Miyamoto Called a "New Einstein"

Mental Floss magazine has named Mario creator Shigeru Miyamoto as one of nine "New Einsteins" whose genius leads them to accomplish feats beyond imagination.

Miyamoto was recognized for the immense influence his games have had on not just gamers, but on the public in general. "This gentle Japanese artist may have a stronger hold on our culture than any other person alive," writes Erik Vance.

Videogame fans are certainly used to thinking of Miyamoto as a genius, but take a moment to consider some of the other Einsteins on the list: Bill Unruh, Professor of Theoretical Physics (he studies black holes), Elizabeth Gould, Professor of Psychology (a pioneer in the field of neurogenesis), Dr. Anthony Atala, Director of the Institute for Regenerative Medicine (developing methods to regrow human organs), and Jay Keasling, Director of the Physical Biosciences Division at Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory (he's developing bacteria that can cure malaria). Pretty impressive company for a guy who makes videogames.

It's encouraging to see that someone outside of typical gamer culture understands that changing the way we play - or even just acknowledging the importance that we do - is as significant a human achievement as making a breakthrough in science.

You can find the complete list of New Einsteins in the Nov/Dec issue of Mental Floss.

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That does not make any sense whatsoever.

I mean...seriously, what the fuck!? They can't be serious!

A guy who made a game about a princess-saving, jumping plumber put on the same position as a guy who can cure malaria and one who works on growing organs?

There is no way this can be serious...

Hey, you forgot the Bongo drum game.

Well, it's nice to know that even the mainstream media succumbs to hype every now and then.

As awesome as Miyamoto is, he really shouldn't be on the list for new Einsteins. Video games are great and all, but not great enough to regrow human organs or cure malaria.

Einstein - revolutionised physics and helped bring us into the nuclear age.

Miyamoto - made a few video games.

Fail.

I don't think it's really that far of a leap. No one is saying that Super Mario Bros. had a revolutionizing plot or anything, but Mario is more recognizable to children than Mickey Mouse. If you go up to anyone and say "Have you heard of Mario, Zelda, or Donkey Kong" they're almost sure to say yes. If Mario suddenly disappeared, a lot of people would be pissed.

he is a genius, he has made some of the greatest games ever. not just legend of zelda, mario, star fox ect, but also his lesser known games like geist was an absolute treasure and a complete contrast to the stuff he usually does

Uhm. Yes, he's a great guy who we all adore (right?) but an einstein? Not sure the stretch is that good. That's like labeling the guy who pulled your kitten out of a tree a hero.

I mean...c'mon guys. Let's have some persepective here.

Jeigan:
I don't think it's really that far of a leap. No one is saying that Super Mario Bros. had a revolutionizing plot or anything, but Mario is more recognizable to children than Mickey Mouse. If you go up to anyone and say "Have you heard of Mario, Zelda, or Donkey Kong" they're almost sure to say yes. If Mario suddenly disappeared, a lot of people would be pissed.

Doesn't really put him in the same league as Einstein though, does it?

I'm sorry but WTF? No. Just no. Miyamoto really should not be in that list.

Jeigan:
I don't think it's really that far of a leap. No one is saying that Super Mario Bros. had a revolutionizing plot or anything, but Mario is more recognizable to children than Mickey Mouse. If you go up to anyone and say "Have you heard of Mario, Zelda, or Donkey Kong" they're almost sure to say yes. If Mario suddenly disappeared, a lot of people would be pissed.

i wouldnt, im bored of mario now, talk about someone else PLEASE!
ok, so the old games were good, yay, good games, but there are much better games...
all mario does now is make me lose faith in video games...

Susan Arendt:

It's encouraging to see that someone outside of typical gamer culture understands that changing the way we play - or even just acknowledging the importance that we do - is as significant a human achievement as making a breakthrough in science.

It's less encouraging to be told people inside gamer culture hold such a silly opinion.

I'm going to wait until the article is online to see their reasoning for it and what the other people on the list did before I give judgement on whether or not he should be on it. One way to look at it is that he was one of the major players in reviving the video games industry, helping it to develop from a few people coding in their bedrooms into an entertainment form (if not art form) to rival cinema. Think, without Shigeru, would Nintendo have succeeded? And without Nintendo, the games industry would have pretty much been confined to PCs in Europe. However, having him on the list for that reason would be undersating the importance of the other people at Nintendo during that time, and it's arguable just how important the games industry really is when you compare it to some of the other things on that list.

SirCannonFodder:
I'm going to wait until the article is online to see their reasoning for it and what the other people on the list did before I give judgement on whether or not he should be on it. One way to look at it is that he was one of the major players in reviving the video games industry, helping it to develop from a few people coding in their bedrooms into an entertainment form (if not art form) to rival cinema. Think, without Shigeru, would Nintendo have succeeded? And without Nintendo, the games industry would have pretty much been confined to PCs in Europe. However, having him on the list for that reason would be undersating the importance of the other people at Nintendo during that time, and it's arguable just how important the games industry really is when you compare it to some of the other things on that list.

So what your saying is Malaria cure = inventing Mario

That's, and I mean no offense, just a horrifically warped worldview.

I guess they chose those "New Einsteins" like "New Einsteins in culture", "New Einsteins in sports", "New Einsteins in economy", "New Einsteins in Einstein family" etc.

