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Miyamoto Interview Discusses, Defends GTA
Thanks to an anonymous reader for pointing us to this interview with Nintendo's Shigeru Miyamoto conducted on Gamespy. Particularly interesting is his attitude to the Grand Theft Auto series (he says "I think we should welcome this game" when asked about it), and his contention that taking the Mario series into 3D has reduced the user base, because 3D games are so much more complicated.
In the side-scrolling Mario games, the perspective is quite unnatural in that your character moves in only one dimension. Adding to that problem (?) is that what you are seeing isn't necessarily all that Mario would see. For example, if there's a big pit coming up and I'm running as fast as I can, my avatar should be seeing that pit before it appears on my screen (and I inevitably go running right over the edge). In 3D platforming games, I get to see everything (depending on the camera and the depth rendered) that my character could see. So, if I'm going straight ahead, I'm going to see any osbstructions or pitfalls that are straight ahead of my character.
That's the mechanical side, but then there's the comfort side. I'm quite used to moving [rarely] in three dimensions in real life, and that translates to me feeling more comfortable playing a game that simulates that kind of natural movement.
I suppose small children and new gamers may find the simplicity inherent in side scrollers to be easier, and Miyamoto may be referring to those kinds of gamers instead of the gaming world overall (very possible since I think Miyamoto is the kind of game designer who wants to get new people hooked - "Try it once. It feels good."). Of course, I wonder if he would have preferred to design Pikmin in 2D (I doubt it).
In short, for me, if the controls and camera are working I have a much easier time gaming in 3D than I have in 2D...though I'm still going to get Viewtiful Joe. :)
Your argument has everything to do with trying to match the game to real life and has nothing to do with what makes a game fun. A typical approach of amateur game designers is to try to mimick the real world as much as possible. Great designers know that what's fun may very well be and often is something different. And believe me, as a developer at a major game studio, I've seen the amateur mistake made so many times that as soon as I see the designer talking about how something is or isn't true to the real world I've come to immediately write him off.
Well my three year old son can play Mario Sunshine. He likes to make Mario run into walls on purpose and to make Mario slide on his stomache, but he is able to play it. The only trouble he has is when he gets Mario into the water, but even then he can usually work Mario back onto land.