美国国家公共电台 NPR--Nintendo's Miyamoto says inspiration comes from his childhood experiences in nature

Nintendo's Miyamoto says inspiration comes from his childhood experiences in nature

Transcript¹

NPR's A Martinez speaks to Nintendo game director Shigeru Miyamoto about the ways in which his games have engaged players for more than 30 years.

A MART?NEZ, HOST:

A new experience at Universal Studios Hollywood takes you inside one of the world's most beloved video game franchises², Mario Brothers. During a sneak³ preview of Super Nintendo World, I took a spin on the new Mario Kart ride.

So the steering⁴ wheel has little buttons. I'm just shooting randomly⁵, trying to score as many points as possible. And now it looks like we're going to really enter Mario Kart. We are.

The ride whirls you through vibrant⁶ Mario Brothers landscapes and propels you toward adversaries⁷ that are all very familiar to gamers.

All right. Now we're entering - could this be a castle of some kind? It looks like it. Ooh, is that Bowser? I whizzed past symbols of the game, such as coins, stars and mushrooms.

I remember the plant with the teeth, like a Venus flytrap, inside the video game. And that's what we're trying to avoid. Yep.

The colors and textures⁸ are meant to make riders feel like they're inside an animated⁹ video game.

Mario Kart at Universal Studios definitely attacks your senses, but it is fun.

The person who made it possible is Nintendo's game director, Shigeru Miyamoto. He's the creator of some of the most influential¹⁰ and bestselling games in the industry. In addition to Mario Brothers, you got Donkey Kong and the Legend of Zelda. He joined Nintendo straight out of art school in 1977 and says a lot of his inspiration comes from his childhood experiences in nature. I sat down with Miyamoto to learn more about why his characters and games have had such a lasting¹¹ impact.

When it comes to Mario, what do you think accounts for his ability to just be in the hearts of so many people?

SHIGERU MIYAMOTO: (Through interpreter) You know, before, when I was asked this question, I thought that it's perhaps because the game sold well. And a lot of people have this experience of playing this game and playing it over and over, that it becomes commonplace for them. But now I feel that it's a little bit different in that Mario is kind of like a - your avatar or the person that represents you in this world. And that experience is, you know, because it's been around for so long, an experience that can be shared multi-generations, you know? A father and their children can share that experience.

And I really think another factor is the fact that Mario was created as a character within an interactive¹² medium. So for example, if I maybe, you know, drew Mario as a comic book character, I don't think he would have had this much staying power. You know, there was a time when people might have compared Mario with Mickey Mouse. And, you know, Mickey Mouse is a character that was born, you know, 50 years before my time and was obviously still around in my generation. And I really felt like Mickey Mouse as a character grew alongside the medium of animation¹³. And in that same vein¹⁴, I feel that Mario is growing alongside this digital medium.

MART?NEZ: My granddaughter is 13 years old. She's half-Japanese. And she told me about a word that she wanted me to ask you about, kyokan - feel one with is what she told me. She wanted me to ask you how that feeling and that word is integrated in the things you create.

MIYAMOTO: (Through interpreter) So that is actually a very important word for me as well. So as creators, we have an image of what we want to create. But at the same time, I also make sure that I try to put myself in the player's shoes or the other person's shoes and try to kind of really understand - what would they want to do, what would they feel in this situation? - and to be able to understand it. I think the idea to be understood really goes a long way in helping¹⁵ the player or the person experiencing this kind of have their imagination take over a big part of this. And so that's why I think doing those monitor tests and really getting the reaction of people who are experiencing things for the first time is really important.

MART?NEZ: Is that why your games have had so much staying power?

MIYAMOTO: (Through interpreter) Yes, I think that's true. I think that it's important to be - to make a game such that it's really simple to start and enter. But then, for people who are really looking for depth, we provide that depth if they are searching for that. That's something that's really important for us.

MART?NEZ: Whether it's an adult or a child, is too much video game playing bad?

