject(s): Wii Fit
Format: Transcribed interview
People: John Arlidge, Shigeru Miyamoto
Summary: He wants to show that games can be good for you and enrich your life. Nintendo wants to counter the idea that games are bad for your brain and health.
They want to broaden the idea of what video games are and make games for men and women of all ages.
They would love for family members to talk about Wii Fit in Britain the way they are in Japan.
It’s not good to play games for too long, he tells his children to go outside on sunny days. He went jogging in Central Park yesterday, but he did stretches with Wii Fit.
USA Today – Designer Miyamoto makes video games pulse with life
Publication Date: May 5, 2008
Subject(s): Wii Fit, Wii Music
Format: Transcribed interview
People: Mike Snider, Shigeru Miyamoto
Archive Link: https://web.archive.org/web/20090817232005/http://www.usatoday.com/tech/gaming/2008-05-14-miyamoto-wii-fit_N.htm
Notes: This interview contains quotes from several other sources about Wii Fit and Mr. Miyamoto, I have only summarized the new material.
Summary: He tries to take something fun from his experiences and make a fun game out of it. He was inspired to make Wii Fit after weighing himself daily.
He is overseeing all of Nintendo’s big titles.
Sumo wrestlers use two scales and try to balance their weight between them. They found this to be fun so they made a skiing game centered around it.
They want Wii Fit to help families communicate about their health.
He hopes Wii Music helps people who can’t play music use it experience that joy.
The Victoria Advocate – Nintendo’s Latest Game Wants You Off the Couch
Publication Date: May 18, 2008
Subject(s): Wii Fit
Format: Transcribed interview
People: Barbara Ortutay, Shigeru Miyamoto
Scans:
Notes: This interview was by the Associated Press and appeared in a few different newspapers. It is described as taking place while Mr. Miyamoto was in the United States.
Summary: The premise of Wii Fit is checking your weight.
His family bought a new scale because tracking his weight was fun. He wanted to make a game out of it.
The New York Times – Resistance Is Futile
Publication Date: May 25, 2008
Subject(s): Nintendo characters, Miis
Format: Transcribed interview
People: Seth Schiesel, Shigeru Miyamoto
Link: https://www.nytimes.com/2008/05/25/arts/television/25schi.html
Archive Link: https://web.archive.org/web/20211103100318/https://www.nytimes.com/2008/05/25/arts/television/25schi.html
Notes: The interview is only a small part of this article.
Summary: It’s important that the people he works with are recognized. It’s flattering that anyone would consider Nintendo on the same level as Disney.
People like Mario, Link and their other characters because they are in fun games.
He’s making different games than he was five years ago. Rather than using his imagination to create worlds he’s been drawing from his personal life.
Miis are Nintendo’s latest character. They allow you to become part of the experience.
With Wii Music they are trying to make it feel like you’re creating music.
Wired – Q&A: 90 Minutes With Miyamoto, Nintendo’s Master of Amusement
Publication Date: June 27, 2008
Subject(s): Wii Fit, WiiWare, hobbies, Donkey Kong
Format: Transcribed interview
People: Chris, Kohler, Clive Thompson, Shigeru Miyamoto
Link: https://www.wired.com/2008/06/interview-90-mi/
Archive Link: https://web.archive.org/web/20140410211400/http://www.wired.com/2008/06/interview-90-mi/
Notes: Parts of this interview were made into separate articles on Wired, some from over a month prior. I am only including this one because it contains everything.
Summary: Wii Fit is a family communication tool, a new type of interactive entertainment. When he turned 40 he started swimming to deal with back pain. He started weighing himself every day at 50, making graphs of his weight. He decided to make that into a game everyone could enjoy in the living room.
His wife didn’t play video games until DS games like Brain Age: Train Your Brain in Minutes a Day! came out. His wife and children compete in balance games in Wii Fit.
Metabolic syndrome has been a hot topic in Japan lately. People have fewer opportunities to get exercise now.
60% of Wii Fit purchasers are men around 30 years old, but everyone in the family plays it. 40% of the people they surveyed bought their Wii to play Wii Fit.
The Wii Balance Board was made for Wii Fit, but they also tried to make it so that other developers could make use of it.
Video games have become more complicated over time, which has required more complicated controllers. The last few years they have been trying to make controllers more accessible. But some types of games still work better with traditional controls.
The Wii was designed to be unobtrusive and fit in naturally, 70 and 80 year olds play the Wii, so making a button on the screen too small or having to use a D-pad might make things difficult for them. The Wii Balance Board and Wii Wheel are about reaching a broader audience.
America is better at making unique products. Independent developers in the United States have the skills and access to technology. PC game makers in Japan haven’t entered the video game market.
It’s important for managers to create a team that is the right size for the scope of the project. Wii Sports and Wii Fit had small development teams, he wants to set an example of how such a team can make a successful game. 10-20 people made Wii Fit and The Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword is being worked on by 50-100. He encourages other developers to use smaller teams so that they don’t spend more time managing than making the game.
He tells the people working under him about the history of the characters and worlds they are using. Mario games have a unique personality, sometimes he has to tell people what they’re making looks like a Sega game.
He came up with Nintendogs after experiencing the joy of raising a dog. Super Mario Galaxy includes his interest in M.C. Escher-like worlds with strange angles.
Satoru Iwata has told him not to talk about his current hobbies.
Donkey Kong was made with the idea that you are playing in a square maze. You’re moving towards a large object as your goal, and gorillas are big. They made Mario Italian because he had a mustache. With Wii Fit they knew there was going to be a device in people’s living rooms, so they had to figure out what kind of art would make sense for it.
He doesn’t play many games, but he thinks We Ski and Professor Layton and the Curious Village are good.
They took a gamble with making the Wii Remote central to the Wii. It’s validating seeing other companies make motion controllers too. They want controllers to be inviting to a broad audience.
The Wii is well-balanced between its price, interface, and online network. When making hardware they focus on balancing the end user’s experience and creating a good development environment.
Bangor Daily News – Meet the Inventor of Donkey Kong. And Mario. His Hot New Game: Wii Fit
Publication Date: June 27, 2008
Subject(s): Wii Fit
Format: Transcribed interview
People: Scott Jones, Shigeru Miyamoto
Scans:
Notes: This interview was by the Associated Press and appeared in a few different newspapers.
Summary: Wii Fit helps you become more aware of your body, which can lead to you making better health decisions.
Nintendo told him not to bike to work anymore because it was dangerous.
Many of the puppets he made as a child were monsters or dogs.
Bluegrass music is not popular in Japan.
When he was hired he was told to find a use for leftover Radar Scope machines.
He hopes that his products stand out and that he blends in.
Electronic Gaming Monthly – Survival of the Fittest
Publication Date: July, 2008
Subject(s): Wii Fit, core gamers, changing gaming’s perception, Wii Balance Board
Format: Transcribed interview
People: Jeremy Parish, Shigeru Miyamoto
Scans:
Summary: Core gamers didn’t get a Wii to play Wii Sports, but it gave them an opportunity to share their hobby with nongamers. Wii Fit will also expand people’s interest in video games.
Video games are no longer something that everyone can enjoy. Hardcore games buy things in the first three weeks, and then there’s a dramatic decline in sales. Wii Fit, Animal Crossing games, and Nintendogs sell steadily over time, which is essential to the industry.
Wii Fit is expensive for a video game, but it’s very cheap for exercise equipment.
As new people start playing video games because of Wii Fit, it will change the impression of what video gaming is. Core gamers should see that this is improving the environment for their hobby.
Wii Fit is about setting a goal, making a path to it, and finding a new goal. That’s very similar to what you do in a Mario game.
Wii Fit has sold about 2 million in Japan. Third parties are asking them about how they can use the Wii Balance Board. Install base is the key for supporting peripherals.
Nintendo of America – E3 2008
Publication Date: July 15, 2008
Subject(s): Wii Music (52:03)
Format: Presentation/demonstration (live translator)
People: DJ Ravidrums, Denise Kaigler, unnamed Treehouse members, Bill Trinen (translator), Shigeru Miyamoto
Video:
Notes: Uploaded by YouTube user CARSLOCK.
Summary: [Mr. Miyamoto plays the saxophone in Wii Music while DJ Ravidrums plays the drums.]
They worked on Wii Music alongside Wii Sports, Wii Play, and Wii Fit as they finalized the plans for the Wii. Music games usually require pressing buttons at the right time. Wii Music brings the joy of playing music to everyone. You don’t need to follow music notes or rhythm guides. While playing the saxophone he pressed buttons with the timing of his preference. He doesn’t have to worry about making mistakes. You can play over 50 instruments. DJ Ravidrums is using the Wii Balance Board to activate the drum pedals. There are lessons, so you can learn to play the drums in a few weeks.
There is an orchestra game, hand bell choir and note matching modes. Wii Music does not evaluate your performance, but it can record videos. The vice president of corporate affairs, Denise Kaigler, will play the marimba, with the Treehouse horn section.
[Denise Kaigler and two unnamed Treehouse members come out on stage and play a song with Miyamoto and DJ Ravidrums.]
GameSpot – Wii Music Shigeru Miyamoto E3 2008 Interview 1
Publication Date: July 15, 2008
Subject(s): Wii Music, Wii Sports Resort, MotionPlus
Format: Interview (dubbed)
People: Unnamed GameSpot interviewer, Bill Trinen (translator), Shigeru Miyamoto
Video:
Notes: This video has been unavailable on GameSpot’s website here and here for some time, but I was able to preserve it thanks to Thomas Staudinger.
Summary: Other music games are about matching a rhythm, he wanted to make a game where you could perform a song with your family.
First, they wanted to address the concern of people who can’t play an instrument who were worried about playing the wrong note. By allowing the game to support the player in pretending to play an instrument it can allow them to make the song they want to create. It’s like a music creation tool, with 60 instruments.
They did focus testing with children, and they loved it.
There will be about 50 songs which you can either play accurately or however you want.
An online Wii Sports would be easy, but they found that the Wii Remote is better at detecting broad motions rather than subtle ones. This meant they couldn’t include some of the sports that they wanted. The MotionPlus will allow them to bring those ideas to life. Maybe they’ll make an online Wii Sports after Wii Sports Resort. They also had requests for more accurate motion tracking from third parties. They want to have at least 10 activities in Wii Sports Resort.
