Masahiro Sakurai’s Life Story Inspires an Educational Manga

Masahiro Sakurai, the director of Super Smash Bros. and creator of Kirby, confirmed on X on Thursday that his life is the basis for a new educational manga. The lengthy title translates to something like Learn About People and Work Through Manga: Masahiro Sakurai, Making the World More Fun with Games.

The book launches on November 18, just two days before his upcoming Kirby Air Riders game arrives on Switch 2. Published by East Press, the 160 page manga traces his journey from a childhood spent playing games through the birth of Kirby, the start of Super Smash Bros., the founding of his studio Sora, and his hopes for the future. Sakurai himself is credited as a supervisor.

His career offers plenty of material. After forming Sora in 2005, he created Kid Icarus: Uprising for the 3DS, and later directed Super Smash Bros. Ultimate, the celebrated crossover that gathered every past playable fighter into one game.

In recent years he has also become a familiar face online, running a popular YouTube channel about game development where he shared lessons from across his long career.

Now he is preparing to launch his next big project even as his life story reaches readers in manga form.

My take: An educational manga about a creator as influential as Sakurai is a lovely idea, especially for young people curious about making games. His thoughtful, generous approach to his craft makes him a wonderful role model to build a book around.