The director of the video game, Masahiro Sakurai, acknowledges that an important meeting that had to be held could not materialize due to the pandemic.
Masahiro Sakurai, director of Super Smash Bros. Ultimate, has not missed his appointment with Famitsu and has written a new opinion column. After mentioning his delicate state of health in another recent text, the creative has returned to the pages of the magazine to refer to the topic that worries everyone: the Wuhan coronavirus (COVID-19), which has affected all industries to a greater or lesser extent. In the case of the Nintendo video game, Sakurai points out that the development of the DLC is suffering the ravages of the virus, since it is not possible to work normally.
"Restrictions are also being imposed on business trips," begins the creative. "It is particularly difficult to meet with partners who are far away." Sakurai exemplifies the situation and remembers that Nintendo is in Kyoto, so it is very difficult for them to visit other companies. “In my case specifically, I had a presentation planned for an editor about our plans for a certain new fighter. However, the main actors were unable to come together, so it has been postponed indefinitely. This is something that I cannot solve even being in the office all the time, ”he continues.
Super Smash Bros. Ultimate.
Sakurai assumes that if someone in the office contracts the virus, Nintendo Japan will make the decision to shut down completely. “If that happens, development will have to be stopped completely. Chances are high that development won't proceed as planned, even if a new fighter were potentially announced. ”
A new group of fighters is yet to come
After Fighter Pass Vol 1, Kyoto announced a second season pass. At the moment, none of the six new characters to be added in the future have been revealed. Players are eagerly awaiting a Nintendo Direct to bring to the table the future of the Japanese hybrid.
Super Smash Bros. Ultimate has been available exclusively for Nintendo Switch since last December 2018. The title is a tribute to video games, as it includes content from many industry sagas, also outside of Nintendo. One of the requirements to appear in the video game is that the character in question is part of the industry ecosystem. Therefore, neither Goku nor any other external fighter will be able to visit the production in the future.