He thought it would be more fun if the games he worked on were played by a broad audience. He’s focused on the end user.
Engadget – Liveblog from Nintendo’s 2008 E3 Developer Roundtable
Publication Date: July 16, 2008
Subject(s): Wii Music, Pikmin 3
Format: Presentation, Q & A
People: Kyle Orland, Aaron Rosenbeck, unnamed members of the press, Bill Trinen (translator), Katsuya Eguchi, Shigeru Miyamoto
Link: https://www.engadget.com/2008-07-16-liveblog-from-nintendos-2008-e3-developer-roundtable.html
Notes: This Q & A session took place during E3 2008.
Summary: When they play jazz in Wii Music they do rapid play, so the mistakes are ad libs.
Their five to eight year old play testers couldn’t pull themselves away. Half of an elementary school music class could be devoted to Wii Music.
You can do lessons in the game and learn the drums in a few weeks.
Many of the songs will be from the public domain, but some are licensed.
Wii Music is more of a toy than a video game, which makes it more interesting.
They are working on Pikmin 3.
NBC News – Meet the man behind the Wii
Publication Date: July 17, 2008
Subject(s): Wii, casual vs core
Format: Transcribed interview
People: Kristin Kalning, Shigeru Miyamoto
Link: https://www.nbcnews.com/id/wbna25710005
Archive Link: https://web.archive.org/web/20230119030122/https://www.nbcnews.com/id/wbna25710005
Notes: This interview took place at E3 2008.
Summary: Japan’s aging population wasn’t the reason for making the Wii. Gaming was becoming something only for core gamers. Video games should be more than more advanced versions of previous games. Even though they aren’t focusing on high tech graphics they are still targeting core gamers.
E3 is now an opportunity to reach beyond core gamers, to the broader audience, it’s not for showing core games.
He wanted to see his parents and wife play games. Wii Sports and Wii Fit helped break down the idea that video games are violent. Hardware and software development must go hand-in-hand.
The Super Nintendo Entertainment System was a refinement of the Nintendo Entertainment System while the N64 was an advancement. The Wii and DS are advancements. The next system in five to 10 years will likely be a refinement, and then the one after an advancement.
Wired – Game|Life 21: Shigeru Miyamoto
Publication Date: July 22, 2008
Subject(s): Wii Music, Motion Plus
Format: Interview (dubbed)
People: Chris Kohler, Bill Trinen (translator), Shigeru Miyamoto
Video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Q2Jjt9ZY_j0
Summary: It’s difficult to learn to play a musical instrument, he is envious when he watches professional musicians. He thought it would be fun for people to feel like they are playing a musical instrument.
The fun of playing an instrument comes from moving your body and playing the notes. Wii Music helps people play the right notes.
In rhythm games the goal has been to play the song in just the right way, but Wii Music gives you the freedom to play how you want. There’s six parts to each song and you can play whichever you want, or improvise.
The Wii Remote aimed to bring motion controls to as wide an audience as possible. They were happy with how it worked out, but they had ideas that required more precise control so they made Motion Plus.
The Telegraph – Shigeru Miyamoto: The man behind the Nintendo Wii
Publication Date: July 24, 2008
Subject(s): Wii Music, motion controls, traditional games
Format: Transcribed interview
People: Claudine Beaumont, Shigeru Miyamoto
Notes: This article was removed from The Telegraph sometime between its posting and September 2016.
Summary: Game designers often push for better graphics and network capabilities, but they’d be better off thinking about health.
You can play instruments in Wii Music through movement thanks to the Wii Remote.
He didn’t realize the DS and Wii would be so successful.
The gaming industry was narrowing to just core gamers, so it’s good that it is appealing to more people. Making traditional games is what he’s best at. Those games can take two to three years to make.
The Wii’s motion controls allow them to do new things, but sometimes buttons work better.
IGN – Miyamoto Interview
Publication Date: August 5, 2008
Subject(s): Wii Fit
Format: Interview (dubbed)
People: Unnamed IGN interviewer, Bill Trinen (translator), Shigeru Miyamoto
Video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZTPhCJAIgdI
Summary: He started weighing himself every day. His family got interested in this and bought him a more advanced scale. He was amazed at how much fun graphing his weight was.
They want the Wii to be in the living room. It’s hard for everyone to play Super Mario Galaxy, but everyone can weigh themselves.
A developer saw a sumo wrestler weighing himself with two scales. They tried using two scales with Wii Fit and found that balancing to equalize the weight between both was fun. It’s like your whole body is the joystick.
With Wii Fit there’s strength training, yoga, aerobics, hula hoop, step aerobics, balance games, and tightrope walking.
You can see your balance in real time as you do exercise, it will improve your posture. When you weigh yourself every day you’ll limit yourself from eating too much.
He doesn’t think of Japan versus the other parts of the world when making games. People who have never played a video game will be interested in Wii Fit, and that may make them become interested.
IGN – E3 2008: Shigeru Miyamoto Interview
Publication Date: August 5, 2008
Subject(s): Animal Crossing: City Folk, Wii Speak, Motion Plus
Format: Interview (dubbed)
People: Unnamed IGN interviewer, Bill Trinen (translator), Shigeru Miyamoto
Video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=g0bpregPu-I
Notes: This was posted on the same day as the video interview in the previous entry, but this one is from E3 2008.
Summary: He knows there are people that want to play Animal Crossing: City Folk with Wii Speak and others that don’t.
Wii Speak’s idea is connecting living rooms. It captures many different voices.
Their sports games appeal to a broad audience, he wants to bring them to as many people as possible.
There’s a team always working on The Legend of Zelda and there’s a broader team that moves in and out.
Miis were made with the idea that the people you live with have Miis that live together in the TV.
It’s flattering how Microsoft has used what Nintendo has done used it on their platform.
The Wii Remote is good at detecting large movements while the Motion Plus is better at subtle movements. This opens up more possibilities for motion control.
Famitsu (reported on by VG247, partially untranslated from Japanese)
Publication Date: September 9, 2008
Subject(s): Striving
Format: Presentation
People: Reported on by Patrick Garratt, unknown Famitsu interviewer, Shigeru Miyamoto
Link: https://www.vg247.com/miyamoto-i-want-to-keep-striving
Archive Link: https://web.archive.org/web/20230219030218/https://www.vg247.com/miyamoto-i-want-to-keep-striving
Japanese Link: https://www.famitsu.com/game/news/1217978_1124.html
Japanese Archive Link: https://web.archive.org/web/20081013134737/http://www.famitsu.com/game/news/1217978_1124.html
Notes: CEDEC is a Japanese game developer’s conference that also gives out annual awards. They seem to have given Mr. Miyamoto some kind of award in 2008 and he gave an acceptance speech. There doesn’t seem to be much English reporting on this speech and there is no video. The Famitsu article seems to have more information but no one has translated it as far as I can tell.
Summary: He wants to keep striving as he gets older. They should make sure that the video game business flourishes and that more children want to enter the industry.
Iwata Asks – Volume 1 : Shigeru Miyamoto (Wii Music)
Publication Date: September 25, 2008
Subject(s): Wii Music
Format: Transcribed interview
People: Satoru Iwata, Shigeru Miyamoto
Link: https://iwataasks.nintendo.com/interviews/wii/wii_music/0/0/
Archive Link: https://www.nintendo.co.jp/wii/interview/r64j/vol1/index.html
Japanese Link: https://www.nintendo.co.jp/wii/interview/r64j/vol1/index.html
Japanese Archive Link: https://web.archive.org/web/20220701084525/https://www.nintendo.co.jp/wii/interview/r64j/vol1/index.html
Summary: His first instrument was the ukulele in junior high. He was on the basketball team, but quit and started a manga club. He listened to the brass band rather than join it. He learned drums in the popular music club. He threw his weight around concerning musical matters at Nintendo until people who knew about music, like Koji Kondo, joined.
He has been trying to make a music game since the Nintendo 64. Wii Music is not a musical instrument nor a video game. He didn’t feel this kind of joy making other games. He hopes it makes a contribution to music, influences future instruments, and gets people into music. He wants Wii Music to be used in music education. He wasn’t this excited when making Super Mario Bros.
Iwata Asks – Volume 3 : The Developers (Wii Music)
Publication Date: September 25, 2008
Subject(s): Wii Music
Format: Transcribed interview
People: Satoru Iwata, Kazumi Totaka, Koji Kondo, Shigeru Miyamoto
Link: https://iwataasks.nintendo.com/interviews/wii/wii_music/2/0/
Archive Link: https://web.archive.org/web/20220826090121/https://iwataasks.nintendo.com/interviews/wii/wii_music/2/0/
Japanese Link: https://www.nintendo.co.jp/wii/interview/r64j/vol3/index.html
Japanese Archive Link: https://web.archive.org/web/20210402145735/https://www.nintendo.co.jp/wii/interview/r64j/vol3/index.html
Summary: Since you learn with your body, you can jump into playing the real thing. He has been practicing guitar for 30 years.
Wii Music is the instrument of the future. While traveling to promote the game, he heard local music differently due to Wii Music, he could hear the individual parts. A translator from Nintendo of America said the same thing.
This is one of the few games he has worked on that he played after release, he plays for hours at a time. He drew four panel comic strips in school.
Shigeru Miyamoto visits a kindergarten (Wii Music, untranslated from Japanese)
Publication Date: October 12, 2008
Subject(s): Wii Music
Format: Promotional video
People: Unnamed teachers and kindergarten students, Kazumi Totaka, Mitsuhiro Hikino, Shigeru Miyamoto
Video:
Notes: The title is a machine translation of 宮本茂が、幼稚園を訪問. This video was originally hosted here, on the Wii website. I’m not completely certain that is Mitsuhiro Hikino.
Channel 4 – Meeting Mr Nintendo
Publication Date: October 20, 2008
Subject(s): Violence in video games
Format: Transcribed interview?
People: Benjamin Cohen, Shigeru Miyamoto
Notes: It is somewhat implied that this and the next Channel 4 entry are from the same interview, though this one says “Miyamoto was speaking in London”, which sounds more like a Q & A or presentation.
Summary: He’s worried that developers are using violence to stimulate players. Our first priority is to eat to live, while enriching our souls should be second. Nintendo wants to take advantage of cheap technology to create affordable entertainment.
