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A translation of a Q&A session with Sakurai has been released on Source Gaming the covers "fans’ questions about games, his personal preferences, and life in general." While this is slightly older coming from the book 桜井正博ゲームについて思うことDX which was released July 30th 2008 it still provides some interesting insight on the creator and director of the Smash series right in the Brawl era. There were too many questions to fit into this post, so we included some of the more Smash related questions or just plain curious answers. To see the rest, check out the original article here.
Q1: What was the first game you ever played?
Sakurai: Hmm, I’ve forgotten. It might have been Pong, or something like that.
Q2: What was the first game you bought with money earned from working?
Sakurai: When I was a child, I would help my parents with things and receive allowances — does that count? It was probably the first Famicom console with Game and Watch.
Q4: Where do you think the boundary line between heavy users and casual users is?
Sakurai: I don’t think there is such a line between users. I think it’s good to keep your target audience in mind, to a certain extent, but from a creator’s viewpoint, I don’t differentiate users like that.
Q5: What is your mental state like on the days when something you worked on first goes on sale?
Sakurai: A lot of times, I think about the parts that weren’t completely finished and I feel a bit heartbroken. However, I deeply thank the people who buy it.
Q6: When you go to game stores, do you wear a disguise?
Sakurai: Very rarely. (On Smash Bros.’ or other games’ release dates). But, the secret is out……
Q7: In Smash Bros., which characters do you use often? Also, which characters do you not use much?
Sakurai: I don’t really have any preference when I play. When picking who to play as, I just choose who I want to play as at that time.
Q8: I don’t think there is a particularly strong character in Smash Bros, but what do you think, Mr. Sakurai?
Sakurai: We try to create each character so that they have both strong points and weak points. Later on, we try to get a feel for how big those strengths and weaknesses are, based on fighting methods and data.
Q12: In your job as a game creator, what moments make you go “Ah, thank goodness” the most?
Sakurai: I say that every month, but I’m especially relieved when customers enjoy a game.
Q13: It’s often said that “It’s good for people who want to work in the gaming industry to do various things while they’re young that aren’t related to games.” What sort of things did you do other than games?
Sakurai: I did a variety of things. Other than computer related things, I did a fair bit of flipbook animation, as well as making plastic models.
Q14: For college students who want to be game creators, are there any part-time jobs that you think would be helpful?
Sakurai: I recommend working in a game store. After all, it’s important to keep an eye on the kinds of people who buy what you create.
Q16: In the games you’ve designed, the ways in which you cleverly guide the player through the game’s mechanics can be seen everywhere. Did you ever study psychology?
Sakurai: No, I’ve never studied psychology. When thinking about things from the user’s perspective, I think it just happens naturally.
Q18: Are there things you want to make outside of the world of games, like movies or toys?
Sakurai: I’m open to all kinds of things people can enjoy, not just games. Nevertheless, there are much greater filmmakers out there, so I’ll stick to my area of expertise.
Q19: Which makes you happier: when a game is played so much that the disc surface becomes covered in scratches, or when a game is played carefully so that the disc doesn’t get a single scratch?
Sakurai: It depends on the situation, but I think it’s better to handle discs carefully. With normal usage, no matter how much you play, they shouldn’t get scratches or smudges.
Q20: What is your game-making motto?
Sakurai: See things from the player’s perspective. Don’t limit the possibilities of gameplay.
Q21: Mr. Sakurai, are you the type that naturally comes up with a lot of ideas? Or, are you the type that works out ideas under pressure?
Sakurai: Definitely the latter. I’ll continue to be an improviser.
Q22: At what kind of moments does inspiration strike you?
Sakurai: When an important deadline is impending… It makes me work harder.
Q23: Who do you think inspired you the most?
Sakurai: Nobody in particular comes to mind. On the contrary, I respect people who do great things, regardless of their field.
Q30: What are your current and long-term goals and aspirations?
Sakurai: My number one priority is finishing Super Smash Brothers Brawl and taking a break. But naturally, I have plans here and there.
Q35: What place do you want to visit before you die?
Sakurai: Excluding places where you need air, I’d like to visit space, where there is nothing. If possible, somewhere where there’s no gravity.
Q40: When you were a student, what things are you glad you did? What things do you wish you had done?
Sakurai: I’m glad I played a lot of games. I wish I had dated more.
Q41: About how much sleep do you get every night?
Sakurai: If I’m busy, 3-4 hours. If I’m not, I get about 6 hours.
Q43: How often do you play analogue games ?
Sakurai: I don’t have any board games, or anything like that. I’ve played “Settlers of Catan” a little bit. Also, I once played Othello with Bose from Scha Dara Parr and lost because of one mistake.
