ShigeruMiyamoto
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The galaxy awaits Mario's big return
With only a few months to go before the release of Super Mario Galaxy, expectations couldn't be higher for Nintendo's flagship hero. The title was recently confirmed for release this year, leaving our Nunchuk thumbs quivering in anticipation.Mario is carrying a lot of weight on his shoulders, however. The groundbreaking titles, from the original Super Mario Brothers through to Super Mario 64 (sorry, Mario Sunshine), were more than great games; they also defined their platforms, setting new standards both technically and in terms of design.It's no surprise then, that bloggers are starting to make demands for what they want to see in the new release. Check the link to see what people want this time around, and let us know what you want included.
Miyamoto interview: "I could make Halo"
Yes, Shigeru Miyamoto told Entertainment Weekly that he could make Halo, although he did go on to say, "It's that I choose not to." It's hard to imagine what a Miyamoto-designed Halo would look like. Lots of bright colors, anthropomorphic flora and fauna, and guns that squirt pink goo come to mind. On second thought, maybe imagining that is a bad, bad idea.Miyamoto drops this gem and some others in a recent interview, including the fact that "If I could build a game that somehow made the young people respect their elders ..." He also wants to make a game that teaches freelancers to pay their taxes. Thankfully, before we can decide he's lost his marbles, he goes on to say "But I probably sound like an old man when I bring these things up."Whew. We didn't want to have to say it for him. Still, there's a reason Shiggy was named one of Time's 100 most influential people, and that the Wii is riding a wave of popularity ... he seems to know what fun is.
Miyamoto more influential than Nelson Mandela: Confirmed
It seems you're not just Time Magazine's overall person of the year, you're also the most influential. At least when it comes to influencing a poll on the 100 most influential people of the year. After being nominated for Time's own top 100, it comes as little surprise to see Nintendo's legendary designer, Shigeru Miyamoto, place highly in the list constructed by internet users. With an average rating of 75 (out of 100) and 129,573 votes, the Mario maestro places 9th and effortlessly defeats the likes of Oprah Winfrey (43rd), George W. Bush (97th), George Clooney (26th) and Nelson Mandela (24th). Sure, the anti-apartheid, pro-democracy Nobel Peace prize winner wasn't involved in the creation of a new video game system this year, but we'd be remiss not to point out the amusing and somewhat bizarre priorities of voters.And what of the list above Miyamoto? There you'll find Kiefer Sutherland (8th), J.K. Rowling (6th), Dane Cook and, nestled snugly in first position, Rain (who?). Time Magazine's own list wisely does away with rankings and lumps the designer on page 92, but not before suffering a critical lapse in sanity and asking Johnathan "Fatal1ty" Wendel to extend his fingers beyond the WASD keys. Noting that Miyamoto "opened the world" to a host of "people who never even wanted to visit it before" is about all Wendel's article can manage before losing the plot and discussing his 12 championship wins, ultra-performance PCs and how he'll spend the rest of his life "championing video gaming as an equal to pro football or basketball." Good thing he didn't write the Mandela bit, then.
Update: Shiggy is doing great in the Time 100
Behind Rain, who is a Korean pop star and Stephen Colbert, who is one of the funniest folks on television, Shigeru Miyamoto is currently holding down third place in the race for most influential people of the year, according to Time. We just felt a little reminder was in order, in case you missed our last post informing you of his presence in the race. So, if you haven't gone over there to help Shiggy out, we suggest you do so now.Do it now, or else we'll cry.[Thanks, Ben!]
Help Miyamoto get a nod from Time Magazine
Time magazine's website is running a feature right now where candidates are up for being included in the Time 100. What is the Time 100? Well, it's a who's-who list of influential and powerful people, a list that certainly demands to have one of, if not the most, influential game designers in the industry, Shigeru Miyamoto. Lucky for him, you can have a say in who makes the list. All you have to do is follow the read link and give Mr. Miyamoto a rating. As of right now, he's got an average rating of 79, but we're sure that will come up. So, head on over and let your voice be heard.
