Masahiro Sakurai's latest video tackles how to deal with changes in development plans

Super Smash Bros. director Masahiro Sakurai has shared the latest video in his game design series on YouTube. The video explores on Sakurai’s approach to plans changing during development.

Sakurai lays out how even the most detailed plans can fall apart somewhere along the lengthy and complicated development process. Perhaps executives ask for changes, perhaps technical improvements or limitations take place, or sometimes a game is simply lacking in fun. This last possibility, according to Sakurai, should be avoided at all costs.

He goes on to explain how flexibility is an important part of development. Being able to respond to changes quickly is key, according to him. Sakurai also puts heavy emphasis on communicating when you notice something is wrong so it can be addressed right away.

The biggest lesson Sakurai delivers in this video is his approach to decision-making. His approach involves getting whatever relevant information he needs, then coming to a conclusion right then and there in order to get started on improvements. He still lays out plans carefully, but this flexibility allows him to get to work quickly on any problem.