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Shigeru Miyamoto
Shigeru Miyamoto
Shigeru Miyamoto
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Shigeru Miyamoto (Japanese: 宮本 茂, Hepburn: Miyamoto Shigeru; born November 16, 1952) is a Japanese video game designer, producer and game director at Nintendo, where he has served as one of its representative directors as an executive since 2002. Widely regarded as one of the most accomplished and influential designers in video games, he is the creator of some of the most acclaimed and best-selling game franchises of all time, including Mario, The Legend of Zelda, Donkey Kong, Star Fox and Pikmin. More than 1 billion copies of games featuring franchises created by Miyamoto have been sold.

Key Information

Born in Sonobe, Kyoto, Miyamoto graduated from Kanazawa Municipal College of Industrial Arts. He originally sought a career as a manga artist, until developing an interest in video games. With the help of his father, he joined Nintendo in 1977 after impressing the president, Hiroshi Yamauchi, with his toys.[3] He helped create art for the arcade game Sheriff,[4] and was later tasked with designing a new arcade game, leading to the 1981 game Donkey Kong.

Miyamoto's games Super Mario Bros. (1985) and The Legend of Zelda (1986) helped the Nintendo Entertainment System dominate the console game market. His games have been flagships of every Nintendo video game console, from the arcade machines of the late 1970s to the present day. He managed Nintendo's Entertainment Analysis & Development software division, which developed many Nintendo games, and he played an important role in the creation of other influential games such as Pokémon Red and Blue (1996) and Metroid Prime (2002). Following the death of Nintendo president Satoru Iwata in July 2015, Miyamoto became acting president alongside Genyo Takeda until he was formally appointed "Creative Fellow" a few months later.[5]

Early life

[edit]
Miyamoto graduated from Kanazawa College of Art in Ishikawa Prefecture.

Miyamoto was born on November 16, 1952, in the Japanese town of Sonobe, Kyoto Prefecture.[3] His parents were of "modest means", and his father taught English.[3]

From an early age, Miyamoto explored the natural areas around his home. He discovered a cave, and, after days of hesitation, went inside. His expeditions into the Kyoto countryside inspired his later work, particularly The Legend of Zelda, a seminal video game.[6]

In the early 1970s, Miyamoto graduated from Kanazawa Municipal College of Industrial Arts with a degree in industrial design.[3] He had a love for manga and initially hoped to become a professional manga artist before considering a career in video games.[7] He was influenced by manga's classic kishōtenketsu narrative structure,[8] as well as Western genre television shows.[9] He was inspired to enter the video game industry by the 1978 arcade hit Space Invaders.[10]

Career

[edit]

1977–1984: Arcade beginnings and Donkey Kong

[edit]

I feel that I have been very lucky to be a game designer since the dawn of the industry. I am not an engineer, but I have had the opportunities to learn the principles of game [design] from scratch, over a long period of time. And because I am so pioneering and trying to keep at the forefront, I have grown accustomed to first creating the very tools necessary for game creation.

— Shigeru Miyamoto (translated)[11]

In the 1970s, Nintendo was a relatively small Japanese company that sold playing cards and other novelties, although it had started to branch out into toys and games in the 1960s. Through a mutual friend, Miyamoto's father arranged an interview with Nintendo president Hiroshi Yamauchi. After showing some of his toy creations, he was hired in 1977 as an apprentice in the planning department.[3]

Miyamoto helped create the art for the coin-operated arcade game, Sheriff.[4] He first helped the company develop a game after the 1980 release Radar Scope. The game achieved moderate success in Japan, but by 1981, Nintendo's efforts to break it into the North American video game market had failed, leaving them with a large number of unsold units and on the verge of financial collapse. Nintendo president Hiroshi Yamauchi decided to convert unsold Radar Scope units into a new arcade game. He tasked Miyamoto with the conversion,[12]: 157  about which Miyamoto has said self-deprecatingly that "no one else was available" to do the work.[13] Nintendo's head engineer, Gunpei Yokoi, supervised the project.[12]: 158 

Miyamoto imagined many characters and plot concepts, but eventually settled on a love triangle between a gorilla, a carpenter, and a woman. He meant to mirror the rivalry between comic characters Bluto and Popeye for the woman Olive Oyl, although Nintendo's original intentions to gain rights to Popeye failed.[3] Bluto evolved into an ape, a form Miyamoto claimed was "nothing too evil or repulsive".[14]: 47  This ape would be the pet of the main character, "a funny, hang-loose kind of guy".[14]: 47  Miyamoto also named "Beauty and the Beast" and the 1933 film King Kong as influences.[15]: 36  Miyamoto had high hopes for his new project, but lacked the technical skills to program it himself; instead, he conceived the game's concepts, then consulted technicians on whether they were possible. He wanted to make the characters different sizes, move in different manners, and react in various ways. However, Yokoi viewed Miyamoto's original design as too complex.[14]: 47–48  Yokoi suggested using see-saws to catapult the hero across the screen but this proved too difficult to program. Miyamoto next thought of using sloped platforms and ladders for travel, with barrels for obstacles. When he asked that the game have multiple stages, the four-man programming team complained that he was essentially asking them to make the game repeat, but the team eventually successfully programmed the game.[15]: 38–39  When the game was sent to Nintendo of America for testing, the sales manager disapproved of its vast differentiation from the maze and shooter games common at the time.[14]: 49  When American staffers began naming the characters, they settled on "Pauline" for the woman, after Polly James, wife of Nintendo's Redmond, Washington, warehouse manager, Don James. The playable character, initially "Jumpman", was eventually named for Mario Segale, the warehouse landlord.[16][17][14]: 109  These character names were printed on the American cabinet art and used in promotional materials. The staff also pushed for an English name, and thus it received the title Donkey Kong.[15]: 212 

Donkey Kong was a success, leading Miyamoto to work on sequels such as Donkey Kong Jr. in 1982, and Donkey Kong 3 in 1983. In January 1983, the 1982 Arcade Awards gave Donkey Kong the Best Single-player video game award and the Certificate of Merit as runner-up for Coin-Op Game of the Year.[18] In his next game, he gave Mario a brother: Luigi. He named the new game Mario Bros. Yokoi convinced Miyamoto to give Mario some superhuman abilities, namely the ability to fall from any height unharmed. Mario's appearance in Donkey Kong—overalls, a hat, and a thick mustache—led Miyamoto to change aspects of the game to make Mario look like a plumber rather than a carpenter.[19] Miyamoto felt that New York City provided the best setting for the game, with its "labyrinthine subterranean network of sewage pipes". To date, games in the Mario Bros. franchise have been released for more than a dozen platforms.[20] Shortly after, Miyamoto also worked the character sprites and game design for the Baseball, Tennis, and Golf games on the NES.[21]

1985–1989: NES/Famicom, Super Mario Bros., and The Legend of Zelda

[edit]
Miyamoto's Super Mario Bros. was bundled with the NES in America. The game and the system are credited with helping to bring North America out of the slump of the 1983 game industry crash.

As Nintendo released its first home video game console, the Family Computer (rereleased in North America as the Nintendo Entertainment System), Miyamoto made two of the most popular titles for the console and in the history of video games as a whole: Super Mario Bros. (a sequel to Mario Bros.) and The Legend of Zelda (an entirely original title).[22]

In both games, Miyamoto decided to focus more on gameplay than on high scores, unlike many games of the time.[6] Super Mario Bros. largely took a linear approach, with the player traversing the stage by running, jumping, and dodging or defeating enemies.[23][24] It was a culmination of Miyamoto's gameplay concepts and technical knowledge drawn from his experiences of designing Donkey Kong, Mario Bros, Devil World (1984), the side-scrolling racing game Excitebike (1984), and the 1985 NES port of side-scrolling beat 'em up Kung-Fu Master (1984).[25] This culminated in his concept of a platformer set in an expansive world that would have the player "strategize while scrolling sideways" over long distances, have aboveground and underground levels, and have colorful backgrounds rather than black backgrounds.[26]

By contrast, Miyamoto employed nonlinear gameplay in The Legend of Zelda, forcing the player to think their way through riddles and puzzles.[27] The world was expansive and seemingly endless, offering "an array of choice and depth never seen before in a video game."[3] With The Legend of Zelda, Miyamoto sought to make an in-game world that players would identify with, a "miniature garden that they can put inside their drawer."[6] He drew his inspiration from his experiences as a boy around Kyoto, where he explored nearby fields, woods, and caves; each Zelda game embodies this sense of exploration.[6] "When I was a child," Miyamoto said, "I went hiking and found a lake. It was quite a surprise for me to stumble upon it. When I traveled around the country without a map, trying to find my way, stumbling on amazing things as I went, I realized how it felt to go on an adventure like this."[14]: 51  He recreated his memories of becoming lost amid the maze of sliding doors in his family home in Zelda's labyrinthine dungeons.[14]: 52  In February 1986, Nintendo released it as the launch game for the Nintendo Entertainment System's new Disk System peripheral.[28]

