This is the 2012-2013 page of the Shigeru Miyamoto Archive.
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2012
2012 Nintendo Company Guide (untranslated from Japanese)
Publication Date: 2012
Subject(s): Nintendo
Format: Essay
People: Shigeru Miyamoto
Scan:
Notes: Nintendo periodically makes company guides to advertise to prospective employees and to welcome new employees. This picture was taken by Erik Voskuil and is from his blog Before Mario.
Zoomin Games: Shigeru Miyamoto reflects on his legacy and retirement
Publication Date: January 3, 2012
Subject(s): Retirement, Super Mario 3D Land, expectations
Format: Interview (subtitled)
People: Unnamed Zoomin Games interviewer, Shigeru Miyamoto
Video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IHA9FS3D9vw
Summary: He was surprised by the reactions to what he said about retiring, but he’s not old enough to think about retiring. He was talking about when he does eventually retire.
The team making Super Mario 3D Land used to be children that loved the original Super Mario Bros. Good characters and franchises can go on forever this way.
Every creator has their own strengths. It’s not that he’s particularly bad at making realistic looking games, he just wants to make something else.
People expect a lot from him, but he doesn’t feel overly pressured. He enjoys his work and always tries his best.
Nintendo Investor Relations: Corporate Management Policy Briefing/Third Quarter Financial Results Briefing for Fiscal Year Ending March 2012
Publication Date: January 29, 2012
Subject(s): Networks, nurturing developers, software development challenges
Format: Investor Q & A
People: Unnamed investors, Nintendo executives including Shigeru Miyamoto
Link: https://www.nintendo.co.jp/ir/en/events/120127qa/index.html
Archive Link: https://web.archive.org/web/20171102014106/https://www.nintendo.co.jp/ir/en/events/120127qa/index.html
Japanese Link: https://www.nintendo.co.jp/ir/events/120127qa/index.html
Japanese Archive Link: https://web.archive.org/web/20220706100400/https://www.nintendo.co.jp/ir/events/120127qa/index.html
Summary: Nintendo have been trying to raise the Internet-connection ratio for years, the DS was at about 60%. Flipnote is a hidden hit, which millions of children who don’t communicate on the Internet use. They want their network to be safe but also be original.
Ideally, he would not have to give any direction. Sometimes he gives subordinates freedom so they can grow independently. Has been spending more time on coming up with new ideas than on content. It’s his job to find big hit titles. Nobody stands out fresh out of college. The people who joined 20 years ago have high ability and he can trust them.
When developers work on games with similar concepts and scale over and over the time required increases. The Wii U’s graphical abilities will catch up to the general trend. The Wii U is designed to be different from any other system, and they are considering its network capabilities. Their policy is to nurture younger people to create things only the Wii U can do.
Entertainment Weekly: Shigeru Miyamoto talks ’Legend of Zelda’, ’Mariokart’
Publication Date: February 10, 2012
Subject(s): The Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword, The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess, in-game hints, Mario’s growth, Pikmin 3, Mario Kart choice, hand in toilet
Format: Transcribed interview
People: Darren Franich, Shigeru Miyamoto
Link: https://ew.com/article/2012/02/10/shigeru-miyamoto-zelda/
Archive Link: https://web.archive.org/web/20150228132013/http://www.ew.com/article/2012/02/10/shigeru-miyamoto-zelda
Notes: Mr. Miyamoto says he prefers to play as Mario in Mario Kart and that Toad is his least favorite, but in all three instances of him playing Mario Kart that I know of (which are all from Mario Kart 8) he has chosen Toad.
Summary: He played the prototype of The Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword, which is harder than the release version. With The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess the Wii Remote was used to aim, which was handy, but it took time and wasn’t immediate. The Wii MotionPlus allows Skyward Sword to reproduce the player’s movements. You can have a real sword fight.
Developers get used to playing their own games, and assume the player will be just as good as they are.
Back in the time of Super Mario Bros. 3 it was important to allow for players to find solutions themselves. There are many more ways to entertain people now, and they can look things up online. They keep in mind both people who want to know hints and people who want to do it on their own.
Making the best The Legend of Zelda game possible in the first priority, then making the story consistent across every game.
He wanted Mario to grow with technology right from the start, just as Mickey Mouse grew with animation.
He oversees about seven games at once and he concentrates on the ones in the final tune up phase. He is involved in the basic controls, too. He plays prototypes and gives feedback.
Pikmin 3 was going to be a Wii game, but he thought the Wii U’s high definition graphics would suit his ideal better.
He likes to play as Mario in Mario Kart, while Toad is his least favorite.
The hand that comes from a toilet in Skyward Sword is from a Japanese ghost story.
Hookshot Inc.: Miyamoto: ’I wish I had designed Angry Birds.’
Publication Date: April 12, 2012
Subject(s): Angry Birds
Format: Transcribed interview
People: Simon Parkin, Shigeru Miyamoto
Archive Link: https://web.archive.org/web/20120413232825/http://www.hookshotinc.com/miyamoto-i-wish-i-had-designed-angry-birds/
Summary: He has enjoyed Angry Birds recently and the way it combines old and new elements. It’s a simple idea, but he wishes he had been the one to come up with it.
The controls are fuzzy, but precise once you’ve mastered them. It would have controlled even better on the DS.
El Mundo (reported on by Eurogamer, partially untranslated from Spanish)
Publication Date: April 16, 2012 (reported on April 16, 2012)
Subject(s): Wii U, future titles
Format: Transcribed interview
People: Reported on by Wesley Yin-Poole, Jose A. Navas, Shigeru Miyamoto
Spanish Link: https://www.elmundo.es/elmundo/2012/04/16/navegante/1334559905.html
Spanish Archive Link: https://web.archive.org/web/20120501004129/http://www.elmundo.es/elmundo/2012/04/16/navegante/1334559905.html
Video: https://archive.org/details/shigeru-miyamoto-el-mundo-interview-4-16-2012
Translator: Unnamed Eurogamer Spain staff member for Eurogamer
Summary: The Wii U experience won’t be easy to replicate on other consoles. He’s working on several small but important projects, as well as Pikmin 3 and Luigi’s Mansion: Dark Moon.
The Guardian: Is Shigeru Miyamoto’s game over at Nintendo?
Publication Date: April 26, 2012
Subject(s): Working at Nintendo, Nintendo 3DS Guide: Louvre, hiring at Nintendo
Format: Transcribed interview
People: Simon Parkin, Shigeru Miyamoto
Link: https://www.theguardian.com/technology/gamesblog/2012/apr/26/shigeru-miyamotos-game-over-nintendo
Notes: This is part one of a two part interview.
Summary: He still plays video games because he’s still making them.
His days at work are structured, half his time is checking on games being developed. He plays games at his desk and writes notes to share with the directors, and he spends the rest of his time in meetings.
He doesn’t miss spending most of his time creating, this allows him to make things like Nintendo 3DS Guide: Louvre. He visits the Tokyo office every few weeks, he doesn’t feel detached.
He’d like to emphasize that he’s not about to retire. He wants to give a chance to others to be leaders, and to support Nintendo from the side.
They rarely hire game designers, most people they hire are artists or programmers. He tries to hire people with positive attitudes towards what’s new and who don’t give up after being criticized.
The Guardian: Shigeru Miyamoto: A rushed game is forever bad
Publication Date: April 27, 2012
Subject(s): 3DS sales, stereoscopic 3D
Format: Transcribed interview
People: Simon Parkin, Shigeru Miyamoto
Notes: This is part two of a two part interview. The title refers to the idea that Mr. Miyamoto was quoted as saying “A delayed game is eventually good, but a rushed game is forever bad.”, and the article directly quotes him as saying it in reference to the Nintendo 64. No source has ever been found this quote. You can read more about this quote being attributed to Mr. Miyamoto on Video Game Canon.
Summary: Sales of the 3DS were slower than the DS. It was too expensive and there was no big first-party title. It’s selling well in Japan now, and Nintendo 3DS Guide: Louvre will help make it more widely known.
He wishes he could have had more Mario titles ready for the 3DS and that they could have communicated the appeal of 3D photography, AR features, and the other apps to non-gamers.
Stereoscopic 3D isn’t a gimmick, it’s the normal way see things in reality.
He wants to remove the barrier between gamers and non-gamers. The non-gamers think video games are too difficult.
Smartphones cover a lot of what handheld gaming systems can do now, so they need to add things that they can’t do.
If they don’t release games from existing series they might die.
It’s exciting to surprise people with his games, but it’s becoming harder to do so. It used to be magic to press a button and have something change on the screen. They have to accommodate people with no experience and those with a lot.
He realized he could make a living creating games after Donkey Kong, and Super Mario Bros. is important to him because it made games known worldwide. Wii Sports started a new adventure, he hopes to make many such bold moves in the future.
He’s not as deeply involved in The Legend of Zelda series as he used to be, but The Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword very polished.
If he wasn’t making games he might not be playing them because he lacks time, and he doesn’t find many games interesting. It’s also difficult to find the right game among everything that’s released, it’s a major challenge for the industry.
He’s always hoped that games would become an accepted part of life. They’re everywhere now. It’s a challenge to stay relevant.
Fundación Princesa de Asturias: Prince of Asturias Award for Communication and Humanities 2012
Publication Date: May 23, 2012
Subject(s): Prince of Asturias Award for Communication and Humanities
Format: Essay
People: Shigeru Miyamoto
Notes: The Princess of Asturias (formerly the Prince of Asturias awards) are annual awards given by Spain’s Princess of Asturias Foundation. When Mr. Miyamoto was informed he was to be given the Communication and Humanities award in 2012 this was his response. You can read more about these awards on Wikipedia. There is also an untranslated interview from La 1 covering part of the ceremony and an interview afterward.
Summary: He is honored to receive the Prince of Asturias Prize for Communication and Humanities. He would like to receive it on behalf of the friends and colleagues he has worked with during his career. He will keep working on making games that are fun to people around the world.
Edge (reported on by Nintendo Gamer, incomplete)
Publication Date: June, 2012
Subject(s): PlayStation Vita, 3DS, launch titles, F-Zero, The Legend of Zelda: A Link Between Worlds, Angry Birds
Format: Transcribed interview
People: Nathan Brown, Shigeru Miyamoto
Archive Link: https://web.archive.org/web/20120504194234/http://www.edge-online.com/news/miyamoto-vita-needs-games
Scan:
Notes: This interview originally appeared in Edge issue 241. Although there is no scan of Edge 241 available, Nintendo Gamer and Edge’s website preview different parts of the interview. Scans by mattandi.
Summary: The PlayStation Vita is hi-spec, but it doesn’t seem like a strong product.
They wanted to have Mario Kart 7, Kid Icarus: Uprising, and Super Mario 3D Land ready for the 3DS’ launch, but weren’t able to finish them in time.
He doesn’t know how a new F-Zero game could surprise people.
He’d be interested in making an original 3DS The Legend of Zelda game if it was based on The Legend of Zelda: A Link to the Past.
His favorite director is Koichi Kawamoto.
His favorite non-Nintendo game of the last year is Angry Birds, it feels traditional and you can tell they had fun making it.
Nintendo of America: Nintendo All Access Presentation @ E3 2012
Publication Date: June 5, 2012
Subject(s): Pikmin 3 (1:32)
Format: Presentation/demonstration (spoken English, live translator)
People: Bill Trinen (translator), Shigeru Miyamoto
Video:
Notes: This was Nintendo’s last live E3 conference, at least as of 2023.
Summary: After launching the Wii they realized that their next system could not be the complete entertainment device if it was dependent on the living room television. Someone else can’t watch TV while you play, and you have to wait for the TV to turn on. They knew this system would need its own screen. It builds on their experience of connecting portable and console games. He knew he wanted to make the next Pikmin game on this system.
They puzzled over the camera distance in the original Pikmin, but the Wii U’s resolution solved this issue. The way they carry objects makes them seem more like real ants. You can aim at specific targets, like eyes or shells. You can always see the map on the GamePad, and you can use it exclusively to control the game. You can control up to four leaders. It’s a secret why Olimar is not among them. They are developing Pikmin 3 to help people realize how fun deeper games can be. This is an important change when many are saying gamers are moving towards lighter games.
Nintendo of America: Wii U New Super Mario Bros. U with Mr. Miyamoto
Publication Date: June 7, 2012
Subject(s): New Super Mario Bros. U, New Super Mario Bros. 2
Format: Promotional video (live translator)
People: Tim O’Leary, Shigeru Miyamoto
Video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Pdb5E5ldcJ0
Summary: New Super Mario Bros. 2 is all about coins. New Super Mario Bros. U has four player multiplayer, with one person using Boost Mode to help the others. You can also use Miiverse and play as your Mii.
Nintendo of America: Wii U Pikmin 3 with Mr. Miyamoto
Publication Date: June 7, 2012
Subject(s): Pikmin 3
Format: Promotional video (live translator)
People: Tim O’Leary, Shigeru Miyamoto
Video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=T8E87TpfNkU
Summary: There are more types of Pikmin as the series progresses. Pikmin 3 will introduce a new type: the Rock Pikmin. Pikmin are adorable and as they make the game they get the feeling that they are surrounded by Pikmin all the time. But it’s kind of scary since we don’t know what they are thinking, they might carry him away at night. The game has a lot of depth and will challenge you. There are walls that you have to break down and the challenge is in figuring out how many Pikmin to use.
