Update 2: We've now independently translated ryokutya2089's reporting on Sakurai's column — the comments read as follows:
"Everything that has a beginning has an ending."
Article about taking a break from game development during the GW [Golden Week] and thinking about growing old and longing to retire early.
"I feel that while I can still work, it is best to keep myself busy and give it my all while being patient."
"I am thinking of ending this column a while after releasing all the DLCs for the Smash Brothers SP. Within this year, in any case."
"I won't be retiring from the game industry completely, though."
Update: We now have a translation of Sakurai's full column thanks to @KodyNOKOLO and @Sephazon, offering a clearer picture of the context surrounding his comments on retirement.
Sharing a summary of Sakurai's own words, @KodyNOKOLO writes, "He was able to stop working long enough to let his thoughts percolate in his time off. He doesn’t want to keep working forever after he's older. He says that honestly if he had a little more free time he thinks his days would be more fun. He likes the idea of an early retirement!"
@Sephazon adds, "Sakurai says that while the experiences people create can last forever, personal work will always come to an end someday. As long as he works, he will do his best to entertain people. He says that society is built upon such experiences, regardless of the medium and genre..."
"As long as he can continue to create new experiences, he will. Even if he’s busy, he believes it’s best to push on and do as much as you can. He does, however, express doubt whether this feeling is best suited for the times."
Speaking about his Famitsu column, Sakurai reportedly says that "he’ll continue for just a little longer."
Original Article: Super Smash Bros. series director Masahiro Sakurai is reportedly considering early retirement, according to early translations of his latest Famitsu column.
Snippets of the column have been shared online by ryokutya2089 and translated by VGC; the beloved developer and director has reportedly shared that he's recently thought about life after game development, and has suggested that an early retirement could appeal to him. "Everything must come to an end," Sakurai reportedly writes.
The idea of Sakurai retiring from game development early has arisen several times in the past; he's previously revealed that he battled through health issues with an IV drip to work on Ultimate, leaving some fans concerned for his wellbeing and actively hoping that he takes a break.
It's said that Sakurai also mentions the possibility of ending his regular Famitsu column once Super Smash Bros. Ultimate's final DLC has been released, although he also reportedly adds that “this doesn’t mean I’ll stop working on games."
As VGC mentions, Ryokutya has been accurately reporting on early snippets of Sakurai's Famitsu columns for some time, although full translations should offer a clearer picture when they arrive later in the week.
[source ryokutya2089.com, via videogameschronicle.com]
Comments 68
I wish him the best if he does retire and thank him for some great games over the years. Make the most of your life while you have it and your health; you can't take either for granted.
I think he should keep his paper round, 'cos you never know
He reminds me of some manga writer/artists who put so much of their energy into their work with such massive expectations from fans that their health suffers. An early retirement might not be a bad idea. Good luck to him.
Yeah he really deserves it, that man really overworks himself way to often for SSB
Early retirement for the man would be suitable, I think the moment you're self-imposing yourself to overwork to almost the point of collapsing on the floor is a sign that perhaps it would be best for your health to either retire or at least take an excessively long vacation. Health is a very precious thing to have and enjoy in the quickly passing years.
Of course he would be missed as one of the few very recognizable 'columns' of Nintendo. Reggie has left and we have unfortunately lost Iwata. Aonuma and Miyamoto would realistically be the only ones left (off the top of my head) and I'm sure both of them have considered retirement as well.
That said though I would still have loved to see one last passion project by him. Kid Icarus Uprising and Kirby Air Ride are great games and I feel it would be appropriate to see one last banger before he leaves.
Good for him. Video game fans are toxic and I'm sure he has grown tired of it. I know I would have. I hope he gets to rest and not have to deal with any more entitled monsters complaining about, "ANOTHER SWORD FIGHTER IN SMASH!!!"
This makes me appreciate all the more the hard work and passion he puts into his games.
Now I'm curious what his day to day work is like, I'd love to see a documentary about the inner workings of his game development studio for a given project.
It's a shame he's had to put so many years into working on Smash Bros. over and over again. His best and most interesting work comes from when he's got the freedom to make something else. It'll be pretty sad if this is the end but he's earned it if he does come to that decision.
This man more than earned a break.
His dedication is almost frightening!
As much as he would be missed, he deserves it ^^
@Varkster Sadly the whole overowork problem is big in Japan, sadly you could even say it is the norm and it is expected from you to overwork.
let him rest, he's done a stunning job with nintendo and deserves not just one break but about fifty thousand
He’s always gone way above and beyond with his contributions to Smash Bros. Wish him good health and a well deserved retirement if it’s to be.
He deserves it! Maybe he might take on a more relaxed advisory role & may keep his Famitsu column, but I wouldn't blame him if he wants to fully retire so he can kick back and enjoy life.
He absolutely deserves it, along with alot of the Smash team. Pinnacle of party games with so much love and effort poured in.