New Wii games revealed in Greek interview
The name George Katrinakis probably doesn't mean much to you unless you happen to live in Greece, as he's the CEO of Nortec Multimedia, the distributor of Nintendo products in the region. And it turns out this George knows a thing or two about the future of Wii gaming, dropping some clues on us ignorant folk about a pair of new titles. Wait, new games? Rock!First up is a game, which is being dubbed Health Pack at the moment, that is certainly the most interesting in our eyes. After performing some exercises in the game, supposedly your personal data will be sent out to hospitals that have been contracted out by Nintendo via a new Channel and later returned as some kind of evaluation. Information on how the data will be collected and presented is sketchy as of right now, but we're pumped for a new Channel, let alone the doors this could open for future Channels and/or games.The second title, Wii Music, sounds a lot like the orchestra demo that Shiggy demoed during the E3 keynote. In it, players will not only be able to control specific musicians in the orchestra, but also save their compositions and send them to other Wii users. While this doesn't tickle our fancy as much as Health Pack, we're certainly not in any position to complain about more games.According to the interview, both of these games are to be released before the end of 2007.[Via Joystiq]
Miyamoto calls out third parties
Shigeru Miyamoto sat down with Newsweek's N'Gai Croal earlier this month and aired out his concerns with third party developers not putting their best efforts behind games for Nintendo systems. Companies often find that their biggest competition on consoles like the Wii and DS is Nintendo themselves, but according to Miyamoto, most third parties aren't rising to the challenge with their top development groups. Instead, they're depending on third- or fourth-string teams to produce their titles.While not every game from Nintendo is a blockbuster hit, Miyamoto says that the company makes sure to put its best people behind titles that are "designed to really support and sell hardware." Can most third parties say they're doing the same? If not, then how much longer will it take before developers approach their Wii releases seriously and start using their star teams to create AAA titles for the console?
Time to reinvent Sonic the Hedgehog, says Sega
So, we agree then. In speaking to Newsweek's N'Gai Croal about the Olympic pairing of Sonic and Mario, Sega of America president, Simon Jeffery, echoes a widespread sentiment that it's time to give Sonic a bit of a reboot. "We are actually undergoing a fairly considerable refresh of Sonic as an intellectual property, as a character," says Jeffery. "Sonic on the Wii is probably the first product that's come to market that reflects that. We're not going to be bringing another game out on the other platforms for quite some time, because we feel that it is time to reinvent Sonic, to make Sonic contemporary again." If Sonic and the Secret Rings was the first step in revitalizing a franchise gone astray, it certainly wasn't a very good one. In fact, it turned out to be more like a drunken waddle out of bed before careening down a flight of stairs. Still, it's reassuring to see that Sega is, at the very least, attempting to reestablish their fallen mascot as a character that could convince you to buy his game. Unless, of course, that's still happening... "At the same time, even the recent 360 and Playstation 3 games have sold extremely well," continues Jeffery. "Sonic is still an extremely endearing character; there's still a lot of love for Sonic out there in consumerland." If gamers are trying to send Sega a message, it's getting garbled in consumerland's confusing postal network. If we truly want a Sonic reboot, we'll have to stay away from the hedgehog until he gets his 3D act together. Perhaps a little help from Mario and Miyamoto will set him back on track by the time the 2008 Olympics arrive.
Sonic & Mario finally team up for a game
Long-time rivals Mario and Sonic are finally starring in a video game together ... but too bad it's not what you're expecting. The duo will finally be able to compete against each other in Super Smash Bros. Mario & Sonic at the Olympic Games for Nintendo DS and Wii. All your favorite Mario and not-so-favorite Sonic characters will join the competition: Mario, Sonic, Luigi, Knuckles, Yoshi, Tails and more.It appears that famous rivalry between these two 16-bit juggernauts has finally been tossed aside. The press release features some juicy quotes which feel ripped out of the video game Twilight Zone: "We are thrilled to partner with Nintendo and ISM on this groundbreaking title," said Hisao Oguchi, President and Chief Operating Officer, SEGA Corporation. "For the first time, two of the world's greatest games' characters come together to compete in the world's greatest sporting event and we couldn't be more excited." "Mario and Sonic have been respectful rivals since the early days of video games," says Shigeru Miyamoto, Senior Managing Director and General Manager, Entertainment Analysis and Development Division, Nintendo Co., Ltd.. "In fact, for a long time they have been discussing the possibility of one day competing against each other. Now that they have been given the perfect opportunity to meet at the Olympic Games, we may finally learn who is actually faster, Mario or Sonic?" While this isn't the debut we may have wanted for these mascots, we'll take what we can get. Certainly, a competitive game of curling is almost identical to a match of Smash Bros., right? Check out the official website for more.
