High Score on Netflix Sheds Light on Shigeru Miyamoto's Creative Legacy at Nintendo

Netflix’s latest video game documentary series, High Score, launches viewers into the untold stories behind some of the industry’s most celebrated innovations.

Scheduled to debut on Netflix on August 19, 2020, the series profiles legendary developers and the groundbreaking titles that have shaped generations.

In its final episode, High Score shines a spotlight on a particularly fascinating anecdote from Nintendo’s golden age, bringing fresh perspective to the company’s culture during the Super Nintendo era. One particularly memorable segment revisits the development of Star Fox, one of the Super Nintendo's pioneering 3D titles, created by British studio Argonaut Software in close collaboration with Nintendo.

Dylan Cuthbert and Giles Goddard, two key Argonaut developers involved in creating the Super FX chip that powered Star Fox's advanced graphics, revealed a telling glimpse inside Nintendo HQ and their unique interactions with Shigeru Miyamoto, one of the industry’s most influential designers. Recounting their experience at Nintendo’s offices, Cuthbert shared that Shigeru Miyamoto—the creative force behind franchises such as Mario and The Legend of Zelda—was known for frequenting their workspace.

Often, Miyamoto would enter the developers’ area and light a cigarette, a common practice at the time in Japan.

“The only area in the office where Miyamoto was permitted to smoke was where we worked,” Cuthbert explained.

While the team focused intensely on programming, Miyamoto was known to stroll in, spark up, and launch into imaginative tangents, sometimes about topics as whimsical as trees or seemingly unrelated concepts. Reflecting on these moments, Cuthbert observed that these digressions, rather than being distractions, highlighted Miyamoto’s creative genius.

He noted that Miyamoto’s ability to simultaneously consider a multitude of ideas fueled his innovative approach to game design, inspiring the team in subtle and unexpected ways. It’s important to contextualize these stories with Japan's workplace culture at the time.

Smoking indoors, once customary, has since become far less common.

As reported by The Japan Times, new regulations instituted in April 2020 have widely prohibited indoor smoking in restaurants, offices, and other public spaces across Japan, reflecting broader shifts in health policy and social norms. The enduring influence of Miyamoto’s work is evident across Nintendo’s hardware and software history, from the Super Nintendo era through present-day releases on Nintendo Switch and digital platforms like Nintendo eShop.

Meanwhile, Argonaut Software’s contributions helped lay the technical foundation that allowed Nintendo titles such as Star Fox to reach milestone achievements in sales and critical acclaim. High Score arrives on Netflix on August 19, promising more in-depth interviews and untold stories about leaders like Shigeru Miyamoto, and offering gaming enthusiasts a unique window into the origins of their favorite franchises.

With verified accounts from pivotal developers, the series reinforces the importance of innovation and creative freedom at the heart of Nintendo’s legacy.

Netflix High Score Nintendo Shigeru Miyamoto Argonaut Software Dylan Cuthbert Giles Goddard Star Fox Super Nintendo The Japan Times