Shigeru Miyamoto talks about his mantra of innovation and future legacy at Nintendo

Nintendo game designer Shigeru Miyamoto is easily one of the most celebrated names in the video game industry, and his work speaks for itself. From iconic games like Donkey Kong and Super Mario Bros to underrated franchises like Nintendogs, Miyamoto has made a name for crafting creative and engaging video game experiences.

In a recent interview with The Guardian, the creative lead has touched upon various aspects of his career, including his future in the company. Here's a rundown of everything fans need to know.

---

Shigeru Miyamoto believes Nintendo's goal of innovation will continue even after his retirement

Core fans will know that much of Shigeru Miyamoto's creations have been inspired by his real-life experiences. The Legend of Zelda series, for one, was inspired by his adventures in the forests of rural Japan. Since then, he has been behind some of the most unique and revolutionary games ever made, which continue to impress players and inspire developers around the globe.

Interestingly, this push for eccentricity was innate from the onset. Reminiscing his origins as a game designer, Miyamoto revealed that he pursued game development to distinguish himself from his peers:

"A lot of my classmates were going off to car manufacturers or electronics manufacturers but I wanted to make something weird, something interesting - and that’s how I came upon Nintendo.”

After the success of Donkey Kong in arcades and Super Mario Bros on the NES (Nintendo Entertainment System), Shigeru Miyamoto managed to drive innovation further by intertwining gameplay and hardware. The best example of this is the Nintendo DS and the Nintendogs games that debuted on the dual-screen handheld.

As a pet simulator, it immersed players further by allowing them to interact with their puppies using the stylus and the touch screen. This mantra of making games around the console's capabilities and strengths is what continues to separate Nintendo from the rest, even when it comes to extrapolating the most out of their systems from a technical standpoint.

Now, Shigeru Miyamoto believes he has transcended the role of a game designer for Nintendo:

"I’m about finding unique opportunities for Nintendo. The way things work here is that, more so than having a plan and following it, we come across certain things and from there, we try to find our own new path. The movies, the amusement parks, I’m excited to see what kind of organic things result from those"

The Japanese games company has been expanding its avenues lately. This includes the Super Nintendo World amusement parks at Universal and films like the critically acclaimed Super Mario Bros Movie. Considering he has been in the field for over 40 years, fans wonder how long this will last. What is clear, however, is that Miyamoto feels his legacy is in safe hands.

We already see this with Super Mario Bros Wonder, the latest Mario platformer masterpiece, which only saw Miyamoto oversee the project. He touches on this, saying:

"In this day and age you have to think about things in a five-year timespan, so I do think about who I can pass things on to, in case something does happen."

Given the consistent culture and level of quality Nintendo has fostered, even without Shigeru Miyamoto's active involvement, it's easy to see why his words ring true. While his inevitable retirement does linger on the horizon, his franchises are no doubt in safe hands.