Channel 4 – Inspiring the video games master
Publication Date: October 22, 2008
Subject(s): Wii, Inspiration, favorites
Format: Transcribed interview
People: Benjamin Cohen, Shigeru Miyamoto
Notes: This article implies that it originally included video clips of this interview, but they have been lost.
Summary: Nintendo isn’t against traditional Wii games, it’s for the whole family. Since the Wii is situated by the living room TV its themes are sports, fitness, and music.
Since he’s worked on over 100 games some must take some inspiration from his hobbies, perhaps five to 10. Getting a dog led to Nintendogs. Weighing himself every day led to Wii Fit. He also loves music, which led to Wii Music.
The president of Nintendo tells him not to talk about his hobbies.
People’s eyes move as they think, Nintendo may be able to use that for a game. Brain waves could be used, too.
Since Donkey Kong started his career it is important to him. There was no such thing as a game designer at the time. Super Mario Bros. is the best selling series in the world, so that’s important too. Wii Fit and Wii Music are a new style of entertainment, so those are important.
Iwata Asks – Volume 2 : Internal Software (Nintendo DSi)
Publication Date: October 24, 2008
Subject(s): Nintendo DSi and its built-in software
Format: Transcribed interview
People: Satoru Iwata, Yusuke Akifusa, Masahiro Imaizumi, Yoshihiro Matsushima, Tomoaki Kuroume, Shigeru Miyamoto
Link: https://iwataasks.nintendo.com/interviews/ds/dsi/1/0/
Archive Link: https://web.archive.org/web/20220826090224/https://iwataasks.nintendo.com/interviews/ds/dsi/1/0/
Japanese Link: https://www.nintendo.co.jp/ds/interview/dsi/vol2/index.html
Japanese Archive Link: https://web.archive.org/web/20220714043342/https://www.nintendo.co.jp/ds/interview/dsi/vol2/index.html
Summary: He really wanted to include art tools and a graphic editor with the DSi. Text messaging on cell phones is beating video games as the easiest way to pass time.
He insisted on a photo editor that could crop photos and combine them and he also really wanted a music application included.
It’s not about “features”, its about creating a satisfying experience that is simple to understand. Everyone who made the DSi struggled, but also had fun.
Iwata Asks – Volume 8 : Yoichi Kotabe (Nintendo DSi)
Publication Date: October 24, 2008
Subject(s): Nintendo DSi, drawing and animating
Format: Transcribed interview
People: Satoru Iwata, Yoichi Kotabe, Shigeru Miyamoto
Link: https://iwataasks.nintendo.com/interviews/ds/dsi/7/2/
Archive Link: https://web.archive.org/web/20221217234409/https://iwataasks.nintendo.com/interviews/ds/dsi/7/2/
Japanese Link: https://www.nintendo.co.jp/ds/interview/dsi/vol8/index3.html
Japanese Archive Link: https://web.archive.org/web/20210701103656/https://www.nintendo.co.jp/ds/interview/dsi/vol8/index3.html
Summary: He wanted Peach to be stubborn, but charming, with cat-like eyes and imagined Bowser like the Ox King in Alakazam the Great. He worked with Yoichi Kotabe on their designs. He rejected motion capture animation, it can’t combine smooth movement and interactivity. The ultimate video game is a design tool. He hopes Wii Music inspires people to become musicians.
The Telegraph – Interview: Meeting Shigeru Miyamoto
Publication Date: October 24, 2008
Subject(s): Expanding the video game market, accessories, controllers, third-party developers
Format: Transcribed interview
People: Tom Hoggins, Shigeru Miyamoto
Summary: People like to play video games is because it’s like volunteering to do something. In Super Mario Bros. you might volunteer to break several bricks, looking for an item.
Repetition among competitors lead to the video game market narrowing, so they wanted to go back to the basics and appeal to as many people as possible. They knew at the start of Wii development that they needed to rethink controls.
More accessories can mean more complications and more space taken up in the living room. The Wii Balance Board can be a new bathroom scale so it has immediate appeal.
He thinks future game controllers will be expandable.
Most third-party developers are interested in continuing their franchise series. Nintendo always wants to try something new.
Yuji Naka came up with a weird idea that he likes, it’s similar to Donkey Kong Jungle Beat, where people could tap to move Donkey Kong.
The Telegraph – Nintendo Wii: this time it’s musical
Publication Date: October 25, 2008
Subject(s): Wii Music
Format: Transcribed interview
People: Tom Hoggins, Shigeru Miyamoto
Link: https://www.telegraph.co.uk/technology/3358926/Nintendo-Wii-this-time-its-musical.html
Summary: He wanted people to enjoy music rather than pressing buttons precisely. The joy of music is in expressing yourself. He always wants people to feel creative, Wii Music lets you focus on that.
There was nothing like Wii Fit and Wii Music on the market, but they are still making games Mario, Zelda, and Pikmin games. They want to expand the definition of video game entertainment at Nintendo.
Music is something for families to bond over in the living room.
It can be challenging if you do all six parts of an ensemble.
He hopes children will find the joy of playing music and be inspired to learn more about music theory. People tell him that he inspired them to become a game designer, he hopes people tell him that Wii Music inspired them to become musicians.
GameDaily – Interview: Miyamoto Discusses Wii Music and Future of Gaming
Publication Date: October 27, 2008
Subject(s): Wii Music, making games for a broad audience, user-generated content
Format: Transcribed interview
People: John Gaudiosi, Shigeru Miyamoto
Summary: Music games are popular because people call them casual. They make games for people from five to 95. Music has a broad audience.
When he talks about Wii Music’s potential for education people may mistake it for educational software. People also think of it as being for kids, which isn’t the case.
Wii Music was hard to make, and it’s hard to get people to accept it because it doesn’t have a clear goal.
He hopes Wii Music is accepted by a broad audience and that it opens a market for music creation tools. Other developers may be inspired to branch out.
For many years he’s thought it would be interesting to make a game that didn’t require looking at the television. He realized you can do that with Wii Music. He can’t quite call Wii Music a video game for this reason, instead it’s a new type of musical instrument.
For most of his 30 years in the industry he has been making games that loyal Nintendo fans enjoy, and he will continue to do so.
It’s important to keep making the kinds of games they have been making, but they also have to make gaming more accessible. They need new experiences like Wii Fit and Wii Music.
Games with user-generated content will continue to expand in the future. It’s more interesting to let people design Miis than to have their designers make them. Wii Music allows people to share their music videos.
The DSi will have software that is a sketchbook which allows you to draw and animate.
MTV – One-On-One With Shigeru Miyamoto: From ‘Wii Music’ To Bowser To… MotionPlus?
Publication Date: October 27, 2008
Subject(s): Wii Music
Format: Transcribed interview
People: Stephen Totilo, Bill Trinen (translator), Shigeru Miyamoto
Link: https://www.mtv.com/news/8tqjlp/one-on-one-with-shigeru-miyamoto
Archive Link: https://web.archive.org/web/20230124055001/https://www.mtv.com/news/8tqjlp/one-on-one-with-shigeru-miyamoto
Notes: The article says this is the first of two parts, but it ends up being three parts.
Summary: He has wanted to make a game about music for 30 years. Unlike other games he’s made there wasn’t a vision for Wii Music when they started developing it. They ended up with the idea that most people aren’t able to make music. He generally feels like no effort goes to waste, except for his years of trying to get better at playing instruments. But making Wii Music made it all feel worthwhile.
People keep asking him if he made Wii Music because of Guitar Hero and Rock Band’s success, so he wishes he had made it earlier. Other developers at Nintendo focus on making games as good as the competition, but he has to tell them that’s the wrong way to think about it, it has to be something unique.
Some people find it difficult when they don’t have a defined goal, but those who create their own goals will appreciate Wii Music. Mario Paint is another game that doesn’t give the player a defined objective, and Flipnote Studio will be another.
It’s difficult for many developers used to traditional controllers to adjust to the Wii Remote. Nintendo tries to give them tools and ideas. They wouldn’t have had the idea for Wii Music with a standard controller.
3sat neues
Publication Date: October 28, 2008
Subject(s): Wii Music, learning to play an instrument, Project H.A.M.M.E.R., new technology, augmented and virtual reality
Format: Interview (live translator)
People: Unknown 3sat neues interviewer, Yasuhiro Minagawa (translator), Shigeru Miyamoto
Videos:
Notes: Uploaded by YouTube user NintendoManiac1993.
Summary: They want the Wii to be central in the living room. Music is important when people are united.
They’ve been working on Wii Music for many years, but in that time there’s been a boom of musical games. This makes it look like Nintendo is copying them, even though Wii Music is different from them. Those are usually about being as precise as possible, but Wii Music is about performing as you like.
He’s been playing music for 30 years, but he’s never gotten good at it. That was one of his motivations for making Wii Music.
When they make a Super Mario Bros. game they decide the central idea and expand from there. There are several reasons they made Wii Music. They wanted musical software for the Wii, since it’s for the living room. They thought they could use the Wii Remote as a musical instrument. Early on you could conduct an orchestra by moving the Wii Remote, but that required being precise. When he performs in a band he gets nervous about messing up. He thought it would be more welcoming to make a game that doesn’t require playing instruments correctly.
He hopes Wii Music encourages people to learn more about music. Normally people first have to take lessons to learn to play an instrument, and can only experience the joy of expression after they learn these things. After experiencing this joy with Wii Music right away they will be interested in learning how to really play instruments.
When they launch a new system he makes a point of making a new Super Mario game. The Legend of Zelda series is also important to him. Nintendo doesn’t talk about when they will come out, but they are always thinking about them.
He’s not involved with Project H.A.M.M.E.R., another department is in charge of that.
Nintendo is not just making games for casual gamers, and there is not a hard line dividing casual and core gamers. Nintendo’s developers are core gamers and they want to make core games all the time. They may seem to have less powerful graphics, but the Wii can handle games for hardcore gamers. If people buy core games it will encourage Nintendo and third parties to make more core games.
He can’t comment on new hardware being worked on. Around 2010 Japan will end analog TV broadcasting. Nintendo is always working with technology as it changes.
All the video game hardware makers take advantage of the current technology. It’s important for Nintendo to be unique. They want to make a framework that allows them to be creative. He doesn’t have a good impression of a game system that requires wearing goggles.
After his European trip he could come up with a new idea. Today’s technologies are special, they give him inspiration to make something new.
