Sakurai: "If we Direct Smash ONLY at The Competitive Players, It Will Have No Future."

[AnchorTea]

Sakurai: I wonder (laughs). I don't know, but I think so. For some reason I promised to make Mewtwo, and we might have things like patches on the way. We're working hard on it now, which means everything we make is something we didn't start on until now.

Diddy Kong has no chance now!

 

[ndayday]

Great inflammatory title. All he's saying is that Smash Bros. as a franchise would never make it if it was just made for hardcore players.

 

[NintyTheRagekid]

"Mmm. Personally, I feel that if you want to play a fighting game seriously, there are other competitive fighting games that are more suited to that, and people like that could have fun playing those. If you play Smash Brothers seriously as a competitive game, the game itself has no future."

Smash 64: Small crowd but still going happening. (Also Isai)
Melee: HELLO? 13 YEARS AND STILL COUNTING!
Brawl: Nope, that's dead. (or dying slowly... I don't know.)
Project M(inb4 "not a real Smash game"): Nintendo WANTS it to die. (but it hopefully won't)
Smash 4: Most likely to end up like Brawl. (Well, at least I HOPE.)

Overall, I hate it when I see developer doubt his own product. I understand that he would be concerned about some aspects of the game but... to say it has no future as a competitive game? I don't even know how to comprehend that statement.

 

[Myst_R]

I really hope smash 4 has a competitive future. It'd be a shame if we had to return to an older version (melee) or a fan made (P:M) just because Sakurai doesn't want to hear us.

I'm pretty sure there is a way to mix casual and competition. Blizzard gives good examples about it and I feel Smash can do it too.

I also agree with the fact that we don't need more inputs, everything we have there is great. We just might need some more tech to master but I'm sure the time and the hard work of the fans will bring it to us.

 

[Storm Eagle]

Let it go, people.
Smash is waaaay more fun as a party game than as a competitive one.

That's your opinion. I hate playing with items and stage hazards.

 

[Heero Yuy]

Great inflammatory title. All he's saying is that Smash Bros. as a franchise would never make it if it was just made for hardcore players.

You do have a point. Hmm...

 

[MezzoMe]

The salt is really feeling it real.
It looks like I am the only one who didn't think he was referring to Melee when he said "competitive game". Sakurai from my experience doesn't imply things he doesn't say or at least refer to.

 

[Snagrio]

In any case, I don't get it. If he really despises the competitive scene as these comments from him seem to suggest, why did he bother with such decisions like removing tripping, add For Glory, and balancing updates? I would guess to make sure the competitive crowd buys the game aka money in his/Nintendo's pocket, but something still feels off...

This guy appears to be more two-faced every time he makes a statement.

 

[Galespark]

Casuals still played melee. The game being more "hardcore" doesn't stop them from enjoying it. It's bull**** logic.

There's a big difference right now called "Online Play" which Melee didn't had. You put a casual to play For Glory in Sm4sh and he might have a chance to win even to a more experienced player. You put a casual to play Melee agains a hardcore player and he will get destroyed and probably would not want to play it again.

 

[HelveteDoragonX]

Sakurai seems to have this horribly misguided notion that a LACK of a technical skill barrier will make people that have no intentions on understanding the game be better than people who put their time to understand the mechanics that alot of players will scoff at trying to gain knowledge about. An inputs per second barrier is not even half of the process of getting good at the game, knowledge and application of fighting game fundamentals is what makes good competitive players win over "Casuals".

Lowering the skill barrier will not solve the problem of "Casuals" losing matches and being frustrated for doing so. Competitive minded players will always find the best way to deal with a situation while a "Casual" will most likely not bother with it. It is the natural law of any game that allows competition between players, trying to design the game based on an "Everybody is a winner" philosophy is very impractical and and leads to shallow game design, and it frustrates me that Sakurai doesn't see that.

And even with all that said, Sm4sh has a competitive future and if Sakurai doesn't see it then I am afraid he is blind to the reality surrounding him....

/Walloftextrant

 

[NintendoPSX]

And this is supposed to be new to people? He's answered the same question so many times now.