Super Smash Bros Ultimate would be a very fitting swansong to his career if he does retire, and he really deserves it if that's what he thinks is best for him.
If he does retire, good for him. He's been working hard for the smash community and giving us great dlc fighters. Though, he will be missed.
Honestly, I would be surprised if he actually retired soon. The man is only 50, and he's the kind of guy who lives for his work. I can't see him settling down to putter around in the garden for the next three to four decades. I'm a year older than him, and I've talked about retiring, but I wouldn't actually do it at this point even if I had the money for it, because what the hell would I do with the rest of my life?
But if he wants to step back from Smash, take on a different role and work on some other projects he hasn't been able to do in years, that I can totally understand. If everything we've heard about Smash development is true, he is close to working himself to death in his current position.
He more than deserves it and I couldn't blame him if he goes for it - the games he makes are wonderful, but I'd rather he stay healthy more than anything.
Since they released Ultimate I was asking myself how they are going to continue the Smash series after this? they just released the best and most complete Smash ever and there's nothing left to do, it's pure perfection! But now I understand everything, he just did the last and "ultimate" smash for Iwata before retiring. I hope to see him doing some indie games. Good luck Sakurai! <3
You'll go when we say you can go, now get back to work to on Waluigi's final smash!
He most certainly needs a break. His hands-on approach to Smash (rather than entrusting the responsibilities to Bandai Namco) basically brought on so much pressure to him.
@BoostPower They'll continue it without him, just like Zelda and is still going without Miyamoto at the helm. It's a huge money maker for them.
Sakurai is obviously a legend and amazing, but let's not forget he's one of a large team of incredibly talent developers working on Smash Bros. If he leaves they'll all still be there and there will be other talented folk to take his place like Eiji Aonuma did for Zelda.
Anyway. Sakurai, go take a well deserved break and thank you for all you and your team's hard work all these years!
Super Smash Bros Ultimate is the best iteration of the game so far, with an amazing roster. Even if the series ended with his departure, I would be fine with it. Smash Bros is his creation, and Nintendo should honor that.
He seems like a workaholic so I wonder if he’d be happy if he retired.
@Dogorilla Exactly, he's already made the biggest game he possibly can in this genre, well worth retiring.
Well deserved for sure, but it would be a genuine shame if Sakurai never worked on anything else. Smash is great and at a point where it can sustain itself. Sakurai’s other works are also great though!
Kirby and Kid Icarus could certainly use his talent right now.
If he does exit early, he has certainly earned it. Health is wealth.
He's been developing and making great games nonstop since the NES era, I believe it's time he pass the torch to the younger devs and just enjoy life now.
Deserves an early retirement and I am not surprised he is considering it. He's been brilliant for the industry.
I hope he won’t retire as I love his works
But I wish him the best and he earned it, he worked harder that I any other developer
Best of luck if he does.
@JasmineDragon I believe he has the money to either start his own business or just travel the world while doing some consulting services for gaming companies. What would you do? Anything you want. Learn to play a new instrument and start a band, learn a new language and live in another place, acquire new hobbies, study a new field without the pressure to make money...
Man, life is a lot more than work, even though is awesome to work in something that makes you feel fulfilled. Balance is key.
Pretty sure he has already put in a lifetimes worth of hours.
I think he should at the very least commit to not working on Smash again, allowing himself more independence of what we works on.
When will we see a new Le Mans from Hal?
The combination of Iwata and Miura (Berserk Manga creator) both dying young probably weighed heavily on his mind. When you work as hard as he has and they did and neglect your longterm health it does change people (one a close personal friend and the other a prominent creator). It might be best if he shifts his focus to smaller projects and just work as a consultant on the next Smash. I love Sakurai's work, but never want to see talented artists die young.
What if Sakurai was the last Smash Fighter...?
I can't say I'm surprised. Sakurai's age aside, the reports about how much of a toll the Smash series has taken on his health awhile back really concerned me. In my humble opinion, this man has more than earned early retirement!...If he takes it. Health and sanity first, my good sir.
Darn it all, I knew Smash Bros would burn him out I still wanted to see him make one more Kirby game, one more Kid Icarus, or something else entirely, not more and more Smash games... And he shouldn't have been responsible for the DLC characters! That is just pure overtime after killing himself all those years for the base game.
Perhaps he will be making these kind of public announcements to respectfully distance himself from any further Smash Bros development. Perhaps it almost feels like an honorable obligation for him to direct a new Smash title if he is still "working."
It's sad to see him retire but he deserves a break from overworking too many times just to satisfy the Nintendo Fans.
He’s loaded with money, thanks to how well the Smash and earlier Kirby games sold. Retiring is not a bad idea.
Given the stakes of Smash in terms of sales and the fanbase for it and the IMMENSE number of moving parts in the game itself (both in terms of internal balancing and bringing in external IP), I could understand wanting to take a step back after doing it for so long.
