Miyamoto hints that Miis may be on the move
by Kevin Kelly 
{ Apr 2nd 2007 at 6:21PM }
In an interview with LevelUp, Nintendo's Miyamoto hints that we might be seeing the Miis marching out of their parades and into virtual worlds similar to The Sims. Since Miyamoto didn't reveal much at GDC this year (in part due to shareholder regulations), they grilled him about his speech, and about Sony's PlayStation Home announcement.
While Miyamoto claims not to have seen the video of Sony's goods (which is hard to believe, you think he'd be studying up on the competition) he does go on to say, "I wouldn't be surprised if we also did something along those lines further in the future ... in terms of taking the Miis and expanding them, that virtual kind of Sim-type experience. It's something that a lot of people have already done and shown interest in, and we have a lot of people internally who are interested in that type of a project too."
We'd be interested too, as long as it doesn't feel like Nintendo is trying to copy anyone else's effort. Bring on something that allows us to take our Miis out of the house using the DS. Maybe you can teach them new skillz in some kind of game, and then bring them back home, or take them to visit someone else. Then they teach that person something new, and they teach two people, and they teach two people and then the world is taken over by Miis.
Check out the full article for the details, as well as Miyamoto's description of bizarre-sounding game called Love and Berry.
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
fawazr @ Apr 2nd 2007 6:30PM
Are people still so excited about Miis?
Sensai @ Apr 2nd 2007 6:31PM
Oh wow....Nintendo copying from Sony?
TAKE PICTURES, QUICK!
(In all seriousness, this is one of the few things that I would EVER want Nintendo to pick up from Sony [who took it from Second Life....well, y'know]. It's just a neat idea, and it seems like it would fit Miis perfectly.)
Night Elve @ Apr 2nd 2007 6:43PM
In a matter of seconds hordes of Nintendo Fanboys will come here and teach us how this is so innovative comming from Nintendo.
GR8 Stache @ Apr 2nd 2007 6:51PM
Nintendo copying Sony?
Give me a break, and look at all the stuff Sony copied from Nintendo.
Hello @ Apr 2nd 2007 6:53PM
WHAT SONY CREATES NINTENDO STEALS
wait in the car @ Apr 2nd 2007 6:59PM
What exactly has Nintendo stolen from Sony?
DeezNuts420 @ Apr 2nd 2007 7:12PM
Great concept with the whole taking your Mii's out on the DS. Remind's me of Sonic Adventure on the Dreamcast. You could upload your character's onto the VMU, play mini games, and battle with others.
wait in the car @ Apr 2nd 2007 7:01PM
...I mean besides the thousands of PS2 owners who decided to buy a Wii instead of a PS3.
redspear @ Apr 2nd 2007 7:04PM
Except Miyamato isn't claiming innovation
"It's something that a lot of people have already done and shown interest in."
Night Elve that is the big difference. Sony copies(SL and Achievement Points)(Rumble and analog) (motion) and says it was their idea and innovative and never been done before.
Silver R. Wolfe @ Apr 2nd 2007 7:20PM
Wow, look at all this spinning going on!
ValdeZ Poole @ Apr 2nd 2007 7:13PM
Sorry. Aint gonna happen. They cant even get any of their games working with online multiplayer.. even the basic ones like MOH or COD which have been online for years.
And, you expect them to have a Home competitor? When? Maybe in 10 years like they are with the rest of their online service.
Enjoy your splitscreen and friend codes.
required @ Apr 2nd 2007 7:15PM
http://www.playmobil.com/
Zell @ Apr 2nd 2007 7:17PM
That one never gets old eh, required!
required @ Apr 2nd 2007 7:17PM
Nintendo aspires to be Playmobil
required @ Apr 2nd 2007 7:18PM
same target market
Hunter @ Apr 2nd 2007 7:19PM
Mii's are cute and all, but how about turning that innovation towards some GAMES, you know, the things that people buy game systems for...
wait in the car @ Apr 2nd 2007 7:20PM
Playmobil RULZ!!!
Rubang B @ Apr 2nd 2007 7:23PM
Anybody saying anything about Nintendo copying Sony needs to read the article. Miyamoto takes it way back and says that people have been doing Home-styled life simulations since Little Computer People came out in 1985, and that many people have done it since, like The Sims or Miis and whatnot. So shut up.
required @ Apr 2nd 2007 7:24PM
wait in the car, Nintendo agrees hence their copy cat practices.
Mr Khan @ Apr 2nd 2007 7:24PM
My guess would be Animal Crossing Mii
Valdez Poole is right for once, Nintendo isn't going to be doing anything similar to HOME because they don't like Online
I wouldn't see a direct copy of HOME, because Nintendo doesn't want to create a gamer community
If they do, it'll be a welcome change, even if it is a copy...
Rubang B @ Apr 2nd 2007 7:26PM
Whoa, my friend Wikipedia says that Little Computer People had a 97% score in Zzap!64, the Commodore 64 gaming magazine, and Will Wright himself said it was a precursor to The Sims. Now I need to emulate this thing and see what all the fuss is.
Rubang B @ Apr 2nd 2007 7:31PM
Hey required, you do realize you have no idea what you're talking about, right? Your Playmobil obsession is getting worse than summercamp. At least he had the "so dumb it's cute" vibe going on with his trolling.
oGMo @ Apr 2nd 2007 7:32PM
"We'd be interested too, as long as it doesn't feel like Nintendo is trying to copy anyone else's effort. Bring on something that allows us to take our Miis out of the house using the DS."
