Gamasutra has an
insightful interview with Yoshio Sakamoto, one of the lead developers on
Metroid Other M. I've always thought of Sakamoto as one of Nintendo's unsung heroes; he's the guy in the background making a lot of cool games who doesn't get the spotlight very often.
He's been working on the Metroid franchise since the very beginning back in 1986, and he discusses his perspectives on the changing nature of the series. In particular he talks about good story in game design, his thoughts on the Metroid Prime trilogy and how Retro handled it, and the unifying elements of the Metroid series that keeps it all together. He also elaborates on the partnership with Team Ninja and Yosuke Hayashi for Other M. I think Nintendo is a little too isolated at times and it's cool to see Sakamoto working so closely with an outside team toward a common goal. He's always seemed to be more open to change, which is probably why the Metroid series has seen more outside influences than a lot of other Nintendo IPs.
The interview is a good read, so check it out if you want to see the workings behind Nintendo's quiet visionary.