Entertainment Weekly: E3: Nintendo’s ’Zelda’ on the Wii U?
Publication Date: June 7, 2012
Subject(s): Pikmin 3, Wii U, hobbies
Format: Transcribed interview
People: Adam B. Vary, Shigeru Miyamoto
Link: https://ew.com/article/2012/06/07/e3-nintendo-shigeru-miyamoto/
Archive Link: https://web.archive.org/web/20120608220047/https://popwatch.ew.com/2012/06/07/e3-nintendo-shigeru-miyamoto/
Notes: The original title of this article was “E3: Nintendo’s Shigeru Miyamoto talks bringing ‘The Legend of Zelda’ to the Wii U”. It was changed between February 2016 and October 2017.
Summary: He’s been experimenting with Pikmin 3 for five years with a small team. They’ve been working on the Wii U game for less than two years.
You couldn’t see the individual Pikmin very well before, which caused him stress, but with the Wii U’s high definition graphics you can.
It’s interesting how tastes are broadening and some people prefer more casual experiences and some prefer a more in-depth experience. They’re still planning the next Zelda game and they’ve been asking what they can do to make a Zelda game that many people can play. Some people didn’t like The Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword’s motion controls so they’re talking about what will change.
They want games to escape the framework they’ve been in, which they worked on with the Wii. They came to the conclusion that games can’t be bound by the television anymore in order to grow. He wants the GamePad to be the first screen someone goes to in the living room. The Wii U should have something for every family member.
He’s been watching a lot of TV dramas lately. It’s interesting how lone manga artists are getting their work adapted into TV shows and movies.
He plays the guitar and tries to figure out how something is done when he hears music.
N1ntendo.nl: Shigeru Miyamoto’s reaction to ’Watch Dogs’ from Ubisoft
Publication Date: June 7, 2012
Subject(s): Watch Dogs
Format: Interview (spoken English)
People: Unnamed N1ntendo.nl interviewer, Shigeru Miyamoto
Video:
Notes: Mr. Miyamoto is asked what he thinks of Watch Dogs after leaving a private demo event at E3 2012.
Summary: Good.
[He gives a thumbs up.]
IGN: This Is Shigeru Miyamoto’s Favorite Mario Game
Publication Date: June 15, 2012
Subject(s): Favorite Mario game
Format: Transcribed interview
People: Samuel Claiborn, Shigeru Miyamoto
Link: https://www.ign.com/articles/2012/06/15/this-is-shigeru-miyamotos-favorite-mario-game
Notes: This interview took place at E3 2012.
Summary: As a developer his favorite Mario game may be Super Mario Bros., but as a player it might be Super Mario Bros. 2. Their loose approach made it interesting.
Games like Super Mario Bros. 2 are Takashi Tezuka’s responsibility now, though he didn’t work on it.
IGN: Nintendo’s Social Ambitions
Publication Date: June 27, 2012
Subject(s): Miiverse, StreetPass, social networks, achievement systems
Format: Transcribed interview
People: Richard George, Shigeru Miyamoto
Link: https://www.ign.com/articles/2012/06/27/nintendos-social-ambitions
Archive Link: https://web.archive.org/web/20120629110131/http://www.ign.com:80/articles/2012/06/27/nintendos-social-ambitions
Summary: Early concepts for Miiverse came from Wii Fit’s opening where it showed you and your family’s Miis. They want the Wii U to be the center of the living room, the most looked-at screen in the house.
They want Miiverse to connect people in a comfortable, fun, and more intimate way than other social media services.
StreetPass allows you to connect with people you walk by on the street. This gives a better opportunity to make real connections than with other social media.
User generated content has an appeal but is difficult to moderate. They want Miiverse to have healthy online interaction.
They are working on experiences along the lines of an achievement system, but one not about collecting points. It needs to be easy to understand. If you die in the same place in New Super Mario Bros. U several times you’ll see comments from others having trouble in the same place.
Game Informer: The Men Behind Mario, Mario’s Burning Questions
Publication Date: October, 2012
Subject(s): New Super Mario Bros. U, Mario game difficulty, Mario and Luigi’s last names, Koopalings, Bowser Jr., Super Mario World 2: Yoshi’s Island
Format: Transcribed interview
People: Dan Ryckert, Takashi Tezuka, Shigeru Miyamoto
Scans:
Notes: The October, 2012 issue of Game Informer had two interviews with Mr. Tezuka and Miyamoto. The second one was later published online as well. Scans by Retromags.
Summary: The New Super Mario Bros. series is made to be enjoyed by everyone. They’ve talked about additional New Super Mario Bros. 2 levels they could add and they ask things like “what if this one doesn’t have very many lives?”. They can add challenging content to games.
Takashi Tezuka is overseeing the New Super Mario Bros. series, and he is overseeing 3D Mario. As with Super Mario 3D Land, some games blend 2D and 3D. The New Super Mario Bros. series is an extension of the original 2D games.
There was a Mario movie years ago, and they needed a last name for Mario and Luigi. Since they are the “Mario Brothers” someone suggested their last name should be Mario. This made him laugh, but they don’t really have a last name.
In Popeye and other old comics the cats would take different roles depending on the situation. The Mario series is like that, a big family or a troupe of actors.
The Koopalings are not Bowser’s children, his only child is Bowser Jr., and the mother is unknown.
When they made Super Mario World 2: Yoshi’s Island is part of the core Mario series.
Mario is blue-collar and hard working. Dr. Mario may not be legitimate.
El Comercio: El padre de ’Super Mario’ espera que la Wii U sea una revolución (untranslated from Spanish)
Publication Date: October 24, 2012
Subject(s): Wii U
Format: Transcribed interview
People: Unnamed El Comerico interviewer, Shigeru Miyamoto
Spanish Link: https://www.elcomercio.es/20121024/mas-actualidad/cultura/principe-comunicacion-humanidades-padre-201210241013.html
Spanish Archive Link: https://web.archive.org/web/20231218060549/https://www.elcomercio.es/20121024/mas-actualidad/cultura/principe-comunicacion-humanidades-padre-201210241013.html
Notes: A machine translation of the title is “’Super Mario’ father expects Wii U to be ‘a revolution’”.
Principality of Asturias Television News: Shigeru Miyamoto Premio Príncipe Asturias (untranslated from Spanish)
Publication Date: October 25, 2012
Subject(s): Prince of Asturias Award for Communication and Humanities
Format: Interview (dubbed)
People: Unnamed members of the press, Shigeru Miyamoto
Video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=39VnaKwoqX0
Notes: This wasn’t uploaded by the actual television channel, so the title may not be accurate. Contains news footage of what I think is Mr. Miyamoto arriving at Jovellanos Theatre, the day before he was awarded the Prince of Asturias Award for Communication and Humanities, and a press conference where he answered questions. Uploaded by YouTube user Michael N.
El Comercio: Lo importante es pensar en algo original, Shigeru Miyamoto Quiero esforzarme para hacer juegos cada vez más divertidos (untranslated from Spanish)
Publication Date: October 25, 2012
Subject(s): Video games, Mario
Format: Transcribed interview/interview (dubbed)/Q & A
People: Toni Garrido, unknown audience members who asked questions, ICEknight, Shigeru Miyamoto
Spanish Links: https://www.elcomercio.es/20121025/mas-actualidad/cultura/importante-pensar-algo-original-201210252144.html
Spanish Archive Links: https://web.archive.org/web/20121101233715/http://www.elcomercio.es:80/20121025/mas-actualidad/cultura/importante-pensar-algo-original-201210252144.html
Notes: A machine translation of the titles are “The important thing is to think of something original” and “Shigeru Miyamoto I want to strive to make ever more fun games.”. These two articles and two videos cover an event held at Jovellanos Theatre where Mr. Miyamoto was interviewed and answered questions from the audience the day before he accepted the Prince of Asturias Award for Communication and Humanities.
Thank you to ICEknight, who was one of the people in the audience who got to ask a question and made me aware of this event.
La 1: Prince of Asturias Award for Communication and Humanities (untranslated from Spanish)
Publication Date: October 26, 2012
Subject(s): Prince of Asturias Award for Communication and Humanities
Format: Award ceremony, interview (dubbed)
People: Unknown La 1 interviewer, Shigeru Miyamoto
Video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5jsybVFES40
Notes: Footage of the award ceremony is shown and then Mr. Miyamoto is interviewed, seemingly soon after accepting the award. Mr. Miyamoto draws Mario during the interview. There is also an entry covering Mr. Miyamoto’s response to being informed he was to be given this award. Uploaded by YouTube user Michael N.
Hobby Consolas: Entrevistamos al maestro: Shigeru Miyamoto (untranslated from Spanish)
Publication Date: October 27, 2012
Subject(s): Prince of Asturias Award for Communication and Humanities, New Super Mario Bros. U, Nintendo Land
Format: Transcribed interview
People: Unknown Hobby Consolas interviewer, Shigeru Miyamoto
Spanish Link: https://www.hobbyconsolas.com/reportajes/entrevistamos-maestro-shigeru-miyamoto-44752
Spanish Archive Link: https://web.archive.org/web/20121029224621/http://www.hobbyconsolas.com/reportajes/entrevistamos-maestro-shigeru-miyamoto-44752
Notes: A machine translation of the title is “We interviewed the teacher: Shigeru Miyamoto”. An earlier version of this article says it is from Juan Carlos García of Official Nintendo Magazine, so this may have appeared in the magazine at some point in English.
Gamekult: Miyamoto, the Wii U and the secret of the Triforce
Publication Date: November 1, 2012
Subject(s): Wii U, F-Zero, Metroid, his future, the Triforce, The Legend of Zelda
Format: Transcribed interview
People: William Audureau, Shigeru Miyamoto
French Link: https://www.gamekult.com/actualite/miyamoto-la-wii-u-et-le-secret-de-la-triforce-105550.html
French Archive Link: https://web.archive.org/web/20170806193825/https://www.gamekult.com/actualite/miyamoto-la-wii-u-et-le-secret-de-la-triforce-105550.html
Translator: Dri of Dreamnoid.com for Hyrule Interviews
Notes: I couldn’t find any 2006 interview where Mr. Miyamoto talks about TV screen edges, but there is a 2005 interview with Businessweek where he talks about wanting to escape the four-cornered CRT and that he thinks games will eventually fill a room.
Summary: He’s been involved with development of the Wii U’s GamePad. Since they work on hardware and software together he worked on the DS and Wii. He pushed to have a small screen in the GamePad.
He spoke about being frustrated by the edges of television screens in 2006, but he doesn’t think there’s a direct connection between that and the Wii U.
The Wii U wasn’t made for board games, but it is easy since everyone can use the touchscreen. There’s also an NFC chip, which could work with toys. The Wii U has more potential than smartphone card-collecting games because it could use real cards.
His ideas for Metroid are in Nintendo Land’s Metroid Blast.
He thought people were tired of F-Zero games, the series hasn’t evolved much. Please play Captain Falcon’s Twister Race in Nintendo Land. What has Nintendo not done with F-Zero that’s missing?
Ten years from now he hopes he’s still alive and working for Nintendo. He can trust the 40 year old producers at Nintendo with some of his usual tasks. He’s hanging on to finish Pikmin 3.
Takashi Tezuka drew Link’s original sprite. It was important that Link’s sword and shield to be visible. A long hat and big ears would make Link visible, so they moved towards an elf-like design. Big ears were associated with Peter Pan, so they were inspired by that.
They originally thought of the Triforce as electronic chips. The Legend of Zelda was going to be a game that took place in the future and the past. They named him “Link” because he linked both time periods. They eventually went with a heroic fantasy game, there’s nothing futuristic about it.
IGN: Miyamoto and the Wii U Philosophy
Publication Date: November 6, 2012
Subject(s): Wii U, The Legend of Zelda: Four Swords, how gaming has changed in 30 years
Format: Transcribed interview
People: Keza MacDonald, Shigeru Miyamoto
Link: https://www.ign.com/articles/2012/11/06/miyamoto-and-the-wii-u-philosophy
Archive Link: https://web.archive.org/web/20121109032630/http://www.ign.com/articles/2012/11/06/miyamoto-and-the-wii-u-philosophy
Notes: This interview is described as taking place in Paris on the way back to Japan after Mr. Miyamoto received the Prince of Asturias Award for Communication and Humanities, so this interview probably took place on October 26 or a few days afterward.
Summary: He is more nervous than excited when Nintendo launches new hardware. When they do people discuss how Nintendo will compete, but they don’t see it that way. They are in a better position to say that they are proposing unique opportunities this time.
Even when family members share the living room they are working on different things. With the Wii U these activities can be united.
It’s easier to browse the web on the Wii U than on a TV screen.
When family members want to watch TV, Nintendo’s consoles were an obstacle, but the Wii U will be different. It can change how video games are played. You can hide what playing cards you’re holding, but that couldn’t be replicated with a video game before, the Wii U can because it uses two screens. Those kinds of features will be in Nintendo Land.