Miyamoto talks user-generated content, critical of PS Home [update 1]
Speaking to The Mercury News' Dean Takahashi, designer Shigeru Miyamoto gave a slight jab to the PlayStation Home for its familiarity. "What they're doing already exists in one form on the PC," he said. "Our focus [with Miis] is always to be different and do something that's different." Miyamoto furthers his opinion by expressing how the Mii system embraces but isn't focused on the internet, while noting that the character system took 20 years to "come to fruition." We assume much of that time was just Miyamoto circling the idea in his head, as his GDC keynote places the Mii conception alongside the Nintendo 64 era."We are trying to do something that is different and create something that hasn't been there before," he said. A caricature creation system may not have been done explicitly on consoles before, but we still wouldn't call it an entirely new concept. Nor would we give the same honor to Home, but their integration is indeed a first for game consoles.Miyamoto went on to address the idea the user-generated content, citing it as an inevitability. "It's not simply the question of whether there is a game editor," he said. "It is what form does that editor take." We have some idea.Also of note, Miyamoto gave the obvious revelation that a Wii fitness game, tentatively titled health pack or Wii Fit, is underway to ride the wave of success of Wii minigame collections Wii Play and Wii Sports.[Update 1: There was some confusion as to what Miyamoto said in the third line and what we added following the quote. The editorial has been given its own paragraph so as to alleviate some confusion.]
Who needs Wii? Play dress up with Shigeru Miyamoto
When we read that Cartoon Doll Emporium was the "#1 online destination for girls ages 6 - 16" we knew it lined up perfectly with our target demographic ... we keed, we keed. But seriously, folks, how many of our testosterone-addled readers aren't going to jump at the opportunity to dress up a never nude Shigeru Miyamoto in everything from a Link outfit (pictured) to a Donkey Kong suit to a t-shirt featuring his most famous quote (which is only slightly more famous than the time he said he sucked young people's life force.)Yeah, we thought so.[Thanks, Dan]
Mega 64's "ruined" Mario skit
A skit that went great until some guy... Mega64 contributed a few new skits to the Game Developers Choice Awards last week to much applause and laughter, including a pretty poignant piece on Feel the Magic XX / XY (we're still waiting for that one to pop up on the internet). One in particular made the crowd scream more than anything else that night. The YouTube description reads thusly: "A skit that went great until some guy made it all awkward." We won't spoil the rest, so check out the video after the break.
GDC 07: Miyamoto keynote video
There are dozens of clips floating around from Shigeru Miyamoto's keynote yesterday, but IGN has streaming video of the entire event available for your anxious eyes. You won't find any megaton announcements or landmark revelations, but the presentation is full of insights on "the Nintendo Difference" from the company's preeminent game designer. What's Miyamoto's primary focus when developing a game? Why did it take 20 years before he could finally use his face creation software in a complete game? And whatever happened to Mario 128? If you have a free hour and a half, watch the keynote and find out.
Overheard at GDC: "Greatest moment of my life"
"That was the single greatest moment of my life. He stood in front of me, he smiled, he took my game, he signed it, he shook my hand."-A passerby, talking on his cell phone about a chance meeting with Shigeru Miyamato, shortly after a presentation by game composer Koji Kondo.
Joystiq not-so-live coverage of the IGF and GDCA awards
6:20 p.m.: The Joystiq crew walks the red carpet, because we're just that important.6:33 p.m.: Gnarls Barkley's cover of the Violent Femmes' "Gone Daddy Gone" is blasting as we find seats in the press section. Cushy seats with recline-able chairs.6:42 pm: Sam and Max introduce the start for the independent games festival. The mention of projectile vomiting is disturbing, but welcoming somehow. 6:43 pm: Jamil Moledina and Simon Carless march onto stage, noting that the show is being broadcast to the entire world. We sense somewhat sinister undertones.
