Who wouldn’t want to work for one of the largest video game companies in the world? Currently, the recruitment process is exhaustive, but in the 70s it worked differently. This is the curious story of Shigeru Miyamoto, the creator of Mario Bros and how he got a job at Nintendo with a few hooks.
Shigeru Miyamoto was born on November 16, 1952, in Sonobe, a rural city in Japan. The study Industrial design at Kanazawa Municipal University, but had a hard time getting a job in his area of expertise, even considering becoming a manga artist.
The Nintendo company was very different from how we know it today. For years he was dedicated to selling collectible cards and in the sixties he ventured into the toy industry. But the arrival of Miyamoto forever changed the fate of the Japanese company.
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A job at Nintendo thanks to some clothes hangers
This is the curious story of how Shigeru Miyamoto got the job of his dreams thanks to some clothes hangers, told in the book Game Over: How Nintendo Conquered The Worldby David Sheff published in 1993.
With his training as an industrial designer, Miyamoto came to the job interview with the then CEO of Nintendo and friend of his father, Hiroshi Yamauchiwith some sketches and designs of hooks for children. Yes, hooks! These were rounded in shape and made of wood so that there were no accidents. In addition, to be colorful and in the shape of animals: an elephant, a bird and a chicken.
However, it was not the only thing that introduced him to Hiroshi. He also had drawings with more ideas like a clock and a swing for three children. Although the president of the company was no longer looking for creatives but for engineers, he gave it a chance when he saw Miyamoto’s creativity and ability and ingenuity. Thus, he became an apprentice in 1977 at the age of 25, and after a while he became the company’s first designer.
Something we should know about the creative is that Shigeru grew up in a modest rural family, so he spent his childhood creating his own toys. He was always inventive.
Shigeru Miyamoto’s Mastermind
Shigeru released his first major game in 1981 with the arcade donkey kong. In the original Kong, the idea came from Popeye the sailor: a hero who rescues the princess. However, Nintendo could not get hold of the rights to the character and so they had to figure it out.
I was already in this Mariobut it was called “Jumpman”, a direct allusion to his main characteristic and he was a carpenter. Also, although Nintendo is a monster today, in its time the programming team only had four people.
In 1985 he revolutionized the video game industry with Super Mario Brosa character he picked up from his old project, but instead of being a carpenter, Miyamoto thought he was more of a plumber, so he used the pipes as a narrative device.
In that same year he came out Legend of Zelda, inspired by your favorite childhood story. According to the author of an article in The New Yorker In 2010, the creative said that as a child he would go out to explore the natural landscapes around his house, and thus on those excursions he would find forests, lakes, caves and more surprises. In this way, with each installment of Zelda, Miyamoto always tried to capture the aspects of the exploration that he did in his childhood.
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At the end of the 20th century he created other classics such as f-zero Y starfox. The latter was born as an inspiration for his idol George Lucas. Also new versions of his previous characters, for example, Super Mario World. He closed the nineties with Super Mario 64 Y The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina Of Time.
In the new century, Miyamoto renewed the video game catalog with Luigi’s Mansion, Pikmin Y Super Mario Maker. In addition, he helped Satoshi Tajiri to create the first games of Pokemon, Red and Blue. Also, he continued to produce sequels to his creations. As if that weren’t enough, he even helped develop the Nintendo Wii.
After the death of Saturo Iwata in 2015, he was CEO of Nintendo for a few months while they found a successor. One more fact. Interestingly, his favorite video game character is Pac Man.
Currently, he maintains his job at Nintendo as a creative consultant, while working on other company projects such as the amusement park Super Mario World in Japan and its next venue to open in Los Angeles in 2023, just like the movie Super Mario Bros which will be released in April of the same year.
How much Shigeru Miyamoto earns
In a practice of transparency, Nintendo revealed in 2020 what the salaries of its top managers were. Shigeru Miyamoto earns a total of $1.8 million a year, plus $670,000 and about $1.13 million in goals. His net worth was estimated at $40 million.
But it was not always like this. In a documentary of the BBC 30 years ago, in the nineties, he already had several hits in his portfolio, however, he was not treated as the star of the company. “In America, he would be pampered and probably a millionaire, but this is Japan,” says the announcer.
Faced with the presenter’s disbelief regarding “ordinary salaries”, he asked Miyamoto at the time why he did not move to another company, to which the creative replied: “That is an easy question. Well, we don’t get paid glamorously to develop games that sell well, but the company is our sponsor.”
“He encourages and pays us to visit museums, watch movies, or even take short trips to be inspired. For this, we are all happy to work in the company. Especially because we get the prestige of being associated with it”, explained the creative.
An important lesson teaches us that not everything at work is money, but facilities and an emotional salary.
Shigeru Miyamoto’s contribution did not go unnoticed
In Japan, every November 3 is celebrated on culture day, and the government highlights some relevant figure in his country. In 2019, the mention of Person of Cultural Merit it went to Shigeru Miyamoto, the first video game creator to win the award.
“The games I have been involved in developing could not have been made by a single person, so I am very honored to receive this honor as an individual,” Miyamoto told CNN.
However, it is not his only award to his credit, it is also member of the Hall of Fame of the Academy of Interactive Arts and Sciences (1998) and Knight of the Order of Arts and Letters of France (2006), and in 2012 received the Prince of Asturias Award for Communication and Humanities.
It is undeniable that the history of video games was marked by the legacy of Shigeru Miyamoto, and it all started with some clothes hangers.
Mariel Otero Journalist passionate about fashion, the world of beauty and the source of lifestyle. Lover of stories worth telling, series, movies and sagas. Cheesy and closet geek.