Last time we highlighted how there have been plenty of times in which Sakurai had to work on something that wasn't to his personal liking, even with the Super Smash Bros. series we also know that Sakurai had to really go out of his way to make Super Smash Bros "Maybe I'm just thinking that there's a blue ocean to venture into in that direction The majority would probably focus on creating things that they themselves want to see So maybe that makes it valuable to move into the minority position instead," said Sakurai "If all developers started focusing on their 'role' more so than their own visions and thought like I'm doing right now I might shift my thoughts and instead start developing things that appeal specifically to me." This sort of dialogue really seemed to have an impression on Hoshino he already seemed so impressed with what Sakurai has accomplished But a blue ocean that nobody's stepped into that sounds like something everyone would want to follow you towards," responded Hoshino it feels like nobody's been able to reach it like you have." Sakurai begun to talk about the complications of promoting the Super Smash Bros Sakurai highlighted the challenges that he's come across throughout his career it was particularly evident with Super Smash Bros. it was treated as unthinkable that we were having Nintendo characters punching each other," declared Sakurai "The Famitsu review even said 'There's no depth to be found here.'" Not mentioned in this interview, Sakurai has also previously talked about the enormous risk that Satoru Iwata had taken in order to turn Super Smash Bros Despite being "flatly denied" the usage of Nintendo icons for their Super Smash Bros Satoru Iwata told Sakurai to go ahead and implement the Nintendo characters anyhow (without telling him that they were denied the right to do so) there was a great deal of aversion to the idea of Nintendo characters fighting against one another even from within Nintendo themselves It was also believed that this was an idea that could never resonate with consumers "It's always difficult to convey something that's new it's fun,' that's not going to be enough," continued Sakurai on the subject within the interview with Hoshino I worked hard on public relations around the game I worked very hard to convey the game and its ideas to people." Sakurai even maintained a website focused on Super Smash Bros for the Nintendo 64 in hopes of interacting directly with Nintendo fans in order to promote the game "There was an official guide site called 'Smash Bros Fist!!' Is it true that you wrote it yourself and interacted with users through it I created it myself as one of Nintendo's official sites and directly communicated with users through it which I think was groundbreaking," said Sakurai "It's more difficult to do such things now but it was genuinely fun to be able to talk directly with fans." Evidently, Sakurai put in a lot of work to get people to accept a new concept such as Super Smash Bros. Luckily, it all ended up paying off considering that the latest entry in the series, Super Smash Bros. Ultimate, is known to be the third best-selling game on the Switch after having sold over 35.88 million units A special thanks goes out to Nicholas "MajinTenshinhan" Taylor for the translations featured in this article The only way to squash console jealousy is through Men in Black references and as their numbers come up so has some friendly beef that can only be settled by an IRL meetup to recreate the most iconic image of the 1997 cinematic classic Men in Black It's probably selling Nakamura a bit short to simply call him the "Nintendo Direct narrator," as he's a prolific voice actor who's appeared in everything from JoJo's Bizarre Adventure to Final Fantasy but the fact that he's the de facto voice of Nintendo marketing in Japan means that his struggles to secure the new console feel downright tragic a reference to Men in Black's Neuralyzer – or "flashy thing," as you may recall Will Smith's Agent J calling it – a small gadget that erases memories with a bright light Convenient both for explaining away alien encounters and preserving friendships that might otherwise be jeopardized by video game console jealousy 当たりましたよ？ https://t.co/h8OcKNHTa3 pic.twitter.com/bNBk54PsLNApril 24, 2025 I guess that counts as a happy ending to this goofy little saga pic.twitter.com/8xJdY8LCApApril 27, 2025 He's been covering games (with occasional dalliances in the worlds of anime and pro wrestling) since 2015 then as a news writer at PCGamesN for nearly five years His love for games was sparked somewhere between Metal Gear Solid 2 and Knights of the Old Republic and these days you can usually find him splitting his entertainment time between retro gaming or a long haul in American Truck Simulator you will then be prompted to enter your display name Login | Sign Up Nintendo Life Guest Login or Sign Up Just recently, we reported that developer Masahiro Sakurai had been successful in the Switch 2 lottery system in Japan thus receiving an invite to purchase the upcoming console Now, another legendary developer has announced his own success, and that's Hideki Kamiya. Famous for his work on Resident Evil 2, Bayonetta, and Okami, Kamiya is currently hard at work on the Okami Sequel at his new studio Clovers in partnership with Capcom He posted to social media to show what he wound up pre-ordering (the console, Mario Kart World with a simple statement that reads "That's quite good..." It's another indication that the big developers in Japan aren't simply handed Switch 2 consoles like they're promotional flyers; they've got to purchase them just like the rest of us it could be seen as an encouraging sign that we might be graced with the Okami Sequel at some point in the future There's no telling right now which platforms Clovers/Capcom plans to target for the release but if Kamiya sees the Switch 2 as a viable console then we might well be playing the sequel to one of the greatest adventure games of all time in the years to come Would you like to see the Okami Sequel on Switch 2 [source x.com] when he’s not knee-deep in Resident Evil and Silent Hill lore Ollie likes to dive into a good horror book while nursing a lovely cup of tea He also enjoys long walks and listens to everything from TOOL to Chuck Berry Dude's gonna have to sell his sunglasses collection to pay for it Glad to hear that Kamiya-san managed to get a Switch 2 too (hope that everyone who hasn't been able to will succeed in doing so sooner rather than later) - speaking of the Ōkami sequel fingers crossed it will come also to that system I've been tossing up whether or not to post a comment on this article but I decided to do it in order to personally congratulate Kamiya on snagging a Switch 2 I have accepted that in making this comment nintendo would give each switch 2 if they just asked. these stories are just for public consumption. Congratulations Kamiya-San and good luck with Okami 2 I definitely would like to see a Switch 2 release It is too early to guess how likely that is Care to start developing the first episode of that totally unrelated Viola series on NS2 then?Maybe call it Violetta @notohoho (SmileBoom) posted about his success in the pre-order lotto the other day, too. He'll be fixing up SmileBASIC4, which currently has "uses the IRSensor" issues.https://x.com/notohoho/status/1915585236479668495 @BirdoDidNothingWrong I reported you for being happy about something Though the extra levels in Kirby and the forgotten land tempt me every day @anzzjam You're really going to wait three years to buy it Do you have any idea how many games will be made and released for it by then @Purgatorium I don't know what his net worth is but I highly doubt he's that strapped for cash @Zufolobelisk That’s correct 3 years isn’t that long and I have plenty of games to enjoy in the meantime and anything I “miss” will still be available in 3 years If they have to go with a lottery to even get a chance that is rough And that means any units Switch 2 made is spoken for and 2.2 millions are waiting So they are probably ramping up as much as possible Hopefully parts wise they don't get hit with all this tariff war going on @Zufolobelisk He's blowing it all on sunglasses and Switches Show Comments Hold on there, you need to login to post a comment.. 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PSA Redownloading Switch eShop Games Has Now Changed With Latest Update ICYMI 12 Switch Games Will Receive Free Switch 2 Upgrades Editorial Gamers, Support The People And Sites You Love, Before It's Too Late News Switch Users Are Getting Error Codes After Updating To Version 20.0.0 Guide Pokémon Scarlet & Violet: Mystery Gift Codes List News Oops, Yuji Horii May Not Have Leaked Massive Remake News After All News The Company That "Leaked" Switch 2 Is Being Sued By Nintendo News Nintendo Highlights Multiple Switch Games Launching In May 2025 News Switch eShop Update Puts Less Focus On The Terrible 'eSlop' Show More © 2025 Hookshot Media, partner of IGN Entertainment | Hosted by 44 Bytes | AdChoices | Do Not Sell My Personal Information in his last “main video,” as there will be a special “final episode,” he went right back to his bread and butter…spreading words of wisdom he talked about his “Up is Down and Down is Up” viewpoint on management and how higher-ups should treat employees Masahiro Sakurai believes that those at the top shouldn’t berate those “below them” because directors and producers are there to help and guide as everyone needs to work together to make the best games possible This is prudent in today’s gaming space because there are plenty of cases from recent history of those in power looking down on those who are actually making the games and punishing them for when things go wrong All the more reason to be sad that Sakurai is ending this video series as there are clearly plenty of people who need to hear his wisdom He’s owned every Nintendo handheld and every console since the SNES He's got a degree in video game development is a published comic book writer and an author of several novels Masahiro Sakurai talks about what he thinks Japan's game industry should do to keep growing in the future in which he shared personal views about the future of Japan’s game industry.  When asked what he thinks the domestic game industry should be doing to keep growing (to keep pace with the booming success seen in countries like China) I think Japanese people should keep pursuing the things that Japanese people like.”  He goes on to explain that the success of various Japanese games in the US kicked off a trend of “making Americanized works.” Or “you could say that there was a culture of following de facto standards.” By de facto standards, he is referring to practices that get adopted as widespread norms by the industry as an outcome of market competition.  Sakurai feels that people overseas who love Japanese games aren’t looking for this kind of filtered experience I think that they seek the uniqueness and fun of Japanese games” – hence the opinion that there’s no need for Japanese developers to consciously adapt their work for audiences in the US or elsewhere.  I think that the ideal would be to make games the way you like as those who agree with you will enjoy them.” Sakurai adds that it is vital for people in the industry to “do things freely,” without letting others’ ideas be forced on them that his opinion is just one way of thinking about the topic.   Related Article: Should developers be making the games they want or the games the industry needs? Masahiro Sakurai shares his insight  She grew up playing Duke Nukem and Wolfenstein with her dad and is now enamored with obscure Japanese video games and internet culture Currently devoted to growing Automaton West to the size of its Japanese sister-site while making sure to keep news concise and developer stories deep and stimulating Dynasty Warriors Origins focused on balanced sex-appeal that doesn’t compromise female characters’ roles and backgrounds, says series producer  Japanese NFT game company’s currency crashes after users discover infinite money glitch Shin Megami Tensei artist Kazuma Kaneko says teaching AI to draw like him was more time-consuming than making art from scratch  and website in this browser for the next time I comment AUTOMATON WEST is operated by Active Gaming Media Inc.Reproduction in any form or medium without acknowledgment of Active Gaming Media Inc Copyright © 2025 - AUTOMATON WEST / Theme by Creative Themes I think Japanese people should keep pursuing the things that Japanese people like," said Sakurai when asked what he thinks about the domestic video game industry should do in order to keep growing He added that Japanese games that found success in the US started a trend of "making Americanized works" and "there was a culture of following de facto standards." He feels people oversees who love Japanese game aren't looking for them to be Americanized I think that they seek the uniqueness and fun of Japanese games." as those who agree with you will enjoy them." He feels it is important for the industry to "do things freely" and without letting others' ideas be forced on them Sakurai was recently awarded the Art Encouragement Prize from the Japanese government’s Agency for Cultural Affairs I buy more Japanese games than I do Western games. Make good games, and we'll buy them. Japanese dev: Anime breasts and gachas, gotcha! Says the person with the Animal Crossing avatar. Classic. He has a point as western gamers like eastern games because they are their own thing, he's not saying they can't be inspired by anything new and incorporate it but having an identity is just as key, anyone remember the PS3/360 era when eastern developers tried to make their games to be like western games and it went horribly wrong if we want western like games we already have a ton of studios in the west filling that void. This is the japanese way. Focus on your craft, make it always better and more refined. People from the world over will come to appreciate its unique quality. Can be said about many japanese crafts and its artwork. creator returns with his first game in seven years by Dominic Preston FacebookThreadsDominic Preston is a news editor with over a decade’s experience in journalism He previously worked at Android Police and Tech Advisor.The Switch 2 is getting an unexpected sequel to GameCube racing game Kirby Air Ride with Masahiro Sakurai — the original Air Ride’s director not to mention the creator of both Kirby and Super Smash Bros is a four-player racer in which players control different-colored versions of Kirby across various vehicles along with unlockable characters like Meta Knight and King Dedede Air Ride is relatively unique for its simplified controls in which characters move forward automatically leaving players to worry only about steering and using Kirby’s trademark ability to suck up enemies and steal their powers Air Riders’ trailer doesn’t give much away though the shot of four Kirbys racing together suggests a return of that player count whose last game was 2018’s Super Smash Bros We're Back. We hope you'll join us. Learn more Amid a number of other new game announcements today Nintendo showed off a first look at Kirby Air Riders the new game from acclaimed director Masahiro Sakurai Sakurai is the originator of both the Kirby franchise and Smash Bros. so his involvement with the new Air Riders is exciting news.  but footage revealed Kirby flying along on a star beside three of his other-colored Kirby friends.  