Tuesday, August 12, 2008

Mario creator: Shigeru Miyamoto banned speaking to the public

[caption id="attachment_233" align="alignright" width="300" caption="Nintendo restricts Shigeru Miyamoto from speaking to the public"]Nintendo restricts Shigeru Miyamoto from speaking to the public[/caption]

I really don't know what to say about this... Except that this restriction that Nintendo has put in place for this man is such horseshit.  Nintendo has banned the creator of Mario & Zelda, Shigeru Miyamoto from being able to speak publicly about his personal hobbies & likes/dislikes.  Any typical corporation will have you sign a NDA (Non Disclosure Agreement) about not leaking internal secrets about the company you work for, but your personal hobbies?  This is insane!  Nintendo's claim:
Any inside glimpse into the man's lifestyle could potentially be worth billions to competitors. Many of Nintendo's successful franchises in recent years have been inspired by what Miyomoto comes up with in his free time.  If he talks about his hobbies with reporters, people could latch on to them prior to their development with Nintendo and cash in on Miyamoto’s thoughts. (1, 2)

I'm really curious as to what his personal feelings are by this additional restriction they've put on him.  I can't imagine this agreement went smoothly.  Or maybe Nintendo paid him a large sum of money?  In any case, I guess he's obeying and not speaking.

Your thoughts?

Sources:

  1. "Nintendo Banned Sigeru Miyamoto speaking about his hobbies"

  2. Wii News - "Shigsy banned from Hobby Talk"