Shigeru Miyamoto is the father of everything Nintendo. He created Donkey Kong, Zelda, Mario, and most importantly, the Wii, which is currently the number one Next Gen console, besting both Sony and Microsoft. So where DOES he get his inspiration from?

In 1966, when Walt Disney died, Mr. Miyamoto was a fourteen year-old boy living near Kyoto, Miyamoto loved the works of Walt Disney. Because of this, he transformed into an aspiring cartoonist, and while he wasn't drawing, he was crafting his own toys from wood. Even today, he approaches his work like a craftsman, treating is work well rather than the usual, mainstream games developer. Which might be why his games are so appealing. The Italian Plumber, Mario, which he created 30 years ago, is one of the most recognized icons on the planet, rivaling Mickey Mouse himself. Even Mr. Miyamoto himself is the figurehead of Nintendo, without him they'd still be making trading cards. In fact, in the Time 100 online poll, Mr. Miyamoto was voted the most influential person in the world.

He's an artist, and like most artists, he's gone through different stages. Earlier on in his career, his work came from odd, abstract ideas, like a plumber jumping down pipes in a "Mushroom Kingdom," and a mute, teenager in a green tunic constantly trying to save a Princess, who keeps getting herself kidnapped by a villain named Ganandorf.

Now he's created the Wii, and while it's still attracting traditional gamers, it's now attracting families and casual gamers, for it's entertainment value, low cost, and it's ease of use.

"Without Miyamoto, Nintendo would be back making playing cards,” said Andy McNamara, editor in chief of Game Informer, the No. 1 game magazine, referring to Nintendo’s original business in 1889. “He probably inspires 99 percent of the developers out there today. You can even say there wouldn’t be video games today if it wasn’t for Miyamoto and Nintendo. He’s the granddad of all game developers, but the funny thing is that for all of his legacy, for all of the mainstay iconic characters he’s designed and created, he is still pushing the limits with things like Wii Fit."

Without doubt, his characters are extremely popular. The reason they could be so popular is probably the same reason as to why a bunch of talking cartoon animals made Walt Disney famous: they're entertaining, pleasing to the eye, and creative.

"I feel that people like Mario and people like Link and the other characters we’ve created not for the characters themselves, but because the games they appear in are fun,” Mr. Miyamoto said. “And because people enjoy playing those games first, they come to love the characters as well."

As I mentioned earlier, Shigeru Miyamoto's work has changed as he goes through different phases. He started off with surreal and unrealistic situations, like a plumber trying to steal a Princess back from a monkey throwing barrels, to everyday hobbies inspired by events and things that have happened to him. The recent Nintendo DS game, "Nintendogs," was created when Miyamoto was inspired by his Shetland sheepdog, with games like Wii Fit and Wii Sports taking on a more "hobby"-like approach to video-games. Music, sports, animals, and the with Wii Fit, Yoga, Shigeru Miyamoto is taking on a more realistic approach to the world, bringing us real-life activities in a gaming-format.

I would say that over the last five years or so, the types of games I create has changed somewhat,” he said. “Whereas before I could kind of use my own imagination to create these worlds or create these games, I would say that over the last five years I’ve had more of a tendency to take interests or topics in my life and try to draw the entertainment out of that.

With the Wii, Miyamoto has given people the ability to create their own characters, dubbed, "Miis," which can shared over the internet. Miyamoto wants the casual gamer to be a part of the entertainment.

"I see the Miis as the most recent character creation from Nintendo,” Mr. Miyamoto said. “What’s interesting is that regardless of the user’s age, if they’re looking at a Mii, it’s their Mii. Before, when you’re playing as another character, it’s more typical of more passive entertainment, and by creating a Mii you’re becoming more a part of the entertainment experience."

It could be said that Shigeru Miyamoto is this generation's Walt Disney, he's just as influential and his characters are easily just as popular, maybe more popular. Shigeru Miyamoto is leading the world of gaming to whole new levels and bringing gaming into an artistic, crafts-like light. We'll just have to wait and see if his new game "Wii Music," will bump up the Wii's success even more.