The heads at Nintendo have recently participated in Nintendo’s 81st annual general meeting of shareholders, and following that, a question and answer session. Shareholders typically ask business like questions, but one inquisitive shareholder simply wanted to know what the Nintendo leaders favourite video game are. Nintendo president Shuntaro Furukawa openly admitted that he plays games on other platforms as well as Nintendo published games, which is good. Legendary games designer said he and his wife are still hooked on Pokemon GO for iOS and Android. Here’s the team’s answers:
Nintendo president, Shuntaro Furukawa
Super Mario Bros. was released when I was in junior high school, so I was right in the middle of the Famicom (NES) generation. Even today, in my private time, I play various games, both from Nintendo and from other companies. I play most of our own first-party titles, but recently I’ve been playing a lot of the Hanafuda card game in Clubhouse Games: 51 Worldwide Classics.
Senior executive officer, Ko Shiota
Like Mr. Furukawa, I was part of the Famicom generation and grew up with the NES and SNES. I’m in charge of hardware now, but I’ve tinkered with hardware and been interested in how things work ever since. That probably explains why I gravitate to games like our recent product Mario Kart Live: Home Circuit, which I play with my kids.
Senior managing executive officer, Shinya Takahashi
I’m in charge of all our first-party software, so it’s hard to choose one game over another. But the first game I was involved with when I joined Nintendo was Yuyuki for the Family Computer Disk System. It’s a lesser-known adventure game, but it left an impression on me as the first title I was involved with.
Senior executive officer, Satoru Shibata
Shibata: I like adventure games, and I just recently cleared Famicom Detective Club: The Missing Heir and Famicom Detective Club: The Girl Who Stands Behind for Nintendo Switch. Back in the day, I really loved playing Shin Onigashima for the Family Computer Disk System. I’m in charge of the Licensing Division, which serves as a contact point for software publishers, and they also have many adventure games that I enjoy.
Designer, Shigeru Miyamoto:
I basically tend to play the games I created myself, so I haven’t been influenced much by the games of other companies. That said, the first game that influenced me when I started the job of game development was Pac-Man, and from a design perspective, I think TETRIS is wonderful. I’m currently hooked on Pokémon GO. This game, which I’m playing with my wife, is a dream come true of playing a game with my whole family. I’ve been enjoying Pokémon GO with my wife and neighborhood friends for some two years now. The average person playing Pokémon GO in Japan is probably around 60 years old (laughs).
There are quite a few more casual games here than I expected, like Clubhouse 51, Pokemon GO!, and Mario Kart Live: Home Circuit.
I don’t know what my gaming life would be like if I’d never played F-Zero GX and put in the hours to beat all the story chapters on very hard and clear Master difficulty in Grand Prix with every machine (multiple times). Those still stand as some of my personal greatest gaming accomplishments.
Mario 64 was the first game i 100%. I had never done it before but i made sure to get all Stars. Looking back, i think it’s still the only game i have the 100% completion.
Ditto. I have vivid memories of those 9 chapters and those goofy cutscenes and videos you unlocked for each racer. Bless that game.
So their leaders aren’t actually gamers and MIyamoto is so self obsessed, he doesn’t even pay attention to what others do (which explains a lot).
It doesn’t have anything with being self obsessed, he just doesn’t want his game to end up as just being “someone else’s game but with a different skin”. How many times does when some game sells well everyone tries to copy it in some way. Sometimes that a good thing, sometimes it runs ideas into the ground.
if miyamoto gave a shit what other companies did he wouldn’t have made all of the revolutionary classics he’s made time and time again. instead of treating miyamoto like crap just cuz he made a couple of mediocre games in the 2010’s, maybe you should keep in mind nintendo would be literally nothing without him
They were asked what specifically are their favourite games and the responses we get from the people running Nintendo are – we clearly aren’t gamers and I only play my own games.
Shigeru Miyamoto really needs to expand his horizons.
I understand his logic, since he doesn’t want his games to just end up being someone else’s game with a different paint, but there are some cases where sometimes taking notes from others can improve a game. BotW took notes from Assassins Creed and it still ended up as it’s own thing. Also, gamers are full of themselves, so even if you are inspired by another game everyone will still say the game is a new and original idea that nobody thought of before, because “gamers” like to act like they’ve played every meaningful game out there.
Basicslly the comments. “They didn’t name a game I personally considered only real gamers play and I can’t except that people who play certain style of games can actually be considered gamers”.
I see it more as “These chefs don’t eat as much food as a gourmand, and as a gourmand, I look down on them for this”.
HOLY S**T – NEW SWITCH GOT ANNOUNCED
@dannybogard,
Yeah, and it’s a total disappointment. (- _ -)
Miyamoto with the Pac-Man and Tetris shout outs, like a BOSS.