Miyamoto, master of cool
Shigeru Miyamoto did an interesting Q&A session with Wired recently. As ever he is his usual charming self and discusses a variety of topics including Wii Fit, swimming and hamburgers!
Of course what we are most interested to hear about are his thoughts on the WiiWare service so far. It is interesting that Miyamoto acknowledged that the American games released so far on WiiWare have been much better on the whole than the Japanese games. I think he made some good points to back up why that was the case, but you can be sure of this, no Japanese mind would come up with a concept like Beer Pong at least! Sometimes conservative is good!
Here’s what he told Wired:
Kohler: The other big news this month is the launch of WiiWare, and having gotten the chance to look at the Japanese launch titles and the U.S. ones, it seems like they couldn't be any more different. The U.S. games seem to be a lot better than the majority of Japanese WiiWare launch games. Why the big difference between the ways that the two countries are approaching development for WiiWare?
Miyamoto: I think there's a few things at play, and one is that kind of in my view, I think America has always been better at creating unique products. So I think that has something to do with it. On the other hand, I think that in Japan, oftentimes the technology required to create videogames tends to be concentrated in the bigger corporations, and the large developers have a tendency in order to try to support future development to make more conservative games and try to essentially find a way to make those games profitable and then move onto their next project from there. I think that with those two elements at play, then you can look at that and see how that could affect the lineup of both.
At the same time, even while those developers are making more conservative and smaller games, I think that it's possible -- you know, they're still focused very much on quality and still trying to make the best compact games that they can create. Whereas, I think that here in the United States where you have these independent developers who have managed to get the skills and the training and the development, also have managed to get access to the technology and the hardware needed to develop it. They're able to let their own personality and their own kind of unique interests really flourish in the games that they're creating.
Now, of course, here in the United States there's been a long culture of people independently creating things on the PC, and in Japan, I think that outside of videogame developers, while there is a group of people who do use the PC to create kind of fun, interactive pieces of art really, they haven't really come into the videogame fold or the videogame industry, so to speak. And so I think in Japan there is still kind of the possibility and even some strength out there within those more artistic communities that are creating things on the PC to potentially find some of those unique ideas. We've worked with some of them in the past from more of a media standpoint, but it's been rare that they've come into the videogame industry in total.
Kohler: Are you going to go out and try to court garage game developers in Japan?
Miyamoto: I guess, yeah, that's kind of my job.
What did you think of this, or anything else in this interview? Let us know your thoughts below.
Source: Wired
1. Mike
27 Jun 2008, 21:29 GMT
Wired should have asked him why the VC releases lately have been so bad. LOL!
2. strade32
27 Jun 2008, 21:57 GMT
Miyamoto's the man!!
3. andy836
27 Jun 2008, 22:10 GMT
kool U.S. is better for the first time
4. Peznaze
27 Jun 2008, 22:14 GMT
So... Japan - Final Fantasy My LIfe as a King
NA - Defend Your Castle
..And EU - Eternity's Child
Yeah, I guess I can see that.
5. andy836
27 Jun 2008, 22:16 GMT
well he says U.S. is better
6. Damo
27 Jun 2008, 22:23 GMT
What a dude!
7. Tony
27 Jun 2008, 22:55 GMT
"Sometimes conservative is good!"
Try most of the time:)
8. KnucklesSonic8
27 Jun 2008, 22:55 GMT
Peznaze: DYC = Canadian ftw!
Dont you forget it! XD
9. aceattorney
28 Jun 2008, 00:05 GMT
Interesting article. I should start going to wired as a news source. I think wired could've asked a bit more, but oh well.
10. MisterSmith
28 Jun 2008, 00:37 GMT
"Kohler: Are you going to go out and try to court garage game developers in Japan?"
They should get Pixel to ok a WiiWare version of Cave Story. I'd buy that in a heartbeat.
11. Junichi
28 Jun 2008, 00:40 GMT
Go Kohler! An ex-NOM associate.
12. over9000
28 Jun 2008, 02:04 GMT
1st Time I hear Miyamoto talk about wiiware
13. Wiireview123
28 Jun 2008, 02:08 GMT
hamburgers!?!?!?!?..............LOL!
14. THATG0MEZ
28 Jun 2008, 02:44 GMT
"Kohler: Are you going to go out and try to court garage game developers in Japan?
Miyamoto: I guess, yeah, that's kind of my job."
Bahahaha, Miyamoto is the man. Interesting comments, though.
15. Jerichoholic Josh
28 Jun 2008, 04:02 GMT
@ Wiireview123
Speaking of hamburgers.. they should make a Burger Time for WiiWare. Now that would be fun. I used to play the game boy cart of that all the time when I was little.
