The original Super Mario RPG director Chihiro Fujioka has confirmed that he is not involved with the upcoming remake but is pleased by the game in its current state.
Super Mario RPG is one of the biggest upcoming games of the year for anyone that grew up with the Square-developed original title from 1996. The SNES title is now over 25 years old and will be reimagined for a new audience on the Nintendo Switch, with the remake scheduled to release on November 17, 2023. A conversation on Twitter (via VGC) explains how Fujioka isn't "involved in the remake" but that he is "surprised and pleased with the news".
I am not involved in the remake.But I am very surprised and pleased with the news!June 22, 2023
One fan comments: "I'd like for you to do some kind of commentary comparing your original vision versus the remake by doing a Let's Play. I think us Super Mario RPG fans would love that".
The Super Mario RPG remake was announced two weeks ago during the June 2023 Nintendo Direct as a ground-up reinterpretation of the original. The announcement has been received with overwhelming positive praise from long-time fans. Despite its success, the original title never received a sequel - a project which Fujioka has expressed interest in as his "final project" in the industry (via Eurogamer). Potentially, the success of the remake could open the doors for Nintendo to expand upon the foundations laid over 25 years ago. Instead, the spiritual successor was the Paper Mario series, which spans seven titles over 20 years and five console generations.
Super Mario RPG: Legend of the Seven Stars was the directorial debut of Chihiro Fujioka who also went on to develop entries in the Tottoko Hamtaro series in the mid-2000s. He is perhaps best known as a video game soundtrack composer, working on dozens of established titles in the Final Fantasy franchise as well as the Mario and Luigi franchises. He is now the drummer for the "Nintendocore" rock band Earthbound Papas which remixes video game instrumentals with contemporary flair.
We're hoping that some of the best Super Mario games will be discounted in the upcoming Prime Day Nintendo Switch deals and the overall Prime Day video game deals. We'll be covering the wide expanse of the Prime Day gaming deals, too, including savings on hardware, software, and accessories.
