Legendary game designer Shigeru Miyamoto has made history as the first video game developer to be awarded Japan's prestigious Order of Culture. This high state honor is conferred by the Emperor for outstanding contributions to the country's arts, science, and culture.
Who inspired the creator of Mario and Zelda?
During a Q&A session following the award announcement, Miyamoto spoke about the key figures who significantly influenced his worldview, approach to development, and life in general:
- Hiroshi Yamauchi — the former president of Nintendo taught Miyamoto to value originality: «He told us: "You are weak in a fight, so instead of direct competition, create something unique." He understood the concept of finding untapped market niches long before it became a trend».
- Gunpei Yokoi — the inventor of the Game Boy taught him to find excitement in simple things and get the most out of available technologies.
- Shigesato Itoi — the creator of the cult franchise EarthBound (Mother): «My wife even jokes that I belong to the Itoi cult. I learned from him to look at the world in a special way and create my own work without chasing fleeting trends».
- Osamu Tezuka and Fujio Akatsuka — legendary manga artists: Miyamoto noted that he originally dreamed of drawing manga and adopted from them the courage to constantly change and transform new media.
Miyamoto concluded that pioneers in any industry have a duty to boldly experiment and innovate, as it is much harder for subsequent generations of creators to do so without an established foundation.
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