The Daily Populous Wednesday June 25th, 2025 morning edition
Authored by automaton-media.com and submitted by naaz0412

The video game industry has evolved significantly in the past 30 years; however, many leading Japanese creators seem to be worried about the direction the industry has taken recently. In a special interview with ITmedia Business Online (which will only be available until June 29), Smash and Kirby creator Masahiro Sakurai voiced his concern about there being a shortage of game directors in recent days – especially the kind that’s versatile and possesses comprehensive knowledge about multiple aspects game development.

“I believe that the occupation of a ‘game director’ is very rare nowadays. And even rarer are the directors who are able to work in an environment where they have to oversee hundreds of staff members. While there are plenty of people who make games or who want to make games, there is a shortage of game directors would be able to consolidate them as a team.”

He explains that behind the lack of directors in the industry lie several factors, but the most difficult one to tackle may be the growing specialization and subdivision of various tasks in game development. While Sakurai himself handles many different aspects of development, from graphics to sound effects, he notes that, “Now, there is no fertile ground for these types of all-rounder game directors to grow.”

Sakurai explains how he kicked off his career working in the graphics department, then became a game designer, and finally a director. However, he says that in recent years, even the graphics-related work is divided into modeling, effects, textures – and in that kind of environment, it’s very difficult for someone to acquire a wider knowledge of how a game is made. “It is because of this continuing specialization and subdivision that there are not enough game directors who would be able to oversee a game’s development in a wider sense,” Sakurai remarks.

When asked about the prospects of having such a successor in this day and age of game development – Sakurai replied that even thinking about that is pointless, because each person has different characteristics unique to them, and the key to success is in how you utilize them. “Maybe there is someone who won’t follow the same road as me, but will be able to break through by going in a completely different direction […] I believe every game creator should pave their own unique way (instead of being a successor to somebody else).”

Kumomeme on June 25th, 2025 at 01:17 UTC »

there is pro and cons i guess. Jack of all trades, master of none.

i dont think it is easier to find this kind of director due to today's increasingly scope of development.

todays AAA development can easily took atleast half of decade. i dont think developers can has much leeway on their hand unlike before.

firedrakes on June 25th, 2025 at 00:09 UTC »

This has been a issue since 360 era.

Blacksad9999 on June 24th, 2025 at 22:38 UTC »

As games get more complex, it makes sense that people will specialize in specific types of games or genres.

A person who's spent most of their development career making something like platformers isn't going to all of a sudden break off and make the next big FPS title. They also probably would have issues finding funding for a project like that if they tried to, as it would be difficult to find someone willing to risk millions of dollars on a director in an untested genre.

It was easier in the earlier days of gaming, when you could take risks more often as there wasn't nearly as much money on the line if it failed.