MTV – One-On-One With Miyamoto: ‘Wii Music’ DLC, Negative Reviews, And How ‘Mario’ Fans Benefit
Publication Date: October 28, 2008
Subject(s): Wii Music
Format: Transcribed interview
People: Stephen Totilo, Bill Trinen (translator), Shigeru Miyamoto
Link: https://www.mtv.com/news/mganl9/one-on-one-with-miyamoto-part-two
Archive Link: https://web.archive.org/web/20230124061331/https://www.mtv.com/news/mganl9/one-on-one-with-miyamoto-part-two
Notes: This the second part of a three part interview.
Summary: It would be technically possible to create a system that sells new songs for Wii Music online, but for now they just want people to feel the joy of creating music. It changes the flavor of the game when Miis on your system appear in the audience. It was important that the graphics fit with the Miis.
They are creating more games like Wii Music and Wii Fit that have a broad appeal. Developers who have worked on Mario and Zelda games for years can get a new perspective and make those series have a broader appeal too.
MTV – Shigeru Miyamoto Interviews Me About Hardcore Games, Also Talks ‘Punch-Out’ And ‘Mario,’ ‘Zelda’ Shortcomings
Publication Date: October 29, 2008
Subject(s): Genre conventions, fresh ideas
Format: Transcribed interview
People: Stephen Totilo, Bill Trinen (translator), Shigeru Miyamoto
Link: https://www.mtv.com/news/nsxr7c/shigeru-miyamoto-punchout-mario-zelda-portal
Archive Link: https://web.archive.org/web/20221205172031/https://www.mtv.com/news/nsxr7c/shigeru-miyamoto-punchout-mario-zelda-portal
Notes: This the third part of a three part interview.
Summary: They could make a game that is very similar to other games in its genre, but instead they’re able to innovate by finding something unique and bring it together into a simple form. Other developers might take a gameplay element that isn’t fun and polish it and add other elements. It’s like cooking, sometimes you just have to add some salt and sometimes you have to add a lot of seasonings and sauces.
He’s told the development teams that something was missing from The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess, and Super Mario Galaxy was somewhat conservative. The hope is the next games in these franchises feel newer and fresher.
Portal was an amazing game.
Wired – Miyamoto Struggles to Sell Inscrutable Wii Music Game
Publication Date: October 31, 2008
Subject(s): Wii Music
Format: Presentation, Q & A
People: Chris Kohler, Shigeru Miyamoto
Link: https://www.wired.com/2008/10/miyamoto-wii-mu/
Archive Link: https://web.archive.org/web/20150528225248/http://www.wired.com/2008/10/miyamoto-wii-mu/
Notes: This event took place October 23, 2008 in a hotel room with about dozen press people. It started with Mr. Miyamoto talking about the features of Wii Music for an hour followed by 30 minutes of questions. There might be a more complete overview of this somewhere else.
Summary: People who have played Wii Music enjoyed it. He hopes to get the word out that you need to play Wii Music to understand it.
He thought having composer Kazumi Totaka direct it would be natural, but it was difficult. A musician has to explore the depths, but a director has to do the opposite. Directors have to distill their thoughts and explain them to others.
Takashi Tezuka knows nothing about music so he keenly watched him play, seeing if he had fun.
They chose songs that had a lot of freedom to be arranged how people liked. Popular music’s progression is usually tied to chord progression, which makes harmony and melody the same.
The kind of person that drums on their desk or hums to a song will find Wii Music interesting.
Official Nintendo Magazine – Facing the Music
Publication Date: November, 2008
Subject(s): Wii Music, daily life
Format: Transcribed interview
People: Chris Scullion, Shigeru Miyamoto
Scans:
Notes: Special thanks to Chris Chapman. Although the interviewer here is not named it is almost certainly Chris Scullion, as he states here that he interviewed Mr. Miyamoto about Wii Music while working at Official Nintendo Magazine.
Summary: The idea behind Wii Music is playing music even if you don’t know how to play an instrument, they were able to satisfactorily accomplish this.
Koji Kondo chose songs that were recognizable and simple. Only using simple traditional songs may have been boring so there are some contemporary songs, too.
He knows that some games have hardcore appeal and that hardcore gamers won’t play some casual games. Nintendo wants to destroy those barriers. Wii Music has something for both groups. People start as casual gamers and often become hardcore. His wife became obsessed with playing Dr. Mario in Brain Age 2: More Training in Minutes a Day!. She moved on to playing Professor Layton and became upset when the cat hid it.
He wasn’t interested in history or music until high school when he joined a band. Wii Music teaches players the basics of playing instruments. Maybe they should make Wii Stockmarket?
He’s not sure the next Mario and The Legend of Zelda games will be ready to be announced by E3 2009.
The DSi will allow owners to customize it and make it their own. The player function will let you play parts of songs at a slower speed. It’s very convenient for guitar players.
[The following is from the feature about his daily life.]
He’s usually late to work, but stays at least until 8:00 PM, and sometimes until 1:00 AM.
He’s very involved in some games, and not in others. He gets reports about how games are doing.
He has guitars within reach at work, although not everyone likes him playing. Sometimes he listens to CDs.
Working long hours is fine, it’s always fun to make something no one else has ever done.
He’s like a tiger that prowls around checking on things.
He tries to have lunch with Satoru Iwata as much as possible.
He watches TV or listens to music after work, even if he gets home late, and swims at least once a week. He never works on the weekend.
His favorite moment at Nintendo was when he met a United States attorney, it made him realize he was working on something that would be sold around the world.
Nintendo Investor Relations – Corporate Management Policy Briefing/Semi-Annual Financial Results Briefing for Fiscal Year Ended March 2009
Publication Date: November 4, 2008
Subject(s): Coming up with new ideas, keeping up technologically
Format: Investor Q & A
People: Unnamed investors, Nintendo executives including Shigeru Miyamoto
Link: https://www.nintendo.co.jp/ir/en/events/081031qa/index.html
Archive Link: https://web.archive.org/web/20171103130134/https://www.nintendo.co.jp/ir/en/events/081031qa/index.html
Japanese Link: https://www.nintendo.co.jp/ir/events/081031qa/index.html
Japanese Archive Link: https://web.archive.org/web/20210928093647/https://www.nintendo.co.jp/ir/events/081031qa/index.html
Summary: To come up with new ideas it is important to stay light on your feet and have many small meetings frequently. He sometimes meets with people at lunch.
The question is whether more advanced technology will really result in games with a competitive edge. You have to consider the economic side, too. Critics tend to favor the technological side rather than unique ideas. When certain levels of technology are readily available, games start to look the same.
GamePro Germany – Nintendo’s Miyamoto on Wii Music
Publication Date: November 4, 2008
Subject(s): Wii Music
Format: Transcribed interview
People: Unnamed GamePro Germany interviewer, Shigeru Miyamoto
Archive Link: https://web.archive.org/web/20081210135948/http://www.itworld.com/personal-tech/57205/nintendos-miyamoto-wii-music
Notes: The interview seems to cut off abruptly, there is probably more that has been lost.
Summary: He’s been playing music for 30 years and he’s been in several bands. He has guitars in his home and office. His son plays the guitar and drums and his daughter plays the trumpet and electric guitar.
He loves bluegrass music. Each year he joins a jam session that lasts several days.
In most music games you follow a set musical score and try to accurately keep the rhythm. In Wii Music the player plays what they want, expressing themselves. There’s no score, you play the role of a musical director and decide what sounds are featured.
Wii Music is for everyone, including people that don’t play games. Learning music theory and how to read music are hurdles that Wii Music removes. Some professional musicians find it stressful because they can’t express everything they want with a Wii Remote, but they use it to express themselves in another way. People new to playing music are happy to be able to play with the professionals.
CNET – Video game legend Miyamoto talks ‘Wii Music’
Publication Date: November 10, 2008
Subject(s): Wii Music
Format: Transcribed interview, interview (dubbed)
People: Daniel Terdiman, Bill Trinen (translator), Shigeru Miyamoto
Link: https://www.cnet.com/culture/video-game-legend-miyamoto-talks-wii-music/
Archive Link: https://web.archive.org/web/20230326004335/https://www.cnet.com/culture/video-game-legend-miyamoto-talks-wii-music/
Video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d9Uj6Xjgr8A
Notes: The video version of the interview is also available on the CNET article. It doesn’t include every question asked and the translation is somewhat different.
Summary: They wanted the Wii to be something everyone in a household could relate to, so they needed to cover sports, health, fitness, and music. They started with finding how to portray different instruments with the Wii Remote. He has been reflecting on what makes playing music fun.
They were making Wii Music when music games were popular, and it’s natural for developers to gravitate towards what’s popular. He encouraged the developers to make something different. Other music games were about rhythm matching more than making music.
There are six parts to each song in Wii Music, and you can record each separately. You can also edit other people’s songs and collaborate.
They want to make people smile and Wii Music does that. Entertainment isn’t affected by the economy the way other industries are. Wii Music has exceptional value for families.
He’s not sure Wii Music should even be called a video game, it’s more like a new kind of musical instrument. You can make music without the usual barriers.
He’s played music for a long time but he’s not very good. Wii Music gives children a taste of what it’s like to make music and hopefully gets them interested in music.
It would be the greatest joy if someone tells him 20 years from now that they became a musician because of Wii Music.
He focuses on two things when making games. One is that the player should find their own goals, the other is that the game is fun for people watching it being played. Both are true of Wii Music.
They could have included features in Wii Music to share music online, but they’ve focused on sharing with friends. Some people in Japan have been getting quite few views on their YouTube videos, though.
The Wall Street Journal – Nintendo’s Wii Music Waits for Fans/Interview Excerpts: Shigeru Miyamoto
Publication Date: December 15, 2008
Subject(s): Wii Music, DS, making casual games
Format: Transcribed interview
People: Yukari Iwatani Kane, Shigeru Miyamoto
Link: https://www.wsj.com/amp/articles/SB122930373918205685
https://www.wsj.com/amp/articles/SB122834417100677251
Archive Link: https://web.archive.org/web/20230513195721/https://www.wsj.com/amp/articles/SB122930373918205685
https://web.archive.org/web/20230513200036/https://www.wsj.com/amp/articles/SB122834417100677251
Notes: These two articles were published the same day and are probably the same interview. Nintendo’s Wii Music Waits for Fans just has a few quotes from Mr. Miyamoto, while Interview Excerpts: Shigeru Miyamoto is described as “some excerpts” from an interview. If there is a full version of the interview I haven’t found it.
