Shigeru Miyamoto thinks intensively about his legacy.
Shigeru Miyamoto is widely considered to be the most influential game designer in the world and we probably don’t need to introduce him to any of you at this point. The creator of popular series such as Super Mario, The Legend of Zelda, Donkey Kong and Pikmin has been providing unforgettable gaming experiences at Nintendo for over 45 years.
At some point, Miyamoto will also hang up the master sword, munch on mushrooms on the balcony and throw banana peels onto the windshields of passing cars – which is what you do in retirement.
Or maybe not? In an interview with The Guardian suggests the Nintendo guru, to simply continue working until his death. It is also very important to him how he will be remembered.
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Nintendo History – The story of the Mario makers
The baton has already been passed
Shigeru Miyamoto has been working at Nintendo since 1977 and since then he has had a lasting impact on the company – for example, the red color in the company logo is the same as that of Mario’s hat. Just one of many small symbols that also underline Miyamoto’s legacy internally.
That same legacy is also important to the game designer. After all, be Most of the last Super Mario and Zelda games were created without his involvement been. He hopes that he will not be forgotten.
I’m really grateful that there’s so much energy for the things I’ve been working on. Other people have them [die Spiele] raised them and helped them grow, so I no longer feel as responsible for them in that regard. […] I really hope that at least the teams I work with remember me as the creator of these things!
Work until the end of your life
So what about retirement? Finally, we opened the article with the question of whether and when Shigeru Miyamoto will enjoy his lavish free time on the go-kart track and boss the Pikmin around in his garden.
But the 71-year-old workhorse is apparently considering an alternative, more macabre end to his career:
Even more than retirement, I think about the day I pass out.
Considering his age, Miyamoto says, that he plans his future in 5-year increments and think about it a lot, Who I can pass things on to if something happens.
Miyamoto’s new love for films
Even though he hardly works on new games anymore, Shigeru Miyamoto is still working with full energy. What exactly is he doing at Nintendo these days?
I try to find unique opportunities for Nintendo. The way things work here is that we don’t just have a plan and follow it, but we come across certain things and from there we try to find our own new path.
What Miyamoto means above all is the new focus on films. No wonder, after all, the Super Mario Bros. film was very successful commercially and a Zelda film adaptation has now been confirmed.
The films, the amusement parks, I’m excited to see what organic possibilities arise from this. I’m still very new to this [Film-]Industry and still learning, but I try to read a lot of scripts these days and learn how they are developed to see how we can create unique Nintendo films.
Don’t worry: we’re not retiring yet! Who else should provide you with the latest information about gaming every day? For example, which highlights will appear for the Nintendo Switch in 2024:
Now that we’ve spent so much time looking at Shigeru Miyamoto’s legacy, the question is obvious: Which of the numerous Nintendo games from Miyamoto’s creative pen is your personal favorite to this day? And is there a game of his that disappointed you at all? We’re excited to hear your opinion, so feel free to write it to us in the comments!
