Sega Mii

[Leon Retro]

I was looking through an old issue of EDGE - from 2005. It had a little bit about the game above( Sega Driving School ) ... What stood out - was the character designs: they look like Mii characters.

Anyway, this may have been noticed by other people ages ago, but... I thought it was interesting.

Do you think it's a coincidence? ... Or maybe Sega were first with the Mii design style?

[Ouenben]

I was looking through an old issue of EDGE - from 2005. It had a little bit about the game above( Sega Driving School ) ... What stood out - was the character designs: they look like Mii characters.

Anyway, this may have been noticed by other people ages ago, but... I thought it was interesting.

Do you think it's a coincidence? ... Or maybe Sega were first with the Mii design style?

I dunno Mii's weren't just about having a simple looking human character that looked like you/robocop/dr zoiburg it was that you could use them in games like Tennis, boxing etc as well as some other ones like mario kart etc.
Besides really you could say all basic human 3d avatars/characters look like Miis

[Leon Retro]

Besides really you could say all basic human 3d avatars/characters look like Miis

Whatcha talkin bout Willis? ...

The Mii design is iconic - despite its simplicity. In fact.. you could say the simple design is what makes them iconic.

Nintendo are very proud of their Mii creation. My whole point with this topis is: Did Sega get there first with the design, or is there prove that Nintendo had Miis before 2005?

[egparadigm]

Nintendo said recently that they had been working on Miis for an age before they actually came out. I just can't remember exactly what it was they said. Something about it being being part of an earlier game or something.

...

A quick look at Wikipedia reveals that they're based on Japanese Kokeshi dolls and that they appeared in embryonic form on the Famicom disk system, 64DD and in Stage Debut (game on the GC).

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mii#Development

[endo]

I can't be arsed looking, but I would be very surprised if there weren't loads of "Mii-esque" simple-looking 3D avatars way before Nintendo did it. I'd be equally surprised if Nintendo based the whole idea on two non-descript characters on some promo stuff for a one-off Sega arcade game too. So it's just a coincidence I'd say.

[Leon Retro]

I can't be arsed looking, but I would be very surprised if there weren't loads of "Mii-esque" simple-looking 3D avatars way before Nintendo did it. I'd be equally surprised if Nintendo based the whole idea on two non-descript characters on some promo stuff for a one-off Sega arcade game too. So it's just a coincidence I'd say.

They look exactly like Miis. The characters in Sega Driving School are in the game - so it's not just promo stuff.

Maybe the designer is freelance - and designed the Mii style on his own, before working for Nintendo & Sega.

I don't know? ... It's not important, but I thought it was interesting.

It would be cool if Sega had designed the Mii look before Nintendo. That would make me laugh.