Summary: [Nintendo’s Wii Music Waits for Fans.]
He doesn’t expect Wii Music to be an immediate hit, word of mouth will spread.
He wants Wii Music to show the joy of music.
Developing for the Wii is a good test of a developer’s abilities.
[Interview Excerpts: Shigeru Miyamoto.]
He’s wanted to make a music game for a long time. The Wii Remote is well-suited to playing an instrument. Scoring the player on how well they played a popular song wouldn’t have been fun. He wanted people to be able to play music without practicing or knowing how to read music.
He wasn’t aiming to make Wii Music educational.
He didn’t think of Wii Music as the same kind of thing as Rock Band or Guitar Hero until he brought the game to the United States.
They made the DS with books in mind. Crosswords are better on digital devices since you don’t have to erase anything. Consoles are tied to televisions, so they should make them more useful. Wii Fit leads to communications between family members.
It’s important to see from the consumer’s perspective.
There are always copycats in the entertainment business. Sometimes copies can turn out great, like with Dragon Quest and Ultima. The more simple a game the more you have to pay attention to details. They didn’t plan on making casual games, that’s just how they ended up appealing to more people.
He doesn’t know what direction software will go in the future. His goal right now is making the Wii a necessity for every home.
2009
Iwata Asks – Nintendo Game Seminar 2008 – The Road to Completing Animal Crossing Part 4
Publication Date: January 26, 2009 (translated July 11, 2016)
Subject(s): Animal Crossing (series), Animal Crossing (N64), 64DD
Format: Transcribed interview
People: Satoru Iwata Katsuya Eguchi, Hisashi Nogami, Shigeru Miyamoto
Japanese Link: https://www.nintendo.co.jp/etc/seminar2008/doubutsu/index.html
Japanese Archive Link: https://web.archive.org/web/20150717210929/http://www.nintendo.co.jp/etc/seminar2008/doubutsu/index.html
Translator: Matt Walker for Nintendo World Report
Summary: Is Katsuya Eguchi looking for atonement after he said he wanted to use the letter feature of Animal Crossing to leave messages for his son?
Famitsu (reported on by 1UP)
Publication Date: Unknown (reported on March 11, 2009)
Subject(s): Chasing trends, Nintendo 64, GameCube, DS
Format: Transcribed interview
People: Reported on by Kevin Gifford, Katsuaki Kato, Shigeru Miyamoto
Archive Link: https://web.archive.org/web/20090315183525/http://www.1up.com/do/newsStory?cId=3173211
Summary: For a time Nintendo was doing what other companies did.
You have to look at the world with wide eyes in the entertainment industry, but he followed trends for a few years.
He was fascinated with 3D worlds during the Nintendo 64 and GameCube era, but after tinkering with the technical side he didn’t know who was making the games anymore.
If Nintendo’s planned and polished games don’t stand out while others did, then the creation process was for nothing. The non-gaming public didn’t talk about Nintendo’s GameCube games.
The considered starting over and making games for people that didn’t play games. The Classic NES series for the Game Boy Advance got the response they wanted. They didn’t want a new game system, they wanted to make the world go crazy.
Hiroshi Yamauchi said “two screens”, which turned development upside down. It would be more expensive and larger but it could attract a wide range of people. The touch controls brought things together.
IGN – E3 2009: Shigeru Miyamoto Roundtable LiveBlog
Publication Date: June 2, 2009
Subject(s): New Super Mario Bros., Super Mario Galaxy 2, Wii Sports Resort, Wii Fit Plus, The Legend of Zelda: Spirit Tracks, The Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword
Format: Presentation, demonstration, Q & A (live translator)
People: Matt Casamassina, Craig Harris, Unnamed members of the press, Bill Trinen, Tim O’Leary (translator), Shigeru Miyamoto
Link: https://www.ign.com/articles/2009/06/03/e3-2009-shigeru-miyamoto-roundtable-liveblog
Notes: E3 2009 was one of the few without a public appearance by Miyamoto, but he did have a roundtable interview with the press. No photos or videos were allowed.
Summary: Nintendo brought fewer people to E3 this year due to Swine Flu.
He had an idea about bringing your DS with you around town and getting information about the places you visit. This has been implemented in Japan already.
He has tried to work in multiplayer to almost every Mario game, but it hasn’t ever come together. New Super Mario Bros. will zoom the camera in and out thanks to the Wii’s power. The cooperative and competitive nature is like Mario Bros. There are about 80 levels.
They had so many ideas left over after Super Mario Galaxy, the sequel is 90-95% new content.
Wii Sports got people off the couch, but he thought it could do better in improving a player’s skills.
The island in Wii Fit Plus is the same one as in Wii Fit. For a long time he has been thinking about making a location a character.
The Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword might require Wii MotionPlus. Some think of Zelda games as a role-playing game with simpler controls.
The Wii Vitality Sensor is unique and he’s been interested in it for a long time.
It’s a challenge to make New Super Mario Bros. Wii enjoyable by a wide audience.
The stamp system in Wii Sports Resort is not the start of an achievement system. He’s not a fan of using carrots to incentivize play.
There’s no power left to spare for online play in New Super Mario Bros. Wii.
SimCity had a big impact on him, and he worked on the Nintendo Entertainment System version.
Kotaku – Miyamoto: Super Mario Galaxy 2 Will Have 90% New Levels
Publication Date: June 2, 2009
Subject(s): Super Mario Galaxy 2
Format: Transcribed interview
People: Stephen Totilo, Shigeru Miyamoto
Link: https://kotaku.com/miyamoto-super-mario-galaxy-2-will-have-90-new-levels-5276440
Archive Link: https://web.archive.org/web/20190216031733/https://kotaku.com/miyamoto-super-mario-galaxy-2-will-have-90-new-levels-5276440
Notes: This interview took place at E3 2009.
Summary: They usually don’t have two games from a franchise on the same console. Super Mario Galaxy allowed them to experiment with spherical worlds and there was a lot they wanted to do.
For Super Mario Galaxy 2 they originally wanted to make variations of levels from the original, but they had so many ideas that 90% of the levels are new.
There’s something like a ghost, but different.
Kotaku – Miyamoto “Sorry” He Has No New Pikmin For Us Yet
Publication Date: June 2, 2009
Subject(s): Pikmin 3
Format: Transcribed interview
People: Brian Crecente, Stephen Totilo, Shigeru Miyamoto
Link: https://kotaku.com/miyamoto-sorry-he-has-no-new-pikmin-for-us-yet-5276531
Archive Link: https://web.archive.org/web/20191111171406/https://kotaku.com/miyamoto-sorry-he-has-no-new-pikmin-for-us-yet-5276531
Notes: This interview took place at E3 2009
Summary: He’s sorry, but there’s no Pikmin 3 at E3 because the team working on it is still small.
There are more than 2 people on the team and it will be a full sized new game. The idea is for it to be deep and simple to control.
IGN – E3 2009: What Happened to Link’s Sword?
Publication Date: June 4, 2009
Subject(s): The Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword, The Legend of Zelda: Spirit Tracks, Super Mario Galaxy 2, new IP, Pikmin 3
Format: Transcribed interview
People: Unnamed IGN interviewer, Shigeru Miyamoto
Link: https://www.ign.com/articles/2009/06/04/e3-2009-what-happened-to-links-sword
Archive Link: https://web.archive.org/web/20210621060633/https://www.ign.com/articles/2009/06/04/e3-2009-what-happened-to-links-sword
Notes: This interview took place at E3 2009. There is a video of part of the interview here.
Summary: The work he does generally appeals to a wide age range. He has no problem with the games he’s worked on with second and third parties that don’t. The gaming audience is shrinking and he wants to help expand it. When they work with other developers they often want to do something like what Nintendo does, but they have to tell them that’s not what they want.
In the art shown off for The Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword at the press-only roundtable Link is missing something.
When they make Mario and Zelda games they have to appeal to long time fans as well as people who have never played them. He has to make sure he doesn’t make the game too difficult when he gets involved.
The Legend of Zelda: Spirit Tracks will have four player wireless play, it will have cooperative elements, and won’t include swords.
Pikmin is not the last IP they have made. There’s Miis, Wii Sports, Nintendogs, and the island in Wii Sports Resort. He’s all dried up in terms of new hardcore IP. The young people at Nintendo are driving new IP.
The basics are done on Pikmin 3.
The puppet team still really wants to work on Marionette.
He wanted to do Flipnote Studio for a long time, he’s working with Yoshiaki Koizumi on it.
They are releasing a black Wii with Monster Hunter Tri.
Wired – Q&A: Nintendo’s Shigeru Miyamoto on Mario, Zelda, Project Natal and More
Publication Date: June 12, 2009
Subject(s): Wii Sports Resort, video game controls, Super Mario Galaxy 2, the Japanese game industry
Format: Transcribed interview
People: Chris Kohler, Shigeru Miyamoto
Link: https://www.wired.com/2009/06/shigeru-miyamoto-interview/
Archive Link: https://web.archive.org/web/20141214182818/http://www.wired.com/2009/06/shigeru-miyamoto-interview/
Notes: This interview took place at E3 2009.
Summary: He has made some WarioWare: D.I.Y. games, but they are weird.
He’s always wanted to make a multiplayer Mario game, but it was difficult because one player will get left behind. There was a Super Mario 64 experiment where the camera would zoom out as Mario and Luigi were separated. With the Wii the resolution is high enough that you can still see your character when the camera is zoomed out.
They have looked at motion-sensing cameras before but decided not to use them. Wii Sports Resort uses Wii MotionPlus and shows off what it can do.
You need something physical to hold onto, otherwise it doesn’t feel interactive. The archery in Wii Sports Resort is very good. You can hear the sound of the Frisbee from the Wii Remote speaker.
They made Super Mario Galaxy 2 because they still had more ideas. One such idea was China Syndrome, the idea that if you drill through the Earth you will eventually come out on the opposite side. The drill was the first thing they made. Yoshi makes it easier to carry things around in the game.
