Shigeru Miyamoto is a household name among gamers, and rightfully so. The video game designer is responsible for bringing to life several iconic gaming titles including Mario, Donkey Kong, and The Legend of Zelda. You may be surprised to learn that gaming’s recent advancements in virtual reality technology still haven’t totally sold the designer.
In a recent interview with Time, Miyamoto stated that though many of the issues gamers have had with VR in the past are gone, he still has trouble accepting the technology as a whole.
“In terms of being together online in virtual reality, I think a lot of the problems have been solved or are starting to be solved,” he explained. “This is something that we’re looking into, too. But when I see people play virtual reality, it makes me worry, just as for example if a parent were to see their kid playing virtual reality, it would probably make them worry.”
He added: “Another issue and challenge that I think everybody faces is how to create an experience that’s both short enough while also fully fleshed out in virtual reality.”
VR headsets have certainly become popular lately, but Miyamoto does have a point. Parents may well feel concerned when they see their children locked inside their own little world. It is also true that some VR games released have been criticized for not providing enough bang for gamers’ buck, with many feeling more like demos than real games.
Miyamoto also expressed concerns back in 2014 when he felt VR headsets might be a little too isolating. “When you think about what virtual reality is, which is one person putting on some goggles and playing by themselves kind of over in a corner, or maybe they go into a separate room and they spend all their time alone playing in that virtual reality, that’s in direct contrast with what it is we’re trying to achieve with Wii U,” he said, at the time promoting that system. “And so I have a little bit of uneasiness with whether or not that’s the best way for people to play.”
It looks like Nintendo is still keeping an eye on VR technology before it fully decides to support it. Nintendo’s upcoming Switch console has no built in VR options but it has been confirmed to be powerful enough to support VR if that’s the route Nintendo decides to take. The Switch is set to be released on March 3.
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