Miyamoto worked on various other different games for the Nintendo Entertainment System, including Ice Climber and Kid Icarus. He also worked on sequels to both Super Mario Bros and The Legend of Zelda. Super Mario Bros. 2, released only in Japan at the time, reuses gameplay elements from Super Mario Bros., though the game is much more difficult than its predecessor. Nintendo of America disliked Super Mario Bros. 2, which they found to be frustratingly difficult and otherwise little more than a modification of Super Mario Bros. Rather than risk the franchise's popularity, they canceled its stateside release and looked for an alternative. They realized they already had one option in Yume Kojo: Doki Doki Panic (Dream Factory: Heart-Pounding Panic), also designed by Miyamoto.[29] This game was reworked and released as Super Mario Bros. 2 (not to be confused with the Japanese game of the same name) in North America and Europe. The Japanese version of Super Mario Bros. 2 was eventually released in North America as Super Mario Bros.: The Lost Levels.[30]

The successor to The Legend of Zelda, Zelda II: The Adventure of Link, bears little resemblance to the first game in the series. The Adventure of Link features side-scrolling areas within a larger world map rather than the bird's eye view of the previous title. The game incorporates a strategic combat system and more RPG elements, including an experience points (EXP) system, magic spells, and more interaction with non-player characters (NPCs). Link has extra lives; no other game in the series includes this feature.[31] The Adventure of Link plays out in a two-mode dynamic. The overworld, the area where the majority of the action occurs in other The Legend of Zelda games, is still from a top-down perspective, but it now serves as a hub to the other areas. Whenever Link enters a new area such as a town, the game switches to a side-scrolling view. These separate methods of traveling and entering combat are one of many aspects adapted from the role-playing genre.[31] The game was highly successful at the time, and introduced elements such as Link's "magic meter" and the Dark Link character that would become commonplace in future Zelda games, although the role-playing elements such as experience points and the platform-style side-scrolling and multiple lives were never used again in the official series. The game is also looked upon as one of the most difficult games in the Zelda series and 8-bit gaming as a whole. Additionally, The Adventure of Link was one of the first games to combine role-playing video game and platforming elements to a considerable degree.[32]

Soon after, Super Mario Bros. 3 was developed by Nintendo Entertainment Analysis & Development; the game took more than two years to complete.[33] The game offers numerous modifications on the original Super Mario Bros., ranging from costumes with different abilities to new enemies.[33][34] Bowser's children were designed to be unique in appearance and personality; Miyamoto based the characters on seven of his programmers as a tribute to their work on the game.[33] The Koopalings' names were later altered to mimic names of well-known, Western musicians in the English localization.[33] In a first for the Mario series, the player navigates via two game screens: an overworld map and a level playfield. The overworld map displays an overhead representation of the current world and has several paths leading from the world's entrance to a castle. Moving the on-screen character to a certain tile will allow access to that level's playfield, a linear stage populated with obstacles and enemies. The majority of the game takes place in these levels.[23][24]

1990–2000: SNES, Nintendo 64, Super Mario 64, and Ocarina of Time

[edit]
Miyamoto was responsible for the controller design of the Super Famicom/Nintendo. Its L/R buttons were an industry first and have since become commonplace.

A merger between Nintendo's various internal research and development teams led to the creation of Nintendo Entertainment Analysis & Development (Nintendo EAD), which Miyamoto eventually headed. Nintendo EAD had approximately fifteen months to develop F-Zero, a launch game for the Super Nintendo Entertainment System.[35] Miyamoto worked through various games on the Super Nintendo Entertainment System, one of them Star Fox. For the game, programmer Jez San convinced Nintendo to develop an upgrade for the Super Nintendo, allowing it to handle three-dimensional graphics better: the Super FX chip.[36][37] Using this new hardware, Miyamoto and Katsuya Eguchi designed the Star Fox game with an early implementation of three-dimensional graphics.[38]

Miyamoto produced two major Mario games for the system. The first, Super Mario World, was a launch game. It features an overworld as in Super Mario Bros. 3 and introduces a new character, Yoshi, who appears in many other Nintendo games. The second Mario game for the system, Super Mario RPG, went in a somewhat different direction. Miyamoto led a team consisting of a partnership between Nintendo and Square; it took nearly a year to develop the graphics.[39] The story takes place in a newly rendered Mushroom Kingdom based on the Super Mario Bros. series.[40]

Miyamoto also created The Legend of Zelda: A Link to the Past for the Super Nintendo Entertainment System, the third entry in the series. Dropping the side-scrolling elements of its predecessor, A Link to the Past introduced to the series elements that are still commonplace today, such as the concept of an alternate or parallel world, the Master Sword, and other new weapons and items.[41][42]

Shigeru Miyamoto mentored Satoshi Tajiri, guiding him during the creation process of Pocket Monsters: Red and Green (released in English as Pokémon Red and Blue), the initial video games in the Pokémon series. He also acted as the producer for these games and worked on social gameplay concepts such as trading.[43] Pokémon would go on to be one of the most popular entertainment franchises in the world, spanning video games, anime, and various other merchandise.[44]

Miyamoto made several games for the Nintendo 64, mostly from his previous franchises. His first game on the new system, and one of its launch games, is Super Mario 64, for which he was the principal director. In developing the game, he began with character design and the camera system. Miyamoto and the other designers were initially unsure of which direction the game should take, and spent months to select an appropriate camera view and layout.[45] The original concept involved a fixed path much like an isometric-type game, before the choice was made to settle on a free-roaming 3D design.[45] He guided the design of the Nintendo 64 controller in tandem with that of Super Mario 64.[45]

Using what he had learned about the Nintendo 64 from developing Super Mario 64 and Star Fox 64,[9] Miyamoto produced his next game, The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time, leading a team of several directors.[46] Its engine was based on that of Super Mario 64 but was so heavily modified as to be a somewhat different engine. Individual parts of Ocarina of Time were handled by multiple directors—a new strategy for Nintendo EAD. However, when things progressed slower than expected, Miyamoto returned to the development team with a more central role assisted in public by interpreter Bill Trinen.[47] The team was new to 3D games, but assistant director Makoto Miyanaga recalls a sense of "passion for creating something new and unprecedented".[48] Miyamoto went on to produce a sequel to Ocarina of Time, known as The Legend of Zelda: Majora's Mask. By reusing the game engine and graphics from Ocarina of Time, a smaller team required only 18 months to finish Majora's Mask.[49]

Miyamoto worked on a variety of Mario series spin-offs for the Nintendo 64, including Mario Kart 64[50] and Mario Party.

2000–2011: GameCube, Wii, and DS

[edit]
Miyamoto holding up a Wii Remote at E3 2006

Miyamoto produced various games for the GameCube, including the launch game Luigi's Mansion. The game was first revealed at Nintendo Space World 2000 as a technical demo designed to show off the graphical capabilities of the GameCube.[51] Miyamoto made an original short demo of the game concepts, and Nintendo decided to turn it into a full game. Luigi's Mansion was later shown at E3 2001 with the GameCube console.[52] Miyamoto continued to make additional Mario spinoffs in these years. He also produced the 3D game series Metroid Prime, after the original designer Yokoi, a friend and mentor of Miyamoto's, died.[53] In this time he developed Pikmin and its sequel Pikmin 2, based on his experiences gardening.[3] He also worked on new games for the Star Fox, Donkey Kong, F-Zero, and The Legend of Zelda series on both the GameCube and the Game Boy Advance systems.[54][55][56] With the help of Hideo Kojima, he guided the developers of Metal Gear Solid: The Twin Snakes.[57] He helped with many games on the Nintendo DS, including the remake of Super Mario 64, titled Super Mario 64 DS, and the new game Nintendogs, a new franchise based on his own experiences with dogs.[58] At E3 2005, Miyamoto showed off Nintendogs with Tina Wood, where he promised to show her "a few more tricks" backstage.[59]

Miyamoto played a major role in the development of the Wii, a console that popularized motion control gaming, and its launch game Wii Sports, which helped show the capability of the new control scheme. Miyamoto went on to produce other titles in the Wii series, including Wii Fit. His inspiration for Wii Fit was to encourage conversation and family bonding.[3]

At E3 2004, Miyamoto unveiled The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess, appearing dressed as the protagonist Link with a sword and shield. Also released for the GameCube, the game was among the Wii's launch games and the first in the Zelda series to implement motion controls. He also helped with The Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword, which featured more accurate motion controls. He also produced two Zelda titles for the Nintendo DS, The Legend of Zelda: Phantom Hourglass and The Legend of Zelda: Spirit Tracks. These were the first titles in the series to implement touch screen controls.

Miyamoto produced three major Mario titles for Wii from 2007 to 2010: Super Mario Galaxy,[60] New Super Mario Bros. Wii,[61] and Super Mario Galaxy 2.[62]

2011–present: Wii U, 3DS, Switch and other projects

[edit]

Unlike in the 2000s, during which he was involved in many projects as producer, Miyamoto's activities in development were less pronounced in that decade with Miyamoto only producing Luigi's Mansion: Dark Moon and Star Fox Zero.[63][64] Otherwise, Miyamoto was credited as General Producer, Executive Producer and Supervisor for most projects, which are positions with much less involvement in comparison to a producer.

