History Creator / MasahiroSakurai

Masahiro Sakurai (born August 3, 1970) is a Japanese video game developer. He is the head of Sora Ltd., and creator of both the ''Franchise/{{Kirby}}'' and ''VideoGame/SuperSmashBros'' series. He created Kirby under Creator/HALLaboratory when he was only 19 years old. Seeing how it was the nineties, and most of Nintendo's games [[NintendoHard were infamous for their difficulty]], Sakurai designed the original ''VideoGame/KirbysDreamLand'' to be relatively easy so players wouldn't be alienated by the game being too hard. He directed a number of ''Kirby'' titles from there, playing a smaller and smaller role in development as time went on, culminating in him [[DescendedCreator simply voicing King Dedede]] in ''VideoGame/Kirby64TheCrystalShards''. He worked closely with the staff for the series' anime, ''Anime/KirbyOfTheStars'', and he also worked as the designer on ''Kirby Air Ride'', which was his final game in the series.

** "Never ask me again". Despite the fact that he never [[BeamMeUpScotty said it]].

*** The [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ANutje9nHAE reveal trailer]] for the long-anticipated announcement of [[VideoGame/DonkeyKongCountry King K. Rool]] started with a silhouette of the character... only to be revealed as [[VideoGame/{{Kirby}} King Dedede]] trolling the Kongs. Six months later, the [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=I67pPXS96UI reveal trailer for]] [[VideoGame/BanjoKazooie Banjo and Kazooie]] uses the ''exact same gag,'' with the VideoGame/DuckHunt Dog and Duck as the trolls.

* ArtistDisillusionment: Sakurai departed from HAL Laboratory as he was disappointed with the "sequelization" of the company (particularly in regards to ''Franchise/{{Kirby}}'') and the industry as a whole. Of course, this hasn't stopped him from developing four more installments in the ''VideoGame/SuperSmashBros'' series, but even then, several interviews have given subtle hints that he is dissatisfied with doing so.

** Of ''Franchise/StreetFighter'' and ''VideoGame/TheKingOfFighters''. Sakurai has said that back in TheNineties, he would do things like achieving a ''fifty-win streak'' in ''Street Fighter II'', and that he was good enough at ''The King of Fighters'' that he ended up kicking the asses of a young couple on a date night at the arcade, albeit unintentionally. It is the latter event that influenced him to create a fighting game that would be accessible to casual players (as both ''Street Fighter II'' and ''The King of Fighters'' are known for their utilization of command inputs), which ended up being ''Super Smash Bros''. Sixteen years after [[VideoGame/SuperSmashBros64 the original game]], Sakurai got to add Ryu in ''VideoGame/SuperSmashBrosForNintendo3DSAndWiiU'', with Ken arriving as an [[MovesetClone echo fighter of Ryu]] in ''Ultimate'', and Terry Bogard of ''VideoGame/FatalFury''/''The King Of Fighters'' fame joining ''Ultimate'' as DLC. Additionally, the RunningGag of fighters like [[VideoGame/AnimalCrossing Villager, Isabelle]], and [[VideoGame/Persona5 Joker]] receiving wax-sealed envelopes as invites to ''Smash'' is a ShoutOut to ''The King of Fighters'', where [[BigBad Rugal Bernstein]] does the same exact thing. It came full circle with Terry's reveal trailer, which imitated the intro to ''The King of Fighters'', and featured a number of different Creator/{{SNK}} characters fighting for the envelope.

** Of ''Franchise/StreetFighter'' and ''VideoGame/TheKingOfFighters''. Sakurai has said that back in TheNineties, he would do things like achieving a ''fifty-win streak'' in ''Street Fighter II'', and that he was good enough at ''The King of Fighters'' that he ended up kicking the asses of a young couple on a date night at the arcade, albeit unintentionally. It is the latter event that influenced him to create a fighting game that would be accessible to casual players (as both ''Street Fighter II'' and ''The King of Fighters'' are known for their utilization of command inputs), which ended up being ''Super Smash Bros''. Sixteen years after [[VideoGame/SuperSmashBros64 the original game]], Sakurai got to add Ryu in ''VideoGame/SuperSmashBrosFor3DSAndWiiU'', with Ken arriving as an [[MovesetClone echo fighter of Ryu]] in ''Ultimate'', and Terry Bogard of ''VideoGame/FatalFury''/''The King Of Fighters'' fame joining ''Ultimate'' as DLC. Additionally, the RunningGag of fighters like [[VideoGame/AnimalCrossing Villager, Isabelle]], and [[VideoGame/Persona5 Joker]] receiving wax-sealed envelopes as invites to ''Smash'' is a ShoutOut to ''The King of Fighters'', where [[BigBad Rugal Bernstein]] does the same exact thing. It came full circle with Terry's reveal trailer, which imitated the intro to ''The King of Fighters'', and featured a number of different Creator/{{SNK}} characters fighting for the envelope.