Miyamoto's future: unique, simple, nonviolent games
Shigeru Miyamoto has spent a lifetime developing hit games for Nintendo -- Mario, Legend of Zelda, Donkey Kong, etc. Speaking to CNN's Talk Asia, the industry legend disclosed that he hopes to continue working on games for everyone to enjoy that tackle themes atypical for gaming."There is an abundance of themes that people are interested in," he said, "and video games have only touched on few of them." No examples are cited, but would he consider working with serious, mature themes such as heartache, loss, redemption, suffering, et cetera? Miyamoto, alluding to Nintendo's new mantra, also explained that his future projects will be simple enough for all ages to enjoy, which is something he has always seemed to be adept at, though our previously-mentioned themes will probably not feature into universally-appealing projects.The interview touched briefly on violence in video games, a theme Miyamoto does not wish to tackle. "Looking at the overall picture, it is important to understand and feel the pain that people might have ... we also have to take a careful approach, even in the circumstances when we are not portraying direct violence." Though the game legend might have aversion to violence, his words imply that there are cases when non-excessive presentation of aggression is understandable. Then again, if his goal is to appeal to people aged five to 95, then violence is probably something he's better off avoiding.The Talk Asia interview also serves as a primer for those interested in Miyamoto's background; much of the history discussion reads like a Wikipedia entry.[Pictured: Link nonviolently driving a sword into Ganon's head. Don't worry, he doesn't die.]
IGDA to honor Miyamoto's lifetime achievements
Next month's Game Developers Choice Awards are set to feature someone very close to our hearts. Shigeru Miyamoto, the daddy of all good things Nintendo, is going to receive this year's Lifetime Achievement award. The official announcement lauds Miyamoto's two decades of contributions to Nintendo, highlighting his involvement in all the best games ever. Previous recipients include Yuji Naka and Will Wright, and while they're great and all, frankly we're surprised they don't hook Miyamoto up with this award every year.
Phil Harrison to give GDC keynote on Game 3.0
Sony figurehead Phil Harrison has been announced as a keynote speaker for this year's Game Developers Conference. Harrison's speech, entitled Game 3.0: Developing and Creating for the 3rd Age of Video Games, will purportedly define the term Game 3.0 and show how Sony Worldwide Studio will "demonstrate some exclusive insights into its development of products and services that will help define future growth in the video game market."We're curious to see how Harrison defines Game Ages 1.0 and 2.0, as by most accounts we're in the seventh generation of console games and we're not sure where he divides the lines. Chances are the ages correspond with each PlayStation iteration (remember: generations don't start until Sony says so). Semantics aside, we'll be happy if Harrison's speech is more interesting than Kutaragi's Tokyo Game Show debacle.Harrison is the second of three speeches to be announced, with Shigeru Miyamoto being revealed as a keynote speaker earlier this week. Other notable speakers include Square Enix's Ichiri Otobe who will be giving a Serious Game Summit GDC keynote Monday, March 5.
GDC to host Miyamoto keynote
We don't want to alarm anyone, but Nintendo's own Shigeru Miyamoto will be coming to San Francisco this march to conduct a keynote at the Game Developers Conference. Before anyone gets the wrong impression about this and rushes to Wal-Mart for some poster board in an attempt to be internet famous, please, don't. It makes for fantastic blogging fodder to be sure, but lets spare the development community what should be reserved for the internets.As his first GDC keynote since 1999, Miyamoto's appearance could possibly be the most popular event at the conference. It's not indicated exactly as to what Mario's papa will be talking about beyond "the creative process behind his work on highly-regarded software as well as his thoughts on new Nintendo hardware", his keynote is titled "A Creative Vision." Maybe if we're all good boys and girls, he'll drop less "bombs" and clue us in on the secret of the DS printing money.
Satoru Iwata: biggest Japanese industry cheese of '06?
The latest issue of Japan's Weekly Famitsu contains gory details of the magazine's annual Japanese industry awards, and it's little surprise that renowned industry savior Satoru Iwata is cited as the figure who made the greatest impact on videogames in 2006. NCL's friendly President (there's a French brand of cheese called Président, you know) received 201 votes to pip Ken Kutaragi, of all people, to the title. What "Big Ken" was even doing in the listings we fail to fathom, but there you have it. And here you have Famitsu's top five Japanese industry cheeses: Satoru Iwata (Nintendo) -- 201 votes Ken Kutaragi (Sony Computer Entertainment) -- 181 votes Hironobu Sakaguchi (Mistwalker) -- 126 votes Shigeru Miyamoto (Nintendo) -- 41 votes Hideo Kojima (Konami) -- 33 votes
