Aonuma on why the 3DS isn’t used in Zelda: Wind Waker HD for the Tingle Tuner

Austin caught up with Zelda producer Eiji Aonuma earlier today, who spoke a bit about The Legend of Zelda: The Wind Waker HD.

When asked why the team chose not to feature the 3DS as the Tingle Tuner, Aonuma said that they wanted to focus on the social aspect of Miiverse. The Tingle Tuner was originally used as a way for one player to help the main player through the Game Boy Advance. Now it’s as though the whole world is helping players, so the spirit of the device is left intact.

Aonuma later added that the team didn’t truly try to implement 3DS functionality due to the staff’s focus on Miiverse.

Wind Waker HD essentially replaces the Tingle Tuner from the GameCube original with the new “Tingle Bottle”. This allows players to exchange messages with each other. Once you have access to the item, you can put a message in a bottle, attach a screenshot, and send it off. Messages will be added to Miiverse, and you’ll find comments from other players that wash ashore.