Following the death of Nintendo president Satoru Iwata in July 2015, Miyamoto was appointed as an acting Representative Director, alongside Genyo Takeda.[65] He was relieved of this position in September 2015 when Tatsumi Kimishima assumed the role of the company's president. He was also appointed the position of "Creative Fellow" at the same time, providing expert advice to Kimishima as a "support network" alongside Takeda.[66] In his capacity as Creative Fellow, he provides feedback and guidance to game directors during development.[67][68]

In 2018, it was announced that Miyamoto would be working as a producer on The Super Mario Bros. Movie based on the Mario franchise by Illumination.[69]

Miyamoto was heavily involved with the design and construction of Super Nintendo World, a themed area featured at Universal Studios Japan, Universal Studios Hollywood, and Universal Epic Universe and under construction at Universal Studios Singapore. Miyamoto oversaw the design and construction of the land and its attractions and acted as Nintendo's public representative on the land, hosting several promotional materials including a December 2020 Nintendo Direct in which he gave a tour of parts of the land.[70]

Development philosophy

[edit]

People have paid me a lot of lip service, calling me a genius story teller or a talented animator, and have gone so far as to suggest that I try my hand at movies, since my style of game design is, in their words, quite similar to making movies. But I feel that I am not a movie maker, but rather that my strength lies in my pioneering spirit to make use of technology to create the best, interactive commodities possible, and use that interactivity to give users a game they can enjoy and play comfortably.

— Shigeru Miyamoto (translated)[11]

Miyamoto, and Nintendo as a whole, do not use focus groups. Instead, Miyamoto figures out if a game is fun for himself. He says that if he enjoys it, others will too.[3] He elaborates, citing the conception of the Pokémon series as an example, "And that's the point – Not to make something sell, something very popular, but to love something, and make something that we creators can love. It's the very core feeling we should have in making games."[71] Miyamoto wants players to experience kyokan; he wants "the players to feel about the game what the developers felt themselves."[3]

He then tests it with friends and family. He encourages younger developers to consider people who are new to gaming, for example by having them switch their dominant hand with their other hand to feel the experience of an unfamiliar game.[3]

Miyamoto's philosophy does not focus on hyper-realistic graphics, although he realizes they have their place. He is more focused on the game mechanics, such as the choices and challenges in the game.[3] Similar to how manga artists subverted their genre, Miyamoto hopes to subvert some of the basic principles he had popularized in his early games, retaining some elements but eliminating others.[3]

His game design philosophy typically prioritizes gameplay over storytelling. In a 1992 interview, he said "the important thing is that it feels good when you're playing it" and "that quality is not determined by the story, but by the controls, the sound, and the rhythm and pacing". However, he requires a "compatibility [between] the story and gameplay [because] a good story can smooth over that discrepancy and make it all feel natural".[72]

His use of real-time rendered cinematics (not prerendered video) serves both his own rapidly interactive development process with no rendering delays, and the player's interaction with the game's continuity. He prefers to change his games right until they are finalized, and to make "something unique and unprecedented". He prefers the game to be interactively fun rather than have elaborate film sequences, stating in 1999, "I will never make movie-like games";[71] therefore, the more than 90 total minutes of short cutscenes interspersed throughout Ocarina of Time[11] deliver more interactive cinematic qualities.[71][73] His vision mandates a rapid and malleable development process with small teams, as when he directed substantial changes to the overall game scenario in the final months of the development of Ocarina of Time. He said, "The reason behind using such a simple process, as I am sure you have all experienced in the workshop, is that there is a total limit on team energy. There is a limit to the work a team can do, and there is a limit to my own energy. We opted not to use that limited time and energy on pre-rendered images for use in cinema scenes, but rather on tests on other inter-active elements and polishing up the game".[11]

For these reasons, he opposes prerendered cutscenes.[11][9][71] Of Ocarina of Time, he says "we were able to make use of truly cinematic methods with our camera work without relying on [prerendered video]."[11]

Miyamoto has occasionally been critical of the role-playing game (RPG) genre. In a 1992 interview, when asked whether Zelda is an RPG series, he declined but classified it as "a real-time adventure"; he said he was "not interested in [games] decided by stats and numbers [but in preserving] as much of that 'live' feeling as possible", which he said "action games are better suited in conveying".[72] In 2003, he described his "fundamental dislike" of the RPG genre: "I think that with an RPG you are completely bound hand and foot, and can't move. But gradually you become able to move your hands and legs... you become slightly untied. And in the end, you feel powerful. So what you get out of an RPG is a feeling of happiness. But I don't think they're something that's fundamentally fun to play. With a game like that, anyone can become really good at it. With Mario though, if you're not good at it, you may never get good."[74] While critical of the RPG gameplay system,[74] he has occasionally praised certain aspects of RPGs, such as Yuji Horii's writing in the Dragon Quest series, the "interactive cinematic approach" of the Final Fantasy series,[72] and Shigesato Itoi's dialogue in the Mother series.[74]

Impact

[edit]
Takashi Tezuka, Miyamoto, and Koji Kondo, 2015

Time called Miyamoto "the Spielberg of video games"[75] and "the father of modern video games,"[10] while The Daily Telegraph says he is "regarded by many as possibly the most important game designer of all time."[76] GameTrailers called him "the most influential game creator in history."[77] Miyamoto has significantly influenced various aspects of the medium. The Daily Telegraph credited him with creating "some of the most innovative, ground breaking and successful work in his field."[76] Many of Miyamoto's works have pioneered new video game concepts or refined existing ones. Miyamoto's games have received outstanding critical praise, some being considered the greatest games of all time.

Miyamoto's games have also sold very well, becoming some of the bestselling games on Nintendo consoles and of all time. As of 1999, his games had sold 250 million units and grossed billions of dollars.[76]

Calling him one of the few "video-game auteurs," The New Yorker credited Miyamoto's role in creating the franchises that drove console sales, as well as designing the consoles themselves. They described Miyamoto as Nintendo's "guiding spirit, its meal ticket, and its playful public face," noting that Nintendo might not exist without him.[3] The Daily Telegraph similarly attributed Nintendo's success to Miyamoto more than any other person.[76] Next Generation listed him in their "75 Most Important People in the Games Industry of 1995", elaborating that, "He's the most successful game developer in history. He has a unique and brilliant mind as well as an unparalleled grasp of what gamers want to play."[78]

Industry

[edit]

Miyamoto's first major arcade hit Donkey Kong was highly influential. It spawned a number of other games with a mix of running, jumping, and vertical traversal.[79] Particularly novel, the vertical genre was initially referred to as "Donkey Kong-type" or "Kong-style",[80][79] before finalizing as "platform".[79] Earlier games either use storytelling or cutscenes, but Donkey Kong combines both to introduce the use of cutscenes to visually advance a complete story.[81] It has multiple, distinct levels that progress the storyline.[82][81] Computer and Video Games called Donkey Kong "the most momentous" release of 1981.[83]

Miyamoto's best known and most influential game, Super Mario Bros., "depending on your point of view, created an industry or resuscitated a comatose one".[3] The Daily Telegraph said it "set the standard for all future videogames".[76] G4 noted its revolutionary gameplay and its role in "almost single-handedly" rescuing the video game industry after the North American video game crash of 1983.[84] The game also popularized the side-scrolling video game genre. The New Yorker described Mario as the first folk hero of video games, with as much influence as Mickey Mouse.[3]

GameSpot featured The Legend of Zelda as one of the 15 most influential games of all time, for being an early example of open world, nonlinear gameplay, and for its introduction of battery backup saving, laying the foundations for later action-adventure games like Metroid and role-playing video games like Final Fantasy, while influencing most modern games in general.[85] In 2009, Game Informer called The Legend of Zelda "no less than the greatest game of all time" on their list of "The Top 200 Games of All Time", saying that it was "ahead of its time by years if not decades".[86]

At the time of the release of Star Fox, the use of filled, three-dimensional polygons in a console game was very unusual, apart from a handful of earlier titles.[87] Due to its success, Star Fox has become a Nintendo franchise, with five more games and numerous appearances by its characters in other Nintendo games such as the Super Smash Bros. series.

His game Super Mario 64 defined the field of 3D game design, particularly with its use of a dynamic camera system and the implementation of its analog control.[88][89][90] The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time's gameplay system introduced features such as a target lock system and context-sensitive buttons that have since become common elements in 3D adventure games.[91][92]

The Wii, which Miyamoto played a major role in designing, is the first wireless motion-controlled video game console.[3]

Critical reception

[edit]

Miyamoto's games have received outstanding critical praise, and are widely considered among the greatest of all time.[3]

Games in Miyamoto's The Legend of Zelda series have received outstanding critical acclaim. A Link to the Past is a landmark game for Nintendo and is widely considered today to be one of the greatest video games of all time. Ocarina of Time is widely considered by critics and gamers alike to be one of the greatest video games ever made.[93][94][95][96] Ocarina of Time was listed by Guinness World Records as the highest-rated video game in history, citing its Metacritic score of 99 out of 100.[97] Twilight Princess was released to universal critical acclaim, and is the third highest-rated game for the Wii.[98] It received perfect scores from major publications such as CVG, Electronic Gaming Monthly, Game Informer, GamesRadar, and GameSpy.[99][100][101][102][103]

Critical analysis of Super Mario Bros. has been extremely positive, with many touting it as one of the best video games of all time.[104] In 2009, Game Informer put Super Mario Bros. in second place on its list of "The Top 200 Games of All Time", behind The Legend of Zelda, saying that it "remains a monument to brilliant design and fun gameplay".[86]

Super Mario 64 is acclaimed by many critics and fans as one of the greatest and most revolutionary video games of all time.[105][106][107][108][109][110]

According to Metacritic, Super Mario Galaxy and Super Mario Galaxy 2 are the highest- and second-highest-rated games, respectively, for the Wii.[98]

A 1995 article in Maximum stated that "in gaming circles Miyamoto's name carries far more weight than Steven Spielberg's could ever sustain."[111]

Commercial reception

[edit]