The original Kirby Air Ride released on GameCube over 20 years ago It was a racing game with simplified controls and high-speed course navigation which also highlighted Kirby’s ability to suck up enemies and absorb their abilities.  while some games from today’s Nintendo Direct were highlighted as launch games Kirby Air Riders features no date of launch on Switch 2 Be among the first to get details on the new magazine and membership Create account The star of the 2019 documentary reveals the one Page tone he can’t figure out and explains why there’s still one Gibson missing from his Page collection Many of us will understand Akio Sakurai’s devotion to Jimmy Page the future kimono salesman fell in love with music found a hero and joined the ranks of rock guitarists round the world But the Japanese player’s commitment carried him beyond the realm of those who eventually leave their instrument to gather dust: he spun his dream of emulating Page into an odyssey that’s led to him becoming known as Mr. Jimmy He truly is the leader of the Page followers – he’s spent three decades transforming himself into a near-mirror image of the Led Zeppelin icon For many of those decades it was a part-time gig for Sakurai as he performed note-for-note renditions of Page’s licks in Tokyo clubs when Page himself caught wind of his act and went to see him “I asked Jimmy for advice and he replied ‘You already know me,’” Sakurai says “I asked him if it was okay to keep doing what I’d been doing as I’m aware that some artists don’t like tribute bands To see someone wearing the same clothes and posing like them… it could be seen as creepy!” But Page told him: “Keep doing it,” and hugged Sakurai he made a break for the Los Angeles and joined a tribute act Led Zepagain – and in 2019 he became the subject of a movie that bears his name many people viewed me as just another guitarist in a tribute band,” he says “People thought I was just another fan of Led Zeppelin paying tribute requires a massive amount of respect and love for the original artist and a strong passion and desire to become that person “Jimmy Page’s music is like Mozart – timeless and universally loved by people emotions and expressions are attached to this music I don’t just play the songs; I play the essence While Page will forever be associated with Gibson and to a lesser extent Fender and Danelectro Sakurai started out with Japanese ‘lawsuit era’ guitar maker “My first guitar was a Tokai when I was 17,” he says Gibson’s imported guitars were too expensive “And the Les Pauls available in Japan were shaped differently to the one Jimmy Page used I was already detail-oriented by then; Tokai’s Les Paul was a very close copy So I kept playing the Tokai until I was 30 People might think studying studio versions is easier – but it’s not I bought my first guitar from Gibson’s Custom Shop I started to collect the other models like the Custom Double Neck EDS-1275 Now I have every single guitar Jimmy Page used in performances there is one exception – Jimmy’s ’79 Gibson RD custom model I don’t have one yet since he only used it for one night only But when the day comes for me to recreate that performance Creating such one-off performances isn’t easy, but it’s a big part of what Sakurai does. “People might think studying studio versions is easier – but it’s not,” he reveals. “I need to know which guitar, pickup, and amplifier Jimmy used and speaker unit; was it original or was it replaced “Then there’s the mic; what kind was it And the mixing console – what kind was it These elements make a huge difference in sound Original PAFs that are 60 years old are precious He admits it can be close to impossible to achieve “You can’t study it unless you can deeply examine each element You’d need to go to the exact studio and find the exact setup So unfortunately I don’t always get to know all that I’d like to.” recreating a style so distinctive that many resort to dismissing it calling it ‘sloppy’ rather than admitting that they can’t do it “I can’t know it all,” he repeats “But I can guess and imagine string gauge and the nuances “Bending and vibrato directly correlate with the string size so I experiment and find the right size that produces the exact sound And because of the studying I’ve done I can make an educated guess on the things that can’t be solved.” It helps that Page “tends to use the same gear in the studio as he used on stage” – apart from the ’59 Fender Telecaster used on Led Zeppelin Within Number 1 lay a set of PAFs that would become providing Page with oodles of tone to spare the man behind Grinning Dog Pickups: “Kishimoto once told me ‘Pickups are the gateway to rock ’n’ roll,’ and I agree A pickup is like a mic; when you sing karaoke And depending on the characteristics of the pickup “If I’m trying to figure out Jimmy Page’s sound and use the wrong pickup I’ll only get further away from what I’m trying to achieve You’re using this blue color from a specific brand; every time you use it you get the same result But if you got blue paint from another brand That’s why pickups are so important.” So what makes Grinning Dog Pickups his preference “Original PAFs that are 60 years old are precious but not necessarily suitable for the Jimmy Page sound,” Sakurai explains “The original PAFs were made from ’57 through ’60 I would like to ask Jimmy how he got his tone during the 1973 Madison Square Garden shows “Gibson does have pickups based on original PAFs I prefer using the custom pickups Kishimoto makes for me "I would like to ask Jimmy Page – if I see him again – how did he get his tone during the 1973 Madison Square Garden shows That fuzzy tone is impossible; it doesn’t make sense but was it modified with some kind of special circuit this journey is the very essence of getting to know Jimmy Page and Led Zeppelin It’s all very mysterious; it’s why fans are still crazy about them after many decades What Led Zeppelin made wasn’t easily made; Led Zeppelin is a miracle It’s why some people who want to ‘be them’ eventually give up Sakurai believes that learning about the artist’s background is as essential as the secrets of their output “Where he grew up and what he saw growing up; studying these kinds of things helps to dig deeper in finding the origins of the music,” he says “When I visited England I went to his hometown [Heston I’d walk the streets that he walked and breathed in the air he breathed ‘He must have used these stations; he must have grown up looking at that clock tower.’ “I even noticed the smell when it rained These things are crucial – they influence music Jimmy Page reveals some of them in his interviews Sakurai is starting to look beyond Led Zeppelin integrating Page’s work in the ’80s and ’90s into the mix: “I have already studied and performed Coverdale/Page I have a connection with Chris Slade and Tony Franklin [of The Firm] I plan to do a tribute to The Firm in the future.” Anyone who’s seen him in action knows why Jason Bonham invited him to join his outstanding Led Zeppelin Evening shows – but despite moments like those Sakurai reveals: “I’m humbled by my success and accomplishments I can’t feel more joy than when I’m trying to get closer to the sounds that Led Zeppelin made And even if I was satisfied with what I do one person didn’t create Led Zeppelin’s music John Bonham and John Paul Jones had the chemistry that gave birth to this music My toughest mission left to do is to recreate that.” He’s certain he won’t change his approach in the future I was listening to some Led Zeppelin in the car and I made a new discovery It’s been 43 years since I started this journey but I’m still finding new things.” alfredo pasta-loving journalist from Long Island in addition to being a contributing writer for Guitar World Andrew has interviewed favorites like Ace Frehley while his all-time favorite (rhythm player) “I remember there was a video of Gary Moore and he played Red House on this Fiesta Red Strat and I thought it was just the most incredible thing”: Is Toby Lee Britain’s next blues-rock superstar but essentially it’s an instrument that belongs to the 20th century in many ways what can you do to try to reinvent that vocabulary to make it seem relevant?”: Steven Wilson on the making of a cosmic prog epic ‘Do you want to play with Joe?’ Before I could say ‘yes’ or ‘no,’ he brings Joe over and tells him ‘Jason wants to play a set’”: Jason Sinay on jamming with Joe Bonamassa – and why his early sessions with Mike Campbell were a struggle Are you excited about The Hundred Line: Last Defense Academy The next game from Danganronpa creator Kazutaka Kodaka creator Masahiro Sakurai definitely isn't the man to ask about it you can take that as a fantastic sign for his hopes for the tactical RPG The Hundred Line: Last Defense Academy might have the same art style as the visual novel series Danganronpa but it'll play very differently given its strategy-centric gameplay Sakurai has shared a message about The Hundred Line: Last Defense Academy in the build-up to its release but admits that when he "received this request for a comment as he explains: "I generally shut out all information about games I intend to play I've been thoroughly avoiding any information about The Hundred Line which means I only have a vague idea of what it's about." he's avoided so much information that all he really knows is that there's "some kind of brain-ghost" as a mascot meaning that coming up with something to say in his comment was rather difficult that's how eagerly I’m looking forward to The Hundred Line," Sakurai continues In the meantime, you can find some great games to play on our list of the best strategy games who works alongside the rest of the news team to deliver cool gaming stories that we love After spending more hours than I can count filling The University of Sheffield's student newspaper with Pokemon and indie game content and picking up a degree in Journalism Studies I started my career at GAMINGbible where I worked as a journalist for over a year and a half I then became TechRadar Gaming's news writer where I sourced stories and wrote about all sorts of intriguing topics you're sure to find me on my Nintendo Switch or PS5 playing through story-driven RPGs like Xenoblade Chronicles and Persona 5 Royal It's important to keep in mind that this interview was published before Kirby Air Riders was revealed for the Switch 2 this gives us some interesting insight from the man behind the Super Smash Bros "This story about how you developed Kirby but also in general look at the requests around you and try to respond to them when you create games," begun Hoshino Originally, Super Smash Bros. on the Nintendo 64 started as a project known as Dragon King: The Fighting Game We previously heard that Iwata wanted "to build a four-player game that [utilized] the Nintendo 64 system’s unique 3D control stick" while Sakurai "wanted to offer an alternative to the two-dimensional fighting games that were crowding out the market." Shortly after Kirby Air Ride was released for the GameCube Sakurai returned as a contractor to oversee the development of Super Smash Bros Ever since then, Sakurai continued developing games at Nintendo's requests. Sakurai even considers Super Smash Bros. Ultimate to be the final mission given to him by the late Satoru Iwata "I'm sure you also felt like 'This is something that I want to make,' but I've always wondered what the balance between those two areas is like," continued Hoshino with his question for Sakurai so it seems there are a lot of different things that I can do "So I always create things from the perspective of 'what is my purpose' here." it's interesting to note that sometimes this means that Sakurai has to develop something that isn't exactly to his own personal liking There have apparently been times in which this was true for the Super Smash Bros there've been times where I work on something that isn't quite to my personal liking but it's not like I'm reluctantly doing it against my will I'm actually still having a lot of fun," continued Sakurai Sakurai mentions that if he were tasked with creating an RPG he's not quite as confident about the idea of creating a dating simulator This seems to suggest that there are lines for Sakurai As mentioned before, Kirby Air Riders was recently announced for the Switch 2. If nothing else, this means that we've got a long wait ahead of us in terms of the next Super Smash Bros Nintendo will very likely want a new entry for the new hardware considering that Super Smash Bros Ultimate is known to be the third best-selling game on the Switch (with over 35.88 million sales thus far) Sakurai has previously talked about how he'd actually prefer to leave the Super Smash Bros. series to someone else since it's a lot of work he also acknowledges that Super Smash Bros. if Nintendo requests that Sakurai create a new entry of the Super Smash Bros The famous Japanese narrator of Nintendo Directs has been sulking about losing the lottery for pre-ordering the Switch 2 game designer and director Masahiro Sakurai was able to get a Switch 2 pre-order of his own prompting a chaotic exchange between the two – with Nakamura sulking and Sakurai coming up with a very realistic solution to the issue The light Sakurai is referring to is none other than the one emitted by a Neuralyzer popularized by the Men in Black franchise Neuralyzed people can have their memories erased and replaced with suggestive memories or commands As Sakurai doesn’t want Nakamura to cut ties with him for getting a Switch 2 pre-order he proposes that he neuralyze him so they can continue their friendship.  