Masahiro Sakurai Starts a YouTube Channel

Masahiro Sakurai, best known as a key creator behind Kirby and Super Smash Bros., has a new way to reach his audience. After posting his last regular screenshot from Super Smash Bros. Ultimate yesterday, he revealed his next step: YouTube. Sakurai calls his new channel “Masahiro Sakurai on Creating Games”, and plans to use it to post educational content about game development.

Check out his video introducing the Masahiro Sakurai Youtube channel. It features English subtitles and a format quite similar to his Super Smash Bros. Ultimate video appearances. You can see the Japanese edition of the channel at this link.

According to the intro, Sakurai intends to use the channel to talk about topics related to game design and game development. He mentioned that he’s often asked to give lectures, and speak at conferences. However, he feels like he could do more by speaking to a wider audience, one that doesn’t have as much technical experience or formal education in game development. He wants to show footage from various games, but wants to “focus on the classics” to keep things simple. He’s also received clearance from Nintendo to show off footage from development builds and design notes for Super Smash Bros. 

Sakurai was quick to stress that the YouTube channel is not related to Nintendo. It’s a personal project, one that he does not intend to profit off of via video monetization or subscriptions. He said that he considers the project “an investment” in the future of the game industry.

Currently three videos are on the channel, including the introduction. One is a short roundup of games he’s worked on, and another is the first lecture, a brief explanation of “hit stop” effects. Hit stops are the brief pauses in animation or motion that accompany powerful attacks or defeats to emphasize their impact.

The Masahiro Sakurai on Creating Games channel is now open on YouTube.