Nintendo is working on connecting the 3DS and Wii U, but it’s not their focus.
Games like The Legend of Zelda: Four Swords have more potential with online play. They have had discussions at Nintendo as to why Four Swords didn’t reach the audience they wanted it to. The popular opinion was that people thought they’d need three others to make the most of it, he thinks they should remove whatever obstacles stand in the way of people playing together.
They are often asked why they are making another Pikmin or Mario game, but they are always trying to apply new technologies to these franchises that provide a new experience.
He started making games about 30 years ago, but he doesn’t feel like he’s changed much. His games look and feel similar, but the themes have more variety. Thirty years ago mostly children played video games, but now those children have grown up and had their own children, so he tries to appeal to people of all ages.
Video games can be integrated into your daily life. He hopes he can make games that attract people to video games so that they can more enjoy their lives.
1101.com: Wii U Edition (untranslated from Japanese)
Publication Date: December, 20-27, 2012
Subject(s): Wii U
Format: Transcribed interview
People: Shigesato Itoi, Satoru Iwata, Shigeru Miyamoto
Japanese Links: https://www.1101.com/nintendo/wiiu_talk/2012-12-20.html
https://www.1101.com/nintendo/wiiu_talk/2012-12-21.html
https://www.1101.com/nintendo/wiiu_talk/2012-12-22.html
https://www.1101.com/nintendo/wiiu_talk/2012-12-23.html
https://www.1101.com/nintendo/wiiu_talk/2012-12-24.html
https://www.1101.com/nintendo/wiiu_talk/2012-12-25.html
https://www.1101.com/nintendo/wiiu_talk/2012-12-26.html
https://www.1101.com/nintendo/wiiu_talk/2012-12-27.html
Japanese Archive Links: https://web.archive.org/web/20121222052338/http://www.1101.com/nintendo/wiiu_talk/2012-12-20.html
https://web.archive.org/web/20121222052343/http://www.1101.com/nintendo/wiiu_talk/2012-12-21.html
https://web.archive.org/web/20121224115009/http://www.1101.com/nintendo/wiiu_talk/2012-12-22.html
https://web.archive.org/web/20121226210941/http://www.1101.com/nintendo/wiiu_talk/2012-12-23.html
https://web.archive.org/web/20121227130826/http://www.1101.com/nintendo/wiiu_talk/2012-12-24.html
https://web.archive.org/web/20121228040820/http://www.1101.com/nintendo/wiiu_talk/2012-12-25.html
https://web.archive.org/web/20121228041559/http://www.1101.com/nintendo/wiiu_talk/2012-12-26.html
https://web.archive.org/web/20121230053934/http://www.1101.com/nintendo/wiiu_talk/2012-12-27.html
Notes: 1101.com is Shigesato Itoi’s website. I’m combining these eight entries into one since none have been translated. According to Hyrule Interviews these may contain parts of Ask Iwata: Words of Wisdom from Satoru Iwata.
GamesMaster: Interview: Shigeru Miyamoto on Wii U’s future
Publication Date: December 22, 2012
Subject(s): Wii U, Nintendo Land, Pikmin
Format: Transcribed interview
People: Unnamed GamesMaster interviewer, Shigeru Miyamoto
Notes: This does not appear to be the full interview from GamesMaster magazine. It may have been split across two issues, as Official Nintendo Magazine reports on a GamesMaster interview next month.
Summary: He wants the Wii U to be cherished by the whole family, in the living room.
Everyone looks forward to better versions of old games, but that’s not the direction they should take. Nintendo Land will show where the future of gameplay may go.
Mario Chase in Nintendo Land is unique, everyone can watch replays of the game.
Their idea with Pikmin was how fun it would be to watch small creatures doing something. Originally the Pikmin were used as weapons.
The Wii U is their first system launched with the assumption that it will always be connected to the Internet. He reminds others to not focus just on competition. Games have to be final. They are taking local competition to the Internet.
They have to make sure people know that Miiverse is more secure than any other social network.
If someone has a new idea it could change the entertainment landscape, which makes it impossible to say what things will be like five years from now. It’s important to understand emerging technologies while remembering the past.
He’s 60, he can’t work as hard as he used to. He gives a lot of responsibility to people in their 40s. With less focus on details he can concentrate on making something new.
He’s one of the few who can take advantage of gaming’s interactivity. He wishes he could describe how fun it is to his parents and wife.
Applying interactivity to the ordinary things around us can make something unique. Since you can bring the DS anywhere he was able to think of how it could be used at a museum. He thinks in terms of making more joy in the living room.
2013
GamesMaster (reported on by Official Nintendo Magazine)
Publication Date: Unknown (reported on January 2, 2013)
Subject(s): Pikmin, Pikmin 2, Pikmin 3
Format: Transcribed interview
People: Reported on by Thomas East, Unnamed GamesMaster interviewer, Shigeru Miyamoto
Notes: While this interview may be the same as the one reported on by Computer and Video Games the previous month, it may have been split between two issues.
Summary: Pikmin wasn’t easy to play, players felt stress. With Pikmin 2 he wanted to remove that stress. He got the developers of Pikmin 2 together to talk about getting back to the basics of Pikmin with Pikmin 3.
Nintendo Investor Relations: Corporate Management Policy Briefing / Third Quarter Financial Results Briefing for the 73rd Fiscal Term Ending March 2013
Publication Date: February 2, 2013
Subject(s): Wii U architecture
Format: Investor Q & A
People: Unnamed investors, Nintendo executives including Shigeru Miyamoto
Link: https://www.nintendo.co.jp/ir/en/events/130131qa/02.html
Archive Link: https://web.archive.org/web/20180920223124/https://www.nintendo.co.jp/ir/en/events/130131qa/02.html
Japanese Link: https://www.nintendo.co.jp/ir/events/130131qa/index.html
Japanese Archive Link: https://web.archive.org/web/20220928013524/https://www.nintendo.co.jp/ir/events/130131qa/index.html
Summary: There were many workshops to learn how to use lighting and other technologies for high definition graphics on the Wii U. They enjoy making realistic graphics for Pikmin. When you go to TOHO Cinemas you will see Pikmin in the logo.
Nintendo of America: Nintendo Direct 2.14.2013
Publication Date: February 14, 2013
Subject(s): Luigi’s Mansion: Dark Moon (2:49)
Format: Promotional Video (dubbed)
People: Shigeru Miyamoto
Video:
Notes: This is the start of the Year of Luigi. This is Mr. Miyamoto’s first appearance in a Nintendo Direct.
Summary: It’s been 12 years since the original Luigi’s Mansion, and he has wanted it to be in 3D since. There is an atmosphere that suggests a ghost could appear at any moment, there are immersive lights and shadows. The Poltergust can now suck in more than ghosts, and it is used to solve puzzles. The Dark-Light Device can reveal hidden objects. You need to stun the ghosts with the Strobulb before sucking them in. It’s not a horror game, it’s a lighthearted game with funny ghost interactions.
Nintendo of America: Nintendo 3DS Luigi’s Mansion: Dark Moon Interview with Mr. Miyamoto
Publication Date: February 19, 2013
Subject(s): Luigi’s Mansion: Dark Moon
Format: Promotional video (subtitled and dubbed)
People: Satoru Iwata, Shigeru Miyamoto
Video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uiNIMXBxWxY
Notes: This is the same video of Miyamoto talking about Luigi’s Mansion: Dark Moon as in the February Direct, but preceded with a skit involving him and Iwata. This summary only covers the skit.
Summary: [Mr. Miyamoto turns on a vacuum pointed at Mr. Iwata.]
This has been his thing lately. It’s the Year of Luigi. Thanks for giving him a Luigi hat.
GameSpot: Miyamoto: ’i’m Creatively Satisfied’
Publication Date: March 6, 2013
Subject(s): Luigi’s Mansion: Dark Moon, Pikmin 3, Year of Luigi, working with third parties, retirement
Format: Transcribed interview
People: Giancarlo Varanini, Eddie MakuchShigeru, Miyamoto
Link: https://www.gamespot.com/articles/miyamoto-im-creatively-satisfied/1100-6404927/
Archive Link: https://web.archive.org/web/20140407212338/http://www.gamespot.com/articles/miyamoto-im-creatively-satisfied/1100-6404927/
Summary: It looks like Nintendo just makes sequels, but he’s made Wii Fit and Nintendo 3DS Guide: Louvre recently. He’s creatively satisfied. When they make sequels they still do a lot of research and think about how to evolve them.
The uniqueness of their software depends on the uniqueness of their hardware. Luigi’s Mansion: Dark Moon uses the bottom screen as a map, which makes it more unique. They want Pikmin 3 to go deeper with what makes Pikmin unique. They’ve been able to do that with the GamePad and high definition graphics.
He doesn’t make games with the idea of using every feature of the hardware. The Wii U is the best system for what they want to do with Pikmin. Having the map on the GamePad is efficient.
There’s the idea that his games always get delayed. There are games that get delayed and there are games that shift. Development of Pikmin 3 began before the Wii U launch and he spent a lot of time placing things in the game so it became a game that shifted.
He’s more interested in making new games than porting them.
They were able to do Year of Luigi because so many people at Nintendo wanted to make Luigi games and they happened to release in the same year. Luigi is like a salad because he is green and people like lighter fare, he’s timid and weak. The story and atmosphere in Luigi’s Mansion games sticks with them.
Kensuke Tanabe found Next Level Games and established their development relationship.
With video conferencing and the ability to send games back and forth online they are used to working with people a long way away. The bigger challenge is making sure everyone understand the Nintendo philosophy.
They will announce something related to near-field communication soon.
Nintendo products are often something you don’t understand until you try it. The advantage of the Wii was that people playing it looked interesting. The Wii U doesn’t have that kind of element to it, but when you bring it into the living room you get the idea of how fun it is. They need to get more people to try the Wii U, they have demo units in Japan.
It would be strange if he wasn’t thinking about retirement at 60, but the volume of his work hasn’t changed. He pretends not to work on half of his projects to get the younger developers more involved and to prepare them. He’s been thinking that they need to move away from the structure where people look to their superiors so that producers take more responsibility.
Time: Miyamoto: The Wii U GamePad Gives Us Advantages over Tablets, Smartphones
Publication Date: March 7, 2013
Subject(s): Wii U, GamePad
Format: Transcribed interview
People: Matt Peckham, Shigeru Miyamoto
Notes: This is part one of a two part interview.
Summary: He’s interested in the new types of play that are opened up by the GamePad. You used to have to choose between watching TV or playing games, but you can do both with the GamePad.
The idea for the Wii U did not come from the DS. Their goal with the Wii U was a console that worked without the TV. They’ve also been able to use some ideas from the GameCube and Game Boy Advance connectivity.
Preparing for the Wii U launch was a project of an unprecedented scale for Nintendo. There were many components that interacted with each other. The coming Wii U update will address as many concerns as possible. By summer it will run more smoothly.
The Wii U can be the single living room device used to access entertainment. Wii Street U is an example of how an application can be enhanced with the GamePad. One of the last hurdles for the Wii U is storing media, but it was designed to be able to have storage added.
Time: Miyamoto: I Couldn’t Have Imagined Where We’ve Ended Up
Publication Date: March 8, 2013
Subject(s): Launch titles, old versus new series
Format: Transcribed interview
People: Matt Peckham, Shigeru Miyamoto
Link: https://techland.time.com/2013/03/08/miyamoto-i-couldnt-have-imagined-where-weve-ended-up/
Notes: This is part two of a two part interview.
Summary: Developers for the 3DS know that everyone can access the stereoscopic 3D, and that all Wii U owners have a GamePad. Trying to build compatibility between devices causes issues where not everyone has access to the same features.
They launched Wii with Wii Sports and The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess and they had a similar Wii U launch with Nintendo Land and New Super Mario Bros. U. The next The Legend of Zelda game will take a bit longer. Some resources went into making the Wii U that could have been put towards making more games. They will be able to do more with the system as they become more familiar with it.
They always start with the gameplay, and decide later which character is best suited to it. Ideally the gameplay is so unique that it requires a new character. They could have used Mario for Wii Sports or Wii Fit, but chose to make those new franchises.
He never starts development with a target audience in mind. Instead he wants to appeal to the broadest audience possible. He has trouble keeping up with the pace of information flow as he gets older. He focuses on the core gameplay and builds around that.
What hasn’t changed is players will experiment with what is possible to do within a game, so it’s always important to encourage that creativity. People used to have very limited access to information about games, but now the breadth of information can be part of the gameplay.
He couldn’t have imagined 30 years ago that games would go from somewhere between toy and technology to being at the forefront of technology, or that gaming wouldn’t be hit with the tough situations other technology companies have been.