 

[---]

Seems he's more or less saying that he, at least, isn't going to support competitive play like some other developers/companies do, but if 1v1 is your thing the best to you.

Kinda dumb/hypocritical/salty to say, but at the same time very understandable. Wouldn't get too hung up on this as actions > words. This isn't another Miyamoto/F-Zero situation IMO.

 

[MezzoMe]

In any case, I don't get it. If he really despises the competitive scene as these comments from him seem to suggest, why did he bother with such decisions like removing tripping, add For Glory, and balancing updates? I would guess to make sure the competitive crowd buys the game aka money in his/Nintendo's pocket, but something still feels off...

This guy appears to be more two-faced every time he makes a statement.

He is referring to "competitive game as "games where the beginners are walled by a endless amount of imputs to memorize" such as Tekken.
He didn't refer to "competitive game" as "game without tripping, for glory mode, powershielding, the limited buffering system ecc" although for some reason people are claiming he did.

 

[Olimarincharge]

proof dat may-lay iz better

-everyone

 

[Zink Imp]

That's your opinion. I hate playing with items and stage hazards.

Then you're only playing with like 5% of what the games can offer.

 

[Jman0625]

Let it go, people.
Smash is waaaay more fun as a party game than as a competitive one.

That's pretty pretentious, yet opinionated statement. You may enjoy it one way while others enjoy it another way.

 

[Claire Diviner]

If Smash Bros. taught us anything, it's that it doesn't take complex button presses a la Guilty Gear or BlazBlue to be competitive. Otherwise, we wouldn't have a competitive Smash scene or even a Pokémon scene to begin with. Sometimes, it's all about one's intuition that wins.

 

[Darktega]

Well, this title doesn't make anything better.

 

[Zink Imp]

That's pretty pretentious, yet opinionated statement. You may enjoy it one way while others enjoy it another way.

Of course it is my opinion.
Everyone else is shouting theirs, so I don't see why I can't throw in my two cents.

 

[DMurr]

With every Sakurai interview, you can see just how exhausted he is. "For some reason we promised Mewtwo." He's tired and being vocal about how he doesn't want to do it anymore. Leave someone else in charge of whats left and go recover, man.

 

[Amiibo Doctor]

Well, this isn't the first time he's been wrong.
After all, he said Zamus wasn't returning, and here she is!

 

[Aguki90]

Sometime the competive players take their game more time than casual gamer or any other hardcore gamers...

The Reason I din't stop playing is because I was competive about in Brawl, then project M and now Smash 4. I play mostly because I go competive and sometime, play for Fun.<--Even playing for Fun or messing around the game can learn more than competing for real.


And Smash 4 is NOT gonna be Brawl. To me is better than melee and plays better than melee. Every characters is well too balanced in this game, we need to find its true potential because the metagame is still Young.

 

[#HBC | Red Ryu]

Haven't these interviews been traditionally horribly translated and misunderstood? Seems like a knee-jerk news post

This was a quick translation that picked out specific quotes and questions by someone on reddit.

So just like the "no patches ever again" which this one contradicts and might even be out of context like the last one. You're pretty much right.

Even if the big bolder part was right, it's still a no duh that Sakurai favors the casual aspects first since that's the bulk of smash's content.

Nope. I speak Japanese and read through the translated part. This is accurate.

The last one from eventhubs was out of context and inheritly wrong based on this one.

 

[Diamond DHD]

Sometimes I wish an Indie developer would make a proper Smash-esque game, a complete and original one, so not Smash Flash or Project M. So that there are no licensing issues, no problems with Nintendo, and overall a developer that concentrates on the competitive aspects. Sort of like Skull Girl's developer.

 

[Darktega]

Great inflammatory title. All he's saying is that Smash Bros. as a franchise would never make it if it was just made for hardcore players.

You, sir, made my day. Someone understands something, finally.

 

[KenboCalrissian]

Sakurai seems to have this horribly misguided notion that a LACK of a technical skill barrier will make people that have no intentions on understanding the game be better than people who put their time to understand the mechanics that alot of players will scoff at trying to gain knowledge about. An inputs per second barrier is not even half of the process of getting good at the game, knowledge and application of fighting game fundamentals is what makes good competitive players win over "Casuals".

