Yoshiaki Koizumi talks about developing Super Mario Galaxy

It’s hard to wrap one’s mind about how some of today’s games actually got conceptualized. From some of the most epic intellectual properties to some of the stranger few, it’s certainly mind-boggling as to how they actually came up with them. Nintendo’s Super Mario Galaxy is but one of those titles, and now we get an insider’s look as to how Mario’s greatest adventure actually came to fruition.

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For those of us currently enjoying Mario’s latest adventure on the Nintendo Wii, Super Mario Galaxy, here’s an update that gives us a rare glimpse of just what went into making this fine piece of software, as well as what could be next for the world-famous plumber. Let’s look and see what Nintendo Tokyo Studio’s own Yoshiaki Koizumi has to say about the development process of Mario’s finest platformer to date.

So, what’s the scoop about Super Mario Galaxy? It seems that the development of the game itself – right from the ground up – began right around or even before the conception of Super Mario Sunshine. Yoshiaki Koizumi initially had the idea of spherical worlds in a Mario game, but Shigeru Miyamoto didn’t quite get on board at first. To get the legendary games developer into liking the idea, Yoshiaki Koizumi went ahead and made a lot of tests with the game’s concept in action – and this finally got Miyamoto into the bandwagon, and thus Super Mario Galaxy as we know it began development.

Originally made for the GameCube, Super Mario Galaxy slowly began to evolve bit by bit to fit the Wii’s control system like a glove. One example is Mario’s spin move, which had been at first mapped to a quick spin of the GameCube controller’s analog stick. Along came the Wii, and Koizumi and his team decided that it would be best to map the move to a quick shake of the Wiimote.

Another facet of gameplay that could be traced to Mario’s GameCube roots is the ability to shoot star bits by pointing the Wii on-screen. This concept was taken from Super Mario Sunshine, in the form of the player being able to spray water wherever he pointed the Wiimote. While shooting star bits and water may seem different, Koizumi says that it’s almost the same concept.

Koizumi also revealed Miyamoto’s influence and involvement in the development process, and it seems that the legendary game developer was not only a source of inspiration for the team, but also the go-to guy. Whatever Miyamoto didn’t like or felt lacking with the game’s current build, Koizumi knew instantly that he either had to remove that element or make it so that they would both agree that it was fine. And Miyamoto’s way of doing this wasn’t quite specific from the start, focusing on the player’s experience rather than details and design.

When asked about the future for Mario, Koizumi could only give us the answer that even he doesn’t know quite where to go next from Super Mario Galaxy. He does reassure fans, however, that he’s got a couple of ideas for his next project, but he’ll have to check with his team first. After all, any good project is a team project, and Super Mario Galaxy was definitely one.