Smash Bros. developer Masahiro Sakurai explained in a new Famitsu column (translated by Polygon) that calcific tendonitis and muscle ruptures in his right arm are impacting development on the upcoming Wii U and 3DS brawler.
"I think the one word I've said the most this year, by far, is 'Ow!'" Sakurai wrote. "Not only am I getting calcific tendonitis, but they've also found what are apparently several ruptures in the muscles. My upper arm hurts, and there's this chronic dull pain in my elbow joint as well. On the lower arm, there's this feeling of fatigue around the flexor muscles that turns into pain when I use a keyboard or game controller with my fingers."
Sakurai explained that there is no instant cure for his ailment and all that he can presently do is block the pain with injections or put his arm in a cast to keep the ruptures from spreading. This is hardly an ideal development situation, especially so for a game as prominent as Smash Bros.
In addition to lamenting that the current pain is preventing him from playing Metal Gear Rising: Revengeance, Sakurai noted that, until his right arm gets better, he's forced to gnarl his left hand around a game controller in order to do any sort of playtesting work on the current version of Smash Bros.