Lowering the skill barrier will not solve the problem of "Casuals" losing matches and being frustrated for doing so. Competitive minded players will always find the best way to deal with a situation while a "Casual" will most likely not bother with it. It is the natural law of any game that allows competition between players, trying to design the game based on an "Everybody is a winner" philosophy is very impractical and and leads to shallow game design, and it frustrates me that Sakurai doesn't see that.

And even with all that said, Sm4sh has a competitive future and if Sakurai doesn't see it then I am afraid he is blind to the reality surrounding him....

/Walloftextrant

Yes, in re-reading it, I think all he's really trying to say is he's never going to make the game so challenging that a casual can't play it. There's a story dating back all the way to when Smash 64 was in development, where the creator of Killer Instinct came forward to Iwata, proposed a Nintendo fighter, and hyped himself up talking about 25-button combos and the like. Iwata turned him down because this isn't the direction Nintendo wants to go. Hence, we got a brand new genre of fighter instead of a traditional fighter.

If this is really all he's referring to - that we're not going to see Smash transform into anything other than Smash - then there's no issue here. Smash will still have a competitive future, whether it's designed that way or not.

 

[Phans]

Oh my.

Competitive play is not the point of SSB. The point of SSB is fun and accessibility; it is, at its core, a party game, or something very much like a party game. Hence simple, universal inputs. Hence 4-player — ah, right — 8-player multiplayer. Hence relatively slow gameplay that feels more like a platformer than other fighting games. Hence a gloriously imbalanced stage selection. Hence the roster based on relevance and not how well each character is needed or would actually fare in a fighting game.
Shall I continue?
The conceit on these forums is astounding. If Sakurai says Super Smash Bros is not intended for competitive play, then he's tautologically correct: he makes the games; they are his work. Sakurai (quite obviously) did not make SSB for competitive players, and he's saying that he will continue to do so. If Super Smash Bros ends up as an excellent competitive fighter, then that's fantastic, but that is not the highest thing on Sakurai's priority list.
I respect him for taking SSB in this direction; the world has plenty of competitive fighting games, and a fun, well-made game that anyone can play (my little sister can play smash effectively at age ten) is a wonderful and much-needed thing. Why should that make anyone angry?
I'm amazed this comes as a surprise to anyone, especially the residents of SmashBoards. Apparently, Sakurai's remarks were needed, since somehow so few of us were able to figure out what Super Smash Bros is actually about. If you don't like this, then you probably should take his advice and find a new game; my personal favorite is Project M.

Edit: Many seem to think that we're a huge part of Sakurai's market. This is more conceit: we're not. Strictly competitive players are quite the minority in the SSB audience, and I highly doubt that Sakurai would have politely offered us the door if we were.

TL;DR: Smash is a party game. Sakurai's right. Go play PM.

 

[Mega Bidoof]

Overall, I hate it when I see developer doubt his own product. I understand that he would be concerned about some aspects of the game but... to say it has no future as a competitive game? I don't even know how to comprehend that statement.

No need for the big red text. It won't make your statement sound any more legitimate than Sakurai's.

Sakurai isn't "doubting his own product". He is doubting it as a competitive game.
Smash isn't a competitive game. That's not opinion. That is fact.
Sakurai created it as a fun party game to play with your friends, similar to Mario Party.
Sure, you can play it as a competitive game, and go to tournaments and such, but you simply can not complain when it isn't as fast-paced as you want it to be, because it isn't supposed to be a hardcore fighting game.

Complaining about the lack of a competitive aspect, and saying the game is awful and you hope it dies because of that, is just an utterly stupid statement.

And mods, don't give me a flaming infraction for this. I'm simply engaging in a discussion about Sakurai's quote.

 

[IvyDivyHorkyDorky]

I thought the Smash Competitive community was about "respect" and I see a complete lack of it here, it makes me sad .