MTV Multiplayer: Miyamoto Discusses ’Hyrule Historia’ Highlights And Names His Favorite Famicom Games (partially incomplete, reported on by Zelda Universe and Zelda Dungeon)
Publication Date: March 8, 2013
Subject(s): The Legend of Zelda, The Legend of Zelda: Hyrule Historia
Format: Transcribed interview
People: Reported on by Reece Heather and Dathen Boccabella, Jason Cipriano (likely interviewer), Shigeru Miyamoto
Links: https://zeldauniverse.net/2013/03/11/miyamoto-links-style-is-what-we-struggle-with-most/
Notes: This interview was recorded on video but has been lost, leaving us with MTV’s page about it and some reporting. Thanks to makgameadv for finding it.
Summary: The watercolor art he was talking about was done by Yoichi Kotabe.
His favorite Famicom games, other than The Legend of Zelda, include Baseball, Golf, and Mario Bros.
Their biggest struggle with every The Legend of Zelda game is what Link’s style will be. Showing that and the timeline is important, Zelda is a series where they’ve paid a lot of attention to the games piece together. It was also great to share the various iterations of Princess Zelda.
The New York Times: Divining What’s Next for Video Games
Publication Date: March 11, 2013
Subject(s): Violence in video games, Wii U, online play
Format: Transcribed interview
People: Chris Suellentrop, Shigeru Miyamoto
Summary: People get entertainment out of seeing violence. Mario doesn’t need to use guns. They had long conversations about how appropriate it was for Mario to hit people in Super Smash Bros.
The Wii U has a long future. It’s the ideal device for the living room. He’s isn’t concerned about the long term yet.
Entertainment is unpredictable. Families and TVs aren’t going away, so they are looking at what families want to do in the living room. Some in Japan are saying they may not need a game console because they have a smartphone. Animal Crossing: New Leaf has been a big hit, especially among adult women, a demographic that has been buying smartphones rapidly.
The saddest thing about video games is that they are gone once the hardware stops working. He’s glad there’s a museum working on preserving them.
There are people who say they can repeat a success and people who say nothing will ever be as successful again. He says that they can make up the rules as they go.
They didn’t focus on online play for so long because it would limit who could make use of it. There are many more possibilities now with so many people on the Internet.
Polygon: Shigeru Miyamoto on Nintendo’s innovative past, unsteady present and optimistic future
Publication Date: March 12, 2013
Subject(s): Luigi’s Mansion: Dark Moon, old series, new ideas, E3, near-field communication, serial games
Format: Transcribed interview
People: Brian Crecente, Bill Trinen (translator), Shigeru Miyamoto
Link: https://www.polygon.com/2013/3/12/4089612/shigeru-miyamoto-interview-wii-u-3ds
Archive Link: https://web.archive.org/web/20130328023551/http://www.polygon.com/2013/3/12/4089612/shigeru-miyamoto-interview-wii-u-3ds
Summary: He is a producer on Luigi’s Mansion: Dark Moon. When he produces a game he plays it a lot and supports the director.
The stereoscopic 3D visuals give a sense of realism to the mansion. The bottom screen displays a map.
It’s a struggle to bring popular series to new systems while surprising players with something new. They’ve fleshed out Animal Crossing into a definitive version with Animal Crossing: New Leaf.
They don’t set out to make new characters, but how they can create new play structures. Sometimes the new structures use existing franchises. The focus is on how it plays than which character it uses. There are many at Nintendo passionate about doing new things.
They used to save announcements for E3, but now there are many ways to make announcements. Hopefully they can announce something about near-field communication at E3 this year.
They are thinking about 3DS and Wii U connectivity, but like with the GameCube and Game Boy Advance, not everyone owns both systems. They are also thinking about moving data between them.
The Legend of Zelda: Oracle of the Ages and The Legend of Zelda: Oracle of Seasons were planned to be more episodic, selling dungeons individually. Now the eShop is able to sell digital-only games or games in installments.
Luigi hasn’t had much of a chance for a starring role so they felt it was time for the Year of Luigi.
There is more they can do with the Wii U that takes advantage of the GamePad. They focusing on making better use of it. In a few years it will be natural for the Wii U to be connected to the living room TV.
Polygon: Nintendo’s Game Developer Shigeru Miyamoto Interview
Publication Date: March 12, 2013
Subject(s): Year of Luigi, Wii U, E3
Format: Interview (dubbed)
People: Brian Crecente, Bill Trinen (translator), Shigeru Miyamoto
Video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=c0SRMsgOgCo
Notes: There is some overlap with this video interview and the article in the previous entry, I have omitted the parts that were already covered.
Summary: This year there will be several Luigi games released, first is Lugi’s Mansion: Dark Moon, there will also be New Super Luigi U. Many people love Luigi at Nintendo, so they made it the Year of Luigi.
The Wii U’s near-field communication is a priority right now, and they are developing games that can make use of two GamePads.
E3 is a place where people can get hands-on time with games.
The Wii U can do many things that their other systems were unable to do, they can still improve on letting users make take advantage of those things. There will be a steady flow of good software.
GameTrailers TV with Geoff Keighley: Episode 7 SXSW and Twisted Pixel
Publication Date: March 13, 2013
Subject(s): Year of Luigi, Luigi’s Mansion: Dark Moon, 3D gaming, Pikmin 3, E3 2013
Format: Interview (live translator)
People: Geoff Keighley, Bill Trinen (translator) Shigeru Miyamoto
Link: https://www.amazon.com/gp/video/detail/B00C176KRW/
Notes: It is stated that this interview is taking place in New York City and a Nintendo sign is shown, along with an office space full of Nintendo related items, so it was likely shot at Nintendo New York’s offices.
This video is only available on Amazon Prime Video. It is protected by DRM and I did not see any substantial reporting on it so I have copied the closed captions of the entire interview rather than summarize it. Geoff Keighley omits the word “Mansion” once, this is not an error in the transcription.
Transcript:
Geoff Keighley: Mr. Miyamoto, it’s great to be with you on the show and we’re wearing our hats because it’s the Year of Luigi. You’ve got your Luigi green, I’m wearing Mr. Iwata’s hat here. There’s a lot of Luigi coming out from Nintendo this year, so is it finally time to give Luigi the attention he deserves?
Shigeru Miyamoto: Well yes, it’s been 30 years since Luigi first appeared in the original Mario Bros., and we actually have a large number of Luigi fans internally at Nintendo, who have been wanting to work on Luigi games. So we have of course Luigi’s Mansion: Dark Moon and a number of other titles that are all coming out this year, so we decided to make it the Year of Luigi.
GK: Now, you’re also doing a Luigi kind of downloadable content for the New Super Mario Bros. U as well, right?
SM: That’s right, so you can play a number of new levels through this new downloadable content.
GK: So Luigi, has he always had a special place in your heart?
SM: Well I guess you could say that, you know, he’s sort of, almost the same character as Mario, so he hasn’t had as many opportunities to stand out on his own.
GK: And then we find out about Mario’s other long-lost brother, or are there just two of them?
SM: (laughing) There’s no other, it’s just the two of them. You know, I don’t know what types of games I’ll make in the future, perhaps there will come a day when Mario needs a third brother. So at that point maybe we’ll create him.
GK: It’s exciting that you obviously have a brand new Luigi’s coming out for 3DS – it’s not a Wii U game – it’s coming out for 3DS later this month. Why did you want to come back to Luigi’s Mansion, which I think you know, all of us loved when it came out many years ago. And this game has been in development for a long time, why did you want to do it on 3DS and not on the Wii U?
SM: Well actually when we first developed the GameCube game, one of the things that we really wanted to do in developing that game was to see those visuals on a 3D screen. And at the time we experimented with a 3D monitor and looking at the game in 3D, and that actually ties to how we eventually got to release the Nintendo 3DS. So we felt the connection between the two was pretty important. And we wanted to bring Luigi’s Mansion in a new version to Nintendo 3DS where those 3D visuals can really come to life.
GK: You’re also – we can take our hats off now since we’re also talking about Pikmin, which you’re working on. So how do you split your time now – you’re producing this, I know you’re working on Pikmin – are those your two main focuses right now?
SM: Well, so you know, with Luigi’s Mansion I’ve been working on that pretty consistently over time, but typically when I’m working on a project I will come in at the end and work very closely with the team on the project at the end of it. So that’s what we’re moving to in the Pikmin phase right now. Of course the Pikmin 3 team is – they’re very close to my desk, so I’m able to work very closely with them on a constant basis.
GK: We’re excited to play, obviously, Luigi’s Mansion, Pikmin 3, and it’s already been announced you’re going to have a lot of new games at E3 to show the fans, which is unexpected that you guys would tell us in advance that we’re going to see a lot of new games. You’re very busy right now, working on things for E3?
SM: So yeah, I mean obviously, you know, you’ll get to see at E3 the games that Mr. Iwata has already mentioned, perhaps you’ll get to see some that he hasn’t mentioned yet, I can’t make any promises, but at least you can look forward to getting your hands on all these products at the show.
GK: Excellent, alright, well I’m sure you’ve got a lot of new surprises in store for us, right?
SM: Yes, please look forward to them.
GK: Excellent, alright, well, thank you very much Mr. Miyamoto. Great seeing you, thanks.
ABC News: ’Super Mario’ Creator Tweets Little but Talks Plenty About Game Designing
Publication Date: March 19, 2013
Subject(s): Miiverse, The Legend of Zelda: Hyrule Historia, social media
Format: Transcribed interview
People: Dan Milano, Shigeru Miyamoto
Summary: You can record ghost data in Mario Kart so others can try to beat your time even if you’re not there. You can do something similar with YouTube. In The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time 3D there were hint movies that are like strategy guides. Now they are posting link to super-play videos on Miiverse.
He uses Facebook to talk to friends.
They were surprised with what people were able to draw on Miiverse and Flipnote Studio.
An important part of The Legend of Zelda games is fitting it in with the other stories.
There could be a Nintendo theme park in the future, but they are busy right now.
He probably had the most fun making Super Mario 64 and The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time. They were building the framework of 3D games. When younger Nintendo employees don’t know who would know the answer to a question they have he tells them to make up the answer. It’s more fun to make up the rules as you go.
Time For Kids: Get to Know Shigeru Miyamoto
Publication Date: March 19, 2013
Subject(s): Inspiration, Luigi’s origins, The Year of Luigi
Format: Transcribed interview
People: Yusuf Halabi, Shigeru Miyamoto
Archive Link: https://web.archive.org/web/20130324025433/http://www.timeforkids.com/news/get-know-shigeru-miyamoto/84311
Notes: The interviewer was about nine years old at the time of this interview, according to his bio.
Summary: He used to draw comics and studied industrial design. Video games started to become popular after he joined Nintendo. When he started at Nintendo he drew artwork and characters.
He made Donkey Kong, where Mario was small, and wanted to make a game where he was bigger. They could do this because of screen scrolling technology. They liked Mario being big and small, so they made super mushroom.
There wasn’t enough memory for two distinct characters in Mario Bros., and they couldn’t use add any more colors so Luigi was Mario with a koopa troopa’s colors. Nintendo of America said that if there’s two Italian brothers and one is Mario, the other should be named Luigi. In Japanese “ruigi” means “similar”.
Mario and Luigi used to be essentially the same, unlike him and his brother. In Super Mario Bros. 2 they made Luigi taller and gave him a floaty jump. In Luigi’s Mansion: Dark Moon he is afraid of ghosts.
He would be Mario if he could be one of his characters.
He has the fondest memories of making Donkey Kong because there weren’t video game designers at the time and he put a lot of work into it.
There was no blueprint for his first 3D games, they were making it up as they went along.
The last time he made music for a game was for Donkey Kong.
It’s the 30th anniversary of Mario Bros. and a lot of Luigi games are coming out this year, so they decided to make it the Year of Luigi.
Pikmin has been around for 10 years, but it may be too early for a Year of Pikmin. He’ll be 71 for the 20th anniversary.
His favorite Zelda game is the original.
He doesn’t think of himself as very Japanese, he’s always liked American culture. People from Kyoto are individualistic, which is probably why they’ve made games with a universal appeal.
Video games are made by 50-100 people. To be a game designer it’s important to have experiences that aren’t related to video games.
It’s important for the player to think creatively. Players should think about the possibilities when they hit a block in Super Mario Bros.
Miyamoto on Miiverse (start of Year of Luigi)
Publication Date: March 19, 2013
Subject(s): Year of Luigi
Format: Social media post
People: Shigeru Miyamoto
Archive Link: https://web.archive.org/web/20171108033808/https://miiverse.nintendo.net/posts/AYIHAAABAADRUL7QYn5BQQ
Japanese Archive Link: https://web.archive.org/web/20171031063812/https://miiverse.nintendo.net/posts/AYIHAAABAADTUKFJMQ3Qow
Notes: This was Mr. Miyamoto’s first post to Miiverse. Many of these Miiverse posts were preserved thanks to the work of Archive Team and Archiverse.
Summary: It’s been 30 years since Luigi’s debut in Mario Bros. 2013 will be the Year of Luigi.