pic.twitter.com/8xJdY8LCAp Zoto has been playing video games for 30+ years now but has only recently come to grips with PC gaming he watches romance anime and gets mad when his best girl never wins During that final episode, Sakurai was surprisingly forthcoming as he revealed that he had been working on a secret game project since April 2022 He had apparently received the request to write up the game proposal for this secret game project back in July 2021 while he was still juggling the Kazuya and Sora DLC for Super Smash Bros Sakurai wasn't willing to share many more details beyond that When can we expect to learn more about this "secret game project" of Sakurai's "I'm sorry I can't share more about this project it should be announced sooner or later," stated Sakurai on the subject It's been over four months since Sakurai said that More than likely, Sakurai's next game is slated to be on the Nintendo Switch 2 there will be a Nintendo Switch 2 focused Direct held on April 2 that will reveal more about the console and its game library This surely means that Masahiro Sakurai is fully finished with his YouTube channel, right? In a recent interview with Entax, shortly after Sakurai had received the Lifetime Achievement Award from AMD he revealed how he was potentially planning on using his YouTube channel in the future "You've ended your YouTube channel for now but do you have any plans to make a second or third series Are there still things pent up inside you that you want to explain or share with an audience?" asked Entax during the interview I honestly haven't thought about doing it again What I showed on that channel was really just a small part of the knowhow and knowledge so if you're asking me if there's more content I could potentially make there's probably a ton," responded Sakurai it was really rough to make what I already made Sakurai has relayed that he spent about 90 million yen (the equivalent of $630,000 USD) creating his YouTube series it was only possible for him take on a project like this due to the span of free time he had between game projects after Super Smash Bros Although Sakurai probably doesn't have the time or resources that he's willing to put into a second or third series in the foreseeable future that doesn't mean the YouTube channel can't be used again for another purpose I think it would be difficult for me to make something in the same way again but there may be opportunities of sharing more of my knowhow via different avenues or methods in the future," continued Sakurai I've been thinking about the possibility of using it for various announcements and such." it's important to note that Sakurai said something similar to this during his special finale episode The fact that this idea is still on his mind means that it might become relevant in the near future Could this potentially have something to do with that secret game project of his it's really curious how it hasn't even been announced yet "This will be the channel's final episode," said Sakurai back then "I'm sure I could think of plenty more to discuss So please don't ask me for more episodes on this topic or that topic it's always possible I could use it to talk about something else down the line," continued Sakurai so I'm trying to stay flexible in how I approach it." there's a good possibility that Sakurai's secret game project will be revealed during the upcoming Nintendo Switch 2 Direct scheduled for April 2 this game project will have been in development for about three years A likely possibility is that Sakurai's mysterious game is the next entry in the Super Smash Bros. series. Of course, it will be difficult to follow up after the latest iteration on the Switch considering its "Everyone Is Here" theme, but Nintendo would probably have an interest in having Sakurai oversee such a project based on the massive success of Super Smash Bros We'll just have to wait and see what happens but it's possible that Sakurai might be planning to use his YouTube channel to push out daily updates similar to what he did with the Super Smash Bros I was busy working on the DLC of Super Smash Bros Ultimate," suddenly stated Sakurai on the subject Sakurai Presents Kazuya.' Sora was in development too I received a request to write a game proposal but perhaps he was just hinting at how he actually had some free time until the start of his next project Sakurai obviously wasn't willing to divulge too many more details about this upcoming title he did seem to suggest that it could get announced soon it should be announced sooner or later," continued Sakurai Sakurai made the bold decision to do much of the work necessary to start up his YouTube channel which was primarily focused on imparting his wisdom and experiences regarding game creation the target timeframe of the team's assembly was set to April 2022 it sounds like work on this game did indeed begin in April 2022 this means that Masahiro Sakurai's mysterious game project has now been in production for a period of time longer than Super Smash Bros Ultimate started its development until the reveal of its very first trailer This trailer was intentionally cryptic about what it was exactly leaving many to speculate on whether it would be a port of Super Smash Bros it did reveal Splatoon's Inkling as a new playable character If we assume the team was assembled for this upcoming title around April 30 then it's been at least 921 days since then we know that its cycle started in February 2016 (though the proposal was completed back in December 2015) With the assumption that work on Smash Ultimate theoretically began on February 1 then it means that it took the developers at most 766 days to release the first trailer that told fans that "Super Smash Bros is coming to the Nintendo Switch" on March 8 It's also worth noting that the time between Smash Ultimate beginning production and its release date on December 7 We're fast approaching that timeline for this new game and yet there still hasn't even been a trailer for it What's going on here? More than likely, Sakurai has been tasked with overseeing the development of a new game for the Nintendo Switch successor which is set to be officially revealed prior to the end of Nintendo's fiscal year on March 31 This suggests that Sakurai's new game could be a launch title for the new console Of course, fans immediately began speculating that this new project could be related to the Super Smash Bros. series. This would make sense considering how Smash Ultimate recently crossed the 35 million milestone so Nintendo would obviously have a vested interest in having the next Smash entry announced early for the new console Though Nintendo confirmed backwards compatibility for the Switch successor just yesterday series has proven capable of being a console seller on its own The company will likely want to continue the tradition of producing a new Smash entry for every mainline console since the franchise's debut on the Nintendo 64 With news now officially surfacing about the Switch successor from Nintendo President Shuntaro Furukawa it shouldn't be too long now before that announcement finally drops (though it'll likely be in early 2025 at this point) considering the amount of time this new game project has been in development it should be a fairly brief wait between its unveiling and its actual release considering how long Smash Ultimate was worked on some interesting tidbits were unveiled throughout the broadcast Sakurai revealed that he was tasked with the creation of a new game proposal before the releases of the Kazuya Mishima DLC and Sora DLC for Super Smash Bros this video was never intended to feature a reveal trailer or anything like that Sakurai was expectedly a little tight-lipped about the details of what was detailed within this mysterious game proposal Sakurai ended up implying that the game was still in development at this point it might not be too much longer before it actually gets announced and my work commitments were more or less wrapped up but it was going to take some time to assemble the right team This ended up being a unique situation for Sakurai as he was used to going directly from one job to the next Sakurai actually had a few months of spare time before development on his next project would truly begin Sakurai apparently considered a few different options such as taking a trip or actually taking the time to "recharge." Of course Sakurai concluded that this was a "once-in-a-lifetime opportunity" for him so he ultimately decided to plan out the creation of his new YouTube channel that was directed at teaching game development but Sakurai revealed during this special finale episode that he's actually been overseeing the development of this secret game project and managing his YouTube channel since April 2022 the experience has left him with very little free time Sakurai made sure to prepare as much as he could before the start of the mysterious game's development He indicates that it would be completely unrealistic to write the scripts and record himself while also overseeing a new game's development process "As for why I wrote all the scripts at the start it's because I would never have been able to work on both the channel and a game at the same time," stated Sakurai "If game development didn't take so much time out of my day or if either the game or channel were smaller in scale it might've been possible — but that wasn't the case." Sakurai effectively told us that this was yet another massive game that he was working on this isn't too surprising considering that he's been working on it since April 2022 and we've yet to receive an official announcement about it I knew that for a director who produces games on the scale that I do it would be a tall order to manage two projects at once," continued Sakurai "In order to increase my chances of success I absolutely had to plan all the content in advance." Those that knew Sakurai was acting as a game director for a big game were surprised that Sakurai was also overseeing this channel people were surprised to see an active game director starting up a channel of this scale," declared Sakurai "The game project I've mentioned had already started production Sakurai lived a very busy schedule for the next two years Sakurai had to manage both his secret game project and YouTube channel at the same time I'd like to share with you what a typical day looks like for me," stated Sakurai and immediately write a daily report to my game development's team I'll also catch up on checks that came in the night before Sakurai then continues to emphasize just how busy he usually is he even notes that he doesn't even have time to take breaks I don't have time during the day to work on the YouTube channel so I focus exclusively on my game project," continued Sakurai I try not to go too far over that since I have channel work to do as well but I always finish my necessary tasks for the day before clocking out." Sakurai notes that he'd effectively work on his YouTube channel starting at 8 p.m If he had any spare time after working on his YouTube channel for the night He'd do this until he retired to bed between 1 and 2 a.m He also notes that he would typically get about six hours of sleep each night with this routine 260 videos have aired on Sakurai's channel It's mentioned in this latest video that it typically took about three months to create a video from start to finish Even though these videos were intended to be bite-sized Ultimate's initial development period spanned from February 2016 and lasted until December 7 That's not even including the post-launch development of DLC fighters Sakurai's new game project has been in development since around the same amount of time Sakurai was tasked with creating a new game for the successor to the Nintendo Switch similar to how he was tasked with creating a proposal for the new Super Smash Bros entry for the Switch as post-launch development for Super Smash Bros 4 (Corrin and Bayonetta specifically) was wrapping up Just earlier this year, Nintendo President Shuntaro Furukawa confirmed that the Switch successor is slated to be announced within this fiscal year it seems likely that Sakurai's new game project will be announced around then as well Whether or not this new title is a new entry in the Super Smash Bros series or something else entirely (similar to how Sakurai was able to create Kid Icarus: Uprising between developing Super Smash Bros 4) is something that we'll have to find out when the game is finally revealed and in the “Finale Special,” Sakurai broke down everything that went into this series including some things you might not have expected the videos we’ve been seeing were made back in 2022 Masahiro Sakurai had a rare break from work (more on that later) and he came up with this idea to try and give a “boost” to both the gaming industry and the gamers who wanted to learn more about video game development he wrote 256 scripts in the course of about a month did a small test pilot to prove he could do it and then hired Hike and 8-4 to help him edit and translate everything once he was done recording you’ll notice that Sakurai wears the same shirts throughout the series That’s because he recorded an entire “category” of videos in one or two shots and then just stacked them in a way that made it look like he was in fresh clothes every time He also revealed that the “Creating Games” channel cost over $600,000 to make and he intentionally chose NOT to monetize his channel he did admit that was “silly,” but he also felt it was the right thing to do as he wanted to put something out there that would elevate the industry and arguably most importantly for some of you Masahiro Sakurai IS working on a new game project so he’s been working on it for over two years now and we all think it might be Nintendo-related Sakurai noted how proud he was of this channel and all the praise and comments he got about it The series has a 99.5% upvote rate on YouTube He also noted he could come back to this channel to do other things in the future If he does…we’ll be waiting with smiles on and an eagerness to hear whatever he has to say it would eventually become a commemoration of gaming in general many third parties are now selectable within the Super Smash Bros took everybody by surprise when he was announced for Super Smash Bros actually made the request to have Snake join the battle during the development cycle of Super Smash Bros Kojima "practically begged" him to make Snake a playable character in Super Smash Bros Since Kojima was a good friend of Sakurai's but he didn't think it was possible at the time "Actually what really brought about the Snake character goes back to a conversation I had back when I was developing Super Smash Bros. for GameCube, when Hideo Kojima contacted me and practically begged me to put Snake in the game," said Sakurai according to a translation by Source Gaming we were already deep in development and I was thinking that we weren’t going to be able to get him in there I told him that it was too bad he hadn’t brought it up earlier Kojima was asked about why he "practically begged" Sakurai to put Snake into Smash it was his son that wanted to see one of Kojima's creations in Super Smash Bros. a game the father and son enjoyed playing together "My child likes Super Smash Bros., so we play it a lot together," said Kojima to a group of interviewers at The Art of Videogames exhibit (via Engadget) "And he told me that there's no character that you made in that game." Although it should be mentioned that Kojima also saw other merits in having Snake participate in Super Smash Bros He figured that this would be a good way to introduce the character to fans that were otherwise unfamiliar with Metal Gear there hasn't been a lot