A day in the life of the Nintendo hardware designer. It’s a tough job, but someone’s got to do it!
Design guru speaks on the GameCube and Nintendo hardware history
At a recent press interview, Ashida Kenichiro, chief of hardware design at Nintendo Japan, gave a detailed account on the design and evolution process of the GameCube’s aesthetics and ergonomics.
“Hardware design began in about March 1999, and controller design began in about April 1999,” said Kenichiro-san. “Everything was taken into consideration during the process including the hardware itself, the logo, name and packaging. Back then of course, the system was still codenamed Dolphin. The design process was conducted at Nintendo's headquarters, and many engineers were involved in the mechanical design of the system. I think viewing the early software in development influenced the design of the console itself the most.”
Kenichiro is the man behind the Super Famicom, or SNES, the Nintendo 64 and the GameCube. The two consoles are considered as fundamental points in controller evolution. The four button layout complimented with shoulder buttons from the SNES has been the blueprint for every system’s controller ever since. The N64 introduced an analogue stick as the main control method. This man is a genius.
When quizzed on the GameCube controller, Kenichiro said, “The Nintendo 64 controller was designed explicitly with the American market in mind, and perhaps that was a mistake. It was too large for most children in Japan and they had to make a sacrifice because of it. I wanted the GameCube controller to reflect the universal ease of the Super Famicom, that's why it’s been changed so many times. I wanted a natural correlation of the buttons on the face of the controller, while keeping it small enough for everyone.”
Wonderful! We have had quite extensive play testing sessions with the GameCube and we can report that the controller is indeed fantastic. Our only complaint is that it feels a bit light and plastic-tastic, but we are assured that the final retail version will be chunkier and more filled out.
“Hardware design began in about March 1999, and controller design began in about April 1999,” said Kenichiro-san. “Everything was taken into consideration during the process including the hardware itself, the logo, name and packaging. Back then of course, the system was still codenamed Dolphin. The design process was conducted at Nintendo's headquarters, and many engineers were involved in the mechanical design of the system. I think viewing the early software in development influenced the design of the console itself the most.”
Kenichiro is the man behind the Super Famicom, or SNES, the Nintendo 64 and the GameCube. The two consoles are considered as fundamental points in controller evolution. The four button layout complimented with shoulder buttons from the SNES has been the blueprint for every system’s controller ever since. The N64 introduced an analogue stick as the main control method. This man is a genius.
When quizzed on the GameCube controller, Kenichiro said, “The Nintendo 64 controller was designed explicitly with the American market in mind, and perhaps that was a mistake. It was too large for most children in Japan and they had to make a sacrifice because of it. I wanted the GameCube controller to reflect the universal ease of the Super Famicom, that's why it’s been changed so many times. I wanted a natural correlation of the buttons on the face of the controller, while keeping it small enough for everyone.”
Wonderful! We have had quite extensive play testing sessions with the GameCube and we can report that the controller is indeed fantastic. Our only complaint is that it feels a bit light and plastic-tastic, but we are assured that the final retail version will be chunkier and more filled out.
Companies:
Nintendo
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