Interview with President of Nintendo Reveals Plan to Experiment with More IPs and More Fun

A new interview with President of Nintendo Shuntaro Furukawa was published today in Time magazine, which reveals some of the philosophy behind their latest developments and game choices. 

“Above all else, I base my decisions on the development leader’s way of thinking,” says Furukawa in a rare interview with Western media, and who spoke with TIME mostly through a translator provided by the company. “Nintendo is Nintendo because of our games, characters and IP. So giving our teams the freedom to experiment with new ideas is something I strongly agree with. Expansion can’t happen without the freedom to try something new, and the courage to step into unfamiliar territory.”

The article goes on to mention the tumultuous times experience by the company less than half a decade ago, when their flagship console was the Wii U. The company being in "dire straights" eventually came to be back on top with the advent of Pokemon GO in 2016, and the Nintendo Switch less than a year later. 

The company's turnaround is easily attributed to the wide range of IPs represented by the Kyoto-based company; Pokemon is the single biggest media franchise in the world, and the Nintendo Switch launched with The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild, one of the most well regarded games of 2017. And both of these series have a history that spans over 20 years.

Harnessing the power of the latest tech trends is something that Nintendo is dedicated to going forward. And above all, Nintendo means to represent their games as beacons of quality. 

“Not just streaming, but any kind of new technology, whether that is going to be appealing to the consumer or not really depends on the quality of the experience that we can provide,” says Furukawa. “Nintendo continues to search for new ways to enhance the fun that people can have through their gaming experience.”

Looking at the release of Pokemon Masters, a game with a lot of polish but lacking in substance, it's apparent that this way of thinking still has a bit to go. It remains to be seen where Nintendo's mobile ambitions will land going forward, but for Furukawa, it seems the future will be fun, engaging, and evolving.