Iwata Asks: Luigi’s Mansion: Dark Moon
Publication Date: March 22, 2013
Subject(s): Luigi’s Mansion: Dark Moon
Format: Transcribed interview
People: Satoru Iwata, Chad York, Bryce Holliday, Brian Davis, Yoshihito Ikebata, Shigeru Miyamoto
Link: https://iwataasks.nintendo.com/interviews/3ds/luigis-mansion-dark-moon/0/0/
Archive Link: https://web.archive.org/web/20220614112710/https://iwataasks.nintendo.com/interviews/3ds/luigis-mansion-dark-moon/0/0/
Japanese Link: https://www.nintendo.co.jp/3ds/interview/aggj/vol1/index.html
Japanese Archive Link: https://web.archive.org/web/20220701084524/https://www.nintendo.co.jp/3ds/interview/aggj/vol1/index.html
Summary: He wasn’t directly in charge of Luigi’s Mansion: Dark Moon, he was more of a guardian or a shepherd. He told the developers what not to do.
They remade the controls more than 10 times and he looked at the programming.
He encouraged team not to stick too closely to haunted house tropes. He suggested making the boss of Haunted Towers the stairs.
They reworked the map over and over.
He would like to express appreciation on behalf of Luigi.
ABC News: Mario Creator Explores ’Luigi’s Mansion: Dark Moon’
Publication Date: March 23, 2013
Subject(s): Luigi’s Mansion: Dark Moon, high definition remakes, Daisy and Wario
Format: Transcribed interview
People: Dan Milano, Shigeru Miyamoto
Summary: He’s a fan of Ghostbusters, but that wasn’t the inspiration for Luigi’s Mansion.
When making the original Luigi’s Mansion they ported the game to a 3D monitor that Sharp made, so making Luigi’s Mansion: Dark Moon on the 3DS seemed a natural fit.
They wanted to do Pikmin in high definition because there are a lot of small Pikmin.
Daisy and Wario were created as part of Mario Land games, which had a different style from Mario World games This kept them from appearing in other games. The differences disappeared as they moved to 3D.
He has an older brother and younger sister.
CNN: ’Mario,’ ’Zelda’ creator says give the Wii U time
Publication Date: April 5, 2013
Subject(s): Wii U, Luigi’s Mansion: Dark Moon
Format: Transcribed interview
People: Larry Frum, Shigeru Miyamoto
Link: https://www.cnn.com/2013/04/05/tech/gaming-gadgets/nintendo-miyamoto-wii-u/
Archive Link: https://web.archive.org/web/20130406125658/http://www.cnn.com/2013/04/05/tech/gaming-gadgets/nintendo-miyamoto-wii-u
Summary: If someone else wanted to watch television, you couldn’t play a game. The Wii U’s second screen makes it possible to do both.
People said that there was no way people could watch both DS screens at once, but as people get used to the Wii U people will say that they can’t do everything they want to do if they don’t have two screens.
The Wii U isn’t just a game console, it has practical use in the living room.
They are focusing on making the Wii U more stable. Miiverse is an ongoing project and people have made it a welcoming community.
Luigi’s Mansion was a mix between ghost events and exploring the mansion, but with the map always visible in Luigi’s Mansion: Dark Moon the exploration takes on a bigger role. Toad is going to appear in the game.
He’s grateful that games are being received the way they are now. No one asks when the video game boom is going to end anymore.
Rolling Stone: Shigeru Miyamoto Shares Nintendo Secrets
Publication Date: April 8, 2013
Subject(s): Donkey Kong, jumping, Super Mario Bros., Luigi’s origin, retirement, Wii U, Pikmin 3, Luigi’s Mansion: Dark Moon
Format: Transcribed interview
People: Unnamed Rolling Stone interviewer, Shigeru Miyamoto
Link: https://www.rollingstone.com/culture/culture-lists/shigeru-miyamoto-shares-nintendo-secrets-19215/
Summary: They used to be able to make a game with five or six people, now it takes 50-60.
In making Donkey Kong they understood that jumping was fun. People wanted to be able to run faster. Running, jumping, and avoiding obstacles was thrilling. He had to convince others that the Super Star was fun in Super Mario Bros.
They made player 2’s character a palette swap of Mario with a Koopa Troopa’s colors due to technical limitations. Since they looked identical beside their palette it was decided they were twins and that the second character was younger. Working under technical constraints is an important part of game design.
He’s 61 and people in other companies consider this age are considering retiring, but with the fun he’s having he might continue to work until he dies. He tells everyone to work like he’s not there to prepare them for when he isn’t.
He uses Flipnote Studio to show directors how he wants introduction videos to go.
It’s important to always start from the idea. Even a large project has one or two people overseeing it.
When making The Legend of Zelda and Super Mario Bros. they made simple worlds for people to flesh out in their minds. Even with the more detailed worlds they make now, it’s still important to approach design in that way.
His characters stand out because they are in fun games. It’s important when making something new to match it with the appropriate character.
Graphics aren’t the focus of Nintendo Land, the structure of play is. The Wii U is powerful machine that can display high definition graphics.
They are looking at selling downloadable content.
With the Wii U’s GamePad the question becomes how to leverage the user’s imagination and creativity.
With Pikmin 3 there are 3 captains you can switch between, which gives it more strategic depth.
Many people have wanted to work on Luigi games at Nintendo, and several Luigi games are launching this year. Since it’s also the 30th anniversary of Luigi’s first appearance they decided to make it a Luigi festival.
One of themes of Mario & Luigi: Dream Team is big groups of Luigis attacking enemies, which has a Pikmin feel.
Nintendo of America: Shigeru Miyamoto Talks About Pikmin 3
Publication Date: June 11, 2013
Subject(s): Pikmin 3
Format: Promotional video (live translator)
People: Bill Trinen (translator), Shigeru Miyamoto
Video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_gwOhM2M30o
Summary: You might see Olimar a bit in Pikmin 3, but there are 3 new captains. You can directly attack a Bulborb’s eye.
Nintendo of America: Wii U Developer Direct Pikmin 3 @E3 2013
Publication Date: June 11, 2013
Subject(s): Pikmin 3
Format: Promotional video (dubbed)
People: Shigeru Miyamoto
Video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ndMjKHxAfz8
Summary: They made Pikmin 3 because they wanted to, and the Wii U’s hardware is perfect for it. The AI has been improved and the controls are better with the Wii MotionPlus. You can play solely on the GamePad. It feels like the Wii U was made for Pikmin.
With the original Pikmin he wanted the rocket to fly away on the final day, but crash if it wasn’t complete. This time he wanted to let players take their time. Bosses will still be damaged if you come back the next day, just like real life. You can do more each day since you control three captains.
Mission Mode will give you a challenge to complete within a time limit, which will improve your technique in story mode. In Bingo Battle you can interfere with your opponent, go for the items you need, or the ones your opponent needs.
He thinks the Wii Remote and Nunchuk are the most comfortable way to play.
Pikmin 3 was tested with grade schoolers and they found that the more you play, the more you understand. He took some kids from his neighborhood out for a recreational activity and he drew a Pikmin. One of the children told him that the games have Bulborbs. Pikmin 3 feels like that ultimate evolution of Pikmin, and he hopes this is the framework for a new kind of real-time simulation game.
GameTrailers: Super Mario 3D World E3 2013 Miyamoto Walkthrough
Publication Date: June 11, 2013
Subject(s): Super Mario 3D World
Format: Demonstration, interview (dubbed)
People: Geoff Keighley, two unnamed developers, Shigeru Miyamoto
Video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PApbh5mUO8s
Notes: Geoff plays as Peach, Mr. Miyamoto as Luigi, and the two developers as Mario and Toad. They play level 2-1.
Summary: You explored Super Mario Galaxy in single-player, but Super Mario 3D World is focused on multiplayer. The cat suit lets you climb walls. Green pipes are iconic, but they added translucent pipes to show what Mario is doing in there. You can climb a flagpole in with the cat suit.
GameTrailers: Nintendo E3 2013: Miyamoto Speaks!
Publication Date: June 11, 2013
Subject(s): E3, Super Mario 3D World
Format: Interview (dubbed)
People: Geoff Keighley, Bill Trinen (translator), Shigeru Miyamoto
Video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PL8DOdlnmRw
Summary: The booth has a Nintendo feel at E3 this year. They brought a lot of games, many are from popular series, but they feel fresh.
He’s always involved in Zelda games, and they’re showing both The Legend of Zelda: The Wind Waker HD and The Legend of Zelda: A Link Between Worlds. There are several Zelda teams, one is working on new games for the Wii U.
They’ll announce new characters for Super Smash Bros. for Wii U today.
The developers of Super Mario 3D World came to him with the cat transformation idea, and he loved it because he’s had a cat for four years. He gave them a lot of instructions on how it should move.
GamesIndustry.biz: Nintendo’s Miyamoto: All this talk about our earnings is silly
Publication Date: June 12, 2013
Subject(s): The Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword, making hardware and software, retirement, new IP, sales numbers
Format: Transcribed interview
People: James Brightman, Bill Trinen (translator), Shigeru Miyamoto
Link: https://www.gamesindustry.biz/nintendos-miyamoto-all-this-talk-about-our-earnings-is-silly
Notes: This interview took place at E3 2013.
Summary: They try to show what’s unique about Nintendo at E3 every year. If everyone does the same thing they’ll look the same, but Nintendo has unique things to offer.
Consumers will always say that they want to pay less, but Nintendo competes on their uniqueness.
It’s not as easy as just quadrupling their development team size. They want to deliver the highest quality content, which means gradually teaching people how to do so. The DS to 3DS and Wii to Wii U were big jumps in hardware, which means their teams need time to adjust. The transition is smoother when the jump isn’t as large, such as going from the GameCube to the Wii.
They have determined a direction for the Wii U The Legend of Zelda game, and are working on it. They thought about showing it at E3 but didn’t want it to take all of the spotlight away from games like Pikmin 3. They also don’t want to share all of their news at E3.
Business-wise it’s important to have both the hardware and software side. Creatively, they make hardware that suits their needs. Other developers will make a game for a console, and then also make a version for different platforms, so they have multiple teams working on a game and its derivative versions. At Nintendo they focus on one game for one platform, and then move on to the next thing.
A game designer’s job is to make exciting new games, but what he sees is more focus being put on graphics, and games being sold on them. This weakens the meaning of game design.
There are still games he’s deeply involved in, such as Nintendo 3DS Guide: Louvre and Pikmin 3. He always wants to be involved with the games that are very fresh.
He’s not actively thinking about retirement, but he may fall over one day. Sometimes he tells teams that he’s not going to do anything, to prepare them for when he’s not there. They’ve done a good job raising up younger designers.
He doesn’t have any specific goals; he never would have been able to predict much of what has happened during his 30 years working in the industry. With each new wave he tries to keep an active role. Entertainment is about surprising people, so he tries to do something different from everyone else.
Focusing on making graphics or sound better leads to everything feel similar.
Some at Nintendo ask if a game would be better as a new IP. Putting a new character into an old game results in a game and experience that is old. They’re always trying to make new gameplay experiences. They came up with the gameplay for Pikmin first, and designed the characters around it. The idea is always making a new gameplay experience and then finding the right character for it, whether its a new one or an old one.
It’s silly to aim for a specific amount of earnings since the entertainment industry is unstable. There is no one better than Satoru Iwata to manage Nintendo. His focus is on making new experiences for a broad audience. The video game industry still has a lot of opportunity to do that.
BuzzFeed News: Nintendo’s Shigeru Miyamoto On The Wii U: We Will Make It A Success
Publication Date: June 13, 2013
Subject(s): Wii U’s sales, Pikmin, The Legend of Zelda: A Link Between Worlds, Cat Mario
Format: Transcribed interview
People: Adam B. Vary, Shigeru Miyamoto
Notes: This interview took place at E3 2013
Summary: They are happy with how the Wii U is a convenient device to connect to your living room television. Feedback has been positive from owners. Some people want more games and they’ve positioned themselves well for that now.
Getting people to experience the Wii U comes down to releasing games. Making games that use the Wii U’s features will be motivation to purchase it. They are making a push this Christmas season and people will realize the added functionality of the Wii U.
The Wii U hasn’t sold to their expectations. Their current lineup will motivate people to buy it and they have high expectations for the future.
Pikmin is a management simulation game which is fun because of the strategy and tactics. It’s not necessarily bad to make the player think of the moral ramifications. It’s possible to beat the game without losing a single Pikmin. People are playing it at E3 while surrounded by games that are shooting fests.
He can’t say much about the Wii U The Legend of Zelda game, right now they are focused on The Legend of Zelda: A Link Between Worlds.
There’s been a lot of discussion about platforms, with tablets and phones. Nintendo has a unique way of doing things. They want to preserve that essence.
Nintendo is an entertainment company, so they have to catch people’s attention. They’ve been an entertainment company longer than they have been a video game company.
They will make the Wii U a success. Nintendo always wants to find new ways to play.
It’s not impossible that they will adapt one of their games into a television show or movie. People pitch them ideas. But there’s a difference between passive and active entertainment.
They wanted to include climbing in Super Mario 3D World, and there was talk in the office about having a new cat. People thought he’d like Cat Mario, and he did.
Nintendo of America: Shigeru Miyamoto Pikmin 3 Bingo Battle
Publication Date: June 14, 2013
Subject(s): Pikmin 3
Format: Promotional video (live translator)
People: Bill Trinen (translator), Shigeru Miyamoto
Video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WD5aFGxps-s
Notes: Bill Trinen wins the first match, Miyamoto wins the second.
