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Channel description of his YouTube channel.
Channel profile picture, shared as his Twitter account.
Masahiro Sakurai on Creating Games is a YouTube channel created and owned by Kirby and Super Smash Bros. series creator Masahiro Sakurai. The channel is available in both English and Japanese. On August 23, 2022, Sakurai launched his channel on game design for aspiring game creators. The opening and ending jingles for the channel were composed by Yūzō Koshiro.
On January 9, 2024, he announced in a YouTube community post he was planning to wrap up Masahiro Sakurai on Creating Games sometime in 2024. On June 15, 2024, he announced on Twitter he recorded the final episode of the channel, though it would not be released yet. The final episode will be uploaded on October 15 of the same year, along with a "special final video" concluding the channel on October 22. His second-to-last video was dedicated to Satoru Iwata. Additionally, he revealed that he had written and prerecorded all its videos months before the launch of the channel beginning immediately after the release of Sora in Super Smash Bros. Ultimate. Sakurai wrote and pre-recorded all videos before starting work on a new development project in April 2022, and contracted Hike Inc. for editing and 8-4 for English localization. Sakurai estimates that the total production cost was ¥90,000,000.
Background[]
According to Sakurai, the channel's videos will be focused on "topics like game development and what makes games fun", as well as discussing his history as a game designer and director. Sakurai's channel also covers all the games that he directed such as Kirby's Dream Land and Kirby's Adventure. He also stated that the channel was founded because he wanted to reach more people with his lessons after being asked to lecture at schools. Sakurai additionally noted that other venues for game design lessons from game developers, such as the Game Developer's Conference, focused on more advanced, technical details, rather than more basic principles. Less than 24 hours after its launch, the English edition of his channel gained over 200,000 subscribers. Since then, he has discussed topics such as "risk and reward", frame rates, lighting, and more. In 2023, the Computer Entertainment Supplier's Association announced that Sakurai had won the Game Design and Visual Arts awards for his channel. The association cited his efforts to share his knowledge in an easily understood manner.
Videos[]
The videos are divided into multiple categories:
- A: Work Ethic — videos about the industry itself, generally giving advice as to how to work in a game design studio and how to present one's ideas.
- B: Game Essence — videos about game theory and concepts that all video games should employ, such as the risk-reward factor and the release of tension a player gets by winning.
- C: Planning & Game Design — videos about game ideas and mechanics, and how a designer should implement them into their game.
- D: Design Specifics — videos about the thinking behind some of the smaller details of a game, such as visual effects or ways to give the player feedback.
- E: Team Management — videos about how to effectively manage game development among an entire development team and properly communicate with them.
- F: Graphics — videos about graphical fidelity, ways to implement effects, and tips on how to get the most out of a game's appearance.
- G: Animation — videos about the way things move on the screen, such as the player character's actions or idle animations.
- H: Effects — videos about the way that effects work, how they can be used, and ways to make sure that they show what a designer wants the effects to show.
- I: Audio — videos about how sound design is incorporated into a video game and the overall effect it has on the experience.
- J: UI — videos about user interfaces, and how to effectively display information to the player.
- K: Programming & Tech — videos about subjects that revolve around technical interfacing with computers, such as file organization.
- L: Marketing — videos about ways to effectively advertise your game to consumers before and after release.
- M: Grab Bag — videos about things that don't neatly fit into any other category, such as ways to reduce input lag or game award shows.
- N: Game Concepts — videos about how Sakurai came up with the ideas for each of his games.
- S: Special — videos that feature unique content beyond the scope of other videos, such as Crossovers.
- Z: About — videos that explain what the channel is about, or about Sakurai's own personal history.