I would love it if he got to go off and do his own thing making small games of his own. But if he plans on fully retiring from game development all together I understand fully.
In Japan they have a word "karoushi" which means literally "death from overwork." As much as we would miss Sakurai-san pouring his art and passion into Smash and other games, an early death would be infinitely worse than early retirement.
Best wishes however he chooses to proceed! I'm very grateful for the legacy of great games he has left us.
@E_Gadds_Garage Kirby is fine, the modern games are still good, with Planet Robobot being considered one of the best games in the series.
Not really sure what Sakurai could add to Kirby.
But I would love to see him take another crack at Kid Icarus or give him another Nintendo IP to work with.
Or maybe Nintendo could fund a brand new IP.
Let him get the rest he needs, we don't want another end like Iwata. I mean, Iwata got a bad tumour and work doesn't cause tumours but refusing to rest and let your body recover after surgery doesn't help with remission. Mr Sakurai looks seriously tired, all the time, and I believe he's been to the hospital once already.
Take care of yourself Sakurai san and お疲れ様でした
Sounds like management changes are coming. That's what the REAL headlines are saying. Artistic value is going away is what I see happening with this change. He can slow down his workaholic lifestyle but still have the Artistic mind. The pandemic has told/shown us that slow and deliberate means can still get to a end.
I hope he takes an extremely long vacation , gets Nintendo to let him do the Kirby game of his dreams, and then retire, maybe doing some small projects when he gets bored.
Whatever he wants to do. This man has busted his butt to the point of his health suffering. He certainly deserves it.
Kid Icarus,Kirby and SSB will likely go to other, equally competent teams.
this dude has gotten more done in the last 5 years than most people do in 40. He deserves it.
Sakurai deserves to retire after he finishes Fighter Pass Vol. 2, he already worked too much and damaged his health, he needs to rest.
However, the Smash Bros. franchise should continue without him, I want a Fighter Pass Vol. 3 without Sakurai.
Would be for the better. Otherwise, he will work himself to death one day.
He should do what’s good for his health. I love all of Sakurai’s games, but his health is much more important.
Thank you Smash Bro for one of the greatest contributions to video games. Please take 2 to 5 years off or indefinitely to rest/recuperate/recharge.
If you decide to come back please consider ghost developing games from a smaller or indie team so that we don't unintentionally force unreasonable expectations on you.
He's probably sick of the toxic fan base and the stalkers.
@Tempestryke Sakurai has not worked on a Kirby game since the GBA-Gamecube era.
Kirby is just fine and in the hands of a good development team.
For god's sake, just let the man rest! He seriously needs some peace and quiet
@Heavyarms55 Does anyone blame him?
Something to keep in mind is that he's likely been working on Smash for nearly 10 years with no break.
Smash 4 released in 2014 and it did not end active development with DLC until 2016 when Corrin and Bayonetta dropped.
Then, Ultimate came out on 2018, and is still in active development.
Given the release date between games, Sakurai was likely in the early stages of Ultimate's development at the same time the last DLC fighters dropped in Smash 4.
That is two very demanding games in terms of development with no break in-between to rest or work on other games.
I am not shocked that he's wore out and tired.
With that said, I don't see him totally leaving game development. I can see him coming back after he rests to work on either a smaller Nintendo IP like Kid Icarus or a smaller project.
But I think he is done with Smash once the final Ultimate DLC fighters drop.
Ultimate is his final swan song with Smash which is why everyone came back to the roster.
@Tempestryke lol. I don't.
https://twitter.com/Sephazon/status/1397590570919284738
"Wrapping up Sakurai's Famitsu Column #629 with @KodyNOKOLO. Sakurai does not give a definitive time when he will finish his Famitsu Column series, nor does he announce his retirement. He will not be quitting game-related work after Super Smash Bros. Ultimate."
Good. The game balance is awful and the online is hot garbage. It's time to finally give it to someone else that prioritizes those issues
I wonder if the original Japanese text from this column has been posted somewhere.
Eh. Why should we care? I hope he enjoys retirement!
It's hard to grasp how he could possibly top himself after all he's done. If he does retire, I wish him godspeed, but consider being a consultant for any future Kid Icarus, Masahiro-san (am I doing it right?).
Removed - inappropriate
@BoostPower There's always more characters and stages. Consequent iterations will likely drop some characters and stages, and bring in new ones like older versions and most other fighting games. A single player brawler like the sub-space emissary could come back. New modes and items. General tweaks and improvements. There's loads. Can people really not think of anything else just because the name says "Ultimate"?
Ok. Sakurai , you've done a great job.
Go after what your looking for now.
You have many things to do on your time just like the rest of us.
Most of all have fun ok...
you made sure the lot of us did,
so go after your goals, once again this time ok.
...
Either way,Have a great time!!
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