Nintendo Shigeru Miyamoto talks about VR concerns and AI for the release of "Nintendo Switch"

BySamrat Sharma

He is the representative director of Nintendo and is the creator of the "Super Mario Series" and "The Legend of Zelda"Shigeru MiyamotoI interviewed Mr. TIME international news magazine at the announcement of "Nintendo Switch" held in January 2017. In the interview Mr. Miyamoto was introduced into Nintendo Switch's new function "HD vibrating function" appearing on Thursday, March 3, Nintendo company's way of thinking, Mr. Miyamoto's game design and gaming industry I also talk about the latest technology Artificial Intelligence (AI) and VR.

Nintendo Switch: 10 Things Shigeru Miyamoto Told Us | Time.com
http://time.com/4668908/nintendo-switch-miyamoto-interview/

TIME:
It is a game creator of NintendoMr. YokoiMr.'s own philosophy "Horizontal thinking of dead technologyI'd like to ask about "Is this philosophy taken in some way into your Nintendo Switch approach?

Mr. Miyamoto Shigeru: (Miyamoto)
As a company, Nintendo incorporates all the various new technologies available. Some companies treat technology more carefully, and such companies tend to always want to be at the forefront. On the other hand, Nintendo focuses on finding something more original than technology, and we are looking for something we can do. For that reason, Yokoi's specific philosophy is not taken into account as it is, but Nintendo emphasizes "ideas that can be enjoyed", so that way of thinking is like a philosophy established by Mr. Yokoi It feels like it.

Mr. Yokoi was observing Nintendo 's way of thinking calmly one step. When I was young, we had a desire to go forward as soon as possible. At that time, Mr. Yokoi advised us "We need to look closely, we step down one step and observe everything." That way we learned the importance of shaping ideas from Mr. Yokoi. The person who always wants to tell the opposite thing to someone in Japanese is called "Amakusaku." What we are going to do is not to become an "obscenity", but if everyone says the same thing, we need to scruple the situation with a little doubt, I have grown like that.

This is not a story that Mr. Yokoi is always opposed to new technology. Mr. Yokoi wants to take in new technology and just looks at it all day long. For example, when Mr. Yokoi got an object floating with a magnet, he puts it on the desk and just watches, plays, and observes. Because I am such a person, I think many people have trusted Mr. Yokoi.

TIME:
I heard that you are not involved in the development of the Nintendo Switch, but have there been any events that get out of the development team?

Miyamoto
There was not such an event that something turned over 180 degrees, but IGenki TakedaMr.,Satoshi IwataHe also cited feedback frequently during development. By giving feedback to the development team and making decisions if necessary, young employees will be able to show us more presentations. The idea that we cited was about 'good usage', I think that there was no serious idea collision with the development team.

Rather, we had to think about development costs. Trying to make the Nintendo Switch ingenious, I thought "It's tough! It cost me a lot more than expected, I thought how to deal with it." Although I fought hard, the team managed to manage it. It was.

TIME:
Is there anything Mr. Iwata's view reflected on Nintendo Switch?

Miyamoto
I said that three people had done feedback and decisions earlier, but since Mr. Iwata was the top developer of the Nintendo Switch, he was pouring a lot of time into the Nintendo Switch. Nintendo Switch 's concept of "carrying the main unit anywhere" is a system that allows users to create and exchange networks, but I think that Mr. Iwata was also the focus of his emphasis. Because Mr. Iwata is technical, we talked a lot about how to solve the network ability and the technical problem of the server so that we can enjoy it fun.

For example, when we added the function that we can use the browser with DS, the service has become more and more sophisticated over time. So we needed to think about "How to incorporate mobile devices and new browsers?" It was the same thing to talk with Mr. Iwata on the Nintendo Switch, so we needed to decide what we should be able to do in the hardware and what I did not need.

Obviously that "Nintendo Switch" does not have a browser, there is no video streaming service such as Netflix or Hulu - GIGAZINE


TIME:
The Nintendo Switch has a new function called "Haptic feedback (HD vibration)", but why did you incorporate this function that can obtain faithful vibration?

Miyamoto
Aside from anything, I can not tell you the details except that the HD vibration function is completely original. The only thing I can say is that the HD vibration function will give the user a completely new sensation. In NINTENDO 64 "Vibration packWhen we made, we were just thinking about cost and performance. As a result of seeking cost efficiency, could we have caused a vibration sensation?

Nintendo has a division that is studying only functions and performance related to vibration. Over the years the vibration division continued testing to incorporate all sorts of vibrations into the game, so that it became a feeling of touch rather than just monotonic vibration. In other words, when you use a pen on the screen, it is not a dull vibration, it gives you a feel like sliding the pen tip.

Modern games are standard at 60 fps, but if you make a 20 fps game it will get angry. The speed of response is very important for everything that is interactive, and in virtual reality there is a big difference in experiences due to latency. The HD vibration function is also paying attention to the latency, and you will get a unique experience that is not elsewhere. And from that unique experience, I think that a new idea will be born.