MIYAMOTO: (Through interpreter) I don't think it's bad. But only doing video games I don't think is a very good idea. I've been seeing this before, too, you know? So I always say, if it's really nice outside, you should go play outside. And I tell that to people who want to be game designers as well, you know? If it's a nice day, you know, go experience outside, because really, I think there's an important factor that it's your personal experience. Then when it links with the experience you're having with this virtual entertainment, that's when the joy, the fun factor, really explodes exponentially. And so I think it's really important to get a lot of different life experiences for both the people who are creating the games as well as people who are playing the games so they can really be able to fully¹⁶ enjoy the whole experience.

MART?NEZ: One day, Nintendo will be existing without you. What do you think Nintendo will be like without you?

MIYAMOTO: (Through interpreter) You know, I really feel like it's not going to change. It's probably going to be the same. There's, you know, people on the executive team, creators within the company and also people who create Mario, they all have this sense of what it means to be Nintendo. And so it's not like there's a lot of different opinions that go back and forth¹⁷. Everyone has an understanding, this kind of shared understanding, of what it is to be Nintendo. And so even when there's new ideas that come up, there's always the fact that it's a new idea, but also the fact that, is it a new idea that really has the essence of Nintendo or not? And I think that's something that, you know - we have this incredible shared vision, almost a little scary shared vision, about this. So I think there won't - it's not going to change.

MART?NEZ: Let me bring up a scenario¹⁸. If the time comes where you are leaving this Earth but you could choose any one of the worlds that you have created to live in for eternity¹⁹, which world do you choose?

MIYAMOTO: (Through interpreter) So I really love the work environment that I'm in because I get to engage in so many different things. So it'd be great if, you know, I could be in an environment where I can change the kind of work I do all the time. So I think it might just be my desk or my bathtub.

(LAUGHTER)

MART?NEZ: Well, thank you very much for your time. Thanks for having us out here.

MIYAMOTO: Thank you very much.

(SOUNDBITE OF MUSIC)

MART?NEZ: Nintendo game director Shigeru Miyamoto.

(SOUNDBITE OF MUSIC)

MART?NEZ: So Leila, when Miyamoto was making Mario's face, did you know that he had to draw a moustache because otherwise you couldn't tell where his nose ended?

LEILA FADEL, HOST:

Oh, no. Really?

MART?NEZ: Oh, yeah. Absolutely. There's a reason not to shave your mustache.

FADEL: This explains a lot.

1 transcript   

n.抄本，誊本，副本，肄业证书

参考例句：

• A transcript of the tapes was presented as evidence in court.一份录音带的文字本作为证据被呈交法庭。
• They wouldn't let me have a transcript of the interview.他们拒绝给我一份采访的文字整理稿。

2 franchises   

n.（尤指选举议员的）选举权( franchise的名词复数 )；参政权；获特许权的商业机构（或服务）；（公司授予的）特许经销权v.给…以特许权，出售特许权( franchise的第三人称单数 )

参考例句：

• TV franchises will be auctioned to the highest bidder. 电视特许经营权将拍卖给出价最高的投标人。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• Ford dealerships operated as independent franchises. 福特汽车公司的代销商都是独立的联营商。 来自辞典例句

3 sneak   

vt.潜行(隐藏,填石缝)；偷偷摸摸做；n.潜行；adj.暗中进行

参考例句：

• He raised his spear and sneak forward.他提起长矛悄悄地前进。
• I saw him sneak away from us.我看见他悄悄地从我们身边走开。

4 steering   

n.操舵装置

参考例句：

• He beat his hands on the steering wheel in frustration. 他沮丧地用手打了几下方向盘。
• Steering according to the wind, he also framed his words more amicably. 他真会看风使舵，口吻也马上变得温和了。

5 randomly   

adv.随便地，未加计划地

参考例句：

• Within the hot gas chamber, molecules are moving randomly in all directions. 在灼热的气体燃烧室内，分子在各个方向上作无规运动。 来自辞典例句
• Transformed cells are loosely attached, rounded and randomly oriented. 转化细胞则不大贴壁、圆缩并呈杂乱分布。 来自辞典例句

