The Stars of Famicom Games
December 16, 2011 10:18 AM Subscribe
Chris Covell translated a Japanese social studies book about the making of Super Mario Bros. 3.
They made Dark Souls the same way, only a lot more people died...
posted by dhdrum at 10:34 AM on December 16, 2011
posted by dhdrum at 10:34 AM on December 16, 2011
this is good
posted by John Cohen at 10:57 AM on December 16, 2011
posted by John Cohen at 10:57 AM on December 16, 2011
That programming setup is depressing. A man who has brought so much happiness to the world should at least get a cubicle.
posted by Gary at 11:01 AM on December 16, 2011 [1 favorite]
posted by Gary at 11:01 AM on December 16, 2011 [1 favorite]
What's in Myamoto's special bag? It's a secret to everybody!
posted by Navelgazer at 11:16 AM on December 16, 2011 [1 favorite]
posted by Navelgazer at 11:16 AM on December 16, 2011 [1 favorite]
Wow nice post. The production and testing pictures are very cool.
The kid in the ALF T-Shirt and 1989-Burton-era Batman hat standing in front of a bunch of PowerPads was hugely nostalgic for me. If that was taken in Minneapolis, that kid could've been me.
I'm also amazed at how many hands and eyes were on the cartridges throughout production. By 1989 I would have assumed there was more automation to the process.
posted by Clinging to the Wreckage at 11:48 AM on December 16, 2011
The kid in the ALF T-Shirt and 1989-Burton-era Batman hat standing in front of a bunch of PowerPads was hugely nostalgic for me. If that was taken in Minneapolis, that kid could've been me.
I'm also amazed at how many hands and eyes were on the cartridges throughout production. By 1989 I would have assumed there was more automation to the process.
posted by Clinging to the Wreckage at 11:48 AM on December 16, 2011
A man who has brought so much happiness to the world should at least get a cubicle.
It's possible he had one, and didn't want it.
I've been a few places where the Really Important programmer, the guy who founded the company and/or wrote the software mostly on his own, insisted on an informal space. They wanted other programmers close at hand to goof around with and bounce ideas off of, and those other programmers were there to pretend they could contribute code and follow along when the Really Important programmer had something to say.
This era was drawing to a close in the late '90s, and was a holdover from '70s and '80s cowboy-coder culture.
posted by Slap*Happy at 12:04 PM on December 16, 2011 [6 favorites]
It's possible he had one, and didn't want it.
I've been a few places where the Really Important programmer, the guy who founded the company and/or wrote the software mostly on his own, insisted on an informal space. They wanted other programmers close at hand to goof around with and bounce ideas off of, and those other programmers were there to pretend they could contribute code and follow along when the Really Important programmer had something to say.
This era was drawing to a close in the late '90s, and was a holdover from '70s and '80s cowboy-coder culture.
posted by Slap*Happy at 12:04 PM on December 16, 2011 [6 favorites]
True enough, Slap*Happy. I'm sure Japanese culture has a lot to do with it too. Even Miyamoto's setup is really humble and they must have been rolling in money by 1988.
posted by Gary at 12:53 PM on December 16, 2011 [1 favorite]
posted by Gary at 12:53 PM on December 16, 2011 [1 favorite]
Geez couldn't they have used crc verification of the ROMs rather than checking against a master copy?
posted by Joe Chip at 4:29 PM on December 16, 2011
posted by Joe Chip at 4:29 PM on December 16, 2011
I'm sure Japanese culture has a lot to do with it too.
Seconding this. Japanese culture is not big on cubicles. Most offices here are filled with open desks that face each other with seating determined by position/seniority. Cubicles isolate workers not only literally but also figuratively, disrupting workplace harmony and making group discussion/consensus difficult.
posted by Kevtaro at 4:41 PM on December 16, 2011
Seconding this. Japanese culture is not big on cubicles. Most offices here are filled with open desks that face each other with seating determined by position/seniority. Cubicles isolate workers not only literally but also figuratively, disrupting workplace harmony and making group discussion/consensus difficult.
posted by Kevtaro at 4:41 PM on December 16, 2011
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Wow, I keep forgetting that the NES existed concurrently with the Mega Drive for a not-insignificant period of time.
Oh, and the piece of industrial equipment with the Mario sticker on it is great.
posted by griphus at 10:25 AM on December 16, 2011 [1 favorite]