Zelda: A Link to the Past dev got “PTSD or something” from debugging and testing phase

The Legend of Zelda: A Link to the Past left an indelible memory on former Nintendo designer Takaya Imamura, but perhaps not in the way that he would have wanted.

Imamura was reflecting on his work in the latest issue of EDGE. Halfway through the project, Nintendo called him in to work on the game and make bosses. That wasn’t his only role though as he was extensively involved with the testing phase. This is a bit of a shame as he was hoping to experience the game as a player.

Imamura’s full words:

“To tell the truth, when I was asked to help out on the Zelda team, I wasn’t too pleased about it. I didn’t really want to, and the reason was because I wanted to enjoy the game when it was finished, as a player. I can remember that feeling even now. I also remember that the debugging, the QA, was really tough, having to do the same thing over and over again. I still really don’t want to play that game – the testing was that difficult. Even now, if I just jump into the game for a minute or so, the feeling comes back. It’s like PTSD or something.”

Imamura ended up working on Zelda: Majora’s Mask as well, which he wasn’t happy about. Just like A Link to the Past, he was hoping to “experience it as a player, not actually work on it”.

Imamura spent many years with Nintendo but left in 2021. This week, he shared some thoughts on why he departed, which we have here.

Thanks to EDGE for the quotes above.