Everyone should really watch the Game Historian videos that was posted here a few days ago. Sakurai was given a mission to create a fighting game that is accessible to anyone and I admire him for holding that promise. I assure you that if certain people had their way with complete disregard of what got this franchise in so many homes in the first place, it would not be as beloved as it is today.

You can have your opinion on what a Smash game should be, I'll be enjoying it with competitive players, friends, and family alike!

 

[FlareHabanero]

You know it's ironic considering the catering toward making Super Smash Bros. a party game is usually made with lukewarm reception. Many people usually only try the varies stuff the first time around for curiosity sake or unlocking things, then will normally try and ignore it. Like the best you'll get is people messing with items just for a change of pace, while ignoring many things because it's either too boring or too chaotic.

 

[Ryu Myuutsu]

Fire the man and have someone else produce the next smash. "if you want to play a more competetive fighting game there are other fighting games out there" man gtfo with that crap. plenty of fighting games that had their lead developer replaced turned out just fine. Fire the care bear Sakurai from the smash project moving forward.

I get that your angry, but suggesting to fire a man because his opinion for a competitive game differs from yours couldn't be more childish and egocentric.
And regardless of that, he still succeeded in making Smash 4 a middle ground for casuals and competitives. Either way, he said before that he is probably not (read: probably) making the next Smash so I don't why you get worked up over that one.

 

[JayTheUnseen]

Sakurai is a stellar designer.He should just accept how people play his game.If they play it as a party game,cool.If they scour it for competitive techs,cool.Make the game you want,and let everyone play it their own way.

I understand he wants casual AND competitive players to mingle without one getting destroyed in a fight,but that's not really possible.But he and his team did a great job whether it turned out as they wanted or not.

 

[SuaveChaser]

I regret purchasing and supporting smash 4 now -_-.

 

[Oniric Spriter]

Then you're only playing with like 5% of what the games can offer.

And that 5% of the game has given a game +10 years of replayability. Or is there any casual who still plays Melee, is there?

In regards to your previous opinion, what's wrong with people actually wanting to win because of skill and not "lel random bob-omb and u lost gg bruh I'm better than you"?

 

[Smog]

I've played Melee since I was 7, lost 90% of the time to my brother and still loved it. It doesn't mater how fast it is to casuals. They will enjoy it anyway.

 

[WwwWario]

I don't know what think of this... Sakurai is REALLY against the competitive scene :/ Competitive gameplay is a huge part of why Smash is as popular as it is. Why is he so afraid of it? It's not like people are gonna avoid the game if it gets more competitive- it can still be played as a party game. And new players getting beaten by experiences players is not something new. It's like this in Smash 4. Sad to hear Sakurai thinks like this. I don't know if he's right with the no-future thing, or if he has completely misunderstood. This also makes me wonder if the (possible) next Smash will be better without Sakurai. That said, thinking about that Smash wouldn't exist without him - well, I feel it won't be Smash without Sakurai :/

 

[Xinc]

Shots fired, Sakurai. Well played.

Sakurai's a Leo! :o

 

[al-LAYN]

I feel that this might be one of those situations where the translation wasn't as accurate (especially since it then seems counter-productive for him to have added a 1v1 online mode that keeps track of your record to begin with), but we'll see.

This will always be a common and sensitive subject between Smash players. What the competitive community wants vs. what Sakurai wants from his franchise. Casual players loved the hell out of Melee regardless of all the other "technical" stuff, but then again, we could start pinpointing some differences, like how the gap would've seem much larger for casual players had Melee feature an online mode, and so on and so forth.

 

[neohopeSTF]

Sometimes I wish an Indie developer would make a proper Smash-esque game, a complete and original one, so not Smash Flash or Project M. So that there are no licensing issues, no problems with Nintendo, and overall a developer that concentrates on the competitive aspects. Sort of like Skull Girl's developer.

Nah, it would be lame Smash sells itself on the fact its Nintendo characters fighting.

 

[Darktega]

And that 5% of the game has given a game +10 years of replayability. Or is there any casual who still plays Melee, is there?

Just so you know, there are people who still plays Melee casually up to this date.