Did you know that Shigeru Miyamoto originally intended for the pieces of the Triforce in the first Legend of Zelda title to be computer chips? In these two newly-translated interviews from French publication Gamekult, Shigeru Miyamoto recalls that story, along with details about Link’s original design, why Link is named “Link”, and more! Dri from…
If you’re reading this, you have already heard about The Legend of Zelda: Echoes of Wisdom, and have likely seen the trailer. The series has finally hit a major milestone: we get to play as the titular Princess Zelda herself. So why did this happen now? I think we can trace a direct line from…
The most famous Legend of Zelda developers, Shigeru Miyamoto and Eiji Aonuma, are household names amongst fans. Takashi Tezuka, the co-creator of the series, is well known, too. But there are many lesser-known figures who have had a deep impact on the Zelda series. Yoichi Yamada is one such hidden figure. The first Zelda title…
When I play Zelda, I play for the world. Not the world-building (although that’s fun too), but for the simple pleasures of exploring the vast, beautiful landscape of Hyrule. Indeed, I think Miyamoto concurs, “Zelda has an epic story and all, but the truth is, to me it’s all about hiking.” Yuga’s Art Gallery is a…
“When I was a child, I went hiking and found a lake. It was quite a surprise for me to stumble upon it. When I traveled around the country without a map, trying to find my way, stumbling on amazing things as I went, I realized how it felt to go on an adventure like…
Ocarina of Time was a seminal masterpiece. It was a model for how to make a third-person, 3D adventure game that was accessible and ambitious. It broke new ground in camera control, 3D melee combat, 3D level design, and immersive worlds. It maintained a high standard for readability and accessibility. It sold 7.6 million copies…
“I wanted something that players could get so lost in, it would take them a whole year to finish.” – Shigeru Miyamoto, 1992 [1] “I thought that making the user get lost was a sin.” – Eiji Aonuma, 2016 [2] The Zelda series has a storied, 30-year history. Shigeru Miyamoto created the first game with a…
Link! The Hero of Hyrule! A young adventurer who heeds the call to action and saves the land from darkness. Reincarnated time and again, forever destined to wield the Master Sword in defense of the Triforce and the people of Hyrule. Link, of course, is us, the persona we embody when we play a Zelda…
2001 was a tumultuous year, and a watershed moment for the Zelda franchise and the game industry. It saw the release of not one, but two Zelda games – two Zelda games developed by Capcom, with Nintendo’s blessing. It was a year that polarized and divided the Zelda fanbase more than any other, when the…
Nothing beats a great story. A truly good story will sweep you up; immerse you in its depths so that you experience the fullness of its twists and turns. You don’t want to leave it, because the world and events that it weaves around you are so compelling that you feel the need to stay…
It is a bittersweet joy, to finish a Zelda game. A sense of victory, a sense of accomplishment and pride, but tempered by sadness at knowing that it is now over. It has always been so. How many of us are able to just jump straight back to normality after watching those last names go…
Anyone who reads my articles probably knows the things I consider most important in a Zelda game. They will have heard me discussing how exploration of a beautiful land and the atmosphere created by it is the most important factor in creating a Zelda experience. They will have read my long-winded explanations of why this…
I have spent years exploring and participating in the online Zelda communities – discussing my favorite memories, or the timeline, or maybe this graphic style or that dungeon. I like to think I’ve even made a bit of a name for myself, within the multitudes of forums and websites. I’ve come to know many fans,…
Can you feel it? That palpable sense of excitement, so thick in the air that you can almost reach out and caress it? I can practically taste it everywhere I look. I surround myself by Zelda, and I always have a hand on the lifeblood of the Zelda community, always feel it ebbing and flowing…
by Max Nichols (lord-of-shadow) “Good things come to those who wait.” It’s an old saying, a tired saying, a dry, used-up cliché, a boring piece of conventional wisdom. But it is true, and I will now tell you why.
