Masahiro Sakurai says the first Super Smash Bros. might never have been released if it had followed typical fighting-game rules. The Super Smash Bros. series is a legendary Nintendo franchise today. However, when the series launched in 1999, many didn’t understand how a Nintendo fighting game would be received, especially a multiplayer platform fighter, which was rare at the time.
Known for its fast-paced, frantic, item-filled multiplayer combat, the game, which now supports up to eight players, departed from the standard one-on-one fighting games of the 1990s. In a recent interview, Sakurai emphasized the importance of originality in game development and explained that the now-iconic Smash Bros. series might never have launched if it had followed a traditional 1v1 fighting-game format.
Sakurai on Why Smash Bros. Was Not a Typical Fighter
In an interview with Denfaminico Gamer (auto-translated from Japanese), Sakurai discussed the importance of introducing something new to a gaming format. For example, when he first developed Kirby’s Dream Land, he knew he wanted to make a side-scrolling game but needed to differentiate the franchise enough from Mario so players wouldn’t think they might as well play a Mario game.
When discussing Smash Brothers, he stated that he believes it probably wouldn’t have been released if it had been pitched as a more traditional one-on-one fighting game. Even if it had, people would have seen it as a novelty, and there would have been no franchise to build on.
For example, if Super Smash Bros. had followed the rules of a typical fighting game—1-on-1 with guarding, attacking, and special moves, and a health system where the match ends with a KO— then I don’t think the first Super Smash Bros. would have even been released.
Even if it had been released, it would likely have been treated as a novelty item, and the history of Super Smash Bros. would have ended there.
Sakurai Says Most AI-Built Games Won’t Be Profitable
Furthermore, Sakurai believes most games made by generative AI won’t be profitable because they cannot build on an original idea; they can only draw from what already exists.
That’s because AI will increase the number. However, I think most of them will become “unprofitable titles.” There are too many to keep track of, and it’s impossible to understand them all.
When it comes to things created with AI… or things mass-produced with poor quality, I think most of them will simply be reproductions of systems seen in various other games . I think there are already a lot of those now.
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I'm Robert DeFelice. I spent years covering pro-wrestling industry for outlets such as Fightful. After years in wrestling journalism, I’ve transitioned to video games, another passion of mine.
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