Super Smash Bros. creator Masahiro Sakurai has lately shared a uncommon take a look at one of many earlier incarnations of the collection on his YouTube channel.

If you hadn’t heard, Sakurai has a YouTube channel now, and it is actually good! He talks about all issues recreation design, and even goes into the historical past of a few of his video games just like the Kirby collection. Most lately, although, Sakurai has shared a take a look at Dragon King: The Fighting Game that we have by no means seen earlier than. Haven’t heard of it? Well, you’ve got really: it is what the primary Smash Bros. recreation as soon as was.

It’s not model new information that Smash Bros. was as soon as known as Dragon King, approach again in its prototyping days, however we have by no means seen footage of this early construct earlier than. Sakurai being himself although, in fact he has the authority to share such footage, and it is an extremely fascinating look into what’s now probably the most iconic recreation collection of all time.

Following the discharge of Kirby Super Star, the subsequent factor Sakurai and co. had his eyes on was the Nintendo 64, Nintendo’s first foray into 3D. Sakurai explains within the video that he got here up with two pitches for Nintendo, one a stealth and exploration RC robotic journey recreation, the opposite being a four-player, free-for-all combating recreation with no well being bars (sound acquainted?) And so he made prototypes for each, although went on to make Smash Bros. primarily as a result of different initiatives at his firm fell by, and he wanted a recreation that might be made rapidly.

You can see the foundations for Smash Bros. within the prototype footage of Dragon King fairly simply. Smash assaults, shields, dashes, and aerial assaults are all in there, and even the traditional battlefield stage structure was there.

The complete video is price watching, one from a historic perspective, but additionally due to the ways in which Sakurai explains quite a lot of his thought course of behind why Smash Bros. is the way in which that it’s. It’s uncommon we get such insights, particularly from somebody so excessive profile, so even when Smash Bros. is not your factor, for those who’re eager about recreation design in any respect, give it a glance.