Sometime after the development of ''VideoGame/KirbySuperStar'', Sakurai wanted to make a fighting game. It was developed again by HAL Laboratory, but during their spare time, with a [[NoBudget shockingly small budget]]. He wanted to make it different from the others; not with combo based combat, and with simultaneous four player gameplay. Originally called ''Kakuto-Gemu Ryuo''[[note]]Dragon King: The Fighting Game[[/note]], he felt it was somewhat bland. However, he added in characters from various Nintendo franchises, and the game was released as ''VideoGame/SuperSmashBros'' in 1999. The game was a SleeperHit, and the game intended [[NoExportForYou not to even leave Japan's shores]] was localized, where it also did well. Over the following few years, Sakurai made ''Super Smash Bros. Melee'' before his resignation, which he stated was due to [[{{Sequelitis}} HAL Laboratory continually making sequels]]. It looked as though he wouldn't make another game in the series, forming his own company, Sora Ltd., and working on original titles, such as ''VideoGame/{{Meteos}}'', until he was approached by his good friend and president of Nintendo, Creator/SatoruIwata, who persuaded him to make ''VideoGame/SuperSmashBros Brawl''. During development, characters, items, and stages were posted on [[http://www.smashbros.com/en_us/index.html the official website,]] leading to fans eagerly awaiting possible character reveals. The event was dubbed "Japan Time" by fans and remains one of many fans' most memorable times.

** Special mention goes to ''VideoGame/SuperSmashBrosUltimate'', where the character he chose for early-adopter bonus DLC wasn't a highly-anticipated big-name hero nor a highly-requested fighter, but Piranha Plant from ''Mario Bros.''
*** The [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ANutje9nHAE reveal trailer]] for the long-anticipated announcement of [[VideoGame/DonkeyKongCountry King K. Rool]] started with a silhouette of the character... only to be revealed as [[VideoGame/{{Kirby}} King Dedede]] trolling the Kongs. Six months later, the [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=I67pPXS96UI reveal trailer for Banjo-Kazooie]] uses the ''exact same gag,'' with the VideoGame/DuckHunt Dog and Duck as the trolls.

*** The [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ANutje9nHAE reveal trailer]] for the long-anticipated announcement of [[VideoGame/DonkeyKongCountry King K. Rool]] started with a silhouette of the character... only to be revealed as [[VideoGame/{{Kirby}} King Deedeedee]] trolling the Kongs. Six months later, the [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=I67pPXS96UI reveal trailer for Banjo-Kazooie]] uses the ''exact same gag,'' with the VideoGame/DuckHunt Dog and Duck as the trolls.

*** The [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ANutje9nHAE reveal trailer]] for the long-anticipated announcement of [[VideoGames/DonkeyKongCountry King K. Rool]] started with a silhouette of the character... only to be revealed as [[VideoGame/{{Kirby}} King Deedeedee]] trolling the Kongs. Six months later, the [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=I67pPXS96UI reveal trailer for Banjo-Kazooie]] uses the ''exact same gag,'' with the VideoGame/DuckHunt Dog and Duck as the trolls.

Masahiro Sakurai (born August 3, 1970), head of Sora Ltd., and creator of both the ''Franchise/{{Kirby}}'' and ''VideoGame/SuperSmashBros'' series. He created Kirby under Creator/HALLaboratory when he was only 19 years old. Seeing how it was the nineties, and most of Nintendo's games [[NintendoHard were infamous for their difficulty]], Sakurai designed the original ''VideoGame/KirbysDreamLand'' to be relatively easy so players wouldn't be alienated by the game being too hard. He directed a number of ''Kirby'' titles from there, playing a smaller and smaller role in development as time went on, culminating in him [[DescendedCreator simply voicing King Dedede]] in ''VideoGame/Kirby64TheCrystalShards''. He worked closely with the staff for the series' anime, ''Anime/KirbyOfTheStars'', and he also worked as the designer on ''Kirby Air Ride'', which was his final game in the series.

At E3 2011 it was announced that Sakurai would be developing two new ''Super Smash Bros.'' games, one for the UsefulNotes/WiiU and one for the 3DS. Although he was uncomfortable with announcing a game before development had ''even started''[[note]]he said he wouldn't start on the games until his work on ''Uprising'' was finished, which was around February 2012[[/note]], but it allowed staff to be recruited. Around summer 2012, it was announced the game would be [[http://www.siliconera.com/2012/06/21/super-smash-bros-3ds-and-wii-u-being-developed-by-tales-soulcalibur-tekken-staff/ produced by a joint effort between]] Sora Ltd. and Creator/BandaiNamcoEntertainment.

