Nintendo Shigeru Miyamoto: "You need to sell 30 million copies to be considered a big hit"

[cm2]

read from Neogaf and famiboards, january 2024 Miyamoto interview article translated by Google translate:

Miyamoto: If we can have one bighit every three to five years, we'll be fine. In that sense, if all our employees think about "creating a big hit" every day, we'll be fine.

Itoi: Well, for Nintendo, 1 million units is not considered a huge hit.

Miyamoto: I agree.

Itoi: Oh, it only sold 1 million copies," (laughs). In that case, roughly how many titles do you consider to be big hits, Mr. Miyamoto ?

Miyamoto: About 30 million.

Everyone: (Murmuring)

Miyamoto: Well, we're working to make it happen, so if it breaks even, we should consider it a failure, but it seems like everyone talks as if it's breaking even .

Itoi: Well, I wonder about that in today's society. I think there are a lot of places where people would say it was a break-even and a good experience .

Miyamoto: Is that so? But if there's no profit and we're just breaking even, then it's just tiring, right? I'm sure the people who worked with me would think that that's not what we worked for . So, the reason why I don't praise my co-workers half-heartedly along the way is because, anyway, the reason I think it was good to work with them is because "we sell a lot."

Miyamoto: I worked really hard, but I just got my money's worth. I don't make things or do things just to get my money's worth , I think everyone works hard every day to make something that sells, becomes a big hit, and makes people say, "I can't stop laughing."

Miyamoto: As we make various preparations, there are times when something catches our attention and we think, "Huh?" or "This might be something that will turn out well." We can sense such things from the very beginning. However, if we are only thinking about greed or wanting to stabilize our profits, we will overlook this.

Itoi: Yes, if you are only motivated by greed, you will think first about how to avoid losing money. You will inevitably think in terms of the break-even point.

Miyamoto: That's right. I think the most dangerous thing is to miss something that has the potential to grow . I think the good thing about our company is that we've been good at nurturing those seeds .

 

[Demon_Skeith]

He may want to retire, the number to hit to be considered a big hit kind of changes depending on the studio and game. Really can't define it.

 

[cm2]

He may want to retire, the number to hit to be considered a big hit kind of changes depending on the studio and game. Really can't define it.

Indeed. very true.

Only 4 of Nintendo's own games can be put in his metric of big hit lol

- Mario Kart 8 Deluxe (2017) - 61.97 million
- Animal Crossing: New Horizons (2020) - 45.36 million
- Super Smash Bros. Ultimate (2018) - 34.22 million
- The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild (2017) - 31.85 million

 

[froggyboy604]

Shigeru Miyamoto has high expectations for how many games need to be sold to become a big hit.

 

[Artisan Vistra]

Indeed. very true.

Only 4 of Nintendo's own games can be put in his metric of big hit lol

- Mario Kart 8 Deluxe (2017) - 61.97 million
- Animal Crossing: New Horizons (2020) - 45.36 million
- Super Smash Bros. Ultimate (2018) - 34.22 million
- The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild (2017) - 31.85 million

That's not really fair to say Mario Kart 8 is because it got bundled with the system even if people were going to get it anyway because there's no new Mario Kart on the system.

The fact these are all Switch games just tells me that the console has to get great sales and a high population of families and players, meaning games past are never going to reach that goal.

 

[Demon_Skeith]

Indeed. very true.

Only 4 of Nintendo's own games can be put in his metric of big hit lol

- Mario Kart 8 Deluxe (2017) - 61.97 million
- Animal Crossing: New Horizons (2020) - 45.36 million
- Super Smash Bros. Ultimate (2018) - 34.22 million
- The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild (2017) - 31.85 million

BotW didn't sell more?

 

[cm2]

BotW didn't sell more?

that's from March 2024 so maybe it's more now.