We finally arrived at the home track of the excellent Masahiro Sakurai YouTube channel transmission, and today’s penultimate video is about the late, great Satoru Iwata.
Over the past two years, we’ve seen Sakurai become more personal on the channel, talking about his time in the industry with surprising honesty. But today’s edition might be the most personal of the series as the legendary game designer goes through his fond memories with one of Nintendo’s most fondly remembered faces.
The video covers the full range of the pair’s friendship, from the moment Sakurai first met Iwata at his first interview at HAL Laboratory to their final reunion in early 2015.
Sure, it’s emotional at times, but the video is full of touching moments, like Sakurai’s confession that “when he’s taking notes, listening, or even just talking, [Iwata would] he always has the most carefree smile on his face.”
It’s also peppered with some neat facts. Did you know that Iwata is partly responsible for the legendary name of Super Smash Bros? We didn’t.
It’s a heartfelt send-off to the legendary CEO and a sweet way to wrap up Sakurai’s wonderful YouTube series. The last regular video is scheduled to be released next week, October 15, with a “special finale episode” scheduled for later.
