The finale episode of Masahiro Sakurai on Creating Games had a plot twist of sorts, as Sakurai revealed that the episodes had been filmed well in advance of their eventual release. The episodes were filmed two and a half years ago during a rare break for Sakurai after he finished his commitments on Super Smash Bros. Ultimate.
In July 2021, Sakurai was asked to write up a game proposal, and he did so at "lightning speed." He went on to say, "I'm sorry I can't share more about this project, but assuming we're able to get it made, it should be announced sooner or later." Presumably, this tidbit would have been edited out of Sakurai's video if Nintendo wasn't currently working on the project.
"I'd been given the OK to move forward with production, but it was going to take some time to assemble the right team. The target timeframe was April 2022. Until then, I would have to wait," Sakurai adds. If all went according to plan with production, then Sakurai and Nintendo have been working on this new game for over two years.
Sakurai finished up with Ultimate in October 2021 but had to wait until April 2022...
