Miyamoto Talks Metroid, Zelda, And Wii U

Miyamoto Talks Metroid, Zelda, And Wii U

In a recent interview with French website, Gamekult.com, Miyamoto was asked a series of questions about his role in the Wii U development, the future of Metroid, and how link was named.

Of course, there is not a lot of new news in the interview, but there is hint at a new Metroid (beyond Nintendoland’s Metroid Blast).

I have translated the interview from French to English, below.  Please excuse any grammatical errors, my translation skills are limited to Google’s abilities.

On the occasion of the release of the Wii U, the most famous game designersreceived Gamekult for an interview. If the father of Mario and Zelda has been very evasive on draft Nintendo and his family, he was willing to reveal, for the first time, how was conceived his famous hero green tunic.

What was your exact role in the development of the Wii U?

It is hard to say, because in theory I am responsible forsoftware , but since the beginning I’ve always had my say on the development of new machines, including levers.Finally, as we develop the hardware together with games, I found myself involved in the development of the DS and Wii. For Wii U, was very thin border between the controller and the software responsible for the hardware.We met several people from these two sections together to discuss the project. I was among those who supported the idea of having a small TV screen in the controller. After that it is pretty hard to tell who did what.

In an interview in 2006, you said that you were frustrated by the edges of the screen TVs. You already had in mind the Wii U?

It is difficult to link words and deeds! Sometimes I think out loud, but I do not think it was related to the Wii U. But it is true that the mode Panorama View , which allows to look around on the screen of the controller, we leave the TV.

From the outset, the Wii has given the impression of a console predisposed to sports games, including snowshoeing. Trying the Wii U and Nintendo Land, we rather got the impression that its primary purpose is the games. Is this the case?

It is not only that it was designed, I think it would have taken four small screens over a large touch screen for it. But it is true that it is easier with the Wii U make games because they can be four, tap the touch screen and see the result on the main screen. In addition, there is an NFC chip included.We can therefore integrate interactions that are close games, and not just society. I think of the toys. (note: the system currently used by Skylanders ) . And then you know what a hit now onsmartphone , at least in Japan, these are games collection cards. But these are virtual cards. What interests me are the real cards. That’s why I think the Wii U has more potential than them.

Side of traditional games, you stated that Metroid would fit very well with the Wii U. Do you think more like a Metroid Prime, a Metroid Other M, or a third way?

You know, the kind of ideas I have on Metroid is already reflected in the mini-game that is devoted to the series in Nintendo Land , Metroid Blast .But more broadly, my reasoning is mainly as follows: the Wii U is an HD console with superior graphics and computing power. So naturally, what you may think, this is a nice action game in HD … (big smile of one who will not say more) .

After a quick survey on Twitter, one of the games that lack most French players is F-Zero. Nobody really understands why Nintendo has produced since 2004. Is there a chance that we revisit the series on Wii U?

(Great astonished eyes) makes me extremely happy to hear from Twitter, because since the first episode on Super Nintendo, there were several opus, but I think the series has not changed much. I thought people were on the contrary be tired. So, I want to say thank you very much for your patience and try playing the mini-game F-Zero Nintendo Land. I am also very curious and I would like to ask these people why F-Zero? What you lack that we have not yet done?

Lately, there has been much talk about your future. And you, where do you see yourself in ten years?

In ten years, I hope I am still alive, especially! If this is the case, I hope that I will always at Nintendo, doing what I love. Today, I am very busy, but I’m lucky to be able to work at my place of youth – finally, they forties – who are all talented producers who worked on the Wii or Wii U. Thanks to them and their talent, I can detach a few of my regular duties, saying that their projects are in good hands. And focus on the things that interest me, even if I continue to supervise a little. At this point, I cling to finish Pikmin 3!

Finally, I would like to ask you a question which, I think, you never answered. You told repeatedly creating Mario, but never the hero of Zelda. Do you remember the birth of Link?

(He thinks) Actually, the sprite of Link was designed by Mr. [Takashi] Tezuka (right arm Miyamoto on Super Mario Bros. , and The Legend of Zelda , in charge of the series New Super Mario Bros.). At the time, as you know, the NES was very limited, and we had only allowed three different colors. And yet, we wanted a recognizable character. What I wanted above all is that it uses either his sword or his shield, and it is visible. We have therefore made it big guns for them to be recognized on the screen. He then had to create a hero that we can distinguish these weapons, despite its small size.We thought a long hat and big ears. This has raised a magical character, so we left in the direction of an elf. At the time, saying, with pointy ears character as Peter Pan said, and as I love Disney, we started to inspire us.Not completely, of course, otherwise it would not have been super … From there, I thought that the green Peter Pan suited him perfectly. But as we were restricted to three colors, and there was a lot of forest environments in the game, green to green, it suited quite well, so we continued this track.

And where does his name?

This is a story that is not well known, but at the time, when we started the design of The Legend of Zelda, it was believed that the fragments of the Triforce would actually chips! It was supposed to be a video game that happen in both the past and the future. As the hero was the link between one and the other, called the “Link” link in English. But ultimately Link never went into the future and it remained a game of fantasy . One can even say that it has absolutely nothing futuristic! (laughs)

Essel Pratt has spent his life exploring his imagination and dreams. As a Husband and a Father, he doesn't have as much time to write as he would like. However, his mind is always plotting out his next story. Someday he hopes to quit the 9-5 grind and focus on writing full time. Currently, Essel has three published short stories and is working on a handful of novels. Essel focuses his writings on mostly Horror/Sci-Fi, however is known to add a dash of other genres into his writings as well. In his spare time, he can be found playing one of the 40+ video game consoles in his collection, especially his Wii U (NNID: EsselPratt). Click the links below to follow Essel's exploits in the writing world, and be sure to follow his blog at http://esselpratt.blogspot.com/ as well as his articles on Nerdzy.com.