Nintendo allegedly let Masahiro Sakurai work on his passion project, Kirby Air Riders, in order to convince him to direct another Smash Bros.
Game developer interviewer Reece Reilly took to Twitter/X to share the reason why Masahiro Sakurai is working on Kirby Air Riders instead of a new Super Smash Bros game. The upcoming Kirby title is said to be Sakurai’s passion. He was burned out from constantly working on Super Smash Bros title since 2012, so Nintendo offered him a negotiating tactic in order to get him onboard for another entry in the crossover fighting game series. Reilly clarified that this isn’t speculation on his part and is based on what he’s heard from his sources.
As for whether a new Super Smash Bros game is currently in development, Reilly believes it is unlikely. Though, he didn’t rule out the possibility of Bandai Namco doing pre-production. He mentioned that Sakurai is highly instrumental in planning out Super Smash Bros projects, especially with regards to third-party negotiations, thanks in part to the level of respect and clout he has in the industry. For Nintendo, Sakurai is an irreplaceable member of the crossover fighting game series’ development team.
During a recent interview, Sakurai said that if it weren’t for Iwata, he may not have joined HAL Laboratory in the first place. Furthermore, he mentioned that if Iwata hadn’t made the initial prototype for Smash Bros, the series may not have even existed. He also revealed that if Iwata hadn’t asked him to make Super Smash Bros Brawl after he had left HAL Laboratory, the series would likely have died out. As such, the former Nintendo president influenced the Smash Bros director in many ways.
Kirby Air Riders, a brand new title originated from the Nintendo GameCube classic racing-action game Kirby Air Ride, is coming exclusively to Nintendo Switch 2 later this year.