of Metal Gear on Nintendo platforms," continued Kojima I thought it was a good way to expose younger people to this character This wasn't the sort of request that Sakurai simply could've fulfilled by working a little harder Melee was particularly harsh on Sakurai's health as he was devoting everything he had to its completion as he envisioned it Indeed, Sakurai had actually worked 13 months straight without a single day off for Super Smash Bros then wake up to continue working for the next 40 hours the experience resulted in Sakurai collapsing suddenly there have been implications that if there was ever a sequel to Super Smash Bros Sakurai was asked to oversee the Super Smash Bros Sakurai apparently remembered the request that his friend made of him during the development of the previous iteration Sakurai sought out Kojima to see if that request was still on the table because I had been in contact with him back then we re-initiated talks and decided to put Snake into the game," stated Sakurai After Snake was revealed for Super Smash Bros. Brawl, it paved the way for other guest characters later in the series, including Sonic the Hedgehog who was also coincidentally requested of Sakurai (by Yuji Naka) during the development of Super Smash Bros What's interesting about these occurrences is that they marked some of the few times in which Sakurai would promise that a character would appear in a future entry of Super Smash Bros At this point, we're awaiting the Switch 2 Direct that's been scheduled for next week on April 2 entry be announced during this upcoming presentation It turns out that Masahiro Sakurai has been working on a secret game project since April 2022 he's been working on this game for nearly three years now we could see a number of characters that were previously considered added to the roster in the same manner that Snake was We'll just have to see how things play out from here director says they should strive to avoid “making Americanized works.” Masahiro Sakurai’s long career in gaming has brought fans wonderful series like Kirby and Super Smash Bros., but he has also been a source of wisdom and guidance for budding designers thanks to the sage advice he is known for. His YouTube Channel Masahiro Sakurai on Creating Games is a wellspring of insight into how he approaches development and is so beloved in Japan that Sakurai was awarded the Art Encouragement Prize from their government’s Agency for Cultural Affairs During an interview with the website Entax regarding the award Sakurai had another pearl of wisdom to bestow which we’ll roughly quote (via Google’s translation service) below: I think the trend in the game industry is that Japanese people should pursue what they like there was a culture of making Americanized things because various works were popular in America You could say it was leaning towards “de facto standards.” But I think that overseas “Japanese game lovers”are not looking for that kind of thing but rather for something unique and interesting about Japan I think the ideal situation would be to make it the way you want it and have people who can accept it enjoy it Sakurai’s words come at a time when Japanese companies like PlayStation and others have become slavishly devoted to making games for a so-called international audience but at the expense of the things that make games from their part of the world special and gameplay catered to a singular audience the hard reality is that it will eventually appeal to no audience While it’s merely this writer’s opinion a big part of my own interest in games came from titles produced in Japan because of what made them feel different compared to ones made in the West that’s just my opinion—what do you think about Sakurai’s statement Source: Entax I’m a little upset that Sakurai’s words are being taken so aggressively to me they seem like a comment against worrying if a game is “good enough.” This isn’t even a comment that I think is exclusive to Japan; I think everyone should make what they want because they want to You must be logged in to post a comment Sakurai explained how the YouTube channel came to be and when he began working on his next game project “all the footage prior to this video [the finale] was recorded over two and a half years ago.” I was busy working on the downloadable content for Super Smash Bros I was putting together the video for ‘Mr Sakurai Presents: Kazuya.’ Sora was in development too Not the company [Sora Ltd.] you may have heard of I’m sorry I can’t share more about this project but assuming we’re able to get it made I’d been given the OK to move forward with production The target timeframe was [starting] April 2022 I had always gone directly from one job to the next Directors tend to stay involved in projects longer than anyone else you’ll often be getting ready for the next one—so you never get to rest by some miracle… my schedule was wide open for several months straight but the team hadn’t been assembled yet—leading to this longer-than-usual gap I can’t do that because of [my cat] Fukurashi she’s started getting really lonely whenever I go out but I felt as though this was a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity So I ended up using that time to plan out this very YouTube channel when the channel launched] the game project I’ve mentioned had already started production I had to work on both ventures at once.” Sakurai did not share any more information about the game it has now been over two-and-a-half years since production began so as Sakurai said—“it should be announced sooner or later.” Reproduction in whole or in part in any form or medium without acknowledgment of Gematsu is prohibited Use of this site is governed by all applicable laws Website by 44 Bytes The movie is being co-developed and co-produced alongside Capcom the video game developer and publisher behind the franchise Legendary Entertainment’s upcoming feature film adaptation of “Street Fighter,” the iconic video game franchise that has sold over 55 million units will be directed by Emmy nominee Kitao Sakurai The film is being co-developed and co-produced alongside Capcom the video game developer and publisher behind the franchise “Street Fighter” was previously adapted into a live-action film in 1994 with a cast that included Jean-Claude Van Damme It was a commercial success despite being a critical failure The first “Street Fighter” game was released in arcades in 1987 and has sold over 49 million units worldwide becoming one of the most well-known and highest-grossing video game franchises of all time who traveled the world fighting other martial artists in a tournament the game was a hit and spawned numerous sequels and spin-offs “Street Fighter II” was released in 1991 and is widely regarded as one of the most influential video games of all time It introduced a cast of eight playable characters each with their own unique moves and abilities Players could also perform special moves and combos which added a new level of depth to the gameplay “Street Fighter II” was a commercial success and paved the way for other fighting game franchises like “Mortal Kombat” and “Tekken.” Capcom has released several more “Street Fighter” games including “Street Fighter III,” “Street Fighter IV” and “Street Fighter V.” Each new installment introduces new characters gameplay mechanics and storylines while retaining the core fighting gameplay that fans love “Street Fighter 6,” the latest game in the storied franchise was released in June 2023 to critical acclaim and won the award for Best Fighting Game at the 2023 Game Awards He both wrote and directed “Bad Trip,” the Netflix comedy starring Eric Andre He also both directed and executive produced Adult Swim’s “The Eric Andre Show,” in addition to directing Hulu’s “Dave.” He also serves as an executive producer on the second season of “Beef” for Netflix and A24 and directed the pilot and several episodes of the upcoming Amazon Prime Video series “Butterfly” starring Daniel Dae Kim Kitao Sakurai is represented by UTA and 3 Arts Waluigi has appeared in the series as an Assist Trophy and has pretty much behaved identically in later iterations Waluigi ended up being disconfirmed very early on after the initial reveal of Super Smash Bros Ultimate and its very first Assist Trophy showcase This revelation actually caused a bit of a backlash from some fans of the franchise It's bizarre to think that Masahiro Sakurai actually had to block some people due to the harassment he was receiving over on Twitter about Waluigi's exclusion the Waluigi situation ended up spawning a lot of memes While there were plenty of fans that legitimately wanted the character in Super Smash Bros there were also those that were simply perpetuating the joke Eventually, Reggie Fils-Aime, the then President of Nintendo of America, was asked about Waluigi during an interview with Waypoint Fils-Aime said that any decision regarding the character would ultimately be up to Masahiro Sakurai himself "We look at all of the feedback and share with the devs and certainly Mr Sakurai will be aware of the groundswell of support that appeared for a Waluigi," said Fils-Aime "And in the end it's his decision to make." a meme suggesting that Nintendo outright hated Waluigi (despite being their own creation) was circulating online but he revealed that it wasn't true and that Waluigi was actually his personal favorite character to play as in Mario Tennis Aces a fan made a joke online indicating that Sakurai believed that the fan demand for Waluigi was "insincere." Though Sakurai never actually made a comment like this that declaration would often be falsely attributed to him the only thing notable that Sakurai has said about Waluigi in Super Smash Bros was during a Miiverse post for Super Smash Bros 4 that revealed that the character would be returning as an Assist Trophy from Brawl "Just because you try hard doesn't mean you'll make it into battle," said Sakurai on the subject there's never been any evidence to suggest that Sakurai has ever seriously considered Waluigi for a playable slot in a Super Smash Bros that could someday change with future iterations in the series Nintendo only just recently officially unveiled the Switch 2 we only know that Mario Kart will be part of the new console's library Incidentally, Masahiro Sakurai revealed that he's been working on a secret game project since April 2022 We don't know much about this game project yet but Sakurai also told fans that he whipped up the proposal for it back in July 2021 while he was still juggling the DLC development for Kazuya and Sora for Super Smash Bros If Sakurai really is working on the next Super Smash Bros then it feels like Waluigi could be considered as a serious candidate this time around we likely won't have to wait too long as Waluigi will likely either be shown as a character or immediately disconfirmed as an Assist Trophy like before Kirby creator's X post about the next Nintendo Direct broadcast has fans hoping for a Super Smash Bros Nintendo revealed the date and time for their next Direct broadcast creator Masahiro Sakurai reposted the announcement on X accompanied by a simple exclamation of surprise That’s all it took for users’ imaginations to run wild with comments quickly escalating to speculation about potential new game releases and even character requests The upcoming April 2 Nintendo Direct Broadcast is set to reveal more information about the hotly anticipated Switch 2 console it seems Sakurai was also surprised and excited by the announcement so he quoted the post with a simple “Ooh!”  へー！ https://t.co/lle81eaVCo Users quickly got overexcited in the comments with many assuming Sakurai’s message has a deeper meaning Users suggested that he must be working on Super Smash Bros and is hinting that the game will be revealed in the upcoming Nintendo Direct replies were requesting guest characters for the (as far as we know so it is easy to see why people are assuming and getting excited She has a soft spot for old-school Sierra adventure games and Final Fantasy VIII (yes Can often be found hunting down weird forgotten games and finding out everything about them Frequently muses about characters and lines from Metal Gear Solid and Disco Elysium Aims to keep Automaton fresh and interesting with a wide variety of articles "I think that they seek the uniqueness and fun of Japanese games" Super Smash Bros. creator Masahiro Sakurai was recently awarded the Art Encouragement Prize from the Japanese government’s Agency for Cultural Affairs for his remarkable achievement with the 'Masahiro Sakurai on Creating Games' YouTube channel As part of that, he conducted an interview with Entax (thanks, Automaton) in which he stressed a need for Japanese developers to focus on creating games with domestic appeal rather than trying to cater to Western tastes When asked how Japan can keep up with booming gaming markets in regions such as China Sakurai simply stated “It’s not really my own idea I think Japanese people should keep pursuing the things that Japanese people like" He goes on to say that the success of Japanese games in the West had led many teams in the region to join a growing trend of "making Americanised works" he doesn't necessarily believe that Western gamers are looking for this stating "I think that they seek the uniqueness and fun of Japanese games" His comment comes at an interesting time for Silent Hill fans, of all people. Though not relevant for the Switch, as such (maybe the Switch 2, though..?), the recent transmission broadcast for Silent Hill f highlighted a desire to bring the series back to its Japanese roots with series producer Motoi Okamoto stating "As [Silent Hill] was based in the West for the longest time it felt like the Japanese influence was fading" the latest entry will be the first to take place solely in Japan Masahiro Sakurai stressed that his opinion is just one way of looking at the topic We love Japanese games here at Nintendo Life because they're so distinctly Japanese Are you happy for Japanese games to remain distinctly Japanese Please do not change for Western tastes because some of the stuff that does well here is shocking.. specifically because they have a distinct feeling when you play My favourite developers/publishers are all Japanese; Nintendo That doesn't mean I don't like Western games I just prefer my JRPGs over most other games Totally agree with "they [the gamers] seek the uniqueness and fun of Japanese games" and it is also why in recent years I've stuck to about 80% - 90% indie games only This certainly applies to me at the very least If Japanese styles give us games like Splatoon and Kid Icarus It's all about pursuing that AAA cinematic experience seem to stick to their roots and it makes me happy Only 3 of them are Japanese games and that 3 is including a game bundled with nearly every console should do a little more than just translate ya they tried to do that in the ps3/360 generation and that was