Super Smash Bros creator Masahiro Sakurai says requests from fans are what drive him to keep developing games as players eagerly await the next SSB installment on the Switch 2.
Ever since Kingdom Hearts’ Sora was released as the final DLC fighter for Super Smash Bros Ultimate on the Switch, fans have been eagerly waiting to see what will happen with the franchise.
We may not have long to wait, though. Speaking with 47News, Sakurai opened up about why he’s still making games and pinpointed how “requests” play the most important factor in his career – something that might be key for a new Smash title.
“I think about and create games based on requests, so I don’t really have any desire to make them myself,” he said in the interview translated by Stealth40k. “The most fun part about games is playing them. I even think that if I wasn’t asked to make a game, I might not make one.”
“Of course, that doesn’t mean I’m uninterested, or cold-hearted, or that I won’t work hard to make one, but I look at it rather objectively. I think my motivation is closer to there being a demand and I want to work hard to fulfill it. Basically, my motivation comes more from what other people think than from myself.”
Sakurai rumored to be making a new Smash game
After a brief retirement to become a YouTuber, Sakurai returned to develop Kirby Air Riders, but hinted that Smash may continue down the line.
“I can’t really imagine a Super Smash Bros title without me,” he famously said. “Smash Bros is a massive important title for Nintendo, so it’s fair to assume there will be another one at some point, but it’s going to take some work to figure out exactly how to make that happen.”
Leaks have indicated that a new Smash game is in the works, with Reece ‘Kiwi Talkz’ Reilly claiming Sakurai offered to do another Smash if he could do Kirby Air Riders first.
Nothing is known yet about the rumored follow up to Smash Ultimate on the Switch 2, and it’s unclear if it’ll be a fully new game or a “deluxe edition” of Ultimate with even more fighters and stages.
Sakurai’s comments on requests are certainly eye-grabbing, considering they’re a huge factor when it comes to Smash games.
While the Smash series has featured many of gaming’s biggest stars like Cloud, Solid Snake, Ryu, Sephiroth, Minecraft Steve and Sonic, just to name a few, there are always demands for more.
As such, it’s certainly possible that a new Smash game finally gives players the likes of Master Chief (someone even Microsoft wanted to see in SSBU) or Geno from Super Mario RPG.
In any case, we’ll have to see what the future holds, but with Smash being so critical to Nintendo, it’s unlikely that we won’t see a new platform fighter on their latest console at some point.
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