16. Draygone
28 Jun 2008, 04:42 GMT
"I think America has always been better at creating unique products."
Really? I look at Japanese games and there seems to be plenty of zany ones appearing there, and odd titles like Cooking Mama. Would anybody in America have decided on a game like that? Perhaps as a more realistic cooking game, in which it'd likely lose its appeal.
17. XCWarrior
28 Jun 2008, 05:28 GMT
I'd still take Japan over us. They are playing SMRPG right now, and we are in envy. So who really is the smarter group?
Interesting comments, but doesn't say much.
18. mummydaddy
28 Jun 2008, 13:30 GMT
Did no-one tell Miyamoto-san about the Xiotex debacle???
19. andy836
28 Jun 2008, 18:36 GMT
miyamoto i challenge you to a one on one game developing contest lol.
20. Ian Daemon
28 Jun 2008, 18:55 GMT
I've been waiting for Burger Time for months! I'd definitely buy it.
Burger Time! Burger Time!
21. konkerdoodle
28 Jun 2008, 22:01 GMT
"Miyamoto: I guess, yeah, that's kind of my job." LOL
Who was bashing Miyamoto?? How dare they!
Love the picture by the way.
22. x.SuperMario.x
29 Jun 2008, 18:14 GMT
Well hopefully those creative American scientists produce some anti-aging medication, because I dread the day Nintendo is without Miyamoto.
But he's 55 years young, so hopefully there's still many Nintendo-Miyamoto happy years to come.
23. konkerdoodle
29 Jun 2008, 18:48 GMT
@supermario
It's funny, I was kind of thinking the same thing. He's one of the founders of video games as we know them--he's no spring chicken.
24. x.SuperMario.x
29 Jun 2008, 20:46 GMT
Yeah, most kids don't realize that video games weren't always around. So they don't understand why his success is so amazing.
I'd say there's a few kids on this site saying, "Miyamoto's the man", when they probably don't understand why.
He basically built the industry, which nobody else could've done at that time.
Unfortunately he won't be around forever, and the day he leaves will be a very sad day, and not just in gaming.
25. SmaMan
29 Jun 2008, 23:21 GMT
Why didn't Wired ask about the storage problem? I'd be interested to see his thoughts on that.
26. Objection_Blaster
30 Jun 2008, 02:15 GMT
@supermario and konkerdoodle
No! Dont even think such things!
27. strade32
30 Jun 2008, 19:49 GMT
i understand why i said that. he created mario which pretty much made nintendo. also, he has been the in many other games that were big with nintendo. he is the top developer in nintendo pretty much.
28. Symphonia King
30 Jun 2008, 19:53 GMT
@supermario:
that comment made me very angry, because I'm a kid, and I really appreciate and look into classic and new gaming alike. The point: I know what exactly Miyamoto did and I'm pretty sure strade32 understands, too. I owned the nes. I owned the snes. Heck, I still own them. I've played Donkey Kong in the arcade. What kind of idiot thinks gaming has always been around? We kids aren't stupid. It's time for you to understand that.
29. x.SuperMario.x
30 Jun 2008, 20:11 GMT
That's where you're wrong. Most kids are stupid.
But it's okay, I blame the school systems.
Anyway, it's much easier to understand events like this when you live through them. The NES days were much different from the 360, PS3, Wii days. Most kids are growing up playing Halo, and they're complaining because the graphics aren't absolutely 100% perfect. Gaming today has produced a bunch of graphics-whores, and gameplay isn't as appreciated as it once was.
As for you understanding Miyamoto, look at it this way. Reagan and Bush were presidents at the time, and you can understand what they did by looking at a textbook, but can you understand the impact? No, just no. Same with Miyamoto, you can google his name and know everything about him, but you'll never understand the impact.
30. Symphonia King
30 Jun 2008, 20:31 GMT
I've got to agree with you there. I hate stupid idiot kids who think that graphics are all there is. But you're wrong if you think there aren't any classic gamer purists out there. I may be younger than you, but I grew up with Nintendo and Miyamoto classics on the SNES. Older dosen't equal superior.
31. x.SuperMario.x
01 Jul 2008, 02:08 GMT
@ Symphonia King- I agree to an extent. But I'd say you're more mature than most of the "little kids" I'm talking about. The comment above me (before it got deleted) alone proves how immature some of these kids are. I'd agree that older doesn't equal superior, but older does equal more experience.
32. Symphonia King
01 Jul 2008, 02:53 GMT
Thanks for replying in a respectable manner. I agree that with age comes more experience. I was just trying to get my message across that I am not a brainless drone casual player.
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