a disaster 90% of the time That may explain his resistance to banjo kazooie initially into smash bros or why he felt the need to change the music so much for banjo kazooie in smash bros Goemon is all the better for being SO Japanese The few games the west saw were left largely untouched in that respect save the weird decision to name Goemon and Ebisumaru as Kid Ying and Dr Yang in the first game (which is barely more Western) changing Old Wise Man's love of Hentai magazines to car magazines but that one kind of makes sense why they would do that Pocky and Rocky was another that just went full Japanese folklore and **** it if you don't get it Games like these opened me up to the Japanese culture and an appreciation for it I love that they did games like this with no fear We need to have our own unique expressions and not be forced to conform to others ideals and standards angry extreme Kirby is just a US boxart thing because they keep what it makes them special and unique And if they want to create something more.. like Retro and Mercury for the Metroid series The reason Metal Gear Solid clicked with me was because it felt like an interactive anime made by a guy who loves Western movies the games are still unmistakably Japanese so maybe that's not what he's talking about Problem is what is super popular in one country does not mean that will translate to worldwide success Dragon Quest mega popular in Japan but outside very few care in America Call of Duty mega popular but in Japan they don't care I think what it really comes down to is bring your unique perspective rather than trying to engineer something for a different perspective that's not your own It's not just what makes Japanese games special it's a wonderful game that stays true to it's roots and would loose so much if they toned that back to make it "more marketable" to other regions The reason why I’ve found the PS5 so flat is because so many Japanese games have tried to copy Western game styles FF7R and Astrobot are at least zany and fun While I do enjoy the odd Western developed game my tastes definitely skew toward Japanese games Even there was MySims made by Japanese team from The Sims popularity in Japan I enjoy the gameplay & storyline of Ratchet & Clank games started from PS3 and it made by Western peoples The Western games (kids games) can be great also as long they deliver something similar from Japanese games It’s not necessarily that westerners crave Japanese tones specifically I think it’s more that:1) trying to “appeal” to certain demographics is inherently less genuine and captivating that creators being true to their own unique perspectives and inspirations Though I must admit that trying to appeal to a foreign demographic has been shown to work before — I’m particularly thinking of the western-targeted Twilight Princess which was the best-selling Zelda game upon its release The only concern I have is that “Japanese consumers” looks to be a shrinking market judging by all the social troubles ailing Japan at present What a tragedy it would be for that creative source in the industry to diminish @Mirastrix What about THE SIMS games (from The Sims 1 - 4) that made by Western developer MAXIS when I bought japanese games I want japanese feels rather than usa one I like it best when most console games are japan and most pc games are from usa back then Capcom tried doing this during the 7th gen and it backfired spectacularly FF15 and 16 defo feel more westernised and as such I have lost interest in the series More epic fantasy worlds like Xenoblade is what we need and lots of totally unrealistic big swords and magic You know Sonic the Hedgehog's character design was designed to appeal to westerners from the very beginning I do agree - especially when you look at games like Final Fantasy 16 that just.. don't have that Final Fantasy vibe to them at all I’m always annoyed when I learn that a Japanese IP was handed to a western developer The greatest benefit of the world's disparate cultures is variety Obviously there's more cross contamination and homogenization in the modern world than there ever was in the past but that's all the more reason for different nations and peoples to hold on to their cultural identities Western countries already have more than enough studios making western-style games If some japanese developers with a passion for those games want to join in but if all of Japan's studios start chasing western sensibilities in hopes of finding a bigger audience the games industry at large will end up losing a lot more than it gains Creators should make the games they want to make so if a Japanese or whatever else one genuinely wants to make a "Americanised" or whatever else game good for them but not because of explicit/implicit external pressures including just following a current trend - in that sense I couldn't agree more with Sakurai-san (other than of course my preference for Japanese games overall I’ll take a million Xenoblades over something like DA Veilguard Most of the games I played and valued the most were Japanese @LadyCharlie same Japanese games are unique because they're made by Japanese people with japanese sensibilities when they try to appeal to western sensibilities The best example I can think of is FromSoftware They make games with western feel (with the exception of Sekiro ofc.) better than most if not ALL western developers And yes please bring the real Final Fantasy back It can obviously be a case by case basis depending on what kind of game you're making but ultimately if a game is Japanese in nature The culture within each game is heavily Japenese centric and I wouldnt want it any other way I've learned so much about different foods social cues and practices because of these games I can't tell you how many times I've Googled a certain food or what "Senpai" actually means And Japenese centric games just have a certain look feel and appeal and it would be a damn shame if that was left behind It's a part of their culture that I welcome wholeheartedly Western games have their place but gaming would be very boring if it just appealed to America and Europe Many Japanese publishers have slowly begun to mimic Capcom's 2017 approach to making their properties have a more global appeal Non-modern-audience western tastes constitutes a major chunk of console gaming I'll take Japanese games any day over crap that kids play today like Roblox you should never conform to a specific demographic unless that is your goal Maybe ask The Pokemon Company not to turn Pokemon into yet another roll around the ground game Japanese games should stick to classic Japanese themes like those found in golden-era JRPGs: tales of elves and goblins and wizards and citadels and knights and knaves and kings and queens and princes and princesses and… That had a LOT of Japanese flavor but was incredibly fun I’ve been playing my 3DS one this past week and it’s every bit as fun now as it was 10+ years ago But a modernized version would be wonderful too Feel free to create what you will but honestly not in to anime at all and those 100% Japanese title but for the most part my tastes definitely trend towards Japanese companies They often bring a uniqueness I can't easily find elsewhere game companies should create what THEY want there is no such thing as targeting a product to every market segmentation This is why companies create different product to target a specific market rather than targeting a whole market suggestions for improvement: on the next news about Masahiro Sakurai I don’t really know what games he’s looking at in particular but maybe they are taking influence from Western games because they’re also great Games are big and broad enough to both be able to borrow from other cultures Zelda basically exists because of Western fantasy BOTW and TOTK are peak examples of the open world games popularized in the west and then brought further to life by very Nintendo innovations The appeal of Japanese games my whole life is that they feel different from western games or games made in the US Like during the 360 era it seemed some Japanese studios tried to hard to appeal to western gamers It resulted in a lot of bland games that had no heart Nintendo though even when they try to appeal to as many people as possible they still like they are making very Japanese games That is what has been making me get every Nintendo system since I got my first one an n64 on Christmas Day Nintendo is still holding the line for Japan While western gaming had its moments (Morrowind it can't even compete with Japanese games No amount of budget can fix the wrong attitude at the blueprint level 0.1% on music and 0.9% on partying (story is 0.0% it is written on the last day on a lap in a tram by a guy who was late to work most times) There was a time when western devs tried to emulate the Japanese style.. but the western style is here to stay or a new form of it a dev's own legit interest in a subject of western tastes is a different matter Otherwise entire genres like JRPGs might have never happened Western games are awesome of course but over the last two years I have been so pulled towards jrpgs is become my favorite genre it not being like the western stuff is probably why I love it so much Knowing where Arc System Works is today with Guilty Gear Strive That's good.The "americanized" japanese games like dmc (2013) or Bionic Commando (2009) or Bomberman Act Zero or Yaiba: Ninja Gaiden Z were a really bad idea Moral of the story: Don't be like Capcom in the 2010's From a western perspective I have mixed views on this idea A lot of Japanese games use western characters often presenting them in an inauthentic way And they often get a pass because “hey they are Japanese” (Western devs that pull Japanese inspiration don’t often get that pass) and that’s before I get to their flavor of objectifying girls and women Granted some of that they do so their games will sell in Asia (a lot of countries don’t allow for Samurai imagery or Japanese WW2 imagery)That being said I love Japanese games that lean into their own culture Okami is one of my favorite games ever for that reason (especially if played in Japanese) But japan does have a specific slant when they try to put themselves in western perspectives that I don’t think works I think Japan works best when they make games for a Japanese (katamari for instance) audience I don't always agree with Sakurai but he's dead on here Devs should put out the vision they want to put out Trying to pander to overseas audience to maximize profits often leads to a mixed product If the Japanese game is good enough then foreigners will like the game anyway without sacrifice of identity They have been trying to embrace the west by westernize themselves and their games Final Fantasy is not even selling like it did before I don’t think it has anything to do with Japanese vs Western so much as if developers aren’t making what they find fun and enjoyable then you are basically flying blind When you are reduced to trying to target your idea of what some arbitrary audience wants not only can you often just be mistaken but it leads to a focus entirely on what has worked in the past because that’s the only data you have So really it’s the same problem a lot of live service games face I think Japanese devs can and have made “Westernized” games that were amazing and successful but only by focusing on what it is they liked about that Not what some arbitrary fake image of an American audience thinks Bahahaha my friends and I have been saying this to each other for YEARS I know there was some discussion a few years ago around JRPG being something of a derogatory term in the industry - and that always baffled me because I always associated that title with my favorite games please gift us with your most authentic self Don’t change to try to make us like you more @TenEighty Japanese stuffs are NOT strange My sentiments are the same as the majority here.But it may be important to note that 'Americanised' or making games more western-like doesn't mean things like a medieval European setting But something deeper than that like the art style mood and writing style of the game itself.Compare XCX where Monolith Soft explicitly said they were trying to go for a more western style feel (e.g the different art style of the models and open world gameplay) to XC2 they wanted characters to be more expressive It's pretty clear to most people who've played a lot of JRPGs how the writing gameplay and characters/character interactions differ from western games but I thought I should point it out just in case And I'm not saying XCX is bad or anything but I agree with Sakurai that Japanese devs are usually better off pursuing their own style and interests and doing whatever they think is fun than trying to do what they think westerners are into @Anti-Matter That is an opinion that I do not share I completely agree with Sakurai-san.Homogenized culture is so dreadfully bland.Keep on keeping it real and don't listen to the shareholders Be authentic to your artistic vision and make something that the creators would want to play themselves So many disasters have been happening when market analysis is the leading driving force behind direction @Zuljaras Interesting I've never thought the from soft games felt mechanically particularly western although their settings have certainly been rooted in European history and folklore Removed - offensive remarks; user is banned @Anti-Matter I'm surprised you enjoy The Sims as it's full of sexual innuendo and adult themes @Anti-Matter Other people are allowed their own opinion As someone who grew up playing Nintendo when almost all games were Japanese @X68000 I already like The Sims games since The Sims 1 PC back in year 2003.I personally prefer games with sexual innuendo in the right way (LGBT) but I mostly enjoy the building house part The interactions between Sims character that secretly made me interested with The Sims games is having same gender romantic interaction (man with man) and from this interest I also indulge myself with same gender marriage (man with man) in other games like Story of Seasons Pioneers of Olive Town These are the rated TEEN contents that I still tolerate in video gaming Acknowledging the death of the series finally - with the horrible maming of gamings most sacred creation All culminating in the meta horror that is the not only another new game with a false title (silent hill) but this time the erasure of the true game to the passing consumer Silent Hill Resurrection F should not be called silent hill either but for sake of satirical symbolism it is a fitting end Why is Sakurai making the new silent hill though @Megas75 I don’t want to know what would have happened if Maverick Hunter had released @AJWolfTill Sure but they feel like medieval Europe than most western games set in that environment the Castlevania series are also set in the Dracula timeline in Europe They just love to do European influenced