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Masahiro Sakurai

Biography

Masahiro Sakurai

Overview

  • Born
    August 3, 1970 · Musashimurayama, Tokyo, Japan
  • Height
    5′ 10″ (1.78 m)

Mini bio

  • Masahiro Sakurai was born on August 3, 1970 in Musashimurayama, Tokyo, Japan. He is a writer and director, known for Super Smash Bros. for Wii U (2014), Kirby Air Riders (2025) and Kirby's Dream Land (1992). He has been married to Michiko Sakurai since June 2008.

Family

  • Spouse
      Michiko Sakurai(June 2008 - present)

Trademarks

  • The creator of the Nintendo character 'Kirby'.

Trivia

  • In the Pokemon Stadium 2 level in Super Smash Bros. Brawl. When the level transform into a ice stage, Sakurai's cat can be visible in the house.
  • Has been developed with "calcific tendinitis" near his right shoulder which causes him in pain when moving his right arm. This could slow down Sakurai's work as he does some game testing himself.
  • Named his studio Sora after the main character from the "Kingdom Hearts" series.
  • Stated he felt disappointed when fans uploaded the story cut scenes from the Adventure Mode of "Super Smash Bros Brawl" on YouTube. This led to a far less expansive single-player mode in "Super Smash Bros for Wii U & 3DS" followed by a story mode in "Super Smash Bros Ultimate" that was as expansive as "Brawl" but far less story-focused.
  • Left HAL Laboratory in 2003 due to him wanting more freedom and became tired of HAL making sequels. He eventually formed his own company "Sora" which made games like Meteos, Super Smash Bros. Brawl and Kid Icarus: Uprising. Sakurai is for now working in Bandai Namco Games Inc. for the new Super Smash Brothers for the Nintendo Wii U and Nintendo 3DS.

Quotes

  • So I created a tool for you to do just that. With the Mii Fighter creator you can have any character you want join the battle.
  • In terms of scope, and in terms of sheer number of characters, we went beyond our limits long ago.
  • You can only truly wow a player the first time he sees [a cutscene]. I felt if players saw the cutscenes outside of the game, they would no longer serve as rewards for playing the game, so I've decided against having them.
  • It's fun making new skills for new characters.
  • The pain goes away, but your work always remains.

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