More than 1 billion copies of games featuring franchises created by Miyamoto have been sold.[112]

Miyamoto's Mario series is, by far, the best-selling video game franchise of all time, selling over 800 million units. Super Mario Bros. is the sixth best-selling video game of all time. The game was the all-time bestselling video game for over 20 years until its lifetime sales were surpassed by Wii Sports.[113] Super Mario Bros., Super Mario Bros. 3, and Super Mario Bros. 2 were, respectively, the three bestselling games for the Nintendo Entertainment System. Levi Buchanan of IGN considered Super Mario Bros. 3's appearance in the film The Wizard as a show-stealing element, and referred to the movie as a "90-minute commercial" for the game.[114] Super Mario World was the bestselling game for the Super Nintendo Entertainment System.[115][116] Super Mario 64 was the bestselling Nintendo 64 game,[117] and as of May 21, 2003, the game had sold eleven million copies.[118] At the end of 2007, Guinness World Records reported sales of 11.8 million copies. As of September 25, 2007, it was the seventh best-selling video game in the United States with six million copies sold.[119] By June 2007, Super Mario 64 had become the second most popular game on Wii's Virtual Console, behind Super Mario Bros.[120] Super Mario Sunshine is the third best-selling GameCube game.[121] The Mario series continued to see success in sales with entries like Super Mario 3D Land and New Super Mario Bros. 2 for the Nintendo 3DS and New Super Mario Bros. U, Super Mario 3D World, and Mario Maker all topping the charts for the Wii U. The Mario series continued its success on the Nintendo Switch with titles like Super Mario Odyssey and Super Mario Bros. Wonder selling tens of millions of copies.

The original game in The Legend of Zelda series is the fifth-bestselling game for the Nintendo Entertainment System. The Wind Waker is the fourth bestselling GameCube game. Twilight Princess was commercially successful. In the PAL region, which covers most of Asia, Africa, South America, Australia, New Zealand, and most of Western Europe, Twilight Princess is the bestselling Zelda game ever. During its first week, the game was sold with three out of every four Wii purchases.[122] The game had sold 4.52 million copies on the Wii as of March 1, 2008,[123] and 1.32 million on the GameCube as of March 31, 2007.[124] Moving forward, The Legend of Zelda series continued to prove a force for sales and critical acclaim with titles like The Legend of Zelda Skyward Sword for the Wii in 2011, The Legend of Zelda: A Link Between Worlds for the Nintendo 3DS, and the titular titles on the Switch, The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild which sold 32.62 million copies on the Switch[125] (in addition to modest sales on the Wii U version) and The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom which sold 21.04 million units.[126] Both of these Zelda games rank among the top sellers for the Nintendo Switch.

The Mario Kart series is currently the most successful racing game franchise of all time. Mario Kart titles tend to be among the bestselling games for their respective consoles; Super Mario Kart is the third bestselling video game for the Super Nintendo Entertainment System, Mario Kart 64 is the second bestselling Nintendo 64 game, Mario Kart: Double Dash is the second bestselling game for the GameCube,[121] and Mario Kart Wii is the second bestselling game for the Wii. "Mario Kart 8 is the best selling game for the Wii U and its enhanced edition, Mario Kart 8 Deluxe remains the best selling game on the Nintendo Switch as of April 2025. Mario Kart games similarly sell millions, such as in Mario Kart Super Circuit for the Game Boy Advance, Mario Kart DS for the Nintendo DS, and Mario Kart 7 for the Nintendo 3DS.

Miyamoto produced Wii Sports, another of the bestselling games of all time and part of the Wii series. Wii Fit, designed by Miyamoto, was the third best-selling console game not packaged with a console, with 22.67 million copies sold.[127]

Outside of video games, Miyamoto produced The Super Mario Bros. Movie, which ended up becoming the third-highest-grossing animated movie of all time, grossing $1.347 billion worldwide during its theatrical run as of July 14, 2023. It is also the highest-grossing film based on a video game (or video game series) by a huge margin, making it a huge statistical outlier; for context, the second-highest-grossing film based on a video game is Sonic the Hedgehog 3 (2024), which grossed $900 million less, for a total of about $492 million.[128]

Awards and recognition

[edit]

[Miyamoto] approaches the games playfully, which seems kind of obvious, but most people don't. And he approaches things from the players' point of view, which is part of his magic.

— Will Wright, The New Yorker[3]

The name of the main character of the PC game Daikatana, Hiro Miyamoto, is a homage to Miyamoto.[129] The character Gary Oak from the Pokémon anime series is named Shigeru in Japan and is the rival of Ash Ketchum (called Satoshi in Japan). Pokémon creator Satoshi Tajiri was mentored by Miyamoto.

In 1998, Miyamoto was honored as the first person inducted into the Academy of Interactive Arts and Sciences' Hall of Fame.[130] In 2006, Miyamoto was made a Chevalier (knight) of the French Ordre des Arts et des Lettres by the French Minister of Culture Renaud Donnedieu de Vabres.[131]

On November 28, 2006, Miyamoto was featured in TIME Asia's "60 Years of Asian Heroes".[132] He was later chosen as one of Time Magazine's 100 Most Influential People of the Year in both 2007[133] and also in 2008, in which he topped the list with a total vote of 1,766,424.[134] At the Game Developers Choice Awards, on March 7, 2007, Miyamoto received the Lifetime Achievement Award "for a career that spans the creation of Super Mario Bros. and The Legend of Zelda, and Donkey Kong to the company's recent revolutionary systems, Nintendo DS and Wii."[135] GameTrailers and IGN placed Miyamoto first on their lists for the "Top Ten Game Creators" and the "Top 100 Game Creators of All Time" respectively.[136][137]

In a survey of game developers by industry publication Develop, 30% of the developers, by far the largest portion,[3] chose Miyamoto as their "Ultimate Development Hero".[138] Miyamoto has been interviewed by companies and organizations such as CNN's Talk Asia.[139] He was made a Fellow of BAFTA at the British Academy Video Games Awards on March 19, 2010.[140] In 2012, Miyamoto was also the first interactive creator to be awarded the highest recognition in Spain, the Prince of Asturias Award, in the category of Communications and Humanities.[141][142]

Miyamoto was awarded Japan's Person of Cultural Merit in 2019 in recognition for his contributions towards Japan's video game industry.[143] He was the first person in the video game industry to receive the honor.[144]

Personal life

[edit]

Miyamoto is married to Yasuko, and they have two children. In 2010, his son was 25 and working at an advertising agency, while his daughter was 23 and studying zoology at the time. His children played video games in their youth, but he also made them partake in outside activities. Although Miyamoto can speak some English, he is not fluent and prefers to speak in Japanese for interviews.[3]

Miyamoto does not generally sign autographs, out of concern that he would be inundated. He also does not appear on Japanese television, so as to minimize his chance of being recognized. More foreign tourists than Japanese people approach him.[3]

Miyamoto is ambidextrous but usually favors his left hand, which is why his characters Mario and Link were designed to be left-handed.[145]

Miyamoto spends little time playing video games in his personal time, preferring to play the guitar, mandolin, and banjo.[146] He avidly enjoys bluegrass music.[3] Miyamoto said in a 2016 interview that when he had his own family he took up gardening with his wife, which influenced other games that he was making at the time.[147] He has a Shetland Sheepdog named Pikku that provided the inspiration for Nintendogs.[148] He is also a semi-professional dog breeder.[149]

He has been quoted as stating, "Video games are bad for you? That's what they said about rock and roll."[150] He is alleged to have said that "a delayed game is eventually good, but a rushed game is forever bad". In 2023, fans deduced that it was taken from a quote by Siobhan Beeman, who worked on the Wing Commander franchise at Origin Systems. She first uttered the phrase at GDC in 1996, or something close to it, "a game's only late until it ships, but it sucks forever". It somehow was misconstrued as a Miyamoto quote, circulating on the internet for many years.[151][152][153]

Miyamoto enjoys rearranging furniture in his house, even late at night.[3] He also stated that he has a hobby of guessing the dimensions of objects, then checking to see if he was correct, and reportedly carries a measuring tape with him everywhere.[154] In December 2016, Miyamoto showcased his hobby on The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon, while also performing the Super Mario Bros. theme on guitar with The Roots during the same show.[155][156]

Works

[edit]

