Iwata Asks, final segment: looking back at Brawl’s roots and its future

Wrapping up the seven-part interview conducted by Satoru Iwata, he discussed with Super Smash Bros. Brawl game designer Masahiro Sakurai the prototype title behind the game that gave the series its inspiration. Sakurai also relayed his own personal message for all the fans who enjoyed playing the different Super Smash Bros. titles ever created.

Read more about this interview in the full article after the jump!

In the final segment of the “Iwata Asks” interview with Super Smash Bros. Brawl game designer Masahiro Sakurai, he took the time to look back at the original fighting game which was the inspiration for their upcoming title. He also gave his own personal message for all the players who enjoyed the series.

The prototype for the four-on-four rumble type of fighting game was called Kakuto-Geemu Ryuoh (Dragon King: The Fighting Game). The game was originally released on the NES console and did not feature any of the familiar Nintendo characters we see in today’s Super Smash Bros. titles.

However, the game did serve as an alternative fighting game which people would enjoy playing. Asides from breaking away from the more mainstream games of the same genre, the idea soon evolved into a fighting game for the console which players can relate to – thus the move to use the more familiar Nintendo faces we see today on the title.

As seen from some of the updates on the Smash Bros. DOJO!! site, Sakurai wasn’t content with keeping the characters in the Nintendo circle alone. With the addition of character like Snake and Sonic, the all-star cast of the series grew to enormous proportions with such big names outside of the game’s normal scope.

He wanted the new characters to have their own distinct feel that kept them apart from their Nintendo counterparts while keeping into the unique theme of the game’s familiar elements. This reflected keenly on the different in-game attributes each character had and the challenges how they went about implementing them.

Sakurai ended the interview with a rather heartwarming conclusion after all was said and done about the game’s development:

I want players to enjoy this game as one whose development would have been impossible under any other circumstances. And not as a mere continuation of the series, but as a game that couldn’t have been made anywhere else under any other conditions. The appeal of Smash Bros. lies in the fact that it offers ever-changing entertainment born of chance and player improvisation, and it’s my sincere hope that players enjoy these features of the game.