And what if they do? This "take it on my DS" crap and NIH syndrome is just the sort of thing that still has Nintendo with essentially no network presence. What's wrong with "hey that's a good idea, maybe we should think about it"? There are only so many ideas in the world. If Nintendo came out with their own virtual world, I think most people would first think "it's about time!" rather than "copying!"
Stuff like Animal Crossing or various sims games have been crying for MMO-like treatment for years. Not doing this just becomes someone else is doing something vaguely similar is just silly.
mo @ Apr 2nd 2007 7:32PM
does any one here really think that sony invented digital avatars that mingle with each other
you cant be serious
just like nintendo didn't invent motion sensitive controllers, but some how sony stole them
every console since the beginning of consoles have been exactly the same, and every next generation of console has just been a graphics upgrade with all the third party peripherals built in
wireless controllers
motion sensitive controllers
online features
memory cards/harddrives
wireless internet ( except xbox 360, still an add on)
rumble ( except PS3)
he have all had those for years, now there just built in, no one has stolen anything from anybody
shut up fanboys on all sides
Andrew Hsieh @ Apr 2nd 2007 7:34PM
Well, I kinda understand the "not studying the competition" thing, but not really. The closest thing I can compare it to is like me -- I'm a pianist -- playing a piece, but without listening to any recordings beforehand. By doing this, I'm able to play a piece my own way, as opposed to how Hans Boepple or András Schiff play it.
I hope that made sense. And kinda relates.
Rubang B @ Apr 2nd 2007 7:44PM
Hey mo, wireless controllers have been around forever but they all used IR and sucked ass until the WaveBird came out and used RF. Now everybody uses BlueTooth and Wi-Fi, but the WaveBird was the first to get it right.
And did anything rumble before Star Fox 64 in 1997? I'm not sure, but I don't think so. It definitely wasn't 3rd party.
Dylan @ Apr 2nd 2007 8:33PM
It's called Animal Crossing, just put the Miis in it and expand the online experience (we know now you'll be able to visit other towns whether or not their playing, which is already a big plus for me), add downloadable items to the game, and Home is beat.
Sensai @ Apr 2nd 2007 7:48PM
'Nintendo copying Sony?
Give me a break, and look at all the stuff Sony copied from Nintendo.'
To all of these people referencing me saying 'Nintendo copying Sony', I take joy in knowing that your ability to gauge sarcasm is reaching it's end.
#10: Come off it. It's not that they can't get it working, it's that they were too lazy at that point in time.
Sean DL @ Apr 2nd 2007 8:09PM
>>>While Miyamoto claims not to have seen the video of Sony's goods (which is hard to believe, you think he'd be studying up on the competition)
Sean DL @ Apr 2nd 2007 8:13PM
""While Miyamoto claims not to have seen the video of Sony's goods (which is hard to believe, you think he'd be studying up on the competition)""
Miyamoto does not have competition..Nintendo does. Miyamoto is jsut a creator, he creates games, so the whole business side of Nintendo isn't even in his vocabulary.
Avinash_Tyagi @ Apr 2nd 2007 8:21PM
Also expect this to be more Animal crossing rather than Home, in fact if anything it'll probably be more like My sims
Kazi @ Apr 2nd 2007 8:34PM
I wouldn't doubt that the next Animal Crossing will update the look of Miis and use them in game.
jan_halmes @ Apr 2nd 2007 10:07PM
Realtime console online communities suck. Having a keyboard is key to making an realtime online community work. With out it, all you get is abrieviated nonsense talk or pre set garbage.
samfish @ Apr 2nd 2007 11:14PM
Mo-
I'm not sure you understand what innovation really is. Innovation isn't who did what first. It's who did it RIGHT first.
Hence why the iPod is considered and innovation. It was the first MP3 player that didn't suck balls. It was easy to use and it worked very well.
That's also why Nintendo rightly gets credit for analog joysticks, for example.
Ditto motion controls. Doesn't matter that Microsoft had the Sidewinder 10 years ago. The Sidewinder sucked and didn't work worth a damn.
If you did it first AND did it right, then that's just more bragging rights for you.
NoHitHair @ Apr 3rd 2007 1:41AM
I remember that photo - that was the one that accompanied a story printed last year that drew over a thousand comments.
You should fire someone again. That was awesome.
http://blog.myspace.com/nohithair
Burnt Meatloaf @ Apr 3rd 2007 4:03AM
Didn't all this Virtual Reality(TM) nonsense die in the 90's?
Nobody wants challenge and strategy anymore.
Liam @ Apr 3rd 2007 6:09AM
Animal Crossing with Miis, duh.
Prof_Chaos @ Apr 3rd 2007 9:27AM
It's been said a couple of times, but this has to be Animal Crossing related. Christ, I'm still logging daily hours on Wild World and loving it. An updated AC on Wii with a DS counterpart using connectivity a la Pokemon is due. Just incorporate Miis as the main characters and allow visits. No gates though. If you don't want visitors you can just turn off the option. You should be able to visit people's towns if you've gone through the backbreaking labor of tracking down friend codes.