Q44: How much do you read/watch manga and anime?
Sakurai: I don’t really do much of either, but I buy Weekly Morning (a manga magazine) every week. It’s like an exhibition of manga techniques, at least in my opinion.
Q52: If you had a cat, what would you name it?
Sakurai: I think I would decide intuitively, based on my impressions of the cat. “Shirataki” is a strong contender.
Q53: Besides games, what are your other hobbies?
Sakurai: If I had to say, it would probably be driving.
Q63: How do you ask a girl out?
Sakurai: You can’t overthink it. If you have the mentality of “Chasing and escaping” , then people can really see through that secret intention.
Q64: Mr. Sakurai, do you break girls’ hearts? Or do they break yours?
Sakurai: They break mine.
Q65: What are 3 of your strengths, and three of your weaknesses?
Sakurai: My three weaknesses are that I’m very timid, I find a lot of things bothersome, and I’m very fickle.
Q66: What is your secret for staying so great?
Sakurai: I’m not great, so I don’t know. I’ve gradually gotten older, with good feelings.
Q68: If you had a signature fighting move, what would it be and when would you use it?
Sakurai: I would split up into multiple people, so I could get several times more work done. My staff really wants this, but it’s impossible.
Q78: When you’re late, what is your best excuse to get you through any kind of dilemma?
Sakurai: I say, “I made a mistake! I’m very sorry! It won’t happen again!” to apologize. In the end, I think that’s the best way of solving a problem.
Q79: If you had some clay in front of you right now, what would you make with it?
Sakurai: I would make a man striking an acrobatic kicking pose.
Q83: Do you believe in fortune telling?
Sakurai: I only believe in it when it’s convenient.
Q88: If you had one day off, what would you do? Games are prohibited — tell me your ideal schedule.
Sakurai: I’d go somewhere like a river beach. I’d enjoy staring off into the distance. I sometimes actually do this.
Q90: Has your father ever hit you?
Sakurai: Many times.
Q95: Do you forget about things often?
Sakurai: I try to empty my hands whenever possible, so I do lose things often.
Q96: Are you good about keeping things neat and tidy?
Sakurai: I’m really not. I always make the excuse that it’s better to mix my possessions.
Q98: If the green light is running out, do you accelerate and go for it?
Sakurai: I was taught to step on the gas when the light is yellow.
Q99: Do you gamble?
Sakurai: No, I never gamble. Honestly, I’m not very good at it.
SmashCapps found there were some curious questions and even more so curious answers. To discuss this or keep up with all things Smash follow him on Twitter.
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100 Questions for Sakurai
100 Questions for Sakurai
Q1: What was the first game you ever played?
Sakurai: Hmm, I’ve forgotten. It might have been Pong, or something like that.
Q2: What was the first game you bought with money earned from working?
Sakurai: When I was a child, I would help my parents with things and receive allowances — does that count? It was probably the first Famicom console with Game and Watch.
Q4: Where do you think the boundary line between heavy users and casual users is?
Sakurai: I don’t think there is such a line between users. I think it’s good to keep your target audience in mind, to a certain extent, but from a creator’s viewpoint, I don’t differentiate users like that.
Q5: What is your mental state like on the days when something you worked on first goes on sale?
Sakurai: A lot of times, I think about the parts that weren’t completely finished and I feel a bit heartbroken. However, I deeply thank the people who buy it.
Q6: When you go to game stores, do you wear a disguise?
Sakurai: Very rarely. (On Smash Bros.’ or other games’ release dates). But, the secret is out……
Q7: In Smash Bros., which characters do you use often? Also, which characters do you not use much?
Sakurai: I don’t really have any preference when I play. When picking who to play as, I just choose who I want to play as at that time.
Q8: I don’t think there is a particularly strong character in Smash Bros, but what do you think, Mr. Sakurai?
Sakurai: We try to create each character so that they have both strong points and weak points. Later on, we try to get a feel for how big those strengths and weaknesses are, based on fighting methods and data.
Q12: In your job as a game creator, what moments make you go “Ah, thank goodness” the most?
Sakurai: I say that every month, but I’m especially relieved when customers enjoy a game.
Q13: It’s often said that “It’s good for people who want to work in the gaming industry to do various things while they’re young that aren’t related to games.” What sort of things did you do other than games?
Sakurai: I did a variety of things. Other than computer related things, I did a fair bit of flipbook animation, as well as making plastic models.
Q14: For college students who want to be game creators, are there any part-time jobs that you think would be helpful?
Sakurai: I recommend working in a game store. After all, it’s important to keep an eye on the kinds of people who buy what you create.
Q16: In the games you’ve designed, the ways in which you cleverly guide the player through the game’s mechanics can be seen everywhere. Did you ever study psychology?
