• May 19, 2004    Home > Features > Feature

    Interview: Satoru Iwata - Transcript

    Exclusive and extensive interview with Nintendo President Satoru Iwata on Nintendo DS, PSP, Shigeru Miyamoto, Hiroshi Yamauchi and Nintendo Revolution.

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    Kikizo: So early next year then? [Mr Iwata nods and smiles] Good! Another thing, I speak to a lot of developers, and they always have Microsoft and Sony coming to them all the time and trying to get them to develop for their platforms, but particularly in the UK, and as you know there is a very major development scene there, say that they never quite get that from Nintendo. Do you feel that's somewhere where the company could improve?

    "I believe we need to make efforts to improve our relationship with European developers even further."

    - Satoru Iwata

    Satoru Iwata: Well if you look around the showfloor at Nintendo today, there are two new software titles that are developed in the UK. One is the Advanced Wars: Under Fire game, and another is the Mario Pinball game. But yes, you are right, Nintendo historically is not so active enough in building up the working relationships with the European developers. But I can say that things are improving right now, however I am not satisfied in the current condition and I believe we need to make efforts to improve our relationship with European developers even further.

    Kikizo: OK, that's cool, perhaps that's something you will do for the next generation home console... You mentioned that you're making one yesterday but you didn't really go into any other details other than saying that like the DS, it will focus on new forms of gameplay. Is there anything else you can tell us about the next generation machine for the home?

    "If we cannot change the user interface of the current home console system... it must be difficult for anyone to persuade people to purchase so-called next gen consoles."

    - Satoru Iwata

    Satoru Iwata: What I can tell you today is very limited. For example when we first announced the existence of the DS project we only revealed the fact that it is going to have two screens, and now we are talking about Wi-Fi technologies, touch screen and what not. And I believe that the people are now really surprised to see the quite new system we are now offering to the public. If we were simply saying, look, we are now beefing up the technology of GameBoy Advance, the processing power shall be twice as powerful and the graphics capability shall be like this compared to the GBA, that's something people are expecting and there is no surprise at all. However DS can tell you how serious we are about changing the way games are played, and we really want to establish the same with the introduction of the new home console system as well. And I'm sorry but that's the only thing I can tell you that is not just beefing up CPU power of the graphics power ten times or twenty times as much as GameCube today, but we really need to change the [hardware] system so that people can see that Nintendo is changing the way how games are played.

    Kikizo: OK, because the next generation of consoles is approaching now. I know Sony hasn't said much apart from some technology mentions, and Microsoft has development kits for Xbox 2 around all the publishers, and it will announce it very soon. How do you see the next generation battle taking place?

    Satoru Iwata: Well I really don't believe that there will be a bright future waiting for the so-called next generation consoles that Sony and Microsoft are advocating right now. As you may know I was developing games until quite recently myself, I know how it is, and if any of these developers come to me and say, look, CPU or processing power is ten times as much as today, graphic capability is twenty times, then I will say, that means more workload and slight difference with the current system in terms of letting people understand how improved the graphics shall be. So just as we have established with handheld gaming with the DS, just for example, if we cannot change the user interface of the current home console system, and let consumers understand we are changing how the games are being played, then I am sorry, but it must be difficult for anyone to persuade people to purchase so-called next generation consoles.

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