He feels like Mario games aren’t suited to a detailed story, unlike The Legend of Zelda. He stopped Yoshiaki Koizumi from putting more story in Super Mario Galaxy 2. Mario games are physical and active. The developers want elaborate sequences where Princess Peach gets kidnapped, but he tells them that she likes cake, so cake can be bait that leads to her getting kidnapped.
It’s not healthy for the video game industry to announce games so far in advance.
Hopefully Wii Sports Resort will show good Wii MotionPlus is. Some people may hesitate to play motion controlled games because they’re afraid they won’t look cool.
Perhaps the Japanese game industry has just been making whatever they wanted and it’s sold well until now. They may have been making games for which there is no demand. Level-5 is a Japanese developer that has been doing well all over the world by not jumping on trends.
G4TV – Shigeru Miyamoto E3 2009 Interview
Publication Date: June 15, 2009
Subject(s): New Super Mario Bros. Wii, Super Mario Galaxy 2
Format: Interview (dubbed)
People: Blair Herter, Tim O’Leary (translator), Shigeru Miyamoto
Archive Link: https://web.archive.org/web/20130310044219/http://www.g4tv.com/videos/39175/shigeru-miyamoto-e3-2009-interview/
Notes: This interview took place at E3 2009.
Summary: He’s wanted to make a multiplayer Mario game since the first. New Super Mario Bros. Wii has four player multiplayer so they can get families or groups of friends playing together.
The developers are excited about Super Mario Galaxy 2 and they keep adding more. They see 2D and 3D Mario games differently, so it hasn’t been hard to work on both Mario games at the same time.
Bringing in new staff members helps keep the creativity going. Young people want to change things but they learn there are more important things.
They usually have big announcement events for new The Legend of Zelda games, but since they are taking a different approach with development this time they thought it would be better to announce it at a smaller venue.
When players use motion controls and move their whole body they have fun, and it’s nice to see Microsoft and Sony recognize that. He’s all for expanding the audience of video games.
The people who work at Nintendo love to play games so they’ll keep making games that people enjoy.
Kotaku – The Great Chain Interview, Part 1: Miyamoto Questions Metroid Director
Publication Date: June 15, 2009
Subject(s): Retirement
Format: Transcribed interview
People: Stephen Totilo, Shigeru Miyamoto
Link: https://kotaku.com/the-great-chain-interview-part-1-miyamoto-questions-m-5291233
Archive Link: https://web.archive.org/web/20220118070945/https://kotaku.com/the-great-chain-interview-part-1-miyamoto-questions-m-5291233
Notes: This is the start of Stephen Totilo’s second “chain interview”, where each person interviewed answers a question from the previous interviewee, and poses their own to the next person. Mr. Miyamoto started the chain and only got to ask a question. This took place at E3 2009.
Summary: When does Yoshio Sakamoto think he should retire?
GameSpot – E3 2009: Shigeru Miyamoto: The State of Nintendo Interview
Publication Date: June 16, 2009
Subject(s): Wii Sports Resort, New Super Mario Bros. Wii, The Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword, Metroid: Other M
Format: Interview (dubbed)
People: Ricardo Torres, Tim O’Leary (translator), Shigeru Miyamoto
Video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=168LjsWN5Bc
Notes: This interview took place at E3 2009.
Summary: Wii Sports Resort ended up more advanced and with more variety than they had planned. They chose sports that worked particularly well with MotionPlus. Wii Sports got people with different levels of game experience to play together, and Wii Sports Resort provides the opportunity to improve your skills and compete.
With a game like Wii Sports Resort you want to be able to look your competitor in the face, so they didn’t make it playable online. It doesn’t lend itself with the selection of sports.
New Super Mario Bros. Wii works as a single or multiplayer game. If he told the developers they had to put in the Tanooki Suit they probably could, but don’t count on it.
MotionPlus would lend itself well to a new The Legend of Zelda game. He doesn’t think of Zelda games as action games so much as experiences in Hyrule.
He’s not a producer of Metroid: Other M, but that team is working on making it third person plus first person.
Iwata Asks: Punch Out
Publication Date: July 13, 2009
Subject(s): Punch-Out!! (series), Punch-Out!! (arcade), Punch-Out!! (NES), Super Punch-Out!!, Punch-Out!! (Wii)
Format: Transcribed interview
People: Satoru Iwata, Makoto Wada, Kensuke Tanabe, Genyo Takeda, Shigeru Miyamoto
Link: https://iwataasks.nintendo.com/interviews/wii/punchout/0/0/
Archive Link: https://web.archive.org/web/20220826090045/https://iwataasks.nintendo.com/interviews/wii/punchout/0/0/
Japanese Link: https://www.nintendo.co.jp/wii/interview/r7pj/vol1/index.html
Japanese Archive Link: https://web.archive.org/web/20150718002842/http://www.nintendo.co.jp/wii/interview/r7pj/vol1/index.html
Summary: They needed to come up with an arcade game that used two televisions because they had an excess amount left over. Genyo Takeda thought a boxing game should have a glove interface, but he thought that was ambiguous, so they went with standard buttons and a joystick.
He didn’t feel confident in his ability to draw the boxers so he sent his drawings to Takao Kozai to make better versions, who said they were interesting. He was really impressed with Kozai’s work. Punch-Out!! created a lot of connections. He drew the player and referee, which is why they look worse. Takeda is free-wheeling and was ahead of his time with the boxing glove controller idea. There was no approval system for Mario back then and he got snuck in under his nose as the referee in Super Punch-Out!!
Punch-Out!! for the Wii is more compatible with the Wii Balance Board than expected, and was interesting. Punch-Out!! is a memorization game and its game elements are well defined. Young game designers add new things to make a game fun when they should be making what they already have more fun instead. Moms should try Punch-Out!!, they will find it exhilarating.
The Telegraph – Shigeru Miyamoto interview: A new resort for Nintendo
Publication Date: July 17, 2009
Subject(s): Wii, Wii Sports Resort, Motion Plus
Format: Transcribed interview
People: Tom Hoggins, Shigeru Miyamoto
Summary: When developing the Wii they decided to pursue state-of-the-art technologies that would make you feel like you were there, rather than photorealistic graphics.
They want Wii Sports Resort and Motion Plus to provide new experiences that Wii Sports couldn’t. Not all games will require Motion Plus. They were only able to make Motion Plus so small and at the price they are selling it for because of advancements that happened after the Wii launched.
The Mercury News – The Mercury News interview: Shigeru Miyamoto, head of game development, Nintendo
Publication Date:
Subject(s): Recession, Physical versus digital, motion controls, Wii Vitality Sensor
Format: Transcribed interview
People: Troy Wolverton, Shigeru Miyamoto
Summary: With the recession they are continuing to focus on making what people want. They think about how people spend their entertainment budget by making something the whole family can use.
Digital distribution eliminates the cost for packaging and other things and creates opportunities for some developers. He likes physical media and he doesn’t see a majority of their products becoming digital only.
It’s a great trend that others are using motion controls now too because it allows more people to get into games.
They have a lot of creative ideas for the Wii Vitality Sensor.
Iwata Asks – Volume 1 (Wii Fit Plus)
Publication Date: September 29, 2009
Subject(s): Wii Fit Plus
Format: Transcribed interview
People: Satoru Iwata, Shigeru Miyamoto
Link: https://iwataasks.nintendo.com/interviews/wii/wiifitplus/0/0/
Archive Link: https://web.archive.org/web/20220826090100/https://iwataasks.nintendo.com/interviews/wii/wiifitplus/0/0/
Japanese Link: https://www.nintendo.co.jp/wii/interview/rfpj/vol1/index.html
Japanese Archive Link: https://web.archive.org/web/20150718123637/http://www.nintendo.co.jp/wii/interview/rfpj/vol1/index.html
Summary: The idea of Wii Fit Plus was to train minds as well as bodies. The personalized menu was remade four times. You can weigh your pets now, unlike Wii Fit. He wanted cats added after he got a cat. You can weigh babies or any household object. He carries a measuring tape so he can guess and measure lengths of things. The priority was to get back people who stopped using Wii Fit. He wants to go door to door to every Wii Fit owner and tell them to exchange it.
MTV – Miyamoto’s First Video Game Experience Was Violent
Publication Date: October 15, 2009
Subject(s): First gaming experience
Format: Transcribed interview
People: Russ Frushtick, Shigeru Miyamoto
Link: https://www.mtv.com/news/k0zcyv/miyamotos-first-video-game-experience-was-violent
Archive Link: https://web.archive.org/web/20230124202742/https://www.mtv.com/news/k0zcyv/miyamotos-first-video-game-experience-was-violent
Notes: This is probably from the same interview as this entry.
Summary: His first experience with a video game was at a Game Center. There was an arcade game with gunmen. It’s like if Martin Scorsese’s first movie was Babe: Pig in the City.
Wired – Miyamoto: New Mario Tests Your Hard-Core Gaming Chops
Publication Date: October 16, 2009
Subject(s): New Super Mario Bros. Wii, Wii Fit Plus, “Captain” Lou Albano, Super Guide, Wii Music
Format: Presentation/demonstration, Q & A
People: Tracey John, Leigh Alexander, Jamin Brophy-Warren, Andrew Yoon, Craig Harris, Chris Grant, N’Gai Croal, Chris Buffa, Chris Plante, James Brightman, Scott Stein, Nick Chester, Jason Cipriano, Elise Vogel, Tom Holoien, Brightman, Bill Trinen (translator), Shigeru Miyamoto
Link: https://www.wired.com/2009/10/shigeru-miyamoto/
Archive Link: https://web.archive.org/web/20141012125305/http://www.wired.com/2009/10/shigeru-miyamoto/
Summary: Since people tend to find it difficult to fit in time for exercise they tried to make Wii Fit Plus faster to use. There are sportslike elements and you can weigh your pets now. It’s more like an upgrade of the original, so it’s being sold at a lower price.
New Super Mario Bros. Wii had to be designed so that everyone in the living room can interact with it. The original Super Mario Bros. concept was about playing together. They found during the development of New Super Mario Bros. that balancing the difficulty for new gamers and long-time fans was difficult. New Super Mario Bros. Wii is more difficult, but advanced players can bring novice players through the levels. It’s a full Super Mario game with a story and eight worlds and up to four players can cooperate. There are also two multiplayer modes.
When people played it alone during testing they would look serious, but when playing with someone else they would smile and jabber.
