Masahiro Sakurai, who you’ll likely best know from his work as the lead behind the Super Smash Bros. series, has begun a YouTube channel called Masahiro Sakurai on Creating Games.
According to an introductory video posted to the channel, Sakurai plans to use the channel to talk about the nitty gritty of game development. The hope is that this will be useful both to people who want to learn more about the development process for their own practice, or just fans of games in general who want a peek behind the curtain at the minutiae of how their favorite games are made. Sakurai says he’s been given the all clear to talk about some previously secret sides of development and stories from his career over the years. The videos will be available in Japanese and with English subtitles.
“I want to try and help make games around the world a little more fun,” Sakurai says in the intro video. “If you make games or are aspiring to do so, you might find a little something new here. If you play games, learning more about the mechanics behind them might deepen your enjoyment even more. Plus, it’s just fun to get a peek at someone else’s job now and then,. You don’t have to be part of the industry. Most of all, I hope this can someday lead to more game creators down the line. That, in turn, will lead to more fun games for all of us to play. Niche as they may be, these videos should hopefully offer unique value for years to come.”
Sakurai has already published his first video on the channel. Titled “Stop for Big Moments,” it focus on visual effects and hit stops in the Super Smash Bros. series, and how they can make gameplay moments more visually impactful.
The launch of Masahiro Sakurai on Creating Games comes after he stopped posting daily screenshots from Super Smash Bros. Ultimate, and hinted this would be the end of one online project and the beginning of a new one.