games and they make them good Besides superhero comics and action flicks Their tastes seem much more limited compared to those in Japan and Europe @RareFan well comics used to be more varied But DC and Marvel dominated the field much that it largely fell under them Other comics do exist but they aren't given public attention But we do have plenty more than action flicks Although the MCU has caused action to dominate more than ever Horror and comedy still have decent followings Overall it's not that our tastes are limited It's the monopoly of companies like Disney has caused most high budget productions to fall under them and they care about profit over entertainment so they just make the same stuff over and over That's why anime and such is so popular We want that stuff but the big companies here won't give it to us I’m looking for somthing different in Japanese games VS Western games but they both are good at different things @StewdaMegaManNerd I heard he did In his defense Inafune pushed for embracing the west mostly at a time where Western game development was flourishing far better than Japan which has fallen into a bit of a rut Really there was a point you could argue Inafune had a point And now game development is moving out of the west He's right the Western devs so out of touch they don't know how to appeal to gamers only the non existent modern audience this is why Chinese If anything it should be the other way around in a lot of cases they sacrificed Final Fantasy's popularity in Japan chasing the western cinematic action game audience and the Game of Thrones audience for FF16 Except it didn't work so now it's just straight up less popular worldwide and with no way to reverse it because there's 6-7 years between mainline entries Western games are pretty bland in comparison mostly because of modern censorship and politically correctness (aka wokism) That's why indy games have become better than AAA games (unless they rely on one of those despicable "consultants") Sony definitely needs to listen to Sakurai's advice And making female characters unnactractive because they aren’t showing a few more pixels of skin @Rhaoulos My thoughts exactly Stop chasing Western trends and embrace what makes people love Japanese games Every region should stick to what they do best Doesn't mean that each region can't dabble Some things are just better where they originate from Good for him standing up to these DEI bullies People do not want propaganda in their games I don’t want to call it ‘Japanese-ness’ but the originality some Nintendo games have is exactly why we are playing them years and decades later Don't twist his words around with this headline Him prioritizing japanese tastes doesn't mean being anti american tastes Heck maybe Japanese tastes can be American and vice versa i highly agree with sakurai's opinion thats what makes japanese video games so unique @Ironcore How about stop trying to make every topic about the same thing Japan is the last bastion of creative culture — we mut protect it at all costs @Dr_Lugae why defend dei @LadyCharlie Yupp! The video game (AAA more specificaly) industry will be fun again when it will be run by passionate people and not investors! I mostly just prefer when devs aren't trying to chase Hollywood and I'd prefer they not try to structure their games like movies I don't want a ton of long cutscenes or extended sequences with little-to-no-gameplay at this point in my life @ikki5 Japan is a small country and we're comparing it to "The West." There are more studios in America alone Seems like "top 10" is a cherry picked number because if you go down the list of top selling video games and I don't think Elden Ring needs to be more like GTA @Dark_Isatari I'm curious to know what you mean by "social troubles ailing Japan" Are you referring to their population decline or something else @CorugatedZant Definitely the birthrate and aging population is the biggest challenge but I also think think their economic decline can cause creative limitations to compile over time (without a feeling of security there can be aversion to innovation and risk) and their opposition to change is a double-edged characteristic.But I didn’t work with many creative field people in my interpreting career so maybe it’s not an issue in that field Some of the old guard has talked about difficulty communicating with the younger employees though so we’ll see what kind of content they end up producing Japan makes the best video games in the world Show Comments ICYMI: 12 Switch Games Will Receive Free Switch 2 Upgrades Switch Users Are Getting Error Codes After Updating To Version 20.0.0 Oops, Yuji Horii May Not Have Leaked Massive Remake News After All Update: Translator was just having fun with Chrono Trigger Nintendo Highlights Multiple Switch Games Launching In May 2025 96 yet full of love" comment about Kazutaka Kodaka and Kotaro Uchikoshi's upcoming game The Hundred Line: Last Defense Academy fellow industry peers with personal ties to the company will be offering comments about the game each day until it releases.  The first message came from Masahiro Sakurai, president of Sora games and creator of the Super Smash Bros His somewhat unusual comment immediately caught peoples’ attention for being extremely blunt yet “full of love.” Contrary to what you’d expect Sakurai made a point of emphasizing that he has no idea what The Hundred Line is about for the most part When I received this request for a comment I generally shut out all information about games I intend to play I’ve been thoroughly avoiding any information about The Hundred Line which means I only have a vague idea of what it’s about All I know is that there’s a mascot character in there who’s some kind of brain-ghost so you can see why I was troubled when asked for a comment that’s how eagerly I’m looking forward to The Hundred Line Sakurai has previously talked about how he wants to enjoy games “as if he’s the first person to walk on freshly fallen snow” on his YouTube channel – meaning that if he’s actually interested in picking up a game (or movie) he will go out of his way to shut out not only spoilers but any information about it He goes as far as to close his eyes at movie theaters when trailers start playing because he wants to go in “knowing absolutely nothing” and without other people’s observations coloring his impressions of the work.  It seems he’s been practicing this fully when it comes to Kazutaka Kodaka and Kotaro Uchikoshi’s upcoming The Hundred Line: Last Defense Academy as the only thing that’s made it past his barrier is the game’s transparent ghost-like mascot Sirei The Hundred Line: Last Defense Academy’s demo is out now and “Overwhelmingly Positive” on Steam. The full game will drop on April 24 for the PC (Steam) and Nintendo Switch.     creator shows which of his "Masahiro Sakurai on Creating Games" YouTube videos are most popular among English speakers vs Japanese audiences the two channels have a very different top 10 list: The planning videos for the first Super Smash Bros fighting game and Kirby of the Stars anime (“Kirby: Right Back At Ya!” in the West) round off the list in ninth and tenth place respectively the top three videos are “About This Channel” (the first video uploaded to the channe;) “Masahiro Sakurai on Creating Games: Finale Special,” and “Stop for Big Moments [Design Specifics].” It should be noted that English channel viewers seem to be more Super Smash Bros.-oriented as most of the top videos deal with the franchise and fighting game concepts (frame rates is the fifth most-viewed video on the English channel proving once again that the internet was made for sharing cat videos Creator Masahiro Sakurai Quits YouTube With Final Video Teasing Mystery New GameUltimate news.Smash Bros creator Masahiro Sakurai has ended his popular YouTube channel by teasing the upcoming announcement of a mystery new game In the final video from the Masahiro Sakurai on Creating Games YouTube channel Sakurai revealed that he received a video game development proposal in July 2021 as he was busy putting together the Super Smash Bros Ultimate Kazuya reveal video as well as DLC character Sora which makes it two-and-a-half years in the making it should be announced “sooner or later,” though he didn't say anything more specific “I received a request to write a game proposal which I finished at lightning speed,” he said “I’m sorry I can’t share more about this project (Sakurai also revealed that until recently all the footage of him for his channel was recorded two-and-a-half years ago if you were wondering why he all of a sudden looks older.) There’s little to go on, but it’s good news for Sakurai’s army of fans who had wondered what he’d do next having wrapped up work on Switch exclusive Super Smash Bros. Ultimate earlier this year Some even speculated that Sakurai might have retired Super Smash Bros. Ultimate launched in 2018 and Sora arrived as its final expansion fighter in 2021 The Kingdom Hearts character wrapped up an 89 character roster for the game which includes fighters from The Legend of Zelda Sakurai said in October 2023 he's not sure where to take Super Smash Bros. next because "it's difficult to imagine an increase of this magnitude happening again.” What might Sakurai’s next game be? Nintendo is preparing to announce its Switch successor console, and there will surely be more Smash Bros. games given the incredible success of Ultimate (34.66 million sales and counting). Perhaps yet another sequel is now in the works, but is Sakurai involved? Image credit: Masahiro Sakurai on Creating Games: Finale Special / YouTube. Wesley is the UK News Editor for IGN. Find him on Twitter at @wyp100. You can reach Wesley at wesley_yinpoole@ign.com or confidentially at wyp100@proton.me. But if Sakurai's next project is something he's stoked about, whatever it may be I'm sure it'll be a great addition to whatever console it ends up coming to. \"Looks older\"? The man could blend right into a J-pop boyband group and no one would suspect he was 30 years older than the rest of the band. Let's take all these characters from smash and make a world hopping RPG. Dude looks like a porcelain doll, lol real life vampire. Immortality aside, his insights about the industry are fascinating, a shame Sakurai will stop making these videos. The miracle of youtube actually providing quality content (without quotations) As a fan, I really want him to make a sequel to Kid Icarus Uprising. But I know Sakurai-san would prefer to make something completely new. I look forward to his next project. he did a beuatiful thing with Smash Bros. But there really isn't anything left to be done with Smash. we hit the ceiling. What can they do, release a new game with a quarter of the roster with prettier backgrounds? Hopefully it's nothing to do with Smash Bros. It's a great game but it's time for it to take a big break. My guy deserves to make a passion project. He's been pumping out smash bros games for decades for nintendo. Quits Youtube? He literally says \"it's always possible I could use [this channel] to talk about something else down the line.\" I would kill for a new Kid Icarus game on Switch Video Game News 3rd Mar 2025 / 12:17 pm Posted by Super Smash Bros and Kirby creator Masahiro Sakurai has been given an award by the Japanese government The government’s Agency for Cultural Affairs has listed Sakurai as one of the recipients of its annual Art Encouragement Prize for New Artists the award is “presented to persons whose outstanding achievements have opened up new vistas in a given year” While the fact that Sakurai has been working in game development for more than 35 years would suggest that he’s not a ‘new’ artist, his award isn’t for his work as a developer, but instead for his YouTube series, Masahiro Sakurai on Creating Games In a statement explaining why Sakurai was given the award the Agency said: ” Masahiro Sakurai has made a significant contribution to the development of the game industry by sharing his knowledge of game production widely through YouTube in an easy-to understand accessible format with a coherent storyline “An English version has also been released and its influence has spread not only domestically but also internationally and we believe that this is enough to earn him the Art Encouragement Prize.” noting that last week he was also awarded a lifetime achievement award at the Association of Media in Digital awards in Japan “I was recently selected as the recipient of the AMD Award for Lifetime Achievement and now I’ve been awarded the Agency for Cultural Affairs’ Art Encouragement Prize,” Sakurai wrote “Does this mean that I can call myself a cultural person Sakurai started his YouTube series in 2022, and posted the final episode in October 2024 with a tribute to Satoru Iwata Last year, Sakurai said he was “still creating games for the time being”, despite previously claiming in 2022 that he was “semi-retired” following the release of Super Smash Bros Ultimate’s final DLC character I’m still creating games for the time being but I’m also making this YouTube channel,” Sakurai said at the time “I’d never done anything like this before starting you could say I haven’t exactly stayed put either.” He then revealed in the penultimate episode of his YouTube series that he had started production on his next game project back in 2022 saying: “I’m sorry I can’t share more about this project it should be announced sooner or later.” Super Smash Bros. Ultimate was released in December 2018 and was supported with a robust DLC offering that included the release of 13 new characters over a three-year period, bringing the final roster to 89 fighters Masahiro SakuraiSatoru Iwata Deputy editorScottish games journalist and author with 18 years of experience, formerly of Official Nintendo Magazine UK & CVG. Already a patron? Click the button below to log in with Patreon. Not a member yet? Visit our Patreon page to become a patron and get access to community discussions and other exclusive benefits. No comments yet. Be the first to join the discussion! © 1981 Media Ltd No part of this site or its content may be reproduced without the permission of the copyright holder Website by 44 Bytes Sakurai had some interesting thoughts to share about a variety of subjects Sakurai was asked if the Japanese game industry should be following the hype that's been following the standards set by overseas there's been a lot of hype for games from overseas Do you have any thoughts for the Japanese game industry like 'this is what you should be doing'?" asked Entax I think that Japanese developers should push forward with games that Japanese players like," responded Sakurai a lot of American games were doing well so there was a lot of focus on the "Americanization" of our games.. There was a culture that was very much like this Basically that this should be the de facto or our standard..." the implementation of this as a standard for Japanese developers