Summary: This is a competition to see who can clear a line on their bingo card first. He was trying to explain the cherries when Bill Trinen attacked him.
Kotaku: Shigeru Miyamoto’s Next Great Game, As Far As He’s Concerned
Publication Date: June 17, 2013
Subject(s): Pikmin 3, Pikmin, Pikmin 2
Format: Transcribed interview
People: Stephen Totilo, Shigeru Miyamoto
Link: https://kotaku.com/shigeru-miyamotos-next-great-game-as-far-as-hes-conc-513862764
Archive Link: https://web.archive.org/web/20130621233819/http://kotaku.com/shigeru-miyamotos-next-great-game-as-far-as-hes-conc-513862764
Notes: This interview took place at E3 2013.
Summary: He’s worked on about 50 games directly, and about 100 if you include the ones where he provided oversight. Pikmin 3 is one of the best, because he’s continued to play it and it’s still fun.
Pikmin 3 gives you the freedom to play how you want, not always in ways the developers foresaw. Pikmin 3 includes everything he wanted to have in the original Pikmin.
Pikmin is kind of like cooking, which involves doing several things at the same time.
The original Pikmin was too strict and confining, the 30 day limit made it difficult for novice game players. The time limit also made people not want to replay it. They wanted Pikmin 2 to be easier to get into, so they made it easier.
He wants to have some of the developers release videos showing their tricks.
Kotaku: Shigeru Miyamoto’s ’Bad’ Game
Publication Date: June 18, 2013
Subject(s): Zelda II: The Adventure of Link
Format: Transcribed interview
People: Stephen Totilo, Shigeru Miyamoto
Link: https://kotaku.com/shigeru-miyamotos-bad-game-514017583
Archive Link: https://web.archive.org/web/20130621180327/http://kotaku.com/shigeru-miyamotos-bad-game-514017583
Notes: This is the same interview as the previous entry, but the answer to “what was the bad game Miyamoto made?” was made into its own article. This interview took place at E3 2013.
Summary: The game he could have done more with was Zelda II: The Adventure of Link. When they make games they have an idea to start with and grow it from there. But Zelda II ended up exactly how it was originally planned.
If they could have sped up the transitions they could have done more with the interchange between the side scrolling sections and the overhead sections. Bigger enemies would have been good, too.
Nintendo of America: Shigeru Miyamoto Pikmin 3 Mission Mode
Publication Date: June 18, 2013
Subject(s): Pikmin 3
Format: Promotional video/demonstration (live translator)
People: Bill Trinen (translator), Shigeru Miyamoto
Video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nvbem-nAItQ
Notes: Miyamoto attempts to get a good score in the first mission of Pikmin 3.
Summary: The more you play a level the higher you can get your score. The key is to remember the abilities of the Pikmin.
Time: Shigeru Miyamoto Apologizes for Wii U Game Delays, Says the Best Is Nearly Here
Publication Date: June 18, 2013
Subject(s): Wii U, Internet functionality, slow releases, Pikmin 3
Format: Transcribed interview
People: Matt Peckham, Shigeru Miyamoto
Notes: The interviewer states that Mr. Miyamoto has been quoted as saying “A delayed game is eventually good, but a rushed game is forever bad.”. Mr. Miyamoto does not deny saying this in any interview where it comes up, but he has never actually said this in any known interview. You can read more about this quote on Video Game Canon.
Summary: Nintendo’s stance is that not everyone is connected to the Internet, so they support offline games. Their online services are a service to their customers to extend gameplay.
They don’t require that third parties support the GamePad, but they focus on it at Nintendo. Developers can take advantage of using it since every Wii U owner has one.
It’s very important to create unique games. If developers only focus on making the same games look better then it only becomes a competition to make the strongest hardware.
People understand what makes Nintendo products great after they’ve personally experienced them. It’s difficult to explain the appeal of the Wii U, but people who have used it like it. They wanted to release it before tablets became so widespread. More people will buy it as more of their games come out.
He wasn’t in charge of deciding the price of the Wii U. If another system included a tablet it would cost at least $100 more.
Just because Wii and Wii U have a similar name doesn’t mean their development environments are similar. Development has taken six months longer than expected several times. They will have big titles almost every month starting with Pikmin 3.
There’s a lot of variability in the entertainment industry, sometimes a product will have a slow start but then sell very well, sometimes the opposite. The Wii U was made to be a convenience to the living room. Word will spread when more games have been released.
A core audience really loved the original Pikmin, but not as many people played it as they hoped. They want Pikmin 3 to be approachable to newcomers while allowing others to get into the strategy quickly. They want people to play Pikmin 3 repeatedly. The basic action of throwing Pikmin is simple, but there are many ways to approach the game.
They could use The Legend of Zelda: The Wind Waker’s style again some day.
Kotaku: Nintendo: All These Sequels Don’t Mean We’re ’Playing It Safe’
Publication Date: June 19, 2013
Subject(s): Making new IP
Format: Transcribed interview
People: Stephen Totilo, Shigeru Miyamoto
Link: https://kotaku.com/nintendo-all-these-sequels-dont-mean-were-playing-i-514267102
Archive Link: https://web.archive.org/web/20130623012724/http://kotaku.com/nintendo-all-these-sequels-dont-mean-were-playing-i-514267102
Summary: Both inside and outside Nintendo people say that they should make new IP. People don’t understand the difference between new IP and new games. Making a new character doesn’t make a game fun. Pikmin 3 has created a new gameplay style within its franchise.
They are always making new gameplay elements. People didn’t see Nintendogs as a new IP because the character was a dog. Nintendo Land was fresh but people didn’t see it that way because there wasn’t a story or a new character.
Kotaku: Shigeru Miyamoto and the Damsel In Distress
Publication Date: June 20, 2013
Subject(s): Playable female characters
Format: Transcribed interview
People: Stephen Totilo, Shigeru Miyamoto
Link: https://kotaku.com/shigeru-miyamoto-and-the-damsel-in-distress-520259897
Archive Link: https://web.archive.org/web/20221001081124/https://kotaku.com/shigeru-miyamoto-and-the-damsel-in-distress-520259897
Summary: When they made Donkey Kong girls did not go to arcades often, so they didn’t consider making a character for girls. In the DS era more women played games like Professor Layton and Animal Crossing. His daughter loves Zelda but has never asked why she can’t play as her. If they were to ever make a game where a guy rescues a girl they would want for it to feel like the natural way for the game. The structure of the gameplay comes before the story.
IGN: Don’t Get Your Hopes Up For F Zero
Publication Date: June 20, 2013
Subject(s): F-Zero, collaboration, Star Fox
Format: Transcribed interview
People: Richard George, Shigeru Miyamoto
Link: https://www.ign.com/articles/2013/06/20/dont-get-your-hopes-up-for-f-zero
Archive Link: https://web.archive.org/web/20130623013326/http://www.ign.com/articles/2013/06/20/dont-get-your-hopes-up-for-f-zero
Notes: This interview took place at E3 2013 and the rest of the interview is continued in the next entry.
Summary: He understands that people might want a new F-Zero, but he doesn’t have any ideas for a great game. The anti-gravity in Mario Kart 8 may seem like a connection, but he doesn’t know what direction a new F-Zero would go in.
When they go to E3 with great franchises people ask about other series they want to play, but he only has so much capacity. They’ve worked with other companies to make F-Zero and Star Fox, but they would rather make those games themselves. They’ve been working on increasing their numbers so they can work on more at once.
IGN: The Future of Nintendo Game Development
Publication Date: June 21, 2013
Subject(s): Making more games, collaboration, Retro Studios, Next Level Games
Format: Transcribed interview
People: Richard George, Shigeru Miyamoto
Link: https://www.ign.com/articles/2013/06/21/the-future-of-nintendo-game-development
Archive Link: https://web.archive.org/web/20130623013755/http://www.ign.com/articles/2013/06/21/the-future-of-nintendo-game-development
Notes: This interview took place at E3 2013 and is a continuation of the previous entry.
Summary: Nintendo has been increasing its staff so that they can work on more things at once. He’s been working with Yoshiaki Koizumi on making more games at the Tokyo studio.
Retro Studios did well with Metroid so they want to continue to leverage their abilities.
When they work with another company they call it a collaboration project. They’ve realized that they want a Nintendo producer there overseeing things.
Retro Studios and Next Level Games have similar development styles as Nintendo.
Team CoCo: Conan Chats With Mario Creator Shigeru Miyamoto CONAN on TBS
Publication Date: June 25, 2013
Subject(s): Mario’s mustache
Format: Interview (live translator)
People: Conan O’Brien, Bill Trinen (translator), Shigeru Miyamoto
Video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mg-2EcAYjZo
Notes: This video was posted several years after it originally aired.
Summary: Mario has a mustache because he needed to have a nose and the mustache showed where the nose was.
Nintendo: ピクミン3 Direct 2013.6.26 (Untranslated from Japanese)
Publication Date: June 26, 2013
Subject(s): Pikmin 3
Format: Demonstration, interview
People: Hitoshi Matsumoto, Shigeru Miyamoto
Video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VGFymces-AM
Notes: Hitoshi Matsumoto plays Pikmin 3 and talks to Mr. Miyamoto in this Japan-exclusive Nintendo Direct.
Game Informer: Miyamoto Talks Zelda, Pikmin, and Wii U Development
Publication Date: July 5, 2013
Subject(s): What he does at Nintendo, Wii U development, the GamePad, The Legend of Zelda: The Wind Waker HD, Pikmin 3, multiplayer, Super Mario 3D World, making new IP
Format: Transcribed interview
People: Matt Helgeson, Shigeru Miyamoto
Summary: He works fewer hours than he used to but oversees a lot of projects. Right now he’s mostly working on Pikmin 3 and The Legend of Zelda: A Link Between Worlds.
There’s new things to learn whenever they move to a new generation, but Nintendo is unique in that the software teams talk to the hardware team about what kind of games they want to make. The more time they spend with the hardware the more they learn about it. There’s more possibilities with the Wii U.
The Wii U isn’t hard to develop for. They are learning more about HD development and shaders.
Touch screens are intuitive but the GamePad is a requirement for menus and sub-screens.
It was Eiji Aonuma’s idea to remaster The Legend of Zelda: The Wind Waker. They brought its cel shading over to the Wii U to test and it breathed new life into the game.
They’ve made some improvements to The Legend of Zelda: The Wind Waker HD. They’ve addressed the length of some things and the overall pacing.
He can’t discuss anything going on with Metroid, but they always have people looking at what they can do next, just like with all of their franchises.
They are working on a 3D The Legend of Zelda game for the Wii U. They almost brought it to E3 but decided to wait a bit longer.
There were some things they weren’t able to do with the original Pikmin that they can do on the Wii U. It’s also a struggle to make action games to make sure veterans and new players both enjoy the start of a game. Pikmin is kind of like cooking. It’s a process where you’re doing different things at the same time. It takes time to learn to manage that. You can speed things up once you understand it.
They wanted people to replay Pikmin once they got better at it, but they found that players were quitting once they beat the game. They’ve designed Pikmin 3 with replayability in mind, with the different modes and how they designed the story mode.
Since you use a pointer to aim you can be very precise and aim at specific body parts. The Rock Pikmin do more damage to certain parts and the Winged Pikmin open a lot of possibilities for strategy.
Multiplayer is local only, there’s no online play because they wanted to use the full capabilities of the Wii U to make the game’s world. It’s also important that you can communicate with anyone you’re playing cooperatively with.
They recommend using the Wii Remote to play, while using the GamePad for the map. You can also play with just the GamePad.
In the original Pikmin you moved the aiming cursor and the character at the same time. Now you can move with the Nunchuk and aim with the Wii Remote. More advanced players may prefer button controls.
The New Super Mario Bros. series is easy for novices to play. With Super Mario 3D Land they made a 3D game that felt somewhere in between Super Mario Galaxy and a sidescrolling 2D game. They made Super Mario 3D World to expand on that. They may explore the Galaxy series more in the future. They wanted to allow for the widest possible audience to play a 3D Mario game.
Yoshiaki Koizumi and Koichi Hayashida were the producer and director of Super Mario 3D World, and they weren’t there at Mario’s beginning. They had always wondered what happened to Mario when he entered a pipe. They decided it would be fun to have clear pipes so they could see Mario. You can throw fireballs while in a pipe and they will bounce around.
Mario Bros. was a multiplayer game, they have always wanted to include multiplayer in Mario games. They were able to do simultaneous four player multiplayer with New Super Mario Bros. Wii and wanted to try it in 3D. There’s still lots of possibilities to explore in single player Mario.
He plays Android games occasionally to relax. They don’t want to require people to make games in certain ways, like requiring them to use the touch screen. Developers know that all Wii U owners have a GamePad, so they can design around it.
Some people at Nintendo push to create new IP, but they have to ask if a new character makes for a new game. A new game means new gameplay and new interactions. They look at what character is best suited to a gameplay style. Pikmin needed a new character to make its gameplay work. They stress that developers should focus on fun gameplay first, and then they can worry about what characters to use.