I think it's fair to say that he is a genius within his field.. If thats what they mean with the, rather ridiculous, term "new Einstein".

Imitation Saccharin :

So what your saying is Malaria cure = inventing Mario

That's, and I mean no offense, just a horrifically warped worldview.

Like I said, it's arguable how important the games industry (which, while worth umpteen billions and employing many people, doesn't really compare to something that can save the lives of millions), actually is, especially when you put it next to some of the other things on the list. From what this article shows, I don't think he deserves to be on there, I was just posting what I thought might have been their reasoning.

thats retarded he is an amazing games designer but he doesnt compare to einstein

Maybe they just mean he's a creative genius whose work made him just a little insane?

j/k

Jeigan:
I don't think it's really that far of a leap. No one is saying that Super Mario Bros. had a revolutionizing plot or anything, but Mario is more recognizable to children than Mickey Mouse. If you go up to anyone and say "Have you heard of Mario, Zelda, or Donkey Kong" they're almost sure to say yes. If Mario suddenly disappeared, a lot of people would be pissed.

saying because he made some thing popular he deserve to be compared Einstein is stupid as one of them is the most brilliant minds in history and the other one made Mario and Zelda ffs there not really in the same league and Miyamoto is not even in the same league as the other people on the list and also just because it is popular dose not make it good

Frybird:
That does not make any sense whatsoever.

I mean...seriously, what the fuck!? They can't be serious!

A guy who made a game about a princess-saving, jumping plumber put on the same position as a guy who can cure malaria and one who works on growing organs?

There is no way this can be serious...

While it's true that a games-developer isn't really on the same level as those guys at all, Mario is one of the best, most replayable and charming games I've ever played.

First off, I don't think we should take "New Einstein" quite so seriously. It's meant to imply brilliance, not actually be a one-to-one comparison.

Also included in the list is Billy Beane, the General Manager of the Oakland A's, who was included for his use of sabermetrics in baseball, and Homaro Cantu, the head chef of Moto Restaurant, for his innovative approach to cooking.

Genius isn't confined to science, technology, and business. Granted, the term "new Einstein" is definitely for hype, but the article seems to just be a glance at pioneers in different fields.

Miyamoto has revived the video game industry twice (once when it needed it and once when it didn't), and has made video games important to the rest of the world, as well as gamers. I don't think there is another game developer that could be given the title.

Relax, everyone.

The term is incorrect. Besides, Einstein was a slacker and made horrible analogies (and also screwed over his own science in favour of his ego more than once).

Essentially, I would say that "Miyamoto has done for gaming what Einstein did for theoretical physics - he thought of and created things which hadn't existed before, and essentially established what we now consider the modern paradigm of such things."

He's also continued to innovate, create and improve - admittedly recycling characters and narrative, and often the basic principles - by adding more and more to existing franchises and developing new characters and systems when necessary.

Example: Mario 128 didn't work as a game, fun tech demo, but not a good game. He made Pikmin instead, using his recently-acquired love of gardening as a narrative starting point.
Second Example: When creating a platform game set in space, why not reuse a well-known platforming character who is generally popular?

He's a smart man and built a lot of good and entertaining worlds over the past 20 or so years, I hope for more to come. He's in good company - often achieving things that will be of greater importance to human life than him - but equal contributions of genius, just to more or less important fields.

Seriously, an Einstein? The guy is smart and intelligent and creative, but when put next to a guy who rewrote the physics rule book and the guys on the list, it seems more than alittle hypish.

Epic fail!

Yes well, Miyamoto didn't re-release the laws of physics every 2-3 years under a different name, did he?

Just think about it; video games would not be what they are today without Mario. I mean, he's a universally-recognized gaming icon, known by more people than George Washington, Mickey Mouse, and Sonic the Hedgehog put together. At this point, I think the consensus of games he's been in is over 116, not counting remakes. The whole Nintendo franchise which had undeniably set console gaming on its current path since it went from playing cards to 36-bit headstomping has been built upon Super Mario; yes, you could argue there's always been the Legend of Zelda, Metroid, Kirby, etc. but "Jumpman" started it all.

Edit: My point being, Einstein's theory of relativity shaped modern physics for generations to come, changing the basic way we view science; Miyamoto has done so with gaming.

Whether or not Mario is comparable to cures to malaria is not the issue. Genius isn't simply coming up with a good idea, because ideas are a dime a dozen sometimes. Genius is the pure inventiveness and tenacity to follow through with them.

Anyway, I'm sure people that make a list of something like this would know more about who is out there worth praising as a genius than us sitting on our computers.

The discussion shouldn't be whether or not Miyamoto deserves to be there, but who instead should be in the obviously "precious" place he has taken?

Susan Arendt:
First off, I don't think we should take "New Einstein" quite so seriously. It's meant to imply brilliance, not actually be a one-to-one comparison.

Also included in the list is Billy Beane, the General Manager of the Oakland A's, who was included for his use of sabermetrics in baseball, and Homaro Cantu, the head chef of Moto Restaurant, for his innovative approach to cooking.

Yes, you guys are taking the term "New Einstein" way to literal. He was and is an innovative in the games industry and he brought a dead media back from the grave.