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Kotaku: E3 Splatoon Directors Interview

V

Volotaire

Member
Stephen Totilo said:
"We didn't make this game with the idea that we wanted to make a simplified shooter or a dumbed-down shooter or anything like that," Tsubasa Sakaguchi, a developer at Nintendo recently told me. I wasn't expecting to be having this conversation.

Crazy, right?

It's called Splatoon. And it's the best answer yet to all the people asking Nintendo to step outside of their comfort zone and do something new. Conveniently and unsurprisingly, their shooter isn't like other people's shooters.

One of the experiments Eguchi's team considered was made by Shintaro Saito, a Nintendo programmer. It got people excited. "So that prototype was this game where you had four black blocks and four white blocks and they were shooting at each other and trying to control territory," Nogami recalled. "Everyone played that prototype, and we all had a great reaction to it. Everyone thought it was fun, so we decided to present it to [senior Nintendo game designer] Mr. Miyamoto, Mr. Tezuka, Mr. Eguchi and kind of had a few back and forths with them a few times before we got to the point where, 'Okay, we should make this into a game."

For example, when I asked Nogami and Sakaguchi about other shooters like Call of Duty and Battlefield, Nogami said, "We definitely play those types of games," adding "There's definitely guys on our staff who are super into shooters. We definitely play other games and other company's hardware. We do that as part of our jobs and we also do that because we're gamers and love to play games."

And he said this, looking around at the white interview room where we were sitting: "If someone came into this room and had a paint can and they were like, 'You can paint this room however you want,' I think everyone kind of remembers being a kid and would be like, 'Great, I'm just going to go crazy.' I think if anyone has something like that still left in them, they'll definitely be able to enjoy this game."
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Much MORE at the link
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Stephen Totilo Kotaku.
 
1

10k

Banned
I don't know anything about video games. Why does kotaku always talk about them? It really inks me.

:p
 
D

DXB-KNIGHT

Member
This game represents a breath of fresh air in Nintendo's portfolio both as a new IP with new gameplay and art style.
Good that Nintendo are giving an opportunity to their younger generation.
 
F

foxuzamaki

Doesn't read OPs, especially not his own
I read the whole quote and now I need to read more, im inlove with this game already.
 
B

Briarios

Member
This was definitely the game that got me most excited at E3, because it was so totally unexpected and looks so totally fun. Can't wait!
 
P

perorist

Unconfirmed Member
"We definitely play those types of games," adding "There's definitely guys on our staff who are super into shooters. We definitely play other games and other company's hardware. We do that as part of our jobs and we also do that because we're gamers and love to play games."
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I hope these guys can someday spread this philosophy throughout the company.
 
F

foxuzamaki

Doesn't read OPs, especially not his own
perorist said:
I hope these guys can someday spread this philosophy throughout the company.
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er, what? you do know nintendo has been saying this for years, right? miyamoto has even gone on record saying that he owned other systems so he can play games for both work and fun.
 
T

Tenki

Member
We definitely play other games and other company's hardware. We do that as part of our jobs and we also do that because we're gamers and love to play games.
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And yet people still believe that rumor without sources about how nobody at Nintendo knew what PSN was.
 
F

foxuzamaki

Doesn't read OPs, especially not his own
I still cant believe people would believe that quote, people who work in the video game industry for a living wouldnt know what such and such is on a console? you would have to be extremely high to believe that.
 
T

Tenki

Member
gngf123 said:
I've never even heard this rumour before.
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At some point in this conversation we were informed that it was no good referencing Live and PSN as nobody in their development teams used those systems (!) so could we provide more detailed explanations for them?
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http://www.neogaf.com/forum/showthread.php?t=749759

foxuzamaki said:
I still cant believe people would believe that quote, people who work in the video game industry for a living wouldnt know what such and such is on a console? you would have to be extremely high to believe that.
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A lot of people believed it. And I'm sure a lot still do.
 