After you die eight times a Super Guide block will appear. It acts like an instruction manual, it doesn’t show secret areas or star coins. If you beat the game without making the Super Guide appear will get something special on the title screen.
Coin Battle mostly uses the same levels as the story mode, but there are five exclusive ones.
It looks so much like Super Mario Bros. because they wanted it to be accessible and it was a good fit for a multiplayer Mario game.
They wanted to focus on a living room experience, making it online would have taken away from other parts of development. It’s more suited to an in-person experience.
The video game market is still a package-based one. He prefers to have something physical.
Giving the player a prize for playing in a specific way is something they’ve done with Mario for a long time, it’s not like an achievement system.
He did not know about Lou Albano’s death until being told just now.
All of his titles end up behind schedule. They focus on the skeleton framework of the game more than the graphics and sound. If it’s not working he upends the tea table before the graphics and sound are done. His bad habit is telling developers to change things when it’s too late to do so.
He has an interest in a Mario level creation tool, side-scrolling games are especially well suited to them.
Since people have different favorite elements of Mario games they try to bring some back. The Coin Battle is like Mario Bros. and one of its stages is a parody of 1-1 from Super Mario Bros.
The Japanese market as a whole is not suffering, New Super Mario Bros. and Dragon Quest IX: Sentinels of the Starry Skies sold millions there.
He was surprised that people can have fun in multiplayer without doing much of anything.
The Super Guide is like putting a strategy guide or online guide into the game. It may not be used in other games, some games are more suited to this kind of mechanic than others.
The developers of Wii Music were a bit shocked by the response to it. It was interesting how some people really liked it and some really didn’t.
People are remembering what is good about 2D games. Multiplayer platforming is better suited to 2D than 3D.
They asked themselves what kind of Mario game fits the Wii. One answer was the Super Mario Galaxy games, the other was New Super Mario Bros. Wii.
Mario games have to be simple to understand and control, they are about unleashing creativity. You can freeze enemies in this game, but it raises several questions, like does a flying enemy fall from the air when frozen? Does something happen when it hits the ground? Should you be able to jump on it before it falls? It’s important that a Mario game can answer these questions.
He wanted to have Princess Peach playable at first, but the Toads are more similar to Mario and Luigi in size and shape. They also would have had to program how the skirt is handled. If Wario was playable he’d have to be able to fart.
Popular Mechanics – Exclusive Interview With Nintendo Gaming Mastermind Shigeru Miyamoto
Publication Date: October 19, 2009
Subject(s): New Super Mario Bros. Wii, favorite character, Donkey Kong players, blowing on cartridges
Format: Transcribed interview
People: Seth Porges, Bill Trinen (translator), Shigeru Miyamoto
Link: https://www.popularmechanics.com/culture/gaming/a4690/4334387/
Archive Link: https://web.archive.org/web/20150213021502/http://www.popularmechanics.com/culture/gaming/a4690/4334387/
Notes: The article has an embedded video of part of the interview. Although one version of the article says it was published in December, another version is dated October 19.
Summary: They want the New Super Mario Bros. series to be accessible to different kinds of players. People who have never played a game, people who used to play games, and avid gamers.
In making New Super Mario Bros. Wii they kept in mind that the Wii might reach an even broader audience than the DS, and it is typically played by multiple people. It was hard to get the difficulty right, but they added the ability for players to carry each other through a level.
Mario is his favorite character, but he’s also fond of Goombas.
They had a limited palette when making Donkey Kong. They had seven pixels for Mario’s face, and he wanted Mario to look as distinct as possible.
Mario was a carpenter in Donkey Kong since it took place at a construction site and a plumber in Mario Bros. since it looked like a New York sewer.
He’s not good at making totally heroic or villainous characters, other than for The Legend of Zelda. Mario isn’t that serious.
He doesn’t consciously include Japanese mythology in The Legend of Zelda, or cultural elements from any country.
They don’t generally make detailed back stories for their characters, though The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time is an exception.
He hasn’t seen King of Kong, but hardcore Donkey Kong players have an amazing understanding of the game. Bill Trinen promised to give him a copy. He’s not familiar with The Wizard, either, so maybe Bill will bring him two movies.
Since the DS and Wii launched there has been an increased understanding of video games and they’ve become a greater part of people’s lives. People who grew up with games are parents now, and understand what their kids are playing.
Video games used to be seen as toys, but now they are essentially computers. They benefit from being more approachable than a computer. Video game consoles are going to bleed into other aspects of life.
Some the rituals people used to get Nintendo Entertainment System games to work did in fact work. Blowing on cartridges might get moisture on the contacts, which helped them connect. If you’re having trouble with your cartridges you should get the official cleaning kit.
They don’t have concrete plans for the Wii Remote in the future, but it’s likely they’ll try to make it more compact and cheaper.
No one has ever thrown barrels at him, but you’d see that kind of thing in the manga he read growing up.
Itmedia (Asiagraph Award speech, untranslated from Japanese)
Publication Date: October 24, 2009
Subject(s): His history in the game industry
Format: Presentation
People: Shigeru Miyamoto
Japanese Link: https://nlab.itmedia.co.jp/games/articles/0910/27/news082.html
Japanese Archive Link: https://web.archive.org/web/20200929015727/https://nlab.itmedia.co.jp/games/articles/0910/27/news082.html
Notes: I’m only going off of machine translation here, but this is an article about a speech Mr. Miyamoto gave after winning an Asiagraph Award where he talks about his time working at Nintendo.
MTV – Mario Creator Talks Disappointment With ‘Star Fox’
Publication Date: October 27, 2009
Subject(s): Disappointing sales, Star Fox
Format: Transcribed interview
People: Russ Frushtick, Shigeru Miyamoto
Link: https://www.mtv.com/news/dzkww7/mario-creator-talks-disappointment-with-star-fox
Archive Link: https://web.archive.org/web/20230124031259/https://www.mtv.com/news/dzkww7/mario-creator-talks-disappointment-with-star-fox
Notes: This is probably from the same interview as this entry.
Summary: He tends to forget about the games that don’t see the success he expects. He’s a big fan of Star Fox games, he always hopes people will like them as much as he does. Fewer people buy Star Fox in Japan over the years.
Edge – An Audience with Shigeru Miyamoto
Publication Date: November, 2009 (assumed)
Subject(s): Traditional versus new games, Nintendo’s hiring practices, his work day
Format: Transcribed interview
People: Unknown Edge interviewer, Shigeru Miyamoto
Link: https://www.zeldadungeon.net/wiki/Interview:Edge_December_14th_2009
Archive Link: https://web.archive.org/web/20140814031304/http://www.zeldadungeon.net/wiki/Interview:Edge_December_14th_2009
Notes: Zelda Dungeon has a link to the original interview hosted on next-gen.biz, but it was not archived. Although this article is dated December 14 on Zelda Dungeon, a Eurogamer article about this interview was published November 23, so I am assuming this is from the November, 2009 issue.
Summary: When they make Mario games, The Legend of Zelda games, or other traditional games they know what the game will feel like from the start. They create a new theme and go from there. They have teams make a prototype and look for something unique. The process isn’t so different for something like Wii Music or Wii Fit. They have something different to bring to these kinds of titles.
Their basis is to make games simple. The Super Guide in New Super Mario Bros. Wii is like a built in guidebook.
There aren’t many differences between long running series like Mario and Zelda and games with completely new rules. They have to incorporate certain elements into Mario and Zelda games, but they also have to make them accessible to someone who has never played one.
There are rules and you have to show them to the audience for both types of games. With established games it’s interesting to add new things and challenge the framework. With New Super Mario Bros. Wii they wanted to make a multiplayer game that would be challenging and fun for a wide group.
His style hasn’t changed much. He has tended to work more in depth as a game nears completion. With newer games like Nintendogs and Wii Music he’s more involved in the early stages. The biggest change in his career is becoming more involved with hardware design. Starting with the DS he has been very involved with designing hardware.
It’s difficult to judge people applying to Nintendo at an early stage. The people who stand out often become lone wolves, but working well in a team is very important.
Hiroshi Yamauchi would say that people have luck sometimes, and it would move to other people. That’s how he saw the world.
Nintendo is a company that recent graduates from good universities apply to, which makes the competition fierce. He tells Satoru Iwata that he’d probably not get hired if he applied now. He tries to find something about applicants that can’t be judged by their degree.
About a third of his time is spent in meetings, about a third is spent with people outside of the Kyoto office, and another third is spent on internal game development. If nothing is working he has to write the development sheets himself. He’s in the office from 9:00AM to 10:00PM or midnight. He keeps Tuesday free for swimming.
Nintendo always wants to be different, while others try to be better at something that someone else has done. Even for the Mario and Zelda games they always ask what’s new and fresh about this one.
Bloomberg News – Nintendo’s Game Designer Unfazed by Profit Drop
Publication Date: November 1, 2009
Subject(s): The Wii’s future, New Super Mario Bros.
Format: Transcribed interview
People: Damian Joseph, Shigeru Miyamoto
Link: https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2009-11-01/nintendos-game-designer-unfazed-by-profit-drop
Notes: Mr. Miyamoto is described as “rarely speaking in public”. The quotes from Mr. Miyamoto are described as being from a recent interview in the U.S., it’s not clear if Damian Joseph was the one who interviewed him.
Summary: Many are satisfied playing their Wii, and some are looking for a higher-powered console after that. Nintendo is always conducting research.
Companies shouldn’t necessarily do the same thing, he’d like them all to use their unique strengths.
Wii Fit Plus and MotionPlus show that there are a lot of possibilities left for the Wii.
New Super Mario Bros. nearly missed the holiday season because he was polishing it.