** Of ''Manga/JoJosBizarreAdventure''; he's listed ''[[Manga/JojosBizarreAdventureBattleTendency Battle Tendency]]'' as his favorite arc in the series, and even [[http://i0.wp.com/sourcegaming.info/wp-content/uploads/2016/04/Screen-Shot-2016-03-12-at-3.48.43-PM.png?w=192 mimicked]] the MemeticHandGesture commonly used throughout the series during an interview in 2006. His fondness of the series even led to a few [[ShoutOut shoutouts]] to it in promotional material for ''[[VideoGame/SuperSmashBros Super Smash Bros. 4]]''.

** The ''VideoGame/SuperSmashBros'' community call him "Daddy Sakurai".

* SignatureStyle: He's developed a set of game features that are commonly associated with his games:

** Also note the presence of large, colorful buttons on his more recent main menus. ''[[http://assets1.ignimgs.com/2005/06/21/meteos-20050621010915971-1156600_640w.jpg Meteos]]'', ''[[http://www.mobygames.com/images/shots/l/289612-super-smash-bros-brawl-wii-screenshot-the-main-menus.jpg Super Smash Bros. Brawl]]'', ''[[http://lparchive.org/Kid-Icarus-Uprising/Tutorial/1-00000.png Kid Icarus: Uprising]]'', and ''[[http://lightningamer.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/07/Super-Smash-Bros-4-3DS-1-jpg.jpg Super Smash Bros. for Nintendo 3DS]]'' all feature screen-filling, multicolored buttons designed by his wife, Michiko.

** It should be noted that, objectively, [[https://www.sourcegaming.info/2016/01/06/is-sakurai-a-liar/ Sakurai has almost never been outright deceptive]]. The Zero Suit Samus quote above was the only time he's stated something false to get a reaction - and even then, he came clean seconds later. Despite Sakurai's reputation as a troll, he's usually more coy than outright manipulative.

** ''VideoGame/SuperSmashBros64'' ([[CaptainObvious Nintendo 64]])

** ''VideoGame/SuperSmashBrosForNintendo3DSAndWiiU'' (UsefulNotes/Nintendo3DS [[CaptainObvious and]] UsefulNotes/WiiU)

** Of ''VideoGame/Persona5''. [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E7q81s5RyOM During an interview with Atlus]], he stated that he found the game to be "something truly remarkable", praising the game for its dynamic user interface in particular. Sakurai also mentioned that, despite his own heavy schedule, he played through the entire game while attempting OneHundredPercentCompletion.[[note]]He almost succeeded, managing to get his RelationshipValues to maximum with every Confidant except one - Yusuke.[[/note]]

* BigNameFan: Of ''Manga/JoJosBizarreAdventure''; he's listed ''[[Manga/JojosBizarreAdventureBattleTendency Battle Tendency]]'' as his favorite arc in the series, and even [[http://i0.wp.com/sourcegaming.info/wp-content/uploads/2016/04/Screen-Shot-2016-03-12-at-3.48.43-PM.png?w=192 mimicked]] the MemeticHandGesture commonly used throughout the series during an interview in 2006. His fondness of the series even led to a few [[ShoutOut shoutouts]] to it in promotional material for ''[[VideoGame/SuperSmashBros Super Smash Bros. 4]]''.

** Jokingly-created [[LadyMondegreen Mondegreens]] of his actual name, such as "Mashpotato Samurai" and "Massive Hero Soccer Guy".

* TrollingCreator: Almost as bad as fellow developer Creator/HideoKojima. This tends to show up especially in stuff involving ''VideoGame/SuperSmashBros'', being rather aware of fan speculation, and using that to mess with fans. For example, for ''Super Smash Bros. Wii U/3DS'', he teased both fan favorite [[Franchise/{{Metroid}} Ridley]] and the supposedly leaked [[VideoGame/KidIcarus Palutena]] several times in a very self-aware fashion, never doing reveals that outright confirmed or denied their playable presence for a long time.
** It should be noted that objectively [[https://www.sourcegaming.info/2016/01/06/is-sakurai-a-liar/ he's almost never been outright deceptive]], the Zero Suit Samus quote above being the only time he's stated something false to get a reaction - and he came clean seconds later. Despite his reputation, he's usually more coy than outright manipulative.
** Special mention goes to ''VideoGame/SuperSmashBrosUltimate'', where the character he chose for early-adopter bonus DLC wasn't a highly-anticipated big-name hero nor a highly-requested fighter, but a ''potted plant''.[[labelnote:Specifically]]A Piranha Plant from ''Mario Bros.''[[/labelnote]]
* {{Workaholic}}: Development for the ''Super Smash Bros.'' series alone has him burning the midnight oil. He and his team developed the first game as a side project while doing other full-time work, which required them to come in on evenings and weekends to get it done. Even after the game was a success and got a sequel with a proper budget and development schedule, he still rushed to develop ''Melee'' in just over a year to release it close to the [=GameCube's=] launch. He worked dilligently on ''Smash 4'' despite developing tendonitis in his right arm that made it difficult and painful for him to do his work. He's also returned to direct each new game in the series so far despite saying multiple times that the current game he's working on would be his last due to the heavy workload. He even [[LampshadeHanging lampshades]] this in the [[https://youtu.be/fccgHnBQ0YM?t=1899 11.1.2018 Smash Direct video.]]