ended up carrying some consequences It turns out that there's a uniqueness in games developed by Japanese developers that can't really be found elsewhere There are even players that live outside of Japan that seek out these sort of qualities in games If Japanese developers only focus on making games specifically for American audiences then it would just mean that the gaming industry as a whole would have less uniqueness to offer overseas players who like Japanese games are not looking for something like that but it feels more like they're specifically looking for the uniqueness and originality of Japanese games themselves and what we find fun," continued Sakurai make what you like and the people who embrace it will have fun with it.. Sakurai has a bit of experience in dealing with this sort of mindset Had Sakurai simply just followed along with beliefs about American gamers series might be in an entirely different place right now Nintendo was initially skeptical about how well Super Smash Bros for the Nintendo 64 would perform overseas as they weren't sure how fans would perceive characters like Mario and Pikachu duking it out in combat (and were even skeptical about it in general) might've become a Japanese exclusive (or perhaps not even exist at all) Melee was the first game in the series to introduce characters from a Japanese exclusive game series there were apparently discussions about whether or not the North American version of the game should even include Marth and Roy as playable characters since they wouldn't be recognized anyhow Due to the decision to keep Marth and Roy in, the Fire Emblem franchise is now released worldwide. Of course, this has also resulted in there being as many as eight Fire Emblem characters — Marth, Lucina, Roy, Chrom, Ike, Robin, Corrin, and Byleth — in the latest game in the series, Super Smash Bros. Ultimate Sakurai emphasizes that his thoughts are really just guidelines and suggestions They're not necessarily rules to strictly follow by he believes that everyone should just pursue their own beliefs and do the best that they can "What I want to say the most is really 'do what you want.,'" said Sakurai towards the end of the interview "After having made so many videos and programs I honestly think forcing my opinion on others is a bad thing." "I said it on my channel as well but it was made with the intent of letting every person 'wear their own shoes.'" it's basically a hint and then people can take it as they want and what they do from there is what's important," reiterated Sakurai "All these different people should move in the direction they believe in and then we'll see products emerging from many different directions So let's end it on 'lets' all do our best!'" A special thanks goes out to our very own Nicholas "MajinTenshinhan" Taylor for the translations used in this article Asahi Shuzo began local sake production in Hyde Park, New York, a year earlier in 2023. During the event, Chairman Sakurai engaged in a discussion with Hiroshi Onishi, President of the Haneda Future Research Institute Hearing firsthand from a Japanese sake maker about producing sake in New York was an invaluable experience Despite Asahi Shuzo's remarkable success in Japan, it became evident that their journey in the United States had just begun Onishi has years of experience managing department stores and deep expertise in domestic and international brand businesses.  Chairman Sakurai responded to Onishi's questions highlighting his unwavering commitment to the meticulous process of crafting sake His dedication and passion left a strong and lasting impression on the audience Sakurai explained that the young Americans learning the craft of sake brewing also help clean the brewery That is an uncommon practice in most US workplaces where employees seldom take on cleaning responsibilities "They understand that without a spotless brewery making great sake is impossible." The audience listened attentively to his words.  Introducing a drink that doesn't have roots in a country's food culture presents significant challenges Some audience members expressed admiration for the dedication shown by both Japanese and American teams working together to craft sake and build a fan base I hope more people will visit the New York brewery The goal is for sake to become a regular part of dining experiences in the US and also globally.  I wish for it to bring smiles and foster peaceful A visit to Dassai's headquarters in Iwakuni (Read the report in Japanese.) Author: Yukihiro Watanabe You must be logged in to post a comment ' + scriptOptions._localizedStrings.webview_notification_text + ' " + scriptOptions._localizedStrings.redirect_overlay_title + " " + scriptOptions._localizedStrings.redirect_overlay_text + " Look Back anime film director, producer and animator Kiyotaka Oshiyama and Metaphor: ReFantazio/Persona games' director Katsura Hashino won newcomer awards The Art Encouragement Prizes are presented to people whose achievements have contributed outstandingly to fields in media There will be an awards ceremony in Tokyo on March 11 The series concluded in December 1993 with a total of 24 compiled book volumes.The series inspired a 52-episode anime adaptation that ran from April 1993-April 1994 In August 2022, Super Smash Bros. game director and Kirby creator Sakurai launched his YouTube channel about game development titled "Masahiro Sakurai on Creating Games" and styled after his Mr Sakurai formed his own company Sora Ltd. in September 2005. Through his studio Project Sora, he created the Kid Icarus: Uprising game for Nintendo 3DS in March 2012. Super Smash Bros. Ultimate shipped for Nintendo Switch in December 2018. The game includes all previous playable characters and supports eight-player battles Source: Japan's Agency for Cultural Affairs Nintendo officially revealed Masahiro Sakurai's new game project Kirby Air Riders during its Switch 2 Direct. In case you missed it, this is a sequel to the 2003 GameCube original Kirby Air Ride and will be coming to Nintendo's new hardware in 2025 Sakurai has now shared a quick development update on social media - revealing the game is also being developed by Bandai Namco Studios, the same company involved with Super Smash Bros. Ultimate the recently announced “Kirby Air Riders” game is also being developed by Bandai Namco Studios." SORA and HAL Laboratory are also listed for Kirby Air Riders for Switch 2 He goes on to mention how the development team is "giving their all" to make this game but it's going to be a while before more information is shared "The full staff is giving their all in developing the game but it will take some time before we can share more information Nintendo appears to be a big part of the plans How are you feeling about the return of Kirby racing Liam is a news writer and reviewer for Nintendo Life and Pure Xbox He's been writing about games for more than 15 years and is a lifelong fan of Mario and Master Chief Seems like a lot of talent is going into this game I'm just glad he's taking a break from Smash pretty sure Air Riders is still going to be a big game (especially compared to the original Air Ride) I didn't care all that much for Kirby's Air ride back when it debuted on GCN and the potential for a quality sequel with all of the great features & specs with Switch 2(docked) has me far more interested than something like Mario Kart 9 it's a brand new random cutting edge sequel to a one-off fan favourite that launched in the early 2000's It's almost like the equivalent of getting a sequel to StarTropics this game probably won't launch until Q4 2025 I thought he'd been working with HAL again I do imagine a few HAL devs might help out or supervise or something tho VERY curious to see how this game will play compared to the original sakurai is gonna make something special here I honestly think they shouldn't release it this year.. Mario Kart will eat up the whole Christmas Such strong competition won't benefit the game I would release it by February/March 2026 if I were them Hal being involved certainly removes weight from any exaggerated concerns that Sakurai wouldn't include any elements from the Kirby franchise that were introduced after Super Star @the_beaver I completely agree This would do way better two years from now Kirby Air Ride was such an inviting game back when my family had it on the GameCube It excites me so much that Sakurai is directing a new one and its from the Smash Ultimate team At least Sakurai and his team don't have to worry about getting licenses for third party characters this time although the thought of Dante from the Devil May Cry series riding on a Warp Star did get a chuckle out of me He seems to understand what makes his games fun and if he can capture the joy of the first one @BrazillianCara that depends on just how much involvement HAL has on the project Kirby air ride is honestly one of the most underrated games on the already underrated GameCube so the fact we are not only getting a new Kirby air ride game but that Masahiro Sakurai is working on this makes me even more excited This is the game that so far has sold me on the Switch 2 the same way Metroid Prime 4 sold me on the Switch 1 now in 2025 we're getting a new Mario Kart a new Kirby Air Ride and the return of F-Zero GX I would love to see him make a new Kid Icarus game but I fully trust him to make a great regardless is obviously a well made and well thought out game Just like just about anything Sakaurai directs Sakurai out of Smash prison after 10 years we love to see that Hoping he does another project (something new or Kid Icarus related) afterward I'm very curious about the playable cast for this game I wonder if we'll get a roster the size of Star Allies so you can create something awesome like Smash Bros I wish you and your team the best for this project @the_beaver I agree Same with Fast Fusion…launch day is suicide for that game when both Mario Kart and F-Zero GX are there day one But about Smash; will we have free upgrade or do we pay for it @blindsquirrel Thats TetsuyaNomura I think Sakurai will keep going for awhile While I’m concerned about the future of Smash and Kid Icarus I’m still happy that Sakurai has returned to his original series It’ll help guarantee this will be a worthy and successful sequel I would not buy a Switch 2 for the new Mario Kart but this game is possibly that game for me and I have no history with the series and he LOVES to put an absurd amount of content in his games so I'm sure it will be filled to the brim looking forward to seeing/hearing more of this and then play it at last whenever Sakurai-san and co nice to hear that Bandai Namco are yet again involved in the development) are ready - finally getting a new Air Ride is a dream come true and I still can't believe it's actually happening I still own it so I'll definitely be buying this as soon as it launches I'm just going to say it: personally speaking I can't help but feel disappointed that Sakurai's big new mystery game turned out to be Kirby Air Riders Before seeing any actual footage of Kirby Air Riders I'm currently more excited for Fast Fusion @Ulysses That's right a new Kid Icarus Uprising 2 or a Switch 2 edition of the old 3DS title would have had a much bigger impact With mouse controls it would play wonderfully and would also have been a nice showcase for the new console is so good to see Masahiro Sakurai working on a game i was kinda worried he would be stuck forever on Super Smash Bros @Ulysses Nintendo was clearly humoring Sakurai He got the about 100% of their CGi trailer budget from what I can tell He got to cut his teeth at Smash character trails only to now finally graduate to the big league of Kirby @DeusX If anything I would have been thrilled for Sakurai to direct the next 3D Kirby helping to make it bigger and better than ever It just feels like the kind of comparison between directing Sonic Racing instead of the next 3D Sonic @Ralek85 I could see Sakurai's touch in the CGI trailer as well Though IMO the beginning dragged on a hair too long I think this game could be well more than just a racing game like the previous one The GameCube game had a mode where you would travel and battle on an open city environment and that was the closest thing to a 3D Kirby game back then.It felt like a 3D Smash Bros You could say the same about Kid Icarus Uprising's multiplayer modes It feels Sakurai has been teasing concepts for a 3D Smash Bros since while ago this game could continue them pretty well Masahiro Sakurai was working on a new Super Smash Bros game for the Nintendo Switch 2 but it was not so Still this Kirby Air Riders looks incredible Still İ think new Super Smash Bros game for Nintendo Switch 2 is very possible but in later date 2028 and in 2029.