Famitsu (reported on by Kotaku, incomplete)
Publication Date: Unknown (reported on July 10, 2013)
Subject(s): New franchise
Format: Transcribed interview
People: Reported on by Brian Ashcraft, unknown Famitsu interviewer, Shigeru Miyamoto (reported on by Brian Ashcraft)
Link: https://kotaku.com/its-time-nintendo-brought-out-a-new-franchise-says-shi-729597896
Archive Link: https://web.archive.org/web/20140417020231/http://kotaku.com/its-time-nintendo-brought-out-a-new-franchise-says-shi-729597896
Translator: Toshi Nakamura for Kotaku
Summary: The Wii U is a useful item for the living room, and has been recently updated, but they need to release games. When Mario Kart 8 releases in the Spring there will be a good mix of games, so it would be a good time to release a new franchise. He has been busy with this game.
Kotaku: Why Are You Here? Shigeru Miyamoto And The Ocarina Of Time
Publication Date: July 10, 2013
Subject(s): The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time
Format: Transcribed interview
People: Mark Serrels, Shigeru Miyamoto
Link: https://www.kotaku.com.au/2013/07/why-are-you-here-miyamoto-and-the-ocarina-of-time/
Summary: Early in the development of The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time they didn’t really understand the Nintendo 64’s graphical capabilities. The experimented with Super Mario 64, and used that for Ocarina of Time. There was no blueprint for making that kind of 3D game.
There was a lot of experimentation during the Nintendo 64 era. There were challenges in making Ocarina of Time with a third-person perspective. They tried making it like Mario 64, where players explored a central hub that was Hyrule castle. They wanted Hyrule to feel unique, with weather systems.
Adding a rideable horse was a turning point, they realized they needed a big field to ride the horse around.
Link was another turning point. They made a grown-up Link first, then made a child Link. They asked themselves which one they should go with, but realized they could use both. He wanted to make sure there were differences between the two, like Link’s relationship with girls, to tell a story of a boy growing up.
At the time it made him happy that convenience store workers knew he was working on Ocarina of Time. There were issues with some parts of the design, like the Postman. Late in development he declared that they had to double the number of ocarina songs. Eiji Aonuma still regrets making the Water Temple so difficult, though he says it’s not really hard, just inconvenient to switch boots all the time.
Ocarina of Time was the first game his daughter really sat down and played, and it made her a The Legend of Zelda fan.
How does Shigeru Miyamoto create a structure? Secret base in the tree Hobo Nikkan Itoi Shimbun (untranslated from Japanese)
Publication Date: July 12-24, 2013
Subject(s): Pikmin 3
Format: Transcribed interview
People: Shigesato Itoi, Satoru Iwata, Shigeru Miyamoto
Japanese Links: https://www.1101.com/nintendo/pikmin3/2013-07-12.html
https://www.1101.com/nintendo/pikmin3/2013-07-16.html
https://www.1101.com/nintendo/pikmin3/2013-07-17.html
https://www.1101.com/nintendo/pikmin3/2013-07-18.html
https://www.1101.com/nintendo/pikmin3/2013-07-19.html
https://www.1101.com/nintendo/pikmin3/2013-07-24.html
Japanese Archive Links: https://web.archive.org/web/20130715042226/http://www.1101.com/nintendo/pikmin3/2013-07-12.html
https://web.archive.org/web/20130719052845/http://www.1101.com/nintendo/pikmin3/2013-07-16.html
https://web.archive.org/web/20130722142552/http://www.1101.com/nintendo/pikmin3/2013-07-17.html
https://web.archive.org/web/20130725022641/http://www.1101.com/nintendo/pikmin3/2013-07-18.html
https://web.archive.org/web/20130722142621/http://www.1101.com/nintendo/pikmin3/2013-07-19.html
https://web.archive.org/web/20130725022959/http://www.1101.com/nintendo/pikmin3/2013-07-22.html
https://web.archive.org/web/20130725022646/http://www.1101.com/nintendo/pikmin3/2013-07-23.html
https://web.archive.org/web/20220904160241/https://www.1101.com/nintendo/pikmin3/2013-07-24.html
Notes: The title is machine translated. 1101.com is Shigesato Itoi’s website. I am combining these pages since none have been translated.
4Gamer: Interviewing Nintendo’s Shigeru Miyamoto On the Appeal of Pikmin 3 When it comes to interactive media, a connection to one’s self is the most fun
Publication Date: July 13, 2013
Subject(s): Pikmin 3, Pikmin, action games, high definition graphics, Pikmin’s genre
Format: Transcribed interview
People: Unnamed 4Gamer interviewer, Shigeru Miyamoto
Links: https://kamedani.tumblr.com/post/55798867746/4-gamer-interview-with-shigeru-miyamoto-part-1
https://kamedani.tumblr.com/post/56732554760/4gamer-interview-with-shigeru-miyamoto-part-2
https://kamedani.tumblr.com/post/56911527802/4gamer-interview-with-shigeru-miyamoto-part-3
Archive Links: https://web.archive.org/web/20130722143628/http://kamedani.tumblr.com/post/55798867746/4-gamer-interview-with-shigeru-miyamoto-part-1
Japanese Links: https://www.4gamer.net/games/168/G016837/20130712087/
https://www.4gamer.net/games/168/G016837/20130712087/index_2.html
https://www.4gamer.net/games/168/G016837/20130712087/index_3.html
Japanese Archive Link: https://web.archive.org/web/20130729231402/http://www.4gamer.net/games/168/G016837/20130712087/
Translator: KameDaniRyuu for kamedani.tumblr.com
Summary: They thought players would replay the original Pikmin, but most people stopped after beating it. He learned the hard way that people are busy.
Pikmin 2 was made to fix things that people didn’t like about Pikmin, but they weren’t sure that approach made for a good game. Pikmin 3 was made with the perspective of what Pikmin should have been.
With older Pikmin games they could hide some off screen elements. With the Wii U you can see the whole map and everything that is moving on the GamePad.
He has seen action games become less popular in Japan and more popular in America during his 30 years of making them. When people can’t overcome the difficulty they quit. When people who want a challenge play an easy game they think it’s lame, but if it’s too hard it puts off the people who just want to play it. He wanted to make a game everyone could enjoy.
Someone who has trouble with action games can beat Pikmin 3 in 40-60 in-game days, while others can beat it in 20. They made it so you can replay the story mode from the start or from set points. You can also improve by playing mission mode.
Tutorials are the part of the game you have to put up with to enjoy the rest, and the more complicated it is, the longer the tutorial has to be. It’s especially frustrating for experienced players who are familiar with a series.
He wanted to go high definition sooner, even if it made the Wii cost more. They felt there was no point at the time since high definition televisions were not common yet. They thought they would be common enough by the time the system after the Wii came out, but it ended up happening 2 to 3 earlier than they expected.
There’s no need for Zelda in 4K definition, but Pikmin could benefit.
If every Pikmin moved in the same way they would look like robots. There were some details added to make them seem more alive, their movements are slightly offset, and sometimes one won’t listen to you. The system is a black box, he’s been asked not to change too much.
Unexpected things happen when you create something based on the natural way of things. There’s something appealing a game that makes you feel a way you hadn’t before. You have mixed feelings when a red Pikmin stares at you or when the Pikmin watch your rocket fly away. It’s good to let children see it without making a big deal about it.
In the original it is possible to beat the game without killing a Pikmin. They weren’t sure it was possible in Pikmin 3, but a debugger was able to do it, so they were able to release the game.
There is nothing in Pikmin 3 beyond what is necessary. Some may say the ending doesn’t have enough build up, but it was done that way on purpose. The hero is the player, not the characters. There are three characters, but they were designed as throwable tools. There were four heroes at last year’s E3, but it was too complicated.
The two types of Pikmin added in Pikmin 2 may have made it a bit complicated, but the Stone and Winged Pikmin in Pikmin 3 are well balanced. Blue Pikmin are a bit less valuable, but you send in the Winged Pikmin and then the Blue Pikmin after them.
Since Pikmin is about using time effectively they have tried to make easy to see how to do that. You can send a few groups out to do different things, and then collect them when you hear the chime.
They tested Pikmin on DS and 3DS, but it turned into unit management and didn’t feel like Pikmin. They found that Pikmin is an action game centered around its controls, and strategy atop that.
When they made Pikmin they wanted to make the easiest to control 3D game. Few games were so simple, since you didn’t need to control the camera.
The Pikmin do things for you, rather than you controlling a character that does things. It’s like a sports game, you have to carefully place everyone. They made sure not to start from the idea of a real-time strategy game. Some of Pikmin was inspired by M.U.L.E. Pikmin is an action game and its own genre, not a real-time strategy game.
There was an American poll that said Mario was more popular than Mickey Mouse. Mickey was about 40 years old, but Mario was three or four. He wanted Mario to grow with digital media the way that Mickey grew with animation. They decided that Super Mario 64 would be their first 3D game.
The Wii U has a browser and two screens, so you can watch YouTube conveniently, but it’s hard to understand if you don’t use it. There aren’t enough games for the Wii U. Pikmin 3 and Wii Fit U were planned to release January to March, but they were busy working on high definition shaders. There were some elements of Pikmin 3 that they weren’t sure would work until the game was done. When the realized it wouldn’t be ready for February they thought maybe April, but they decided to take their time.
Pikmin 3 is fun for the family to watch, it can be enjoyed that way. One sibling can in charge of the TV and one in charge of the GamePad. Pikmin 3 is like number visualization training, you also have to coordinate and plan, so it can make you mentally sharper.
Bingo Battle can fire up the living room, people watching can better see what is happening and give directions. He wasn’t sure the mode needed its own director, but he was glad for it in the end.
They gave up on online play because it would have required sacrifices to other parts of the game.
Their goal at Nintendo is to sell games for 3 years after release, or at least 1. Games that you beat in 3 weeks and never play again are not good.
It’s fun to watch Pikmin 3 gameplay videos. He has learned new techniques from the debuggers.
Mission and Bingo Battle are meant to be playable for six to 15 minutes. Many feel like 20 to 30 minute play sessions are too much.
He is experimenting with a Pikmin anime, in fact he’s spent more time on it than the game for the last two years. E3 2012 included elements they made for the anime. There are Pikmin in the TOHO Cinema logo to prepare for the anime.
The original point of video games was a shared experience between the game maker and the game player. Whether the player can learn something from the game. If you can do this there is a shared understanding and a relationship of trust is born.
Games are unfortunately being made more movie-like. Nintendo wants players to think about what’s going on and play actively. Mario isn’t the hero, the player is. The hero is Link, but the series is The Legend of Zelda. The heroes are Charlie and the other captains, but it’s called Pikmin 3.
The most interesting parts of games are what’s connected to you. You’re moved by Dragon Quest because you put 40 hours of yourself into it.
Nintendo is seen as ignoring game lovers, but the people making games love them. Pikmin 3 is for game lovers, but also balanced for casual players.
Miyamoto on Miiverse (Pikmin 3 secret memos)
Publication Date: July 16, 2013
Subject(s): Pikmin 3
Format: Social media post
People: Shigeru Miyamoto
Archive Link: https://web.archive.org/web/20171107003428/https://miiverse.nintendo.net/posts/AYMHAAABAADMUKlYWIe9OA
Notes: Translations for this post came much later than usual, so I am using the original Japanese post for this entry. The Internet Archive seems to have an issue with the first English version of this post, but a second English post can be found here.
Summary: Have those of you playing Pikmin 3 found the Secret Memos in story mode? The numbers in the 10 secret memos combine to form a code.
Miyamoto on Miiverse (Pikmin 3 Mission Mode for beginners, untranslated from Japanese)
Publication Date: July 18, 2013
Subject(s): Pikmin 3
Format: Social media post
People: Shigeru Miyamoto
Japanese Archive Link: https://web.archive.org/web/20171107003427/https://miiverse.nintendo.net/posts/AYMHAAABAAD4UV52ZFnzZQ
Notes: This post contains a video with beginner’s tips for Mission Mode in Pikmin 3.
Miyamoto on Miiverse (Pikmin 3 Mission Mode Platinum Medal, untranslated from Japanese)
Publication Date: July 18, 2013
Subject(s): Pikmin 3
Format: Social media post
People: Shigeru Miyamoto
Japanese Archive Link: https://web.archive.org/web/20171107003427/https://miiverse.nintendo.net/posts/AYMHAAABAADbUV588z4kwg
Notes: This post contains a video showing how to get a Platinum Medal in Mission Mode in Pikmin 3.
Miyamoto on Miiverse (Pikmin 3 Mission Mode super play, untranslated from Japanese)
Publication Date: July 25, 2013
Subject(s): Pikmin 3
Format: Social media post
People: Shigeru Miyamoto
Japanese Archive Link: https://web.archive.org/web/20171107003427/https://miiverse.nintendo.net/posts/AYMHAAABAAD4UV52jEnXjQ
Notes: This post contains a video showing super play in Mission Mode in Pikmin 3.
