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Eiji Aonuma

Zelda design Echoes of Wisdom

The developers of Zelda: Echoes of Wisdom have opened up about designing Zelda for the game, which was a “difficult” challenge for the team.

We’re able to get insight from co-director Tomomi Sano and series producer Eiji Aonuma here. There were a few things that Nintendo and Grezzo needed to balance. For one thing, they couldn’t make Zelda too cute. They also couldn’t make her stand out given her fugitive status, but they also didn’t want her to look too much like a fugitive. Finally, Zelda is a princess at the end of the day, so that’s something the team also needed to keep in mind. 

Zelda Echoes of Wisdom Triforce Prime Energy

The Legend of Zelda: Echoes of Wisdom features the use of the Triforce for its story, but rather than actually calling it that, the game uses “Prime Energy” instead. The developers have now shared noteworthy information about the decision to use a different name.

The Trifroce is one of the more iconic elements of the Zelda series. However, Nintendo and Grezzo made the active choice to avoid using that word. In fact, series producer Eiji Aonuma was specifically opposed to using the Triforce. Aonuma indicated that “Triforce” brings along certain expectations, and that’s also why the team “purposefully made the setting and time ambiguous.”

If there’s one thing fans know about Nintendo, it’s that the company focuses on gameplay over story. This even applies to The Legend of Zelda, which does have more of a plot compared to some of the company’s other major series like Super Mario.

On the topic of Zelda, series producer Eiji Aonuma has weighed in on how Nintendo approaches the story for the franchise’s games. The plot only comes about after the game design has been settled upon. That’s something we recently heard about with Zelda: Echoes of Wisdom, where the gameplay was nailed down first and the story was more of a late addition.

Zelda 2D future

Nintendo has reaffirmed its commitment to 2D Zelda titles, with series producer Eiji Aonuma mentioning in a recent interview that the company’s wants “to keep this up as a contrast to the dynamic 3D games.”

Much of the hype surrounding the franchise these days has been in the 3D space. Breath of the Wild and Tears of the Kingdom have been two of the most acclaimed games across the entire industry. Still, it’s clear that 2D Zelda isn’t going anywhere.

Zelda Echoes of Wisdom map

The developers of Zelda: Echoes of Wisdom have spoken a bit about the game’s map, and you might be surprised by just how big it is.

According to Grezzo director Satoshi Terada, the map is eight times the size of Link’s Awakening. That wasn’t always the plan though. Series producer Eiji Aonuma said that it was at first four times the size, but it sounds like the team included quite a bit for players to see and do.

Terada and Aonuma shared the following about the map in Zelda: Echoes of Wisdom:

Zelda Echoes of Wisdom playable protagonist

The developers behind Echoes of Wisdom have opened up on the decision to make Zelda playable and take the starring role as the protagonist.

Interestingly, the team was actually thinking about Link having his standard role as the main character you play as. But as things progressed with the concept of echoes, Nintendo and Grezzo felt that the protagonist needed to be someone who lacked a sword and shield. 

Aonuma also acknowledged fan requests made over the years to see Zelda be the protagonist. After seeing the team struggle over who should be the main character in Echoes of Wisdom, it made sense for Zelda to be playable.

Aonuma and Grezzo director Satoshi Terada shared the following:

Zelda Echoes of Wisdom dungeon creating

In a new interview ahead of this week’s launch for The Legend of Zelda: Echoes of Wisdom on Switch, the developers revealed that the game was originally being made to let players create their own dungeons. Eventually this morphed into echoes featured in the final product.

We get to hear from Grezzo director Satoshi Terada, Nintendo director Tomomi Sano, and series producer Eiji Aonuma here. The group started off by sharing the following:

Zelda Tears of the Kingdom Depths origins interview

Nintendo has spoken about how the Depths in The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom came to be, including how it was formed late in development. It also turns out that the area came as a surprise to producer Eiji Aonuma. Once again, this information comes from the recently-released art book in Japan.

Outside of Aonuma, director Hidemaro Fujibayashi also participated in the discussion. You can read our translation of the excerpt below.

Zelda Tears of the Dragon Kingdom name

Nintendo has spoken about the name for The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom, and revealed that there was strong consideration for calling it Tears of the Dragon instead.

That tidbit comes from Eiji Aonuma, the game’s producer. Aonuma was speaking about Tears of the Kingdom in the newly-released art book, indicating that the Tears of the Dragon name could cause issues since it would “emphasize the Light Dragon”. Only after another member of the team suggested “Kingdom” that the final title materialized.

You can read our full translation below (some spoilers for those who haven’t played the game).

Zelda Tears of the Kingdom anniversary messages

The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom just celebrated its first anniversary. In honor of the milestone, Japanese magazine Nintendo Dream caught up with series producer Eiji Aonuma and Hidemaro Fujibayashi, and both of them shared special messages.

Here’s our full translation:


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