Selected ludography

[edit]
Year Game title Role
1979 Sheriff Graphic designer[157]
1980 Space Firebird
1981 Donkey Kong Director, game designer[158][159]
Sky Skipper Graphic designer[160]
1982 Donkey Kong Jr. Director, game designer[159][161]
Popeye Game designer[159][157]
1983 Mario Bros. Director, game designer[159][162][163]
Donkey Kong 3
Baseball Game designer[164]
1984 Tennis
Wild Gunman Director, game designer[165]
Duck Hunt
Golf Game designer[164]
Hogan's Alley Director, game designer[165]
Devil World
Excitebike
1985 Kung Fu
Super Mario Bros. Director, producer, game designer[159]
1986 The Legend of Zelda
Super Mario Bros.: The Lost Levels Director, producer[159][166]
Volleyball Producer[167][168][169]
1987 Zelda II: The Adventure of Link
Yume Kōjō: Doki Doki Panic[a]
Shin Onigashima
1988 Super Mario Bros. 3 Director, producer, game designer[159][170]
1989 Mother Producer
1990 F-Zero
Super Mario World
Pilotwings
1991 The Legend of Zelda: A Link to the Past
1992 Wave Race
Super Mario Kart
1993 Star Fox Producer, game designer[171]
Kirby's Adventure Producer
The Legend of Zelda: Link's Awakening
1994 Donkey Kong
Kirby's Dream Course
1995 Kirby's Dream Land 2
Yoshi's Island
BS Zelda no Densetsu Designer[172]
1996 Pokémon Red and Blue Producer[173][174]
Super Mario RPG
Kirby Super Star
Pilotwings 64
Super Mario 64 Director, producer[159][175]
Mole Mania Producer[176]
Wave Race 64
Mario Kart 64
1997 Star Fox 64 Producer, game designer[171]
1998 1080° Snowboarding Producer
F-Zero X
The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time Producer, supervisor[177]
1999 Super Smash Bros. Producer[178][179]
Pokémon Snap
Pokémon Stadium
2000 The Legend of Zelda: Majora's Mask Producer, supervisor[180]
Paper Mario Producer
Pokémon Crystal
Pokémon Stadium 2
2001 Mario Kart: Super Circuit
Luigi's Mansion
Pikmin Producer, original concept[181]
Super Smash Bros. Melee Producer[182][183][184][185]
2002 Magical Vacation
Eternal Darkness
Super Mario Sunshine
Star Fox Adventures
Metroid Prime
The Legend of Zelda: Four Swords General producer
The Legend of Zelda: The Wind Waker Producer
2003 Kirby Air Ride
F-Zero GX
Mario Kart: Double Dash
Mario & Luigi: Superstar Saga
2004 The Legend of Zelda: Four Swords Adventures
Pikmin 2
Paper Mario: The Thousand-Year Door
Donkey Kong Jungle Beat General producer
2005 Star Fox: Assault Producer
Nintendogs General producer, original concept[186]
2006 The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess Producer[187]
Wii Sports General producer[188]
2007 Super Mario Galaxy Producer, game design concept[189]
Wii Fit Designer, general producer[190][191]
2010 Super Mario Galaxy 2 General producer[192][193]
2011 The Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword
Steel Diver Designer, general producer[194]
2013 Pikmin 3 General producer[195][196][197]
Super Mario 3D World
The Legend of Zelda: A Link Between Worlds
2014 Captain Toad: Treasure Tracker
2015 Super Mario Maker General producer, original concept[198]
2016 Star Fox Zero Supervising director, producer[199]
Super Mario Run Director, producer[200]
2017 The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild General producer[201]
Super Mario Odyssey Executive producer[202]
2023 The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom General producer[203]
Pikmin 4

Other

[edit]
Year Title Media Role
2021 Super Nintendo World Theme park Creative director[204]
2023 The Super Mario Bros. Movie Film Producer[205]
2026 The Super Mario Galaxy Movie Film Producer[206]
2027 The Legend of Zelda Film Producer[207]

References

[edit]
[edit]
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Shigeru Miyamoto

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Shigeru Miyamoto (born November 16, 1952) is a Japanese video game designer, director, producer, and executive at , where he has worked since 1977 and currently serves as Executive Fellow and Representative Director. Often called the "father of modern video games," he is renowned for creating some of the industry's most enduring franchises, including (1981), the series starting with Super Mario Bros. (1985), and The Legend of Zelda (1986), which have collectively sold hundreds of millions of copies and shaped interactive entertainment worldwide. Born in the rural town of Sonobe in , Miyamoto grew up exploring nearby woods and caves, experiences that later inspired the adventurous worlds of his games like The Legend of Zelda. After graduating from Kanazawa Municipal College of Industrial Arts and Design in the mid-1970s with a degree in , he joined —then transitioning from playing cards to electronic entertainment—through a family connection, starting as a staff artist on early arcade titles such as Sheriff (1979). His breakthrough came with Donkey Kong, where he not only designed the game but also created its characters, including the plumber Jumpman (later renamed ), turning into a global arcade powerhouse amid the early 1980s video game crash. Miyamoto's career at Nintendo evolved from artist to director and producer, leading the Entertainment Planning & Development (EPD) division and overseeing hardware innovations like the Wii's motion controls, which broadened gaming's appeal to non-traditional audiences. In recent years, he has shifted toward mentoring younger developers and overseeing broader projects, stepping back from hands-on game direction. He has directed or produced over 100 titles, emphasizing playful, accessible design principles that prioritize wonder and exploration over violence, as seen in series like (2001) and (1993). His influence extends beyond games to theme parks, such as , and films, including the 2023 , which grossed over $1.3 billion. Miyamoto's contributions have earned him numerous accolades, including the in 2010 for lifetime achievement in games, induction into the Academy of Interactive Arts and Sciences Hall of Fame in 1998, and Japan's award in 2019, recognizing his role in elevating video games as a cultural medium. Married to Yasuko, a former employee, with whom he has two children, Miyamoto maintains a low-profile personal life, enjoying music on guitar and while avoiding recreational gaming to preserve his creative perspective.

Early Life and Education

Childhood and Family Background

Shigeru Miyamoto was born on November 16, 1952, in Sonobe, Kyoto Prefecture, Japan. His family was of modest means, living in a small house with sliding shoji screens; his father worked as an English teacher, while his mother managed the household. The Miyamoto family had resided in Sonobe for generations, providing a stable yet simple environment that emphasized self-reliance and creativity. Miyamoto's childhood unfolded in the rural setting of Sonobe, a town approximately 30 miles northwest of Kyoto, nestled in a river valley amid wooded mountains. He frequently explored the surrounding wilderness, wandering through bamboo forests, cedar groves, and pine stands, and even discovering a cave around age seven or eight, which he revisited throughout the summer using a lantern for light. These outings along the Sonobe River—where he once caught fish by hand under rocks—instilled a profound sense of wonder and adventure, shaping his imaginative worldview. Such experiences in fields, woods, and caves directly inspired the themes of exploration and hidden discoveries in his later video game designs, like the expansive landscapes of The Legend of Zelda. Lacking many commercial toys, young Miyamoto crafted his own playthings from wood and string, staging shows and creating simple flip-books to entertain himself and others. His early creative pursuits extended to and storytelling, often drawing from the natural world around him, such as envisioning magical realms lurking behind the screens of his home. These activities highlighted an innate artistic spark, nurtured by the freedom of rural life rather than formal playthings.

Education and Formative Influences

Miyamoto attended elementary school in his hometown of Prefecture, where his rural surroundings fostered an early curiosity about and . These formative years in a countryside setting, marked by adventures in nearby woods and caves, laid the groundwork for his imaginative development, though his structured began to channel these interests more formally. In high school, also located in the Kyoto area, Miyamoto honed his artistic skills by creating his own manga and joining a school club dedicated to the medium, reflecting his growing aspiration to become a professional comic artist. This period solidified his passion for visual storytelling, blending Japanese manga traditions with exposure to Western influences. Miyamoto enrolled at Kanazawa Municipal College of Industrial Arts and Design in 1970, graduating in 1975 with a degree in industrial design. During his studies, he was deeply influenced by manga, American comics, and Disney animations, which shaped his understanding of character-driven narratives and playful aesthetics. These elements encouraged him to view design not merely as functional but as a means to evoke joy and interaction. For his graduation project, Miyamoto focused on and , creating concepts like an to teach children through interactive play, emphasizing user engagement and practical functionality. This work highlighted his emphasis on designs that promote learning and fun, bridging his artistic influences with real-world application.

Career

Entry into Nintendo and Arcade Era (1977–1984)

In 1977, Shigeru Miyamoto joined Nintendo as its first staff artist, hired primarily for his skills in product design rather than any experience in video games or programming. Despite lacking technical expertise in coding, his industrial design training from Kanazawa College of Art enabled him to contribute to the visual and conceptual aspects of Nintendo's emerging electronic toys and arcade hardware. He began by assisting with the casing designs for the Color TV-Game series, including Racing 90, before transitioning to arcade projects. Miyamoto's early arcade work took place under the guidance of , Nintendo's veteran engineer leading the R&D1 team. In 1979, he provided character artwork for , Nintendo's Western-themed shooter where players control a lawman battling bandits. The following year, 1980, saw him contribute to Space Firebird (also known internationally as Space Firebird), a featuring bird-like alien ships, further honing his ability to integrate artistic elements with constraints on limited hardware. These assignments built Miyamoto's familiarity with arcade development amid Nintendo's push into the coin-op market. Miyamoto's breakthrough came in 1981 with , which he conceptualized as a parody of the film, centering on a love triangle where a gorilla kidnaps a woman from a jealous carpenter hero. Unable to secure a licensing deal for characters—intended as the original cast—he introduced the unnamed carpenter as "Jumpman," a mustachioed everyman who would later evolve into Mario. The game's innovative platforming mechanics, involving ladders, barrels, and precise jumps, were developed on repurposed hardware from the failed cabinets, marking Miyamoto's first full game design credit. 's success, however, sparked a 1982 lawsuit from Universal Studios, who claimed it infringed on their intellectual property; Nintendo prevailed in court in 1984, affirming the game's originality and bolstering the company's U.S. expansion. Building on this momentum, Miyamoto developed Donkey Kong Jr. in 1982, reversing roles so players control Donkey Kong's son rescuing his imprisoned father from Jumpman, who now acts as an antagonist using electric traps and snapjaws. This sequel refined climbing and puzzle elements while maintaining the series' cartoonish peril. In 1983, he co-designed Mario Bros., shifting focus to cooperative gameplay where two plumbers (Jumpman, renamed , and his brother Luigi) battle urban pests like turtles and flies in sewers, establishing foundational platforming tropes such as bumping enemies from below to stun them. These titles solidified Miyamoto's role in defining Nintendo's arcade identity through accessible, narrative-driven action.