NRC.nl: Kleine mannetjes in de harde natuur wortel, nielsthooft.com: My Pikmin 3 interview with Nintendo’s Shigeru Miyamoto
Publication Date: July 26, 2013 (Dutch), July 29, 2013 (English)
Subject(s): Pikmin 3, sequels
Format: Transcribed interview
People: Niels’t Hooft, Shigeru Miyamoto
Link: https://nielsthooft.com/miyamoto-pikmin
Archive Link: https://web.archive.org/web/20130803232658/http://nielsthooft.com/miyamoto-pikmin
Dutch Link: https://www.nrc.nl/nieuws/2013/07/26/kleine-mannetjes-in-de-harde-natuur-1274305-a372078
Dutch Archive Link: https://archive.fo/BhrpM
Notes: NRC is a Dutch newspaper which originally printed this interview. Niels’t Hooft, the interviewer, posted the full version to his website three days later in English. A machine translation of the Dutch headline is “Little men in the harsh nature carrot”.
Summary: The Pikmin series are action games where you direct a number of AI controlled Pikmin, so he thinks of them as AI action games. There’s also elements of puzzle, simulation, and real-time strategy games.
Pikmin shows the harsh reality of nature well. It leads to people having emotions they’ve never had while playing a game.
It feels good when you do things efficiently, you might even learn to be efficient in real life too.
The Super Mario 128 demo made him think it would be fun to watch little creatures moving around according to your directions.
They could have more Pikmin, but 100 is a good amount.
There’s no rule about when a sequel should be released, but it’s also important that people don’t forget about a series.
The Pikmin team started work on another game right after Pikmin 2. There were tests on the DS, Wii, and 3DS. About five people worked on experiments until a larger team was assembled to work on a game. It works this way for other franchises, too.
He is a producer on Pikmin 3, he discussed the game system and its direction. He took extra time on how the GamePad would be used. He also discussed making new types of Pikmin. Development was easy since most of the main staff have been working on it since the original.
They have been working on Pikmin animations to show people interesting gestures that they can’t see in the game.
He’s working on a new game now, which has gotten busy recently.
El Comercio: No hay nada que pueda compararse a ’Pikmin 3’ (untranslated from Spanish)
Publication Date: August 1, 2013
Subject(s): Pikmin 3
Format: Transcribed interview
People: M. McLoughlin, Shigeru Miyamoto
Spanish Link: https://www.elcomercio.es/rc/20130801/mas-actualidad/tecnologia/nada-pueda-compararse-pikmin-201307312221.html
Spanish Archive Link: https://web.archive.org/web/20231217205936/https://www.elcomercio.es/rc/20130801/mas-actualidad/tecnologia/nada-pueda-compararse-pikmin-201307312221.html
Notes: A machine translation of the title is “There is nothing that can compare to ‘Pikmin 3’”.
Miyamoto on Miiverse (Pikmin 3 more on Secret Memos)
Publication Date: August 8, 2013
Subject(s): Pikmin 3
Format: Social media post
People: Shigeru Miyamoto
Archive Link: https://web.archive.org/web/20171107004144/https://miiverse.nintendo.net/posts/AYMHAAABAAAYUKk-X8ZsIg
Japanese Archive Link: https://web.archive.org/web/20171107003428/https://miiverse.nintendo.net/posts/AYMHAAABAAD4UgHp83RQkA
Summary: As promised he is going to describe how to use the codes found in the Secret Memos.
Captain Olimar and his crew recorded Expedition Logs and entering the special code gives you access to them.
To see the Expedition Logs go to the link below and enter the secret code. They can only be viewed in the Wii U’s browser.
Electronic Gaming Monthly: The Big Question
Publication Date: Fall, 2013
Subject(s): Making new IP
Format: Transcribed interview
People: Eric L. Patterson, Shigeru Miyamoto
Scan:
Notes: Scan by Retromags.
Summary: They could have made Pikmin with Mario characters, but then there would have been 100 Marios running around. They needed new characters to represent the new gameplay.
They’ll use an existing IP for a game if it makes sense, or make a new IP if it makes sense. Sometimes a series they haven’t used in a while makes the most sense.
He focuses on making experiences to impress people more than on the characters.
Miyamoto on Miiverse (Pikmin 3 update)
Publication Date: October 1, 2013
Subject(s): Pikmin 3
Format: Social media post
People: Shigeru Miyamoto
Archive Link: https://web.archive.org/web/20171108042635/https://miiverse.nintendo.net/posts/AYMHAAABAADOUgHrJsJ6Qw
Japanese Archive Link: https://web.archive.org/web/20171107003427/https://miiverse.nintendo.net/posts/AYMHAAABAABtUhptH9Lngw
Summary: A Pikmin 3 update was released that adds a 6th stage to Collect Treasure! in Mission Mode. It is free and takes place in the same area as Stage 1. He hasn’t gotten the Platinum Medal yet.
Stages 7 to 10 are available to purchase in the eShop.
Polygon: Super Mario 3D World: The Shigeru Miyamoto interview
Publication Date: October 24, 2013
Subject(s): Super Mario 3D World
Format: Transcribed interview, demonstration
People: Colin Campbell, unnamed members of the press, Yoshiaki Koizumi, Kenta Motokura, Shigeru Miyamoto
Link: https://www.polygon.com/2013/10/24/5022354/super-mario-3d-world-the-shigeru-miyamoto-interview
Summary: Everyone loves cats and they included the Cat Suit in Super Mario 3D World because it is cute and it offers an element of freedom.
People think of Mario jumping on things, but they thought of climbing walls.
They’ve taken the simplicity of 2D games and combined it with the exploration of a 3D game.
It’s been a long time since you could play as Princess Peach in a Mario game.
Toad is good for speedrunners.
Some find 3D games too hard, and others are tired of 2D games. Super Mario 3D World combines the best of both.
GamesRadar: Shigeru Miyamoto tells us if HD Mario remakes are possible
Publication Date: October 24, 2013
Subject(s): Remakes
Format: Transcribed interview
People: Henry Gilbert, Shigeru Miyamoto
Link: https://www.gamesradar.com/hd-miyamoto-tells-us-if-hd-mario-remakes-are-possible/
Archive Link: https://web.archive.org/web/20131109152612/http://www.gamesradar.com/hd-miyamoto-tells-us-if-hd-mario-remakes-are-possible/
Notes: GamesRadar was able to ask one question via video conference. This was almost certainly from the same event as the previous entry.
Summary: It is possible that they will remake games in high definition, but they’re working on new things right now. They would want the GamePad to add something new to it.
Official Nintendo Magazine: Meeting a Legend
Publication Date: November, 2013
Subject(s): Work life, games he plays, apprentices
Format: Transcribed interview
People: Chandra Nair, Shigeru Miyamoto
Scan:
Notes: This interview commemorated Official Nintendo Magazine’s 100th issue. Nintendo UK’s website included this barely legible scan in their article about the event.
Summary: He wants to continue to be deeply involved in game development. He can’t work as long as he used to when he was young. He has to balance his time carefully to be involved in all the games he wants to be involved with.
He plays the games he works on, but doesn’t have time to play others. The last non-Nintendo game he played was Puzzle & Dragons.
Eiji Aonuma doesn’t need him anymore, he can leave The Legend of Zelda to him. It’s the same with Yoshiaki Koizumi and the Mario series. Hideki Konno handles Mario Kart. Also Katsuya Eguchi of Animal Crossing. These producers are talented enough to oversee game development to the Nintendo level of quality. For years they would show him what they were working on, and he’d tell them not to look to him for feedback, look to the consumer.
Gamekult: Super Mario 3D World, l’interview en trio (reported on by IGN, untranslated from French)
Publication Date: November 1, 2013
Subject(s): Super Mario 3D World
Format: Transcribed interview
People: Reported on by boulapoire , Yoshiaki Koizumi, Kenta Motokura, Shigeru Miyamoto
Links: https://www.gamekult.com/actualite/super-mario-3d-world-l-interview-en-trio-112458.html
https://www.ign.com/articles/2013/11/04/miyamoto-wont-work-on-the-next-mario
Archive Links: https://web.archive.org/web/20170906035650/https://www.gamekult.com/actualite/super-mario-3d-world-l-interview-en-trio-112458.html
Notes: The next Super Mario game was Super Mario Maker, and the game he was heavily involved with was likely Star Fox Zero.
Summary: He is unlikely to have much involvement in the next Mario game after Super Mario 3D World, since he is busy with another project.
He wants to work on more small projects.
Iwata Asks: Super Mario 3D World
Publication Date: November 14, 2013
Subject(s): Super Mario 3D World
Format: Transcribed interview
People: Satoru Iwata, Shigeru Miyamoto
Link: https://iwataasks.nintendo.com/interviews/wiiu/super-mario-3d-world/0/0/
Archive Link: https://web.archive.org/web/20221019040247/https://iwataasks.nintendo.com/interviews/wiiu/super-mario-3d-world/0/0/
Japanese Link: https://www.nintendo.co.jp/wiiu/interview/ardj/vol1/index.html
Japanese Archive Link: https://web.archive.org/web/20220313030205/https://www.nintendo.co.jp/wiiu/interview/ardj/vol1/index.html
Summary: No upending the tea table this time, he mostly did spot checks and made sure the game follows the overarching concept. The concept was a 3D Mario game that fans of the New Super Mario Bros. series can enjoy.
The idea for controlling multiple Marios at once was not new, but the worry had been it would be too taxing.
They decided on the multiplayer aspect early on, which narrowed the possibilities for how the camera worked.
Super Mario transcends cultural differences because the games are based on what instinctively feels good.
He realized that “Land” games were for handhelds, while “World” games were for consoles.
Nintendo of America: Nintendo Direct Nintendo 3DS Guide: Louvre
Publication Date: November 27, 2013
Subject(s): Nintendo 3DS Guide: Louvre
Format: Promotional Video (subtitled)
People: Satoru Iwata, Shigeru Miyamoto
Video:
Notes: This features Mr. Iwata and Mr. Miyamoto walking around the Louvre using Nintendo 3DS Guide: Louvre. The Iwata Asks interview goes into more depth.
Summary: You can’t get lost with the map. You can turn the view with the L and R buttons.
Put down the guide when you walk on the stairs.
They wanted to use an outdoor background for Winged Victory of Samothrace, but they had abandon the idea.
The rod-like object on the wall is what tracks your location. They had to hide these devices.
You can look more closely at the art on the 3DS than you can being there.
The Louvre’s 3DSes make logs detailing where they have been.
Iwata Asks: Iwata Asks: Nintendo 3DS Guides: Louvre
Publication Date: November 27, 2013
Subject(s): Nintendo 3DS Guide: Louvre
Format: Transcribed interview
People: Satoru Iwata, Shigeru Miyamoto
Link: https://iwataasks.nintendo.com/interviews/3ds/louvre-guide/0/0/
Archive Link: https://web.archive.org/web/20220621221440/https://iwataasks.nintendo.com/interviews/3ds/louvre-guide/0/0/
Japanese Link: https://www.nintendo.co.jp/3ds/interview/al8j/vol1/index.html
Japanese Archive Link: https://web.archive.org/web/20221205121149/http://www.nintendo.co.jp/3ds/interview/al8j/vol1/index.html
Summary: Going to museums is a hobby of his.
He thought the DS could function as a more convenient audio guide. He worked with Oriental Land to trial a guide to the shopping area in Tokyo Disney Resort. Other places had similar guides made, and this software would eventually be released as Make It Yourself: Nintendo DS Guide.
While in talks to make the Louvre guide hegot to explore the museum on a day it was closed. He had a lot of fun taking 3D pictures with the 3DS. There are about 37 hours of audio in Japanese. They had over 500 antennas put up, which had to be concealed and they have to be constantly updated as works are moved around.
They had to get permission to add flourishes to the 3D models of the art, Nike of Samothrace flaps her wings, but they could not give Venus de Milo arms.
Miyamoto on Miiverse (Pikmin 3 Mission Stages)
Publication Date: December 6, 2013
Subject(s): Pikmin 3
Format: Social media post
People: Shigeru Miyamoto
Archive Link: https://web.archive.org/web/20171108042636/https://miiverse.nintendo.net/posts/AYMHAAACAABnUYnZZH17ew
Japanese Archive Link: https://web.archive.org/web/20171107003428/https://miiverse.nintendo.net/posts/AYMHAAACAAAYUKlBPHi5zQ
Summary: There is a third Mission Stage pack available in the eShop for Pikmin 3. It includes eight new stages with new environments.
A new Mission Stage called Fortress of Festivity is set in a home that is celebrating.
The New York Times: In the Footsteps of Lara Croft
Publication Date: December 13, 2013
Subject(s): The portrayal of damsels in distress in video games
Format: Transcribed interview
People: Chris Suellentrop, Shigeru Miyamoto
Notes: This comes from a conversation or interview Chris Suellentrop had with Mr. Miyamoto before E3 2013. Chris told Mr. Miyamoto about the first episode of Anita’s Sarkeesian’s Tropes vs. Women in Video Games, which deals with how video games portray damsels in distress.
Summary: Video games aren’t the only genre to portray damsels in distress, he hasn’t given it a lot of thought.
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