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Miyamoto 'Banned' From Talking About Hobbies

Posted by CmdrTaco on from the they-might-learn-our-secrets dept.

walshy007 writes "After Shigeru Miyamoto developed a love of puzzles, the "brain-training" software that has proved to be an international "killer application" on the Nintendo DS console was born. He became interested in taking more exercise, and Wii Fit was created. He took up music lessons, and Wii Music was the result. Now, according to sources at Nintendo, the games designer has been banned by the company from speaking publicly about his hobbies."

7 of 256 comments (clear)

  1. Well then... by pak9rabid · · Score: 5, Insightful

    ..guess we'll just see how long Nintendo manages to keep him around with ridiculous policies like this in place..

    1. Re:Well then... by ByOhTek · · Score: 5, Insightful

      Heh, really.

      Given the fairly common nature of these hobbies, it strikes me not the hobbies themselves that make the game popular, but rather his twist on putting them into a game.

      Seriously, how many people, honestly, could make games as popular as his, on these subject matters. The key factor is the creator, not the theme, I suspect.

      --
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    2. Re:Well then... by caramelcarrot · · Score: 5, Insightful

      This smells of a PR stunt to say "look how awesome Miyamoto is! we have to stop him talking about trivial things or he'd give everything away! ha ha!"

    3. Re:Well then... by AvitarX · · Score: 5, Insightful

      But you don't want the imitators coming out before you.

      A crappy "We Like to Get Fit" Game coming out before Wii Fit could damage sales.

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    4. Re:Well then... by jellomizer · · Score: 5, Insightful

      Nintendo is not an American company. Mr. Miyamato is not an American. Why do you expect him to follow the values of American Culture. The Japanese tend to have more of a good of the company/community/family mind set while Americans have the what is good for me mind set. I am not saying one or the other is better or worse. In paradox to this article and thread the American Culture tends to be more creative and come up with new ideas (as they are trying to position themselves for promotion or noticed for the next big thing) while the Japanese are good at perfecting (for the good of the company product need to be perfect).
      YES THERE ARE EXCEPTIONS! when talking about a culture there are always exceptions as we group a group of millions of people into a box. However a cultural norm tend to strongly influence people thoughts and feelings.

      --
      If something is so important that you feel the need to post it on the internet... It probably isn't that important.
    5. Re:Well then... by twistedsymphony · · Score: 5, Insightful

      I highly doubt that Miyamoto minds... I'm sure he understands that the ban is for the benefit of the company.

      I work for a Japanese owned company.. it's quite different from an American company. You don't just leave because of some stupid politics, the company wants you to respect your co-workers like an extension of your family. It's a long term relationship. The company doesn't treat you like a disposable commodity (lay offs and firings are extremely rare) and in return most of the employees respect the wishes of their employer and do things "for the good of the company" rather than just walking away for greener pastures.

      This is very much true of my own company which while in the US the Japanese corporate mentality is a big part of everything we do. Even though we're in aerospace manufacturing, with the horrible economy and every other company in our industrial park laying people off and going under, my company hasn't laid off or fired a single employee in my entire career here. the company is saving money buy dropping 3rd shift and moving those employees to 1st and 2nd, we're on a hiring freeze, we had a shut down (week of mandatory vacation), and hourly employees must reduce their over time.

      Yes some of that stuff sucks, but in the good times the company does us right so in the bad times people are willing to make some personal sacrifices knowing that it will help the company overall.

      While not a good times/bad time scenario Miyamoto is a very big part of the Nintendo family, he's not just some super star that is only interested in money... I wouldn't be half surprised if he was in agreement with the "no hobby discussion" rule or if it was even partly his idea.

      --
      Collector's Edition
  2. Bizarre by AKAImBatman · · Score: 5, Insightful

    If knowing Miyamoto's hobbies is enough to scoop Nintendo, then why can't competitors even touch his track record?

    I think Nintendo is confusing ideas with implementations. Having ideas is great. Anyone can have ideas. In fact, they're a dime in quantities of tens of thousands. The problem is getting those ideas implemented. And without Miyamoto-san's insight into the implementation, I sincerely doubt competitors are going to be able to get ahead of Nintendo.

    This seems like a case where Miyamoto should ignore his employer and just do his own thing. Unfortunately, I think he's too nice to take a stand on this. He will probably go along with his employer's request. Thankfully, however, I imagine that this requirement will loosen and fall off with time.

    Which can only be good for fans. I can't speak for anyone else, but I have found the stories behind the development of Miis and Wii Fit to be fascinating. (And hilarious. "You guys are useless!" :-P)

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