Famicom and Iconic Franchises (1985–1989)

In 1985, Shigeru Miyamoto transitioned his design focus to Nintendo's home console, the Family Computer (Famicom), leading the development of Super Mario Bros. as a side-scrolling platformer to demonstrate the system's capabilities beyond arcade limitations. The game featured innovative power-ups like mushrooms that temporarily enlarged Mario, allowing players to access higher platforms and withstand one enemy hit, alongside fire flowers for ranged attacks, all integrated into a progression of increasingly complex levels culminating in a narrative of rescuing Princess Peach from Bowser. Miyamoto sketched the game's courses on graph paper, emphasizing fluid scrolling and precise controls via the D-pad to create an accessible yet challenging experience that built on Mario's established character from earlier arcade titles. Building on this success, Miyamoto directed and produced The Legend of Zelda in 1986, introducing a top-down adventure genre centered on non-linear exploration across the kingdom of Hyrule, where players controlled Link in sword-based combat against enemies and solved environmental puzzles to collect items like the pieces. The game's design drew directly from Miyamoto's childhood explorations of forests, caves, and hillsides near his home in Sonobe, , evoking a sense of discovery through hidden secrets, secret maps, and a vast without heavy reliance on linear guidance. Collaborating with director and composer , Miyamoto refined the gameplay loop to balance action, strategy, and immersion, establishing core mechanics like item-based progression and boss encounters that defined the series. Miyamoto continued as producer and director for sequels that expanded these franchises during the late 1980s, including Super Mario Bros.: The Lost Levels (released in Japan as Super Mario Bros. 2 in ), which intensified the platforming challenges with wind mechanics, poison mushrooms, and precise jumps to test skilled players while reusing the original engine. By 1988, he oversaw Super Mario Bros. 3, introducing world maps, varied power-ups like the raccoon tail for flight, and diverse level themes to deepen strategic and narrative scope. Throughout, his leadership involved close collaboration with development teams to iterate on gameplay loops, ensuring intuitive controls and replayability that solidified these series as Famicom cornerstones.

Super Nintendo and 3D Revolution (1990–2000)

In the early 1990s, Shigeru Miyamoto directed the development of for the (SNES), building on the 2D platforming foundations of earlier titles to create more expansive and interactive worlds. The game introduced , a companion conceptualized by Miyamoto as a mount for —initially envisioned as a but redesigned as a friendly reptile capable of eating enemies, using its tongue to reach items, and enabling new traversal mechanics like ground pounds and flutter jumps. These features encouraged exploration in larger, multi-layered levels with advanced visuals, including overlapped scrolling, foreground and background separation, and rotation effects that simulated depth and curvature, allowing players to navigate secret areas and varied biomes like forests and volcanoes with greater freedom. As Nintendo transitioned to 3D gaming with the (N64) in 1996, Miyamoto led the pioneering effort on , the first major 3D platformer that redefined the genre through open-ended level design and intuitive controls. Under his direction at Nintendo's Entertainment Analysis & Development (EAD) division, the team developed the game concurrently with the console's hardware, emphasizing free-roaming exploration in hub-based worlds like Peach's Castle and themed courses such as Bob-omb Battlefield, where players collected stars by solving environmental challenges rather than linear progression. The introduction of the N64's enabled 360-degree movement and variable speed, allowing Mario to walk, run, and perform acrobatic actions like long jumps and wall kicks with natural fluidity, while a dynamic camera system—often controlled by a Lakitu character—permitted player-adjusted views to navigate complex 3D spaces without frustration. Miyamoto insisted on refining these elements through extensive prototyping, rejecting over 50 animation patterns to achieve realistic physics and for Mario's 193 final poses, ensuring the controls felt immediate and immersive despite the shift from 2D precision. Miyamoto extended these 3D innovations to The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time in 1998, directing its transformation into a fully realized three-dimensional adventure with time-travel mechanics that deepened narrative and puzzle design. The game featured Link's ability to shift between child and adult forms using the and songs, enabling players to revisit altered Hyrule landscapes—such as a flooded temple in the past versus a desert in the future—to access context-specific items and solutions, which Miyamoto advocated to highlight character growth and environmental interactivity. This temporal duality supported intricate 3D puzzles, like hookshot navigation in multi-level dungeons and light-based shadow mechanics, while immersive storytelling emphasized emotional "aftertaste" through relationships and subtle hints rather than overt exposition, with Miyamoto overseeing lighting and shadows to evoke a distinct Zelda atmosphere separate from Mario's playfulness. Development spanned three years, with Miyamoto consolidating efforts to balance freedom and guidance, such as the companion fairy Navi, though he later critiqued its hint system as overly intrusive. Throughout the decade, Miyamoto's leadership at EAD addressed N64 hardware constraints, including limited 4 MB RAM and cartridge storage, which demanded optimized polygon rendering and data compression for seamless 3D worlds. These limitations forced innovative solutions, like the Z-buffer for accurate depth rendering in Super Mario 64, but also led to intense development cycles that pushed the team to relearn physics calculations and iterate on controls, with Miyamoto personally adjusting elements like jumping intuition to overcome the console's processing hurdles. To tackle 3D complexities, he expanded EAD's staff, drawing on talents like programmers and artists to form specialized groups for animation, level design, and hardware integration, enabling parallel work on multiple titles while maintaining his hands-on oversight for cohesive innovation.

GameCube, Wii, and Portable Expansion (2000–2011)

During the early 2000s, Shigeru Miyamoto shifted focus to Nintendo's console, leveraging its hardware capabilities to experiment with innovative gameplay mechanics while building on the 3D foundations established in prior projects. As producer and director of , released in 2001, Miyamoto introduced a genre where players command armies of diminutive plant-like creatures called Pikmin to solve puzzles and combat enemies within a time-sensitive day-night cycle. This design emphasized resource management and multitasking, drawing from Miyamoto's observations of ant colonies and simulations of daily task coordination, allowing up to 100 Pikmin on screen simultaneously thanks to the 's processing power. The game's development originated from technical demos at 2000, evolving from scattered ideas into a cohesive structure through Miyamoto's hand-drawn game flow diagrams that set clear boundaries for the team's experiments. Miyamoto continued innovating on with in 2002, where he served as producer alongside , introducing water-based mechanics centered on the FLUDD backpack device. This tool enabled to spray water for cleaning graffiti, hovering over gaps, and rocket-jumping, inspired by childhood memories of water pistols and the controller's pressure-sensitive triggers to simulate realistic . Development prioritized intuitive platforming variety, with Miyamoto guiding the team to balance FLUDD's versatile movements against traditional challenges, including optional secret levels for core skill-testing without overwhelming casual play. That same year, as producer for The Legend of Zelda: The Wind Waker, Miyamoto championed cel-shaded aesthetics to create a vibrant, manga-inspired world that emphasized expressiveness over , ensuring consistent character proportions and immersive wind-swept seas. The style, initially met with Miyamoto's reservations but ultimately approved for its broad appeal, facilitated seamless boat sailing and exploration mechanics, drawing from influences like films to evoke a sense of wonder in Hyrule's flooded remnants. With the 's launch in 2006, Miyamoto adapted to motion controls, producing to target casual audiences through intuitive, family-friendly simulations of , , , , and . His single-sheet handwritten plan outlined the game's structure, emphasizing the 's swing-based inputs to make sports accessible without complex tutorials, fostering living-room social play. This approach, rooted in Miyamoto's vision of the console as a connectivity tool, integrated features like health tracking and calendar reminders to encourage repeated sessions among non-gamers. Building on this, Miyamoto produced in 2007, incorporating the peripheral to blend exercise with gaming via , strength training, and balance mini-games tailored for diverse ages and fitness levels. The board's pressure sensors measured weight and posture in real-time, stemming from Miyamoto's personal routine of daily weigh-ins and his goal to create a non-intimidating health tool for households, including elderly users. These innovations expanded 's audience, with 's routines using motion feedback to promote awareness of body alignment, much like a virtual . Parallel to Wii developments, Miyamoto supervised Nintendo DS titles that harnessed dual-screen and touchscreen features for enhanced interactivity. As supervisor for in 2006, he oversaw a return to 2D side-scrolling platforming with power-ups and multiplayer elements, utilizing the DS's bottom for mini-games and item selection to add tactile depth without disrupting core jumps and runs. This design revived classic Mario accessibility while introducing cooperative play across screens, appealing to both nostalgic fans and newcomers. Similarly, as general producer for The Legend of Zelda: Phantom Hourglass in 2007, Miyamoto supported stylus-driven controls for drawing paths, map annotations, and sword swings, fully integrating the DS's touch capabilities into top-down adventure navigation and puzzles. The game's hourglass time mechanic added urgency to exploration, with the dual screens separating maps from action to streamline intuitive problem-solving.

