Iwata: Rather than hearing too much about the details of the game, I’d like to ask you what sort of image you had in mind when creating Link’s Crossbow Training.
Miyamoto: I see. Well, where should I start? I’ve always been into first person shooter3 (FPS) style games, 3D games in which you can walk around freely and see things from your own point of view.
Iwata: And why do you like those games?
Miyamoto: I think it is more comfortable, more natural. We are creatures of habit. We don’t look at our feet when we’re walking around, and we’re always trying desperately to take in the scenery while we’re living our lives. So, even in these games I want people to be able to get really into the 3D geography, so it feels like you’re really there, since I think it’s a really natural thing to be able to look around while you’re walking. At first when we were developing The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time, I even proposed using a first-person perspective.
Iwata: Ocarina of Time from a first-person perspective!?
Miyamoto: I thought that might surprise you! (laughs)
I thought that the FPS system would be the best way of enabling players to take in the vast terrain of the Hyrule Field. Besides, by not having the player’s character on the screen, we can spend more time and machine power on creating enemies and the environments.
Iwata: During the Nintendo 64 era you had to keep hardware limitations in mind, didn’t you?
Miyamoto: Well, although I had originally planned to make a game with a first-person perspective, the idea of having a child Link in the game was born, and then it became necessary for the hero to be seen on the screen.
Iwata: I see. So, if the hero isn’t visible on screen, it’s really hard to tell the difference between adult Link and the child Link, right?
Miyamoto: That, and also the fact that it’s a total waste not to have Link visible on screen when he is so cool looking! (laughs) So, we decided to have the hero visible in Ocarina of Time, but I had always thought that FPS games which you could operate from your own perspective were really interesting, so I was proactively supporting such projects like the 007 GoldenEye.
(...)
In Japan, there had been no basis for FPS-style games, and advanced games just kind of sprung up suddenly. I think it was our responsibility to continue releasing fun FPS games to the public to keep them engaged and interested though…
(...)
Iwata: it’s also probably important to keep the development pace moving for the sake of developers as well, right?
Miyamoto: That’s true. So, I asked our Zelda staff to think about a new project with an extra story based around Twilight Princess. But then, they were coming up with stories that can be described as ’epic tales’ rather than ’side stories’.
Iwata: And the people have to wait 3-5 years for it again?
Miyamoto: Of course it’s also important to continue creating epics, but I do not believe that an epic tale alone can make a great game. I mean, depending on what kind of characteristics are added to a game, the fundamental enjoyment behind it can get lost amongst all the gadgets.
(...)
Miyamoto: we figured that Link was the logical choice. Then we argued that it would’ve been kind of strange for us to give Link a gun, so I proposed a sort of Terminator style story about a time warp from the future, but…
Iwata: Terminator!?
Miyamoto: Yeah, they vetoed that idea immediately (laughs). You remember the Hidden Village in Twilight Princess? Well, I personally love that spaghetti western-like setting, and we re-created the scene because we wanted people to be able to find joy in FPS games. I also thought that if you were able to use the Wii Zapper with it, it would be even more fun. So we finally decided to give Link a crossbow, but the problem then became what to do about rapid-fire capabilities (smiling). Shooting a gun in machine gun style rapid-fire is really satisfying, but having a crossbow that was able to shoot rapid-fire seemed a little unrealistic. But in the end we kind of decided, well, it’s really just for fun, so whatever, and we gave it rapid-fire capabilities. (laughs)
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