TIME:
When I made an interview in 2014, "I am a bit worried about whether virtual reality (VR) is the best way for people to play." Did the idea change from that?

Miyamoto
From the point of view of online play VR, I think that many problems have been solved or are being solved. That is what we are investigating. However, when you see someone playing VR, I am worried. It is just an analogy, but if your child is playing VR only, parents will worry about their children. From the viewpoint of developers, I think that it is a challenge that everyone is faced with how to create sophisticated short contents with VR.

TIME:
I read an article that you were originally not a story-oriented game fan. Meanwhile, a pioneering title of a story-driven game called "The Legend of Zelda Breath of the Wild" is coming out of Nintendo. How have you been thinking about the game's story recently?

Miyamoto
Not a game to play the story you say, how to develop a game that makes you feel like getting into adventure yourself,Eiji AonumaLet me start with the story of Mr. and his team. It is because they think they have found a way to balance the story and facts in order to get the players into adventure in the game.

I myself deny the importance of the story, but it does not mean I do not dislike the story. I think that after someone played the game, I think that it is important whether the story will remain in my mind. I believe that reducing the time it takes to set up the game and explaining the prescribed story daringly is a challenge in making the game. Speaking in the legend of Zelda, I think that it is important for players to sympathize with the characters and to get into the story. When you play this game you will dig a story in yourself and you will see an important background behind the story.

On the other hand, we wanted to make a game that seems to be the story itself, the experience of the player who played the game. I believe that the legend of Zelda has been established without breaking the balance between the two, I believe it was a title that we could achieve the game we wanted to make. And in this game everyone can take a truly different approach. I do not know how long it will take until I completely exercise the game.

Interview with Norimoto's Shigeru Miyamoto and Eiji Aonuma interviewing "The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild" - GIGAZINE


TIME:
YamauchiMr. said, "Nintendo should not have a corporate philosophy in order not to corrupt the creative." Has the idea inherited to this day?

Miyamoto
Mr. Yamauchi was a person who had a kind of personal philosophy that he had no philosophy of his own. The interesting thing about this story is that despite being his way of living without having philosophy, he left several persistent philosophies for the company. One of them is that "we are profitable by providing a fun experience and should spend money only to make fun things." This means that what you should aim for as a business owner is not to grow the company, but to expand your work.

Mr. Yamauchi consistently kept saying this to us, so he made a lot of work very easy. We no longer have to think about other things, it just got better just keep on giving fun. Besides that, there is an idea of ​​having an original way of thinking, a different way of thinking. This is obvious in the world, if you try to do the same thing as any other person, you move away from the top. If you aim for the second or third, other people do the same. In other words, we need to pay a lot of effort to work to become top.

If you are doing something unique, something unique, and you took a spotlight, you are already the best in the world. That is why I feel that number one is the world that makes fun things. However, you need to take risks to become number one. If you want to be number one by doing the same thing as someone else, you need to be kind of tough. And of course we are not tough, so we can not fight with other people like that (laugh)

This idea is exactly the same as "what is the entertainment industry and the creative industry" and Iwata has tied this way of thinking to business, so that it can be conveyed to all employees of Nintendo as a corporate philosophy .

TIME:
The remaining question is about "super artificial intelligence" which is wiser than the human brain. Some of the biggest advancements in artificial intelligence may be built on games and excellent game design. However, there are concerns that artificial intelligence that has advanced on the basis of the game will mistake the way, but perhaps, I think that you were thinking the same thing as a game designer.

Miyamoto
What I can say is not to use generalized words like "AI" or "speech recognition". Because those technologies include from elementary to advanced, from zero to ten. This is my philosophy. When you play a new Zelda you think you realize that horses and enemies are wise. All of them use AI. When using AI in an industry that makes fun things, we do not talk about cost performance. So we have to think about what kind of AI we need to use. As artificial intelligence advances, I think that the range that can be used in video games will expand, but I will not be bold enough to use state-of-the-art AI (lol)

Even in areas like speech recognition, it is not only possible to use everything with a simple estimate, but it will require some prediction and guesswork depending on what needs to be done. Once you have done these tasks, you can pinpoint exactly what kind of technology you can use. For example, in the medical field we have no obvious opportunity, but in the world of making fun things we can guess where and what chance is. If you find a way to fill those gaps and you can make it fun, intuitive and easy to use, you will be able to provide a fun and easy-to-use experience. In that sense, we can say that we have the opportunity to try. But AI is definitely something I am interested in. Robots and AI are similar to how to set sensors, but Nintendo is definitely interested in a variety of sensors.

TIME:
Is there anything you would like to accomplish in the next 10 years, whether it is about games or anything other than games?

Miyamoto
As a company and personally, we have been carefully involved in the mobile industry. I think that the idea of ​​Nintendo Switch, which will become a handheld game console and console, opens a new door to every possibility. I think that there are still a lot of things we can explore in the entertainment industry, so I would like to set standards on what these possibilities will be in the next decade.