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BusinessWeek Interviews Miyamoto

Posted by Zonk on from the otherwise-known-as-link's-dad dept.

TecnaDigit writes "This week, BusinessWeek Online features a short but sophisticated interview with Shigeru Miyamoto. Mr. Miyamoto discusses the past, present, and future of gaming (concerning both his games and games in general) as well a few interesting tidbits of his personal life." From the article: "Whether it's a new game or a sequel, we want anyone to be able to play right away. That's why I think Rubik's Cube was so brilliant. I saw it for the first time at a toy convention in Japan in the early 1980s. The moment you see a Rubik's Cube, you know you're supposed to twist the pieces. And it's beautifully designed. Even if you've never handled one, you want to pick it up and try it. And once you do that, it's hard to walk away until you've solved it. "

4 of 59 comments (clear)

  1. Error in linked article by I(rispee_I(reme · · Score: 3, Informative

    I quote:

    his Super Mario Bros. -- the world's hottest-selling game ever -- was the first with a scrolling screen, which expanded the playing space vertically, not just horizontally

    End quote. I don't believe Super Mario Brothers ever scrolled vertically. Perhaps my copy was defective. Or maybe they're talking about 2 or 3...

    1. Re:Error in linked article by earthbound+kid · · Score: 3, Informative

      You are. I was surprised when I went back and played Mario 1 too, but it only scrolls horizontally. I think part of the genius is that you're so engrossed that you never notice. Before I went back and played it again, I could have swore it was different. Mario 2 had either horizontal or vertical scrolling depending on where you are, but never both at the same time. Mario 3 had both, which allowed for flying and whatnot.

    2. Re:Error in linked article by alphaseven · · Score: 3, Informative

      I've heard Defender (1980) being called the first game with a scrolling screen, so that gameplay didn't take place in just one screen, and Rally-X from that same year had a screen that scrolled both horizontally and vertically... they both predate Mario Brothers by a few years so I don't know what the article is talking about.

  2. Other tidbits by hackwrench · · Score: 3, Informative

    It only scrolled one way, to the right.
    There was multiscreen vertical travel, but that was through a pipe or vine. One screen disappeared and the new horizontal level on a new vertical plane appeared. Always thought it would be neat to have a version with the same levels but you could go to the left.