C

Cosmonaut X

Member
perorist said:
I hope these guys can someday spread this philosophy throughout the company.
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I'm pretty sure that it is spread throughout the company. People seem to be in love with this idea of Nintendo as a company totally in a bubble, and while I do believe there's a degree of truth to it, I don't think they're as unaware of trends in the industry and competitors as some would paint it.

I think there's a really interesting mix of genuine self-absorbtion and self-reliance in the company, that - when mixed with the self-mythologising that they like to indulge in - gives an impression of a company that's out of touch and distant, but that is clearly not the whole story. Rather, I think that they are very much aware of the changing gaming world, from mobile to MOBA, but their company ideology and history tends to push them toward reinventing the wheel or deliberately avoiding the accepted path or industry standard, often coming late to these things after their own experiments have failed to bear fruit, or when they decide the time is right for them.

This makes them a hugely frustrating company at times, but it also means many, many moments of genuine surprise and joy - and success - when they hit with something you weren't expecting, or redefine what a particular game or genre can be about.
 
B

Bony Manifesto

Member
foxuzamaki said:
er, what? you do know nintendo has been saying this for years, right? miyamoto has even gone on record saying that he owned other systems so he can play games for both work and fun.
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I don't know... When Miyamoto says something like that, he makes it clear that it's purely for research and not something he does for fun. That quote from Nogami: "We definitely play other games and other company's hardware. We do that as part of our jobs and we also do that because we're gamers and love to play games." is not something you'd ever hear Miyamoto (or any senior members of Nintendo for that matter) say.

The name-checking of the junior programmer who came up with the prototype that evolved into Splatoon is also something very unlike Nintendo. I really like it, and I hope this is a shift in the company's attitude and these guys aren't going to return to Japan and receive an absolute bollocking from their superiors for acting 'unprofessionally' in front of the foreign press.
 
B

birdchili

Member
i do so love that the opposing team is always referred to as the "bad guys" and your team is always the "good guys".

i mean... of course we're the good guys.
 
A

Aquamarine

Member
Great interview.


I think Splatoon has the real potential to be the greatest new IP out of Nintendo's premiere EAD studio in a decade.

I'm giddy with anticipation to try it.
 
T

Tenki

Member
Finished it, good read.

I wonder how the single player will be. Maybe something like Smash (where you play matches versus the AI) or something completely different?
 
H

Hibiki Kurosawa

Member
If someone came into this room and had a paint can and they were like, 'You can paint this room however you want,' I think everyone kind of remembers being a kid and would be like, 'Great, I'm just going to go crazy.' I think if anyone has something like that still left in them, they'll definitely be able to enjoy this game.
Click to expand...
I love this quote.
 
S

Somnia

Member
Splatoon looks like a ton of fun and reminds me a bit of Nintendo returning to experimenting with new ideas. I really hope the game is a hit and this "dev" team becomes a full team within Nintendo working on new games.
 
K

KingSnake

The Birthday Skeleton
Tenki said:
Finished it, good read.

I wonder how the single player will be. Maybe something like Smash (where you play matches versus the AI) or something completely different?
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"One of the cores of playing the game is the idea of switching between those abilities. Single-player mode will center around that.
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That sounds more than a single player like Smash. For me sounds almost like there are also some puzzles involved. Or some kind of squidbased platforming.
 
J

JLeack

Banned
I feel shameful for not really paying attention when this was announced. It actually looks flippin' amazing.
 
C

Chezzymann

Member
This game sounds so fascinating and fun. Its a shame theres a lot of people out there brushing it off as "dumb" without actually looking at it for a few seconds.
 
Glass Rebel

Glass Rebel

Member
Chezzymann said:
This game sounds so fascinating and fun. Its a shame theres a lot of people out there brushing it off as "dumb" without actually looking at it for a few seconds.
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I can't help but think that revealing the game via its multiplayer was a double-edged sword. Some people just won't show any interest in multiplayer games, regardless of how fun the mechanics look.
 