Wii U, Switch, and Multimedia Ventures (2011–Present)

Miyamoto played a key role in the development of for the , released in 2013, where he served as producer and emphasized the game's multi-character gameplay to appeal to diverse player preferences, such as Toad's speed for quick runs and Rosalina's unique abilities for exploration. The title introduced cooperative play with four selectable characters, including Mario, Luigi, , and , allowing players to navigate 3D levels with power-ups like the Super Bell for cat transformations, fostering shared experiences on the 's hybrid console design. Transitioning to the Nintendo Switch era, Miyamoto contributed as producer to The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild in 2017, co-developing its open-world freedom alongside director Hidemaro Fujibayashi and producer Eiji Aonuma, which prioritized nonlinear exploration and player agency in a vast Hyrule landscape. The game's design drew from Miyamoto's early concepts of environmental interaction, enabling Link to climb, glide, and interact dynamically without rigid paths, marking a pivotal evolution in the Zelda series for both Wii U and Switch launches. For the Switch, Miyamoto resumed his producer role on in 2017, overseeing its globe-trotting adventure across diverse kingdoms like the desert-inspired Tostarena and urban New Donk City, where uses the hat companion Cappy for possession mechanics to control enemies and objects. The game incorporated co-op features, allowing a second player to control Cappy independently, enhancing accessibility and replayability on the portable hybrid console. Miyamoto expanded into multimedia as a for in 2023, collaborating with Illumination's to adapt the franchise into an animated feature that grossed over $1.3 billion worldwide, revitalizing Mario's cultural presence through family-friendly storytelling. The film's success prompted announcements for sequels, including set for April 2026 release, with Miyamoto continuing oversight to ensure fidelity to the character's playful essence. In 2025 interviews, Miyamoto outlined plans for Mario's long-term evolution toward a 100th anniversary in 2085, stressing constant adaptation through new technologies like visual media to maintain relevance, while serving as Nintendo's Executive Fellow to safeguard longevity beyond gaming. He emphasized films' enduring appeal over games, which can become obsolete, positioning multimedia ventures as key to Mario's multi-generational sustainability and inspiring further adaptations.

Creative Philosophy

Core Design Principles

Shigeru Miyamoto's design philosophy centers on creating games with universal appeal, targeting audiences of all ages and backgrounds by prioritizing accessible experiences over intricate . He has emphasized that Nintendo's characters and foster family bonding, providing a "warm feeling" that allows everyone to enjoy playing or watching without barriers posed by complex narratives. This approach avoids overly elaborate plots, instead focusing on straightforward, engaging that invite broad participation, as seen in his belief that games should unite diverse players rather than alienate them through narrative depth. Central to Miyamoto's methodology is an emphasis on intuitive controls and trial-and-error learning to cultivate "pure fun" rather than photorealistic simulations. He designs controls to be "intuitive and easy to pick up," ensuring players can quickly grasp mechanics and derive joy from responsive actions without steep learning curves. Trial-and-error forms the core of player engagement, where experimentation builds an interactive mental world, allowing users to test solutions, observe outcomes, and iterate— a process he describes as the "true canvas" of design, distinct from mere visual representation. This prioritizes enjoyment and creativity over realism, with Miyamoto noting that games should evoke familiar yet novel movements to maximize fun, rejecting overly literal simulations in favor of imaginative play. Miyamoto employs iterative prototyping, beginning with hands-on testing using physical models and sketches before any coding, to refine ideas from a player's perspective. Drawing from his background, he creates tangible prototypes—such as paper layouts or cardboard elements—to simulate flow and identify issues early, iterating based on direct feedback like switching hands to mimic novice difficulties. This practical, low-tech approach ensures concepts evolve organically, emphasizing player enjoyment over technical constraints from the outset. In recent years, as of 2024, Miyamoto has advised new developers to focus on "polishing something that has never existed before" through efficient, down-to-earth processes rather than relying on genius, helping counter rising development costs while maintaining core principles of and . Achieving balance between challenge and reward is a cornerstone of Miyamoto's level design and , where power-ups and structured progression provide relief and motivation without undermining . He carefully calibrates difficulty to bridge the gap between novices and experts, often adjusting elements late in development—such as lowering barriers or strategically placing power-ups—to prevent while rewarding and . This ensures that challenges feel fair and rewarding, with moments of ease interspersed to maintain "pure fun," as Miyamoto has noted that failing to complete levels diminishes enjoyment for , prompting refinements to sustain engagement across skill levels. As of May 2025, Miyamoto has described Nintendo's approach as akin to a "talent agency" managing a roster of iconic characters like and Zelda, emphasizing their versatile evolution across games, films, and parks to sustain broad appeal and cultural relevance.

Influences from Art and Nature

Shigeru Miyamoto's creative vision draws deeply from his childhood explorations of natural landscapes, particularly the caves and forests around his hometown of Sonobe in . As a boy, he would venture into nearby hillsides and bamboo groves, often discovering hidden caves with the aid of a lantern, experiences that evoked a sense of wonder and discovery. These adventures directly inspired the design of dungeons and concealed secrets in The Legend of Zelda series, where players navigate labyrinthine underground realms reminiscent of Miyamoto's youthful spelunking. He has described Hyrule as a "miniature garden" that captures the thrill of stumbling upon unexpected natural wonders, allowing players to revisit that exploratory joy at will. This rural upbringing in Japan's countryside further shaped his emphasis on environmental immersion in game worlds. Miyamoto's formal education in at College of Art and Design, from which he graduated in 1976, profoundly influenced his approach to crafting interactive experiences as tangible, user-centered products. Trained to prioritize functionality and , he applied these principles to game objects, designing them to feel like playful toys that invite intuitive manipulation rather than pieces. This background led to ergonomic elements in titles like Super Mario Bros., where power-ups and platforms function as accessible, toy-like tools that enhance player agency without overwhelming complexity. A former colleague noted that Miyamoto's product-oriented mindset ensures games align closely with players' needs, fostering harmony between form and interaction. Miyamoto has expressed longstanding admiration for Walt Disney's storytelling legacy, viewing as a model for creating enduring, versatile characters that evolve across media while remaining approachable. He has cited Disney's ability to build whimsical worlds around relatable figures as an influence on his own character-driven narratives, aiming for to achieve similar cultural ubiquity. Similarly, Hayao Miyazaki's animated films have impacted Miyamoto's emphasis on richly detailed environments that convey emotion and harmony through character-world interactions. In a 1992 conversation, the two creators discussed their philosophies, with Miyamoto appreciating Miyazaki's focus on immersive, narrative-driven spaces that prioritize player (or viewer) agency over linear plots. Miyazaki's works, such as those blending human elements with fantastical nature, reinforced Miyamoto's vision of games as empathetic explorations of built worlds. Nature serves as a recurring motif in Miyamoto's designs, manifesting in organic level structures and themes of ecological balance, as seen in the Pikmin series. The concept originated from his observation of ants cooperatively carrying leaves in his garden, inspiring the Pikmin as plant-like creatures that embody collective harmony with their surroundings. These beings navigate fluid, verdant environments where players must foster between species, reflecting motifs of growth and interdependence drawn from real-world ecosystems. This approach extends to broader game themes, where natural forms—curving paths, blooming , and dynamic weather—create levels that feel alive and interconnected, promoting a sense of over conquest.

Personal Life

Family and Residence

Shigeru Miyamoto married Yasuko Miyamoto, a former general manager at . The couple has two children—a son and a daughter. In 2010, his son was 25 years old and working at an , while his daughter was 23 and studying . Neither child pursued a professional career in game development, though they grew up playing video games at home under their father's guidance. Miyamoto resides in a house in the area, near Nintendo's headquarters, where he maintains a low-profile lifestyle focused on family privacy despite his global fame. He has described himself as a "normal dad" at home, limiting his children's friends' visits to avoid drawing attention from fans and emphasizing outdoor activities alongside gaming. This approach reflects his commitment to work-life balance, as he owned the family's gaming consoles to monitor playtime and encouraged a healthy relationship with technology. Miyamoto's family has occasionally participated in informal creative discussions related to his work, though not in a professional capacity. More recently, he has played games with his grandchild, using these interactions to test and refine designs, such as guiding navigation in 3D worlds to foster a sense of nurturing and exploration.

Interests and Hobbies

Shigeru Miyamoto developed a deep passion for , , and during his childhood in rural , where he avidly read and collected these materials as a primary leisure pursuit. His extensive collections of and animated works reflect a lifelong appreciation for visual and character development in these media. As a young , Miyamoto frequently engaged in and doodling, honing his skills through sketches inspired by comic styles, which became a foundational analog hobby. He also enjoys playing guitar and . Beyond artistic endeavors, Miyamoto enjoys as a favored , often tending to plants and observing natural growth patterns in his personal time. He also finds relaxation in outdoor activities, drawing from his childhood experiences exploring forests, caves, and rivers near his hometown of Sonobe, which continue to serve as a form of stress relief in his routine. Miyamoto has ventured into amateur filmmaking, directing his first project—a series of three 3D animated short films titled Pikmin Short Movies—which premiered at the in 2014. This multimedia interest ties into his broader creative pursuits, though he maintains a preference for hands-on, analog hobbies like drawing over extensive engagement with digital platforms such as .

