Sakurai claims that “I can’t really imagine a Smash Bros. title without me”

Masahiro Sakura is one of the most well-loved faces in the industry. Being responsible for the creation of not just Kirby but also Super Smash Bros, the director has been involved in the development for every Smash Bros. game. With Ultimate having concluded its post-launch support all the way back in 2021, Sakurai has now addressed the future of the franchise and the extent of his involvement.

In a new video published to Sakurai’s YouTube Channel discussing the creation of games, the Smash Bros. creator spoke on the development of – and the team behind – 2008’s Super Smash Bros. Brawl.

As part of this, Sakurai addressed the future of the franchise and whether the 52 year old will be at all involved, saying “The question is, what happens next time? I mean whatever comes after Smash Bros. Ultimate. One option would be to separate the series itself from the original creator. But for now, at least, I can’t really imagine a Smash Bros. title without me. You might think that’s a natural stance for someone in my role, but I say so speaking objectively. I feel the same way president Iwata did when we formed the team for Smash Bros. Brawl. At present, we don’t have someone who can simply take the reigns…”

Sakurai continued, “Smash Bros. is a massive, important title for Nintendo, so it’s fair to assume there will be another one at some point, but it’s going to take some work to figure out exactly how to make that happen. For my part, I’d like to keep working with Nintendo however I’m able.”

Sakurai’s relationship with Smash Bros has been an interesting one, with the creator coming back time and time again to work on each new entry despite the complexities of its development. Whether we see another Smash Bros. or not, it is clear that fans will be waiting for quite a while. That said, with just how much content is in Ultimate, Sakurai and the team can afford to take their time.

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KitGuru says: What do you think of Skaurai’s words? Do you think he’ll do another Smash Bros? What would you like to see him work on next? Let us know down below.

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