Shigeru Miyamoto, The Walt Disney of Our Time

circletimessquare writes "The New York Times has a gushing portrait of Shigeru Miyamoto. His creative successes have spanned almost 30 years, from Donkey Kong, to Mario (as well known as Mickey Mouse around the world, the story notes), to Zelda, to the Wii, and now to Wii Fit — which according to some initial rumors is selling out across the globe in its debut. The article has some gems of insight into the man's thinking, including that his iconic characters are an afterthought. Gameplay comes first, and the characters are designed around that. Additionally, his fame and finances and ego are refreshingly modest for someone of his high regard and creative stature: 'despite being royalty at Nintendo and a cult figure, he almost comes across as just another salaryman (though a particularly creative and happy one) with a wife and two school-age children at home near Kyoto. He is not tabloid fodder, and he seems to maintain a relatively nondescript lifestyle.'"

Comments

Characters vs Gameplay

[SanityInAnarchy]

âoeI feel that people like Mario and people like Link and the other characters weâ(TM)ve created not for the characters themselves, but because the games they appear in are fun,â he said. âoeAnd because people enjoy playing those games first, they come to love the characters as well.â That sums it up perfectly. He's the polar opposite of games like Final Fantasy, where the characters and story are the most memorable parts, and gameplay supports them.

It fits in nicely with the reason the Wii works -- it's about gameplay, and everything else is secondary.