Sakurai describes Super Smash Bros. Ultimate as his "final mission" from Iwata, in new interview
The passing of Nintendo's former president, Satoru Iwata was a sudden and tragic event that still remains in the minds of many to this day, even nearly five years after the fact. This is highlighted especially by last year's release of the Japanese book "Iwata-San", which chronicles multiple "Iwata Asks" excerpts and comments from his friends, such as Shigeru Miyamoto. The publisher behind the book, Hobonichi, is led by another one of Iwata's colleagues, Shigesato Itoi, who recently posted an interview regarding the late CEO. In it, Super Smash Bros. director Masahiro Sakurai discusses how he felt when Iwata passed away, and how completing development on Super Smash Bros. Ultimate was "the final mission given to [him] by Iwata". You can see a few highlights from the interview, translated courtesy of Siliconera.
Do you remember how you processed his passing?
Masahiro Sakurai, director: “Before I took the phone call, I felt sluggish for some reason. Like my body felt heavy…
When my grandfather and grandmother passed, I had the same feeling. Like ‘I feel sluggish today’, and then finding out they passed away. Something like that happened, and for some reason, a similar thing occurred. Although I’m not one to talk about spiritual things. I wonder if I had a feeling…
But I decided that either way, I’d finish the Smash Bros. project. That was the best way I could make it up to Iwata-san, I felt.”
Ahh, I see.
Sakurai: “So Super Smash Bros. Ultimate released, right? In fact, that was the final mission given to me by Iwata-san. That game sold that much not just in Japan but overseas as well, and became the highest-selling title in 2018 in Japan. People all around enjoyed the game, and it brought around the best results, and I feel thankful for this.”
So you were talking with Iwata-san up to the Switch version of Smash Bros., I see.
Sakurai: “When I was making Super Smash Bros. for, the topic of making a Switch version of Smash Bros. naturally came up. We’d bring along the same development team, and create a definitive Smash Bros. game that took the best points of the handheld and console titles.”
And so, for your mission after this, will you be deciding that for yourself, Sakurai-san?
Sakurai: “Only god knows. (laughs) The current DLC we’re developing right now already falls outside the mission.”
At the end of the interview, Sakurai is questioned on what his next mission will be, once the upcoming DLC plans for Super Smash Bros. Ultimate are complete, to which Sakurai jokingly replies, "God only knows".
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