M

Mpl90

Two copies sold? That's not a bomb guys, stop trolling!!!
Certainly the game that, at this E3, made me think "Woah, that looks completely new".
I want to know more as soon as possible. Already anticipating the expected pre-release Direct. If developers impersonating squids at E3 was a sign of something, I can't even imagine what batshit insane things could be done in a Direct :lol
 
F

freethoughtbubble

Member
He said this, about the Splatoon developers' priorities: "We want to make sure that action of spraying the ink around feels really really good...Just that feeling of shooting some ink and having it splash on the ground and splatter everywhere and be shiny and be bubbling up, the sound of that the graphics of that—everyone on the team is working really, really hard to make sure that feels really great when you do it."
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God, I love this quote. It really encapsulates what, in my opinion, sets developers like Nintendo (but certainly not only Nintendo) apart from the rest. An obsession with designing mechanics to elicit a very specific feeling in the player. All my favorite games are very tactile in that sense and I'm glad that it's a value clearly being passed down from generation to generation at the company.

I'm seriously getting antsy for more information on this game. I catch myself imagining what the single player's going to be like all the time. Just tell us already!
 
F

foxuzamaki

Doesn't read OPs, especially not his own
Glass Rebel said:
I can't help but think that revealing the game via its multiplayer was a double-edged sword. Some people just won't show any interest in multiplayer games, regardless of how fun the mechanics look.
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the reception to the game has been overwhelmingly positive, im sure those writing it off just because it showed multiplayer are in the minority
 
Glass Rebel

Glass Rebel

Member
foxuzamaki said:
the reception to the game has been overwhelmingly positive, im sure those writing it off just because it showed multiplayer are in the minority
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I haven't followed media or message board reactions too much, just anecdotally speaking the reception around my circle of friends was rather lukewarm, mostly because they only showed the multi so far. In that case, I'm happy it's getting some well-deserved attention.

time to get new friends
 
S

Sacul64GC

Banned
Bony Manifesto said:
I don't know... When Miyamoto says something like that, he makes it clear that it's purely for research and not something he does for fun. That quote from Nogami: "We definitely play other games and other company's hardware. We do that as part of our jobs and we also do that because we're gamers and love to play games." is not something you'd ever hear Miyamoto (or any senior members of Nintendo for that matter) say.
Click to expand...

Aonuma had talked about playing Skyrim.
 
C

Cuburt

Member
Glass Rebel said:
I can't help but think that revealing the game via its multiplayer was a double-edged sword. Some people just won't show any interest in multiplayer games, regardless of how fun the mechanics look.
Click to expand...

I think they did they intentionally since the mechanics were developed as a multiplayer game first and they are focusing on that now. They also want to let people know who do like multiplayer games that there will be a lot of care put into the multiplayer and not just an afterthought. I'm sure Nintendo will highlight the single player and other modes closer to launch to appeal to people who want single player experiences.
 
C

Cuburt

Member
Bony Manifesto said:
I don't know... When Miyamoto says something like that, he makes it clear that it's purely for research and not something he does for fun. That quote from Nogami: "We definitely play other games and other company's hardware. We do that as part of our jobs and we also do that because we're gamers and love to play games." is not something you'd ever hear Miyamoto (or any senior members of Nintendo for that matter) say.
Click to expand...
Miyamoto probably played plenty of other games in his leisure time when he was younger as well. I know some developers spend so much time playing games for work, they don't even spend as much time playing game for leisure when they have the time to do it, especially not really involved 80 hour games.

If Miyamoto would rather garden and play with his grandchildren (I'm not sure if he's ever mentioned having any) or do whatever in his free time, who cares if he's only playing other consoles for work? He's still interested in checking out stuff like the Occulus Rift and Kinect at E3, the man is not purposefully trying to block out any outside influence so people who think he and Nintendo do that are just projecting and seeing what they want to see. In fact, we already know how a lot of his activities outside of gaming has influenced ideas so he's not even really allowed to talk about what he does since it might give clues as to what he's working on. It's like how musician and other artists may draw their inspiration from anywhere not just from consuming all other music or art in order to find inspiration.
 
J

Jintor

Member
Well I hope that feeling of inking feeling good extends to making the machine gun noise less irritating

still... can't wait to get my tendrils on it.
 
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