* BigNameFan: Of ''Manga/JoJosBizarreAdventure''; he's listed "Battle Tendency" as his favorite arc in the series, and even [[http://i0.wp.com/sourcegaming.info/wp-content/uploads/2016/04/Screen-Shot-2016-03-12-at-3.48.43-PM.png?w=192 mimicked]] the MemeticHandGesture commonly used throughout the series during an interview in 2006. His fondness of the series even led to a few [[ShoutOut shoutouts]] to it in promotional material for ''[[VideoGame/SuperSmashBros Super Smash Bros. 4]]''.

** Also note the presence of large, colorful buttons on his more recent main menus. [[http://assets1.ignimgs.com/2005/06/21/meteos-20050621010915971-1156600_640w.jpg Meteos]], [[http://www.mobygames.com/images/shots/l/289612-super-smash-bros-brawl-wii-screenshot-the-main-menus.jpg Super Smash Bros. Brawl]], [[http://lparchive.org/Kid-Icarus-Uprising/Tutorial/1-00000.png Kid Icarus: Uprising]], and [[http://lightningamer.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/07/Super-Smash-Bros-4-3DS-1-jpg.jpg Super Smash Bros. for Nintendo 3DS]] all feature screen-filling, multicolored buttons designed by his wife, Michiko.

** Special mention goes to ''VideoGame/SuperSmashBrosUltimate'', where the character he chose for early-adopter bonus DLC wasn't a highly-anticipated big-name hero, but a ''potted plant''.[[labelnote:Specifically]]A Piranha Plant from ''Mario Bros.''[[/labelnote]]

[[quoteright:350:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/1c4bf0c6_81d8_4834_926f_6fba4106b328.jpeg]]

[[quoteright:325:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/Sakurai_745.jpg]]

** DynamicDifficulty: First used in ''VideoGame/KidIcarusUprising'' then later implemented in ''VideoGame/SuperSmashBros for Wii U / Nintendo 3DS'', players wager in-game currency to increase the difficulty and [[HardModePerks the value of potential rewards]]. Failure will lower the difficulty and the reward value, and the player loses part of the wager. There are also special areas that require a minimum difficulty level to enter.

** A staple of his earlier games like ''Kirby'' and ''Super Smash Bros.'' is that they're designed to be more beginner-friendly than their genres were usually known for at the time. ''Kirby'' got around PlatformHell by letting the protagonist fly, and ''Super Smash Bros.'' averted complicated button inputs frequent in FightingGames by making all special moves into simple "direction + button" inputs.

->''"Nah, I'm only kidding."''

* {{Workaholic}}: Development for the ''Super Smash Bros.'' series alone has him burning the midnight oil. He rushed to develop ''Melee'' in just over a year to release it close to the [=GameCube's=] launch. He worked dilligently on ''Smash 4'' despite developing tendonitis in his right arm that made it difficult and painful for him to do his work. He's also returned to direct each new game in the series so far despite saying multiple times that the current game he's working on would be his last due to the heavy workload. He even [[LampshadeHanging lampshades]] this in the [[https://youtu.be/fccgHnBQ0YM?t=1899 11.1.2018 Smash Direct video.]]

* {{Workaholic}}: Development for the ''Super Smash Bros.'' series alone has him burning the midnight oil. He rushed to develop ''Melee'' in just over a year to release it close to the [=GameCube's=] launch. He worked dilligently on ''Smash 4'' despite developing tendonitis in his right arm that made it difficult and painful for him to do his work. He's also returned to develop each new game in the series so far despite saying multiple times that the current game he's working on be his last due to the heavy workload. He even [[LampshadeHanging lampshades]] this in the [[https://youtu.be/fccgHnBQ0YM?t=1899 11.1.2018 Smash Direct video.]]

* {{Workaholic}}: Development for the ''Super Smash Bros.'' series alone has him burning the midnight oil. He even [[LampshadeHanging lampshades]] this in the [[https://youtu.be/fccgHnBQ0YM?t=1899 11.1.2018 Smash Direct video]].