Sakurai: No, I’ve never studied psychology. When thinking about things from the user’s perspective, I think it just happens naturally.
Q18: Are there things you want to make outside of the world of games, like movies or toys?
Sakurai: I’m open to all kinds of things people can enjoy, not just games. Nevertheless, there are much greater filmmakers out there, so I’ll stick to my area of expertise.
Q19: Which makes you happier: when a game is played so much that the disc surface becomes covered in scratches, or when a game is played carefully so that the disc doesn’t get a single scratch?
Sakurai: It depends on the situation, but I think it’s better to handle discs carefully. With normal usage, no matter how much you play, they shouldn’t get scratches or smudges.
Q20: What is your game-making motto?
Sakurai: See things from the player’s perspective. Don’t limit the possibilities of gameplay.
Q21: Mr. Sakurai, are you the type that naturally comes up with a lot of ideas? Or, are you the type that works out ideas under pressure?
Sakurai: Definitely the latter. I’ll continue to be an improviser.
Q22: At what kind of moments does inspiration strike you?
Sakurai: When an important deadline is impending… It makes me work harder.
Q23: Who do you think inspired you the most?
Sakurai: Nobody in particular comes to mind. On the contrary, I respect people who do great things, regardless of their field.
Q30: What are your current and long-term goals and aspirations?
Sakurai: My number one priority is finishing Super Smash Brothers Brawl and taking a break. But naturally, I have plans here and there.
Q35: What place do you want to visit before you die?
Sakurai: Excluding places where you need air, I’d like to visit space, where there is nothing. If possible, somewhere where there’s no gravity.
Q40: When you were a student, what things are you glad you did? What things do you wish you had done?
Sakurai: I’m glad I played a lot of games. I wish I had dated more.
Q41: About how much sleep do you get every night?
Sakurai: If I’m busy, 3-4 hours. If I’m not, I get about 6 hours.
Q43: How often do you play analogue games ?
Sakurai: I don’t have any board games, or anything like that. I’ve played “Settlers of Catan” a little bit. Also, I once played Othello with Bose from Scha Dara Parr and lost because of one mistake.
Q44: How much do you read/watch manga and anime?
Sakurai: I don’t really do much of either, but I buy Weekly Morning (a manga magazine) every week. It’s like an exhibition of manga techniques, at least in my opinion.
Q52: If you had a cat, what would you name it?
Sakurai: I think I would decide intuitively, based on my impressions of the cat. “Shirataki” is a strong contender.
Q53: Besides games, what are your other hobbies?
Sakurai: If I had to say, it would probably be driving.
Q63: How do you ask a girl out?
Sakurai: You can’t overthink it. If you have the mentality of “Chasing and escaping” , then people can really see through that secret intention.
Q64: Mr. Sakurai, do you break girls’ hearts? Or do they break yours?
Sakurai: They break mine.
Q65: What are 3 of your strengths, and three of your weaknesses?
Sakurai: My three weaknesses are that I’m very timid, I find a lot of things bothersome, and I’m very fickle.
Q66: What is your secret for staying so great?
Sakurai: I’m not great, so I don’t know. I’ve gradually gotten older, with good feelings.
Q68: If you had a signature fighting move, what would it be and when would you use it?
Sakurai: I would split up into multiple people, so I could get several times more work done. My staff really wants this, but it’s impossible.
Q78: When you’re late, what is your best excuse to get you through any kind of dilemma?
Sakurai: I say, “I made a mistake! I’m very sorry! It won’t happen again!” to apologize. In the end, I think that’s the best way of solving a problem.
Q79: If you had some clay in front of you right now, what would you make with it?
Sakurai: I would make a man striking an acrobatic kicking pose.
Q83: Do you believe in fortune telling?
Sakurai: I only believe in it when it’s convenient.
Q88: If you had one day off, what would you do? Games are prohibited — tell me your ideal schedule.
Sakurai: I’d go somewhere like a river beach. I’d enjoy staring off into the distance. I sometimes actually do this.
Q90: Has your father ever hit you?
Sakurai: Many times.
Q95: Do you forget about things often?
Sakurai: I try to empty my hands whenever possible, so I do lose things often.
Q96: Are you good about keeping things neat and tidy?
Sakurai: I’m really not. I always make the excuse that it’s better to mix my possessions.
Q98: If the green light is running out, do you accelerate and go for it?
Sakurai: I was taught to step on the gas when the light is yellow.
Q99: Do you gamble?
Sakurai: No, I never gamble. Honestly, I’m not very good at it.
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SmashCapps found there were some curious questions and even more so curious answers. To discuss this or keep up with all things Smash follow him on Twitter.
