Former Nintendo veteran says Shigeru Miyamoto "doesn't accept compromise" in game design: "This is what it takes to be number one at anything in the world"

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Star Fox's Takaya Imamura gushed over his time working with the Super Mario maker

Mario wearing a white top hat in Super Mario Odyssey
(Image credit: Nintendo)

Former Nintendo designer Takaya Imamura had a pretty legendary run at the publisher, contributing to the likes of Star Fox and F-Zero over the course of 32 years, but one of his most proud achievements is getting to work under Shigeru Miyamoto. 

Miyamoto's largely credited with creating never-ending, aways popular series such as Super Mario and The Legend of Zelda, as well as contributing to countless other Nintendo projects that remain beloved. With that in mind, it's no surprise that Imamura thinks so fondly of their work together.

Speaking to Gamesradar during Gamescom 2024, Imamura said he was most proud to be able to "work under Shigeru Miyamoto-san for so long," and that's partly because of his approach to game design. "Generally speaking, he's a really kind, hard working person," Imamura explained, "but when it comes to game design, he doesn't accept compromise. So my impression was, this is what it takes to be number one at anything in the world."

Imamura carried that ethic on during his three decade tenure at the gaming powerhouse, leaving his mark on some enduring franchises and beloved consoles. He then left the company in 2021, and now, he says he'd quite like to leave some his history behind, and not be known solely as the guy who made Star Fox: "I wanted to get out. And if I was going to get out and leave, I wanted to make my own IP as soon as possible."

Kaan Serin
Freelance contributor

Kaan freelances for various websites including Rock Paper Shotgun, Eurogamer, and this one, Gamesradar. He particularly enjoys writing about spooky indies, throwback RPGs, and anything that's vaguely silly. Also has an English Literature and Film Studies degree that he'll soon forget.