Legacy and Impact

Industry Influence and Innovations

Shigeru Miyamoto, who pioneered the platformer genre with Donkey Kong (1981), refined and popularized it with Super Mario Bros. (1985), establishing core mechanics like precise jumping and power-ups that became industry standards for player agency and progression. His emphasis on intuitive level design, where environments teach mechanics organically—such as the tutorial-like World 1-1 in Super Mario Bros.—influenced countless titles by prioritizing discovery over explicit instructions. In action-adventures, Miyamoto's The Legend of Zelda (1986) introduced non-linear storytelling and open-world exploration, setting benchmarks for narrative integration through environmental cues and player-driven quests that encouraged immersion and replayability. These innovations shifted game design from linear arcade challenges to expansive, character-focused experiences that rewarded creativity and emotional engagement. Miyamoto played a pivotal role in transitioning video games from arcades to home consoles, adapting arcade-style action for accessible family play on the Famicom (NES). Titles like Super Mario Bros. and The Legend of Zelda brought dynamic platforming and adventure elements into living rooms, making gaming a communal activity rather than a solitary pursuit limited to arcades. Later, his involvement in the console and (2006) further popularized motion-controlled gameplay, expanding the audience to include non-traditional gamers and families by emphasizing intuitive, physical interaction over complex controls. This evolution helped democratize gaming, fostering its growth as a mainstream entertainment medium. Miyamoto has mentored key Nintendo developers, notably Yoshiaki Koizumi, whom he guided starting in 2000 on projects like Donkey Kong Jungle Beat (2004) and Super Mario Galaxy (2007), providing oversight that encouraged innovative camera systems and co-op features. Under his influence, Koizumi advanced to direct spherical world designs in Super Mario Galaxy, addressing 3D navigation challenges first explored in Miyamoto's Super Mario 64 (1996). This mentorship extended to Nintendo's IP strategy, where Miyamoto advocated for iterative evolution of franchises through accessible mechanics and cross-media applications, ensuring longevity by balancing core gameplay with fresh technological integrations. In 2025 perspectives, Miyamoto emphasized evolving Nintendo IPs via emerging technologies like AR and VR to blend digital and physical experiences, as seen in the AR-enhanced ride at in Epic Universe. He highlighted the potential for AR visors and wearable tech to create "blending of worlds" that maintain timeless IP essence while improving user comfort for short, impactful sessions. In November 2025, Miyamoto stated he was stepping back from hands-on development of new titles for the 2, passing leadership to younger staff while continuing to provide guidance and focusing on projects. Miyamoto noted, "Looking five years into the future, I'm sure there are a lot more exciting things we could do," signaling ongoing exploration of VR/AR to sustain franchise relevance across games, theme parks, and beyond.

Critical and Commercial Achievements

Shigeru Miyamoto's contributions to have garnered widespread critical acclaim, particularly for pioneering innovative gameplay mechanics that redefined interactive entertainment. The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time (1998), under his direction, holds the distinction of the highest-rated on with a score of 99 out of 100, praised for its seamless integration of 3D exploration, narrative depth, and puzzle-solving that immersed players in a vast, living world. Similarly, The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild (2017), which Miyamoto co-produced, earned a score of 97 out of 100, lauded for its open-world freedom and physics-based interactions that encouraged and player agency. These scores reflect the enduring praise for Miyamoto's ability to blend accessibility with profound creativity, influencing how subsequent titles approach player engagement. Commercially, Miyamoto's projects have achieved monumental success, establishing benchmarks for the industry. Super Mario Bros. (1985), his breakthrough title, sold over 40 million units worldwide, revitalizing the video game market post-1983 crash and becoming one of the best-selling games of all time. The broader Mario franchise, encompassing numerous sequels and spin-offs he conceived or oversaw, has surpassed 950 million units sold globally as of 2025, underscoring its role as Nintendo's cornerstone IP and a driver of consistent revenue through evergreen appeal. This commercial dominance extends beyond games; the 2023 animated film The Super Mario Bros. Movie, co-produced by Miyamoto, grossed over $1.36 billion worldwide, marking it as the highest-earning animated film of the year and amplifying Nintendo's brand in multimedia. Miyamoto's work demonstrates sustained relevance, as evidenced by his ongoing adaptation to landscapes. In 2025 interviews, he emphasized the longevity of films compared to games, noting that movies preserve intellectual properties indefinitely while hardware cycles limit , signaling Nintendo's strategic pivot toward cinematic expansions to extend franchise lifespans. This approach, rooted in Miyamoto's design innovations like intuitive controls and whimsical worlds, continues to fuel critical and commercial triumphs, ensuring his creations remain culturally resonant.

Awards and Recognitions

Shigeru Miyamoto received the in 2010, the highest honor bestowed by the of Film and Television Arts, recognizing his outstanding contributions to interactive entertainment through iconic game designs like and The Legend of Zelda. In 2012, he was awarded the Prince of Asturias Award for Communication and Humanities by the Princess of Asturias Foundation, honoring his profound impact on global culture via video games that have fostered and social connection among generations. Miyamoto continued to garner recognition in recent years, including the Lifetime Achievement Award at the 29th Association of Media in Digital (AMD) Awards in on March 7, 2024, where he was celebrated for his enduring career at spanning over four decades of innovative game development.

Works

Video Game Ludography

Shigeru Miyamoto's contributions to , direction, and production have defined several of 's flagship franchises, beginning with his debut project in the early and continuing through supervisory roles on recent titles as of 2025. His ludography highlights pivotal roles in creating and evolving characters and mechanics that have influenced the industry, with credits drawn from official development interviews and credit databases. The following is a chronological selection of his major video game credits, focusing on designer, director, and producer roles:
  • Donkey Kong (1981, Arcade): Director and game designer. Miyamoto conceptualized the game's characters and levels, marking his first major project at Nintendo.
  • Super Mario Bros. (1985, NES): Director and producer. He oversaw the core gameplay design, transforming the arcade-style platforming from earlier titles into a side-scrolling adventure.
  • The Legend of Zelda (1986, NES): Producer and director. Miyamoto led the development of the action-adventure format, emphasizing exploration and non-linear storytelling.
  • Super Mario Bros. 3 (1988, NES): Director and producer. He expanded the series with diverse worlds and power-ups, building on the foundational mechanics of the original.
  • Super Mario World (1990, SNES): Director and producer. His involvement included designing the dinosaur companion Yoshi and expansive level variety.
  • The Legend of Zelda: A Link to the Past (1991, SNES): Producer. Miyamoto supervised the top-down adventure structure and parallel world concept.
  • Super Mario 64 (1996, N64): Producer and game director. Miyamoto pioneered 3D platforming, introducing free-roaming camera controls and open levels.
  • The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time (1998, N64): Producer. He guided the transition to 3D, focusing on time-travel mechanics and immersive world-building.
  • Super Mario Sunshine (2002, GameCube): Producer. Miyamoto contributed to the water-based mechanics and tropical setting.
  • Super Mario Galaxy (2007, Wii): Producer and game design concept originator. His vision incorporated gravity-based platforming across spherical worlds.
  • The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild (2017, Wii U/Nintendo Switch): General producer. Miyamoto provided oversight on the open-world exploration and physics systems.
  • Super Mario Odyssey (2017, Nintendo Switch): Executive producer. In this later role, he offered high-level guidance on the capture mechanic and global travel theme.
  • Super Mario Bros. Wonder (2023, Nintendo Switch): Supervisor. Miyamoto served in an advisory capacity for the innovative Wonder Flower effects and level design.
  • Pikmin 4 (2023, Nintendo Switch): Supervisor. His input focused on refining the real-time strategy elements and creature interactions.
Miyamoto has also made notable uncredited contributions, such as early toy prototypes that influenced game mechanics in titles like , where physical block-stacking ideas were adapted from his background. As of November 2025, in his role as Creative Fellow, he provides advisory input on projects, though not always listed in ; for example, he received Special Thanks on : The Thousand-Year Door (2024, ) remake. He maintains ongoing involvement in upcoming projects, including enhanced editions for the successor.

Other Contributions

Miyamoto expanded his creative scope into film production with his role as producer for The Super Mario Bros. Movie (2023), a collaboration between Nintendo, Illumination Entertainment, and Universal Pictures that grossed over $1.3 billion worldwide and revitalized the Mario franchise in live-action animation. Directed by Aaron Horvath and Michael Jelenic, the film featured voice performances by Chris Pratt as Mario and Charlie Day as Luigi, with Miyamoto contributing to the project's authenticity by ensuring fidelity to the source material during script reviews and production oversight. In 2025, Miyamoto was confirmed as producer for the sequel, titled The Super Mario Galaxy Movie, set for theatrical release in April 2026, continuing his partnership with producer to explore new storytelling within the Mario universe. Miyamoto's background, honed at Kanazawa College of Art, has influenced Nintendo's hardware and toy innovations, including early contributions to console exteriors like the series in the late 1970s, where he created visual and structural elements such as steering wheels for interactive play. This expertise extended to later projects, such as providing conceptual input for the during its development, where he referenced everyday devices like mobile phones to inspire intuitive motion controls. More recently, his oversight as Nintendo's Creative Fellow shaped products like the kits launched in 2018, which use recyclable cardboard attachments for the Switch to foster hands-on creativity through building and play. In theme park development, Miyamoto played a key role in conceptualizing and overseeing , the immersive -themed area that debuted at in 2021 and later expanded to in 2023 and Epic Universe in 2025. Drawing from his game design principles, he focused on interactive elements like the Power-Up Band wearable, which allows guests to collect virtual coins and engage in park-wide challenges, ensuring the experience mirrored the exploratory joy of games. By 2025, the parks had attracted millions of visitors, solidifying Miyamoto's impact on experiential entertainment. Miyamoto holds credits on numerous industrial design patents for accessories and controllers, reflecting his ongoing influence on ergonomic and functional hardware up to , including concepts for modular attachments that enhance user interaction.

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