ONM met Shigeru Miyamoto recently as he toured the country promoting Wii Music. In addition to asking him about his new game, DSi and the future, we also spoke to him about an average day in the life of a gaming legend. This is what he had to say…
On the working day…
“In the morning, I’m very often late for work! But when I’m in the office I’m working very hard. I work late at night, usually until at least 8.00pm and sometimes even until one in the morning.”
On his responsibilities…
“Our department has so many people working on different projects. Some titles I’m deeply involved in and others I’m not so deeply involved in. Sometimes there is software I check on just once a week or even once a month. But I’m always getting reports on how games are going, then I make comments or decide to change aspects of the game. When games are nearing completion I usually get more deeply involved.”
On his motivation
“I don’t mind working long hours. What I’m always trying to do is come up with something new and when you’re doing that - doing things that nobody else has done before - it’s always a lot of fun.”
On time wasting…
“I have my guitars in the office. I like having them within my reach so whenever I feel like playing them I can - even though many don’t like it! Some people just think it sounds lousy, but it makes me feel relaxed. I’ll listen to music on my CD player and sometimes I hear an interesting tune that I really want to try and play myself.”
On being the boss…
“I’m like a tiger in a big pen, always prowling around checking on things!”
On Satoru Iwata…
“I spend a lot of time with Iwata-san. We try to have lunch together as much as possible.
No luxurious restaurants though, just casual ones.”
On his favourite moment at Nintendo
“When I met with a US attorney for the first time. That was when I first realised I
was working on a product that would be sold internationally. It was a big moment.”
On relaxing at home…
“I usually go to bed really late. Even if I get back late from work, I’ll sit and listen to music or watch TV.”
On the weekend…
“I make a point of never working at the weekend. I started this when I began to get
a little older.”
On exercise…
“I make a point of trying to go swimming at least once a week.”
