Sakurai on Kirby Super Star – Miyamoto’s request, DKC influence, cut game, development name, more
“Chest!”
In addition to Spring Breeze, I also like Kachiwari Megaton Punch (Megaton Punch) and Setsuna no Mikiri (Samurai Kirby). I thought your titles were quite distinctive and really hit the nail on the head.
Sakurai: Thank you. By the way, I was the one who did the title logo calligraphy for Setsuna no Mikiri.
Oh, really?
Sakurai: First, I did it with a brush pen, and then I imported that into the computer and turned it into pixels.
Come to think of it, your voice is also in the game.
Sakurai: That’s right! (laughs) As Mike Kirby, I say “Chesto [8]!”
8. “Chesto!”: a Japanese battle cry when one swings a sword, similar to “hi-yah!” in English. The phrase originated from a dialect in southern Japan.
Uh-huh.
Sakurai: I went into the music room to record that. The window was open just a little, and when I cried out “Chest!” as hard as I could, people far away turned around.
Toward you, huh? (laughs) Because the people in the company wondered what had gotten into you?
Sakurai: No, they were complete strangers. People working in the fields.
(laughs) You could see farming fields outside the company windows.
Sakurai: Yeah. (laughs)
How long did development of Kirby Super Star last?
Sakurai: I think it was about three years.
Three years… Isn’t that long for a Super NES game?
Sakurai: Yeah. There are various reasons that development dragged on, but one was the influence of Donkey Kong Country. [9]
9. Donkey Kong Country: A platform game included in Super NES Classic Edition. Originally released in November 1994.
That came up during my interview for Super NES Classic Edition covering Super Mario World 2: Yoshi’s Island. [10] Donkey Kong Country’s graphics amazed the developers. Did they have an influence on you, too?
10. Super Mario World 2: Yoshi’s Island: A platform game included in Super NES Classic Edition. Originally released in Japan in August 1995.
Sakurai: Yes. Midway through development, it was decided that we should incorporate computer graphics, so we threw out the art we had made up to that point.
Oh, is that so?
Sakurai: Of course, I could have refused to do it, but I was certain myself that there would be merits to using CG, so I don’t feel it was forced on me. Rather, I feel like it happened at just the right time.
Oh, uh-huh.
Sakurai: Also, while I said earlier that there were six main games plus one, there were actually seven plus one in the proposal.
What?! What kind of game was it?
Sakurai: It was called Kagero Mansion. It was like a horror game and was completely different from the usual Kirby game. Kirby finds himself in a mansion and under a curse sealing his mouth shut.
So he can’t use Copy?
Sakurai: Right. He can’t suck in or spit out, so he can’t Copy. He would go around the mansion and, for example, get the Copy ability of Fire from a candle. I was planning a horror-action game with puzzle elements.
What happened to that game?
Sakurai: Unfortunately, we never even got started making it. We had our hands full just making the other games.
Rich in Content
You spent a long time making Kirby Super Star, but was the title easy to decide?
Sakurai: At first, the development name was Kirby of the Stars: Active.
Active?
Sakurai: That’s what we tentatively called it, to suggest that the game was more proactive and had more active gameplay. When it was time to decide the official title, Shigesato Itoi-san [11] became involved.
He made EarthBound. [12]
11. Shigesato Itoi: In addition to being a copywriter and essayist, he has participated in development of video games such as the EarthBound series and Itoi Shigesato no Bass Tsuri No. 1. Currently, he is CEO of Hobonichi.
12. EarthBound: A role-playing game originally released in Japan for the Super Famicom system in August 1994 under the name Mother 2.
Sakurai: We decided to directly convey how rich it is in content and settled on the Japanese title Kirby of the Stars: Super Deluxe. Even the package design…
It looked like a paulownia box with a seal burnt into it. It really stood out in stores.
Sakurai: Yes, it really did.
What was the concept behind that design?
Sakurai: High-priced sake and dishware often comes in paulownia boxes. Luxury items often come in minimal external packaging, and we wanted to portray that richness, so the design turned out like that.
Was that Itoi-san’s idea?
Sakurai: I’m pretty sure it started with an idea from him, but I’m not sure if he came up with exactly that by himself. In any case, it was eventually decided through many people in discussion.
Iwata-san and Itoi-san had made EarthBound together and were quite close, so I suppose they provided pertinent advice.
Sakurai: Yes, of course.
Do you have any particular memories of Iwata-san from development of Kirby Super Star?
Sakurai: Actually, I didn’t have much contact with him during development. For the most part, he left things in my hands.
Do you suppose he was busy with EarthBound at that time?
Sakurai: EarthBound was completed first, but I think he was busy with his main responsibilities as president of HAL Laboratory. Instead of saying “Do this!” and “Do that!” during development, he completely left actual development to us, so I think he trusted us.
Freedom Above All
While you are someone who makes video games, you have also played many games in many genres. When it comes to the 21 games included in Super NES Classic Edition…
Sakurai: I think I’ve beaten most of them.
I’m not surprised! (laughs) All except for Star Fox 2.
Sakurai: Oh, and I haven’t beaten Super Soccer [13], of course.
13. Super Soccer: A sports game originally released in Japan by Human Entertainment in December 1991. This game is included only in the Japanese version of Super NES Classic Edition.
One of those 21 games is Kirby Super Star. How do you want people to play it?
Sakurai: I can only say that I want them to play however they want. I mean, there’s no need to force them to play it.
(laughs)
Sakurai: The appeal of the hardware is that you can play whichever games you want from the many games included, so I don’t want to push them to play it just because I made it.
Ah, I see.
Sakurai: For example, when you play Kirby Super Star, there’s a cork board where you can choose which game to play, and the two subgames are there.
Megaton Punch and Samurai Kirby.
Sakurai: You can enjoy those subgames in a short time, and playing just those two a little bit is enough. One of the development concepts of Kirby Super Star is that all kinds of people can play all kinds of different ways, playing what they like however they like. So I think letting people do what they want is best.
You leave it up to the player.
Sakurai: Yeah. Another thing to mention is that if you leave Kirby Super Star idle, demos for the various games begin playing. I’m the one who’s playing those.
So we can witness your gameplay when you were 25! (laughs)
Sakurai: Yeah! (laughs)