6 vibrant   

adj.震颤的，响亮的，充满活力的，精力充沛的，(色彩)鲜明的

参考例句：

• He always uses vibrant colours in his paintings. 他在画中总是使用鲜明的色彩。
• She gave a vibrant performance in the leading role in the school play.她在学校表演中生气盎然地扮演了主角。

7 adversaries   

n.对手，敌手( adversary的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• That would cause potential adversaries to recoil from a challenge. 这会迫使潜在的敌人在挑战面前退缩。 来自辞典例句
• Every adversaries are more comfortable with a predictable, coherent America. 就连敌人也会因有可以预料的，始终一致的美国而感到舒服得多。 来自辞典例句

8 textures   

n.手感( texture的名词复数 )；质感；口感；（音乐或文学的）谐和统一感

参考例句：

• I'm crazy about fabrics textures and colors and designs. 我喜欢各式各样的纺织物--对它的质地，色彩到花纹图案--简直是入了迷。 来自辞典例句
• Let me clear up the point about the textures. 让我明确了一点有关的纹理。 来自互联网

9 animated   

adj.生气勃勃的，活跃的，愉快的

参考例句：

• His observations gave rise to an animated and lively discussion.他的言论引起了一场气氛热烈而活跃的讨论。
• We had an animated discussion over current events last evening.昨天晚上我们热烈地讨论时事。

10 influential   

adj.有影响的，有权势的

参考例句：

• He always tries to get in with the most influential people.他总是试图巴结最有影响的人物。
• He is a very influential man in the government.他在政府中是个很有影响的人物。

11 lasting   

adj.永久的，永恒的；vbl.持续，维持

参考例句：

• The lasting war debased the value of the dollar.持久的战争使美元贬值。
• We hope for a lasting settlement of all these troubles.我们希望这些纠纷能获得永久的解决。

12 interactive   

adj.相互作用的，互相影响的，（电脑）交互的

参考例句：

• The psychotherapy is carried out in small interactive groups.这种心理治疗是在互动的小组之间进行的。
• This will make videogames more interactive than ever.这将使电子游戏的互动性更胜以往。

13 animation   

n.活泼，兴奋，卡通片／动画片的制作

参考例句：

• They are full of animation as they talked about their childhood.当他们谈及童年的往事时都非常兴奋。
• The animation of China made a great progress.中国的卡通片制作取得很大发展。

14 vein   

n.血管，静脉；叶脉，纹理；情绪；vt.使成脉络

参考例句：

• The girl is not in the vein for singing today.那女孩今天没有心情唱歌。
• The doctor injects glucose into the patient's vein.医生把葡萄糖注射入病人的静脉。

15 helping   

n.食物的一份&adj.帮助人的，辅助的

参考例句：

• The poor children regularly pony up for a second helping of my hamburger. 那些可怜的孩子们总是要求我把我的汉堡包再给他们一份。
• By doing this, they may at times be helping to restore competition. 这样一来, 他在某些时候,有助于竞争的加强。

16 fully   

adv.完全地，全部地，彻底地；充分地

参考例句：

• The doctor asked me to breathe in,then to breathe out fully.医生让我先吸气，然后全部呼出。
• They soon became fully integrated into the local community.他们很快就完全融入了当地人的圈子。

17 forth   

adv.向前；向外，往外

参考例句：

• The wind moved the trees gently back and forth.风吹得树轻轻地来回摇晃。
• He gave forth a series of works in rapid succession.他很快连续发表了一系列的作品。

18 scenario   

n.剧本，脚本；概要

参考例句：

• But the birth scenario is not completely accurate.然而分娩脚本并非完全准确的。
• This is a totally different scenario.这是完全不同的剧本。

19 eternity   

n.不朽，来世；永恒，无穷

参考例句：

• The dull play seemed to last an eternity.这场乏味的剧似乎演个没完没了。
• Finally,Ying Tai and Shan Bo could be together for all of eternity.英台和山伯终能双宿双飞，永世相随。