Smash Bros. director Masahiro Sakurai warns AI could lead to unoriginal, unplayable games
Posted on October 20, 2026 by Carlos in General Gaming, News
Masahiro Sakurai, the acclaimed game designer behind Super Smash Bros. and Kirby, has shared his concerns about the growing challenges of creating original games, warning that the increasing use of AI could lead to an industry flooded with derivative titles.
Sakurai has long championed originality in game design. For 16 years, he helped oversee the Game Designers Award at the Tokyo Game Show that recognized titles for their innovative design, celebrating titles that dared to do something different. He previously announced the end of the award, explaining that he had been unable to find a suitable successor to carry on the initiative.
In a recent interview with Denfaminicogamer, Sakurai discussed the design philosophy behind Kirby and Super Smash Bros., explaining how he approached these games by finding new ways for players to interact with their respective genres. However, he acknowledged that coming up with original ideas and communicating their appeal to others has become increasingly difficult.
“The first important thing is whether or not you can come up with an original idea. You might be able to expand on the concept of improving upon an existing idea, but when it comes to creating systems without an easy comparison point, who comes up with that idea? Then, you have to get staff to understand that idea, and it’s difficult to convey that ‘this is why it is fun, because you can do this.’ If you’re a game publisher, it’s difficult to then share that big picture. What are the game’s selling points?”
Sakurai went on to point out that many games today are described as being similar to other existing titles, reflecting what audiences already know they want. True originality, however, involves creating something that players have not yet realized they want.
“Nowadays, so many games are described as XX-like, or games that resemble another one. In other words, the thing everyone else already wants. But originality means you have to create something that isn’t already what people are after, and be deliberate with that. It’s a high hurdle.”
Sakurai also expressed concern that the growing use of AI could make it even harder for original games to stand out. When he established the awards in 2010, around 275 games were released on Steam each year. That number has since grown to more than 19,000 annually, with the platform’s Steam Next Fest also featuring thousands of game demos.
According to Sakurai, the volume of releases will likely continue to increase as AI makes it easier to produce games, many of which could struggle to offer anything genuinely new.
“Although 19,000 titles is a lot, I think that number will only grow from now on, because AI will be used to turn them out. Most of them will end up unplayable, and there will be so many that it’ll be impossible to keep track or even understand them. With those AI games, the vast majority will be direct copies of games we’ve seen before. There’s already many of them, even now. A little while ago, there was a game called Librarian. It’s a game set in a magical world, where all the books have been jumbled up and you have to put them back.
That’s the premise, but the mechanics are simple. So, unsurprisingly, a lot of imitators soon followed. Games like Supermarket Chaos or Needle in a Haystack Simulator have multiplied like crazy. They’re all puzzle games, but that kind of imitation will be simple for AI to conduct. But even if AI can create all these sorts of works, such as by analyzing the atmosphere of games from Fumito Ueda like ICO and Shadow of the Colossus and using that to create something similar, which could happen, but AI would not be able to create whatever Ueda himself will create in the future.”
Sakurai’s words carry particular weight at a time when the gaming industry is facing growing concerns over the increasing use of generative AI in game development.
Thanks to Kotaku for today’s news. For more Nintendo news, click here.
