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Science/Tech See other Science/Tech Articles Title: Shigeru Miyamoto, the iconic video game director, best known for creating the Mario franchise Shigeru Miyamoto is the creator and producer of some of the world's most popular and most acclaimed video games. Mario, Donkey Kong, The Legend of Zelda are just a few of his creations that once led gaming company Nintendo to greatness. As Super Mario Bros. turns 30 this year, Miyamoto admits to having planned something special for the occation. He also tells us where to find inspiration, shares his parenting secrets, and explains how to create something that has never been done before. What inspired you to create Super Mario Bros.? Shigeru Miyamoto: It started with a game called Donkey Kong and its main character Jumpman. He resembled an Italian. The action took place at a construction site. I created the game to sell it on the American market. So the character was an Italian living in the United States. A man with the same mustache named Mario worked at a warehouse, where our subsidiary, which was selling the game in the US, was located. Everyone around me was saying Mario, Mario. And it got me thinking that Mario is a great name for a character. Two years later I created Super Mario Bros. That game introduced another character named Luigi. He was quite similar to Mario. In Japan Luigi is pronounced like “Ruidzi”, which is close to a word meaning “alike”. I thought it was a great choice for Mario. This is how Mario and Luigi came into being. More often than not I come up with an idea for a game and then decide what characters suit it and how they should act. Should a character move faster, should he have a beer belly? The more developed the game becomes, the more detailed the character turns out. It all starts with a game, not the character. I created the character Pikmin for a game of the same name. Then I had an idea to make him a living being. And if it is a living being, why not turn it into a plant. So again, the more developed the game is, the more detailed the character becomes. Do you create a gaming environment first, and then fill it with characters? Shigeru Miyamoto: Exactly. I start with creating a gaming environment. Then I decide, whether it needs someone small or someone big, whether something should be flying or driving there. Only after that these objects turn into characters. That’s the story with “Mario Kart”. At first it was a game with completely different cars and Mario wasn’t driving them. But it gradually turned into “Mario Kart”. What do you do in your free time, if you have any? Do you play video games? Shigeru Miyamoto: First of all, I would like to say that I try not to work on the weekends. But if you told this to my family, they wouldn’t believe you. During normal business hours I work 24 hours per day. But I try to spend weekends with my family. I really, really try. (Laughs.) I don’t play golf but I like to play the guitar. I play it at home when I have free time. I spend a lot of time doing this when I am alone. I also enjoy sports. I’ve been into swimming for the past two decades. Several times per week I swim 1 or more often 2 kilometers. And anyway, like anyone else, I watch TV series. Have you ever set limits on the hours your children play video games? Shigeru Miyamoto: I say this to all children, not just mine: when the weather is good, children should be playing outside. I have never put a limit on how long my children play video games. But at my house there is a rule that a game console or a playstation belongs to me and sometimes I allow my children to play. To be honest, they can play whenever they like but the main idea is that I allow them to play. I never limited their ability to play. But when a child has other stuff to do, he or she cannot spend all the time playing video games. I believe it is more important to offer children a varied choice of what to do than prohibit them from playing. We only forced our children to stop playing, when it was time to take a bath. That’s where it became complicated. To save the game they had to play a little more but they had to go to the bathroom. I was sorry for the kid when the mother sent him off to the bathroom. I was always on the side of playing some more to save the game. So it was the only case when we were forced to limit the time of playing. What would you advice parents to do if their children are addicted to video games? Shigeru Miyamoto: The parents will never be able to understand their children unless they try and experience what their kids are into. At least, that’s how it should be in a perfect world. I’d recommend parents to try and understand what their children are so excited about. When I was a kid, I liked graphic novels. My parents thought it was the only thing I was reading. (Laughs.) Then I started drawing. I think the time, when I was reading graphic novels and then pretended I was studying when my parents checked on me, is what made me pick up drawing. In a sense that’s what led me to who I am now. I don’t know how the dots will connect in the future. But maybe parents should allow their children to do what the kids are excited about? But it is a very serious issue. If the child is fully immersed into that one thing, then there will be no time to get in touch with nature, there can be problems with socializing. I think a child must be given a chance to learn something new. But I don’t have any advice for parents, who tried to offer their children a choice and still run into difficulties. The parents should probably come up with a radical solution to the problem. For what it’s worth, nobody should be focused on one thing. After all, some grown-ups get addicted to gaming machines. Grownups are also weak… It’s a tough question. Children in Russia are not prohibited from bringing gaming consoles to schools. Shigeru Miyamoto: Are you serious?! How would you comment on that as a game developer and a parent? Shigeru Miyamoto: Russia is probably the only country in the world in that regard! When we developed DS, a handheld game console, I maintained it could be taken out of the house and used in shopping malls or in museums as an audioguide. We created it so that it could be used at schools. It turned out that schools prohibit children from bringing gaming consoles to classes. I think they should be allowed to do that. Why not? It’s not an issue whether a console should be brought to school or not but what it can be used for. So, I think, that Russia’s stance on the issue is the correct one. Schools banning consoles do not know how to use innovative ideas. That’s the reason for the lack of consensus in Japan on whether cellphones should be brought to school or not. If these devices gradually become everyday products, schools must design their curriculum with this in mind. Russia is a very developed country. Perhaps, that’s why innovative ideas will originate in Russia. What would you recommend to aspiring game creators? What is the most important part of becoming a game creator? Shigeru Miyamoto: Games, which are created while playing games, will never be unique. Creating is always about creating something unparalleled. A game can serve as a background, but what matters is who you are. So I would recommend collecting different experiences. I’d say aspiring game creators should try different things. Their experience has to be colorful and multidimensional. That’s it, I think. Next year marks 30th anniversary of “Super Mario Bros.” What are your plans for the future? Shigeru Miyamoto: Yes… Well, I cannot make any announcements at this point. However, last year we celebrated Luigi’s 25th anniversary. To commemorate the date we released “Luigi Mansion 2” and held numerous events. So now everyone is saying that “Super Mario Bros.” turns 30 next year and it would be nice to do something about it. (Laughs.) There are different ideas in that respect. So should we expect something? Shigeru Miyamoto: Yes, you should. (Laughs.) Please do! But don’t expect an exact answer from me now, that, let’s say, a new Super Mario Galaxy will be released. What is the most challenging aspect of creating video games and what makes it exciting? Shigeru Miyamoto: The most challenging aspect… Should it be an answer for children or grown-ups? It doesn’t matter. Shigeru Miyamoto: The challenge is to create something that will bring joy to the person playing the game. Sometimes, gamers ask to include this and that into the game. But meeting them halfway doesn’t mean the game will be interesting. The question is what advice we should take and where we must stand our ground. It seems to me that what wasn’t conceded is what will surprise the gamer the most. It is often said that writers never listen to what others say. When a game is created, developers conduct a survey of the market. Game developers find themselves between the two extremes. On a serious note, the hardest thing is to be the one who creates the game and who fights for it at the same time. What makes creating games exciting… If you try to develop a game superior to all other games, it will be no fun. If you try to create a game, which has never existed, this is tough and exciting at the same time. It is a wonderful feeling when you manage to create something new, something that no one has come up with! You can never experience anything like this in any other field. The digital world makes anything possible. Whatever comes to your mind can be brought to life there. This medium is perfect for creating something new. This makes it exciting. Post Comment Private Reply Ignore Thread
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