Like Studio Ghibli founder Hayao Miyazaki and "founding mother" of shojo manga Moto Hagio before him, legendary video game producer Shigeru Miyamoto has received one of Japan's highest honors for a creator.
The "Person of Cultural Merit" award is given to those who have made great cultural contributions to the country and is officially handed out by the Japanese government. A total of 54 people, including Miyamoto, have been handed the award. A ceremony recognizing Miyamoto's achievements will be held on November 5 in a Tokyo hotel.
Miyamoto said at an announcement that he wants to continue to bring smiles to people's faces around the world and has no plans to retire from Nintendo and/or video games anytime soon, according to Crunchyroll.
Miyamoto is widely recognized as the creative force behind the Mario and Legend of Zelda franchises, serving as designer, director, and producer on a handful of titles in both buckets. He is also the creator of many other acclaimed Nintendo properties, including Donkey Kong, F-Zero, and Star Fox.
Miyamoto's last production credit was The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild, which has seen widespread critical and commercial praise since its 2017 launch on Nintendo Switch and Wii U. In our review, we awarded it a 10/10, saying, "Breath of the Wild is a defining moment for The Legend of Zelda series, and the most impressive game Nintendo has ever created."
During E3 2019, Nintendo confirmed that Breath of the Wild will get a sequel. Not long after, it was reported that game producer Eiji Aonuma will return for the sequel, while Miyamoto's involvement remains unclear. Still, Nintendo has a lot of ideas for Link and Zelda's next adventure in Hyrule.