Dear Reader:
Yoshiaki Kozumi AMA - Super Mario Odyssey HD rumble, possession mechanic, Pauline returning & more
Coming from a Reddit AMA with Yoshiaki Koizumi...
On how the Mario possession mechanic came to be
So when we wanted to create Mario games this time around we wanted to focus on the actions Mario can do and in previous Mario games he was able to get power-ups and new abilities. But this time around when we were making many different prototypes and changed our approach that found capturing or "possessing" enemies worked well so we stuck with that.
Favorite Mario profession
Plumber Mario.
Favorite Mario posession
Dinosaur!
HD Rumble integration in Super Mario Odyssey
We're working on lots of different HD Rumble integration, but on the showfloor players can feel the scooters rumble when you're driving that.
On why Pauline is returning
When we were deciding which Kingdoms to have in the game, we knew we wanted the city environment, and we wanted something that would have resonance with players. We knew that players know Pauline so we of course wanted to make her the mayor of New Donk City. It's important to note that thought they are called Kingdoms, they do not necessarily have royalty, and that's why she's the mayor.
The inspiration for Cappy
One of the reasons for making the hat into a character is that it gave us the opportunity to give people an attachment for somthing that's personal for us. You can talk to and experience your journey with Cappie, similar to Na'vi in Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time and making this character relatable was important to us.
How he became a game dev
I wasn't always a game developer, I actually stated out as an artist, and did images that are in manuals. One day I had a manual that didn't have instructions for what should be in it so I went to check with the development team and next think I knew I was working on a Zelda game.
The best part of his job
One of the biggest is working on the characters that appear in games, knowing how players will identify with them, and thinking of things like how high will they jump, how quickly will they walk, and thinking about what would be the most appropriate in each case.
How New Donk City came to be
The city was one of many experiments when we were first making the game, and it was very interesting. Especially with how strange it looks to have Mario exploring the city environment.
What he enjoys about video games
They are both really fun, but in terms of how we view it they're not seperate. You have to look at how people see your games.
On a hobby outside of gaming
I've been practicing my hand pour-over-coffee technique. I'm very particular about my coffee. I buy my beans, I grind them. I weigh the grounds and measures the volume of water. The water cannot be too hot unless the coffee will become bitter, so I like to pour over using a long stemmed pouring kettle. It has to have a long, narrow pouring spout or too much water will come out at once. The whole thing has become a ritual for me, I really enjoy the good smell of the coffee as I make it.
On the existence of dev team rivalries within Nintendo
Because I am responsible for both the Mario and Zelda teams, I don't feel a sense of rivalry. As far as Mr. Aonuma, we don't have a rivalry at all. I'm very happy with what he's doing and I hope he continues working hard.
On his favorite Kingdom in Super Mario Odyssey
I think that would have to be New Donk City for me.
His favorite Zelda game to work on
Ocarina of Time. It was a lot of fun to work on, and perhaps the reason it stayed with me is that we had to start from zero to make that game.
The most exciting moment of his career
Each release of a game that I have worked on has been really exciting for me. I always try to take note of people's reactions. In the time before social media, I used to go to game shops directly so I could see people's reactions when a game hits their hands.
The biggest challenge of Super Mario Odyssey's development
Biggest challenge has been that since it's 15 years since the last time we made a sandbox style Mario game, it felt completely different and new to come up with ideas that would work there. We had a lot of debate to decide if people would accept this kind of playstyle again. That was probably the biggest challenge for us.
On creating the theme song for Super Mario Odyssey
As we were developing Pauline more as a character, we know that she was going to be interested in jazz. It was interesting for us to have the first song in a Mario game with vocals. Have you guys been finding yourself singing it?
On Mario's favorite vegetable
s a mushroom a vegitable? If not that, then I suppose it would be a turnip.
Favorite amiibo
I think that would have to be Rosalina.
How Switch's portable nature impacted development of Super Mario Odyssey
I think this is also true of Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild, we wanted to make sure you could have a fun experience with the game even if you only had a short time to play. If you're out on a journey of your own, handheld mode will help you play and have fun experience. Just be careful that you're not too into playing and miss your bus stop.
What he would do if he had Mario's hat throwing/possession ability
Since I'm already so good at doing my impressions of him, I would throw my hat at Shigeru Miyamoto. I would go around all day pretending to be him.
On whether Luigi will appear in Super Mario Odyssey
I hope you look forward to hearing more about that.
Why moons are the collectible item in Super Mario Odyssey
Stars have had their chance, and we've grabbed Shines before, so i thought it was time we gave Moons a chance.
Advice for aspiring game devs
I think one of the best things that you can do would be to expose yourself to other kinds of play, not just video games. It will give you a well rounded sense of the ideas that go around the concept of play.