İ can not think Nintendo Switch 2 without a new Super Smash Bros game @Dev-N with the mouse controls and the shrinking number of games that they haven’t rereleased I’d say a switch 2 release of uprising is almost certain but will be one of the first games I buy if I get a Switch 2 Better not release it too close to launch anyway :v Wouldn't want to conpete too closely with Mario Kart and F-ZeroGX all launched within the same half year But can he race on two controllers at once Show Comments Kirby Air Riders Nintendo Switch 2 Nintendo 25 News Switch 2 Exclusives Join Famitsu's "Most Wanted" Games Chart For The First Time 50 Random Masahiro Sakurai Finds Success In Switch 2 Lottery 81 News Sakurai's 'Kirby Air Riders' Is Speeding Onto Switch 2 If you've entered the lottery to get a Switch 2 in Japan then you may well be hearing back from Nintendo relatively soon Many have been receiving emails from Nintendo to confirm that they've been successful in securing a Switch 2 pre-order over the past day with one of the successes coming from none other than Smash and Kirby creator Masahiro Sakurai Highlighted to us by friend of the site and NL contributor Andrew J. Rue, Sakurai tweeted just under three weeks ago that he'd entered the lottery to try and get a new console on launch day, 5th June 2025. And in a follow-up yesterday he confirmed that he was one of the winners Sakurai's surprise is evident on social media Rue pointed out to us that Sakurai's success likely comes from the fact that he's pre-ordered the multi-language system which is the more expensive version of the console in Japan There is a cheaper Switch 2 available for 49,980 yen but this is a Japanese language-only system Yes, despite being the director of one of the big Nintendo Switch 2 exclusives in Kirby Air Riders Sakurai has had to join the rest of us in lining up for the new console Although he likely has a dev kit somewhere.. [source x.com] Alana has been with Nintendo Life since 2022 She enjoys nothing more than overthinking battle strategies you'd think the man would already have access to one given he's making a game for the thing he's waitin' in line like the rest of the lot yet another one to add to that substantial collection @N00BiSH He has access to one for development only I guess @N00BiSH yeah I understand not handing out a switch to every employee but not Sakurai Truly bizarre he'd have to enter the lottery to obtain one @SplatRay001 Well he isn't techically employed at the company @N00BiSH on the one hand I agree he should be given one I think he has implied that he has no benefits when it comes to actually getting a system at launch @speed_loafer Hopefully so Wouldn’t want to see him treated with such disrespect (considering he’s making an EXCLUSIVE game for the system) Im sure he has access to all Nintendo hardware but like a company vehicle He’s going to sell it for sure ain’t no way Nintendo aren’t sending him one for free but at least you got a pre-order in amongst the chaos but maybe this one will be just for personal use @larryisaman he paid for the the lottery @larryisaman hahahaha okay that literally made me laugh out loud he should be given one of the first off the production line! Maybe if you’re the owner of a business you can transfer company purchased products into your ownership without compensating but even then there’s still rules you’re following in a legitimate setting @NinChocolate Ahhh this is probably just part of a merketing deal he has with them As someone who’s worked with Nintendo reps in the past but getting a day one launch system is not one of them And I’m sure once demand has died down they’d get the option to purchase direct You had to wait for everyone else to pre-order then at the end of the day if there was stock leftover you could clock out and pre-order as a customer Seems to still be the case as I’d talked to a couple workers there yesterday and most of them had pre-ordered through Walmart or Best Buy though truth be told it was odd seeing only like 10 people in line Wii U launch the line wrapped around the store Just less people pre-ordering in person now days I guess This is hilarious though I’d like to think in reality Nintendo will give Sakurai a switch 2 at launch for free If they don’t they really have become as greedy as we’ve feared @TheBigK Same @datamonkey If you really think they've "started" being greedy then you really haven't been paying attention you can't play retail games on the dev kit AFAIK I'm sure if he reached out to Nintendo they would have given him one but no I feel like Sakurai is the type of guy that still enjoys receiving a console on release day and prefers to own a retail console in his personal collection I feel like people bragging about getting preorders is nothing more than a p*ssing contest I am gonna sound like a cranky old lady but I never understand people caping for gainfully employed (and often wealthy) people to get something for free I suspect the devs and engineers that made the switch 2 and the games didn’t get one for free (and they shouldn’t) @SplatRay001 Even thou I think I know what you are referring to Sakurai hasn't been a Nintendo employee for a long time now @N00BiSH hah true I was being generous @speed_loafer He seems like the kinda guy who'd do that oh please he has access to a switch 2 console already Given the importance of the guy at Nintendo you'd think he already has Switch 2 for his entire extended family so credit for spotting Sakurai’s tweet ultimately goes to my better half Looks like his tweet about entering the lottery from earlier this month also flew under my radar Here’s a quick translation for anyone interested: the man behind the 3rd top selling game of Switch is buying the successor console just like everyone else 日本では、抽選の発表で各界の有名人も軒並み外れたと言っていて、桜井さんの当選は話題になっています☺️ and many famous figures from various fields said they didn’t win @datamonkey Dunno I'd unironically think it's best they don't play favourites for the actual system Though Sakurai almost certainly has Switch 2 Dev Kit(s) to develop Kirby's Air Ride This one he's pre-ordered is probably for personal use not sure the tweet was translated correctly. He'll wait in line like the rest of us even though he's developing a game for it @romanista I’m a professional J-E translator and salaried video game localizer and since you’re interested in language learning and translation it was a choice born of necessity and arrived at for reasons @A_WINNER_IS_Mii Thanx fun to see that this month I made a remark about japanese twice (with and=en) would make perfect sense to me like being really excited to know the result of something.. Japanese is a very distant relative of English and Dutch is a very different tongue from any European language let alone Germanic.To make progress in your Japanese studies you’ll have to stop thinking in your native language and start thinking in Japanese given myriad linguistic and cultural differences express this same thought in my own language?”Cheers @A_WINNER_IS_Mii Thanx for the tips.. i'm just trying to learn Japanese for when i will make a trip there with my daughter in a few years I really learned to understand languages when I had Ancient Classical Greek in High School.,.. which helped me when learning Italian and other languages like Bahasa Indonesia @NinChocolate This describes the situation perfectly I was in a similar boat with one of my older companies I had a company device and when I was leaving the company I had to return it even though the device was already retired and out of compliance Show Comments The Company That "Leaked" Switch 2 Is Being Sued By Nintendo Donkey Kong Bananza Might Be Teasing The Return Of An Old Friend Opinion: Switch 2 Finally Gives Star Wars Outlaws A Second Chance Switch 2's Dock Isn't Compatible With The Original Switch, According To Nintendo 39 News Masahiro Sakurai Provides Brief Development Update On His New Switch 2 Game Iwata was truly the person who understood me best." Masahiro Sakurai is wrapping up his YouTube channel and has today released the final Grab Bag video: a touching tribute to former Nintendo president Satoru Iwata Iwata sadly passed away in 2015 at the age of 55 He became the fourth president in the company's history in 2002 who worked with Iwata at Nintendo's HAL Laboratory has shared multiple memories of working with Iwata in this latest video he'd always have the most carefree smile on his face," said Sakurai reminiscing about his first job interview with Iwata he never told me how I should approach the content of my games I think he trusted me to handle those decisions how I saw fit." Iwata contributed prominently to Sakurai's Smash Bros providing code for the initial N64 prototype (the only time he wrote code for one of Sakurai's games) known as Dragon King: The Fighting Game he really enjoyed his time working on it," said Sakurai Iwata also had a hand in the Super Smash Bros even though the characters weren't brothers at all using the word added the nuance that they weren't simply fighting - they were friends who were settling a little disagreement." Later, Iwata contributed towards bug fixes for GameCube game Super Smash Bros. Melee Melee would have released before the end of 2001," said Sakurai He continued: "Of all the people I've known personally but I felt that he used logic rather than instinct to figure out the best way to proceed "He was more than simply a programmer - he was a learner and someone who thought often about psychological topics Iwata was truly the person who understood me best Sakurai launched his YouTube channel in August 2022 and has since uploaded 268 videos covering all facets of game design Perhaps most insightful have been his comments on the Smash Bros. series he's best known for. He detailed, for instance, how all fighters have an almost equal chance of winning and, in a later video, jokingly apologised to fans who have played the game for thousands of hours. © 2025 Eurogamer.net a brand of IGN Entertainment, Inc. All rights reserved. 18 Mansell Street Level 3, London, E1 8AA, United Kingdom. No part of this website or its content may be reproduced without the copyright owner's permission. Eurogamer is a registered trademark of Gamer Network Limited. creator has been working on his next game for 2 yearsMasahiro Sakurai sends off his YouTube channel with a tease by Michael McWhertor The series finale sends the series off with a look back at its creation While it’s bittersweet and a little inside-baseball Sakurai used the send-off to also confirm that he’s been working on a new Some viewers may have thought that Sakurai’s been taking it easy for the past two-plus years But he says that in addition to pumping out two or three videos about game development each week he’s also been working full-time on a new game at his company Sora Ltd Sakurai said that once he completed his work on Super Smash Bros. Ultimate, which culminated in the October 2021 release of the game’s final DLC character Sora He noted that work on his next game wouldn’t get underway until April 2022 when he was able to assemble a team of developers Sakurai used that six-month downtime to prep for his YouTube channel writing hundreds of scripts and recording video for a pilot Over the next couple years, as his videos were translated, animated, edited, and uploaded, Sakurai says he was often working from 8 a.m. to 2 a.m. He was managing game development during regular working hours and overseeing videos for his Creating Games channel after hours. Sakurai famously works extremely long hours Sakurai didn’t offer any hints about what his next game will be it should be announced sooner or later,” Sakurai said One project that Sakurai could be working on is the next Super Smash Bros. game for Nintendo Switch 2 He’s discussed working on a follow-up to Super Smash Bros acknowledging that it would likely be a sequel of smaller scope Sakurai told The Verge in a 2021 interview that he thinks Ultimate has “reached the limit at least in terms of volume of content and fighters.” “If I were to have the opportunity to work on another Super Smash Bros that means we would have to shrink the roster but we need to think about whether fans would be pleased about that,” Sakurai said at the time He also admitted that he’s been doing too much of the work himself has too much of my personality poured into it In order for a long-time series to continue thriving today we need to think about eliminating the series’ dependence on just one person’s vision.” Sakurai has also floated the idea of bringing Kid Icarus: Uprising, his 2012 action-adventure game for Nintendo 3DS, to new platforms. In November 2022, Sakurai teased in one of his YouTube videos, “It sure would be nice to play Kid Icarus: Uprising on a home console. I wonder if someone out there will ever port it?” Whatever Sakurai’s working on, it could be one of his last games. The developer said in his final Masahiro Sakurai on Creating Games video that he’s “getting old enough to consider retirement at some point.” Super Smash Bros. Ultimate required about six years of development from initial planning to final DLC, so Sakurai may want to finally rest after completing his next game. Stay tuned, Sakurai says. The best of Polygon in your inbox, every Friday. Video Game News 18th Mar 2025 / 9:59 am Posted by Super Smash Bros and Kirby creator Masahiro Sakurai says Japanese developers should focus on making games for the Japanese market instead of trying to appeal to Western players it was announced that Sakurai had been listed as one of the recipients of the Art Encouragement Prize for New Artists given by the Japanese government’s Agency for Cultural Affairs Rather than achieving the award for any of his video game works, Sakurai’s honour is instead for his YouTube series, Masahiro Sakurai on Creating Games Last week Sakurai collected his award and gave an interview to Japanese entertainment news website Entax (as spotted by Automaton) in which he said he felt that Japanese studios should focus on what domestic audiences like rather than trying to make a game that may appeal to the West Western players buy Japanese games with the expectation that they will provide something different from Western-developed games so there’s no need for Japanese studios to adapt “It’s not necessarily my own idea but the trend in the games industry is that Japanese people should go for what Japanese people like,” Sakurai explained (via machine translation) there was certainly a culture of making Americanised products because various works were popular in the US I feel that ‘Japanese game lovers’ overseas are not looking for such things but for something unique and interesting from Japan I think the ideal is to make the games the way you like them and the people who can accept them will enjoy them.” In an interview earlier this year, Sakurai noted that while it’s important for developers to make the games they want to make, they should also sometimes consider that it may be in the best interests of the industry to make something that’s needed even if it doesn’t directly appeal to them Sakurai explained that the people who make toys for children are adults who obviously aren’t the toys’ demographic explaining that while it wasn’t the type of game that appealed to him directly as an experienced player he felt it was important to make a game for younger players the Japanese Agency for Cultural Affairs said: “Masahiro Sakurai has made a significant contribution to the development of the game industry by sharing his knowledge of game production widely through YouTube in an easy-to understand “An English version has also been released and we believe that this is enough to earn him the Art Encouragement Prize.” Masahiro Sakurai Deputy editorScottish games journalist and author with 18 years of experience, formerly of Official Nintendo Magazine UK & CVG. It’s going to work differently for every studio, but Capcom has profited greatly by making games for audiences outside of Japan, particularly Resident Evil. I’d say larger Japanese studios have become more conscious of the interests of international audiences over the past decade or so and have achieved new levels of success. One Legend of Zelda cosplayer struggling to unsheathe Link's sword has received advice from an unlikely source: Smash Bros. creator Masahiro Sakurai. revealing how he and his team at Nintendo fixed this issue in the Super Smash Bros Link pulls the scabbard down when sheathing his sword," Sakurai said but I think that’s as far as we could go with our ingenuity and still replicate the action and equipment from the original." スマブラSPのリンクは､納刀時に鞘を下に引っぱるようにしました｡それだけではまだ届かなかったのだけど､原作のアクションと装具に合わせるのであれば工夫はここまでかなあと｡ https://t.co/hVlmYte0C7— 桜井 政博 / Masahiro Sakurai (@Sora_Sakurai) November 12, 2024 Sakigake and Sakurai continued their wholesome interaction with the cosplayer saying they'd use Super Smash Bros Check out how Breath of the Wild Link gets on in Super Smash Bros Whether or not it's a Smash Bros. entry remains to be seen though, as Sakurai has previously said he doesn't know how to make a game bigger and better than the one on Nintendo Switch Ryan Dinsdale is an IGN freelance reporter