It's no secret that Shigeru Miyamoto has taken a bit of a backseat when it comes to game development. The last Mario game he personally oversaw as director was Super Mario Run, and after his most recent experience as general producer on Pikmin 4, the creator has largely shifted over to the world of movies.
In a new interview with Casa Brutus (thanks, VGC), Miyamoto hints toward taking even further steps away from game development. He states that while Nintendo currently has other developers leading the charge on new Mario titles, he nevertheless endeavours to play them and deliver feedback on the overall interface.
“Nowadays, I have teammates who help maintain the world of Mario, so I entrust much of it to them. Even so, I always personally play through about the first 30 minutes of the game and check the interface thoroughly — to make sure it really feels like Mario.”
He then – perhaps jokingly – hints that he may not even do this in the future and simply leave everything to his colleagues, before expressing his wish to remain healthy until Mario's inevitable 50th anniversary in ten years' time:
“Up through Super Mario Odyssey, I feel we’ve done just about everything we could on the Switch. In the past, whenever a new console came out, we always released a new Mario game, so I do wonder how the current team will take on that challenge.
“But maybe I’ll say, ‘I won’t look anymore!’ (laughs) I just hope to stay healthy until Mario’s 50th anniversary!”
Discussion also turns to the upcoming Super Mario Galaxy Movie, which Miyamoto states is in the "final stages of production" while expressing the opinion that "it’s going to be fun". Only time will tell, but the movie's introduction of Yoshi was recently revealed prematurely thanks to a product listing from none other than US baking firm Pillsbury.
The movie officially launches on 3rd April 2026, and it's said that a trailer will debut later this month and play before screenings for Wicked: For Good.