Masahiro Sakurai reaffirms that it might be better to forget about him for a while
Masahiro Sakurai recently participated in a quick interview where he was asked a few questions by 4Gamer. Translations of what was said have been provided by Kody NOKOLO.
It's not too surprising to hear that it might be a while before we hear about Sakurai's next project. Sakurai even seems to suggest that it might be better for fans to just forget about him for the time being.
"Doing anything else is going to take some time, so it's probably best to forget about me for a while" said Sakurai.
It appears that this isn't the first time Sakurai has said this following the completion of Super Smash Bros. Ultimate's DLC. Sakurai reportedly said something similar in his final Famitsu Column, which was leaked back in early November.
According to Ryokutya2089 (as translated by Siliconera), Sakurai mentioned that he wanted to conceal himself for a while. Not surprisingly, he's currently not able to talk about what's next for him now that Super Smash Bros. Ultimate is finished.
Sakurai then suggested that it might be better for people to forget about him, but he notes that he will be careful not to make himself disappear from the public entirely.
Assuming Masahiro Sakurai continues with his current role in game development, it might be several years before we hear about his next project. Notably, Sakurai had seemingly disappeared for a good while following the completion of Super Smash Bros. 4's DLC.
Back in 2017, Sakurai revealed that he purchased a toy so that he may study the attached rifle. He stated that this purchase was related to an unannounced project that he was working on.
Although we've never been given confirmation as to what this visual reference was used for, it's widely believed that this was used as a reference for the Inkling's Splattershot, an ink rifle used by the Inklings in Super Smash Bros. Ultimate.
Aside from that, we really didn't hear much from Sakurai during the period between the release of Bayonetta and Corrin for Super Smash Bros. 4, and the announcement of Super Smash Bros. Ultimate.
Following the announcement that Super Smash Bros. was coming to the Nintendo Switch, it was reported that Sakurai was involved with the project in some capacity, but Nintendo did not reveal any details for a time. We only learned that Sakurai would be reprising his role as director at E3 2018.
We'll likely be seeing something similar throughout the next few years once Sakurai begins working on his next project. At some point or another, Sakurai will likely disappear from public eye until there is something to reveal.