Nintendo Investor Relations – Corporate Management Policy Briefing/Semi-Annual Financial Results Briefing for Fiscal Year Ended March 2010
Publication Date: November 2, 2009
Subject(s): New Super Mario Bros. Wii, Wii Vitality Sensor, The Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword, high definition graphics
Format: Investor Q & A
People: Unnamed investors, Nintendo executives including Shigeru Miyamoto
Link: https://www.nintendo.co.jp/ir/en/events/091030qa/index.html
Archive Link: https://web.archive.org/web/20171103032018/https://www.nintendo.co.jp/ir/en/events/091030qa/index.html
Japanese Link: https://www.nintendo.co.jp/ir/events/091030qa/index.html
Japanese Archive Link: https://web.archive.org/web/20220907222720/https://www.nintendo.co.jp/ir/events/091030qa/index.html
Summary: New Super Mario Bros. Wii is New Super Mario Bros. built for the Wii, everyone can enjoy it. The key feature is four person multiplayer. They have been talking about multiplayer Mario games since after Mario Bros. Super Mario Galaxy’s multiplayer was a system where dads could help their kids, or kids could help their mom. The Wii’s hardware allows for zooming in and out to show all players. New Super Mario Bros. Wii is game that can be enjoyed by everyone equally, rather than a game everyone can clear equally. More people have been carrying around their DS because of Dragon Quest IX: Sentinels of the Starry Skies’ Tag Mode and they want to develop something based on that. He has recently gotten cats.
The Legend of Zelda: Spirit Tracks may be too hard for Japanese players who had their first adventure with The Legend of Zelda: Phantom Hourglass. While developing Zelda games for the DS he has found that one of its core appeals is uniqueness. They want to be as creative as possible for the next Wii Zelda game, using the Wii MotionPlus for realistic use of swords. In regards to the Wii Vitality Sensor, transforming something invisible into a number will be materials of new plays and can improve lifestyles.
His only concern with technologies is that they cannot swim against the tide, customer’s tastes become more refined. Some customers see high definition graphics once and say they cannot go back. It is hard to pay off games made only for the Japanese market. Zelda games do not have the same popularity in Japan that they do worldwide, they generally sell five times more overseas, Mario games around four times more. They have to ask themselves if high definition is needed for Wii Fit, wouldn’t it be better to use it for Pikmin?
New Super Mario Bros. Wii – Shigeru Miyamoto Interview
Publication Date: November 9, 2009 (approximate)
Subject(s): New Super Mario Bros. Wii
Format: Interview (dubbed)
People: Bill Trinen (translator), Shigeru Miyamoto
Video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mW3MRqOUSaY
Notes: This video originally appeared on the Wii’s Nintendo Channel. Uploaded by YouTube user NintenDaanNC.
Summary: The Wii and DS have led many who quit playing games to start again, and others to start for the first time.
Every time they’ve made a Mario game they’ve tried to get multiplayer to work. New Super Mario Bros. Wii finally allows for that.
They thought it was fun to shake the Wii Remote so they made a lot of gameplay depend on it. They have made some moves that work well with the controls.
They tried to address how to appeal to players who have played the whole Mario series as well as people who have never played it before with New Super Mario Bros. For New Super Mario Bros. Wii they made the Super Guide to help newer players. Activating the Super Guide block will cause Luigi to run through the stage, showing you what to do.
There are several multiplayer modes. In one you play through every world. You could bring a child through the game. With four people only one person needs to stay alive. There’s also coin battle where you fight for points. Free for all mode lets you play through levels in any order.
Playing face to face with people fits the Mario experience better than playing online.
New Super Mario Bros. Wii is in the middle in terms of difficulty. In between Super Mario Bros. 3 and Super Mario World. Seeing the Super Guide block can be frustrating. If you beat the game without the Super Guide block appearing some kind of reward might appear.
Iwata Asks – New Super Mario Bros: Volume 1
Publication Date: November 13, 2009
Subject(s): New Super Mario Bros. Wii, Mario’s origins, Donkey Kong, Mario Bros., Super Mario Bros., New Super Mario Bros.
Format: Transcribed interview
People: Satoru Iwata, Shigeru Miyamoto
Link: https://iwataasks.nintendo.com/interviews/wii/nsmb/0/0/
Archive Link: https://web.archive.org/web/20221019040253/https://iwataasks.nintendo.com/interviews/wii/nsmb/0/0/
Japanese Link: https://www.nintendo.co.jp/wii/interview/smnj/vol1/index.html
Japanese Archive Link: https://web.archive.org/web/20220922164257/https://www.nintendo.co.jp/wii/interview/smnj/vol1/index.html
Summary: They analyzed why people played the most popular arcade games. Gunpei Yokoi explained a lot to him. He sketched out five ideas for games, including a Popeye game, which eventually became Donkey Kong. A fun game should be understandable immediately. A game may have two simple actions, but managing both can be tricky. Climbing and jumping over barrels are both easy, but doing both is tricky. The game is four separate screens because the hardware couldn’t scroll. Mario could jump to make use of the button included.
Mario had a mustache and hat to more easily fit into a 8×8 pixel space and he wears overalls so his arms are a different color from his body, which makes animation look better. Mario was originally called Mr. Video and he knew he wanted to include him in every game he made. Someone at Nintendo of America came up with the name Mario. Gunpei Yokoi suggested Mario be able to fall from any height in Mario Bros., and that the game should include hitting enemies from underneath platforms. The only creature they could come up with that would recover after being struck from below was a turtle righting itself.
To let players know when the turtle would recover they had it pop out of its shell and walk back to it. The idea for pipes came from manga. They decided to have pipes that warp from the top to the bottom after seeing a wall with pipes in it. They were green because it looked good when combining two shades.
He feels that jumping games had been Nintendo’s idea and that other games copied it. Super Mario Bros. had the concept of a large character negotiating land, sea, and air. Mushrooms making Mario bigger was not an idea from Alice in Wonderland, there is a relationship between mushrooms and magical realms. He made sure players realized the mushroom was a good thing, and not like a Goomba.
There are two strands of Mario games now: 2D and 3D. 2D can be enjoyed by anyone. New Super Mario Bros. was a bit too easy, New Super Mario Bros. Wii is a bit tougher, but allows players to have an easier time with the Super Guide. It took a lot of discussion to nail down when the option for the Super Guide would appear. They tried to get simultaneous multiplayer to work in Super Mario 64, and the fixed camera mode is a relic of that. Thanks to the bubble system even people who never played a Mario game can see the final level.
They originally thought it was totally outrageous to have a block floating in the air. He told the audio staff to make the propeller powerup sound like a beetle, but that didn’t sound right. Mario is fundamentally a game where if you fail, you are sent back to the start. It feels good to play the easy parts of the level and not just the hard parts. This is unlike an arcade game that just gets more and more difficult. Replaying the levels of an action game is the correct way.
The Telegraph – Shigeru Miyamoto interview: something old, something new for Nintendo
Publication Date: November 13, 2009
Subject(s): Motion controls, Wii Music
Format: Transcribed interview
People: Chris Schilling, Shigeru Miyamoto
Summary: It can be taken as a compliment that Sony and Microsoft are implementing motion controls on their systems, though it makes Nintendo less unique.
Wii Music still has great potential. Flipnote Studio is somewhat similar to Wii Music, players can make something of their own and compete in creativity.
Entertainment Weekly – Super Mario’s super mastermind: Shigeru Miyamoto talks about the evolution of Nintendo
Publication Date: November 17, 2009
Subject(s): Making Mario accessible, Mario’s appeal, making old ideas work
Format: Transcribed interview
People: Margaret Lyons, Henning Fog, Shigeru Miyamoto
Link: https://ew.com/article/2009/11/17/super-mario-miyamoto/
Archive Link: https://web.archive.org/web/20221201003543/https://ew.com/article/2009/11/17/super-mario-miyamoto/
Summary: Early on they wanted Mario to be a symbol of digital entertainment that would take advantage of new hardware’s features. Over time they found that Mario games went from something everyone could play, to only being for fans of Mario. Now they want to make Mario accessible to everyone again.
He wants to encourage creativity with Mario games, and to reward players when they are creative.
People feel close to Mario, but it isn’t necessarily because of the creativity the games encourage or because Mario is cute. They feel close to him because Mario is a stand-in for the player.
He feels close to Link, and he’s fond of the Pikmin.
They started on Nintendogs after his family got a dog, and Wii Fit began after he started weighing himself and tracking his weight.
The longer he spend in the industry the more people want him to make the next game in a series. He doesn’t have a preference for making revolutionary or evolutionary games.
When he releases a game he often looks back and sees that it is the culmination of many different things that they were never able to get to work. An example are Miis. He did work on something like them 15 years ago. They’ve also done many experiments with multiplayer Mario games, and were only able to pull it off with New Super Mario Bros. Wii.
Famitsu (reported on by 1UP, incomplete)
Publication Date: Unknown (described as “this week”, reported on November 25, 2009)
Subject(s): New Super Mario Bros. Wii
Format: Transcribed interview
People: Reported on by Kevin Gifford, unknown Famitsu interviewer, Shigeru Miyamoto
Archive Link: https://web.archive.org/web/20160129060651/http://www.1up.com/news/miyamoto-wario-fart-attacks
Summary: There were suggestions for Wario, Waluigi, Toad, and Princess Peach to be playable in New Super Mario Bros. Wii. If they were to use Wario he’d need a fart attack, and Peach would need to be able to fly with her skirt. They wanted every character to play the same.
There was debate about the game pausing when someone loses a life. Without the pause people would just focus on themselves, but with it people would tell each other that they screwed up.
Players respawn in bubbles because they need to be able to respawn in a safe place. The fun of multiplayer is being able to choose not to let people out of them.
It’s more fun to play in person than online, and designing around online play would have meant putting limits on what they could do.
BBC Radio 4 – Front Row
Publication Date: December 8, 2009
Subject(s): Donkey Kong, Mario’s origins, movie and video game convergence
Format: Interview (dubbed)
People: John Wilson, James Newman, Shigeru Miyamoto
Video:
Notes: James Newman is not part of the interview, he talks about Mario’s influence and background about Nintendo. More context is available here, and the full radio program can be listened to here.
Summary: He never could have imagined Mario or Donkey Kong becoming so popular. When Donkey Kong came out he was thinking about how he wanted to use in many more games Mario more in the future.
He prefers the idea of an ordinary person over a perfect hero. A middle-aged man doing nice things for people.
Mario was originally a carpenter because it fit Donkey Kong, which was set on a building site. Mario’s pet ape had escaped and kidnapped a woman.
His games can reflect his hobbies. He tries to build things at home.
Nintendo always tries to be different while other companies try to outdo their rivals.
Mario inhabits a colorful, nonthreatening world. It’s been developed for over 20 years so it feels complete and real.
Movies and video games utilize some of the same technology. He’s been asked why he doesn’t make movies, but those are completely different. Using movie technology can save time, which can be put towards reinforcing the interactivity of games.
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