Is Eiji Aonuma Running Zelda into the Ground?

[athenian200]

Actually, I hate to admit this, but I've been complaining that the new games are too hard.

It took me 6 months to get past one section of the ToTOK, and I had to use a video walkthrough, or it would have taken longer. The reason is because I'm very bad at games involving time limits and sneaking, especially if they add dungeon puzzles and don't let you save your progress.

In TP, it took me three months to figure out how to catch a fish, to the point that I almost gave up on the game. And then, I struggled with that one sequence where I had to put out the fire on a carriage for almost a month. And I spent a long time on that one where I had to ride the shadow beast in order to catch bugs that had the tears of light, too.

I actually find the new games are harder, but for all the wrong reasons, and reasons that make you feel like you worked way too hard, and were forced to play a mini-game that didn't feel like Zelda just to get there.

The old games were much easier, because all you had to do was, essentially, solve puzzles and riddles, maybe spend sometime mastering the strategy of a boss. It also made you feel rewarded when you got through, not just frustrated and relieved that it was over.

If you encountered something in the old games like what you find in the new games, you find it was an optional mini-game. Now, it's right in the path of progression.

 

[Tony]

It all depends on opinion I have played all the zelda games (besides CD-I) and I have enjoyed all of them in a different way, so I can't say he's running it to the ground It's just a few games, and Skyward Sword looks AWESOME, so I can't exactly say he is running to the ground.

 

[Kirino]

I think Zelda's doing just fine.WW and TP(in other words the latest two consle Zelda's)are both absolutly amazing games.The only thing that is changing to me is difficulty.WW had an amazing storyline,incredible gameplay,beautiful graphics,large amount of sidequests,ect.And TP was NOT the same as OOT.It had completly different gameplay,graphics,locations.The only thing that was the same was the plot.And even that wasn't that much the same.It's really a matter of opinion if Zeldas getting worse.To me,there not getting worse at all.And I think SS will be amazing.I think people think that because TP was aparrently the same as OOT,and that PH and ST weren't as good as the rest.

 

[triforce88]

No, but I do think that Zelda games were better when Miyamoto was the director.

 

[Midna666]

Personally I think that Aonuma is doing a pretty good job when it comes to the console Zelda games. Majora's Mask, Wind Waker, and Twilight Princess were really good games. I enjoyed them more then OOT.
MM had a darker feel to it then most Zelda games, and it was kind of mysterious.
WW had likable characters, and the first time that I played it the story had me on the edge of my seat.
Twilight Princess was the first Zelda game that give us characters that went though character development(Midna, Colin).

The handheld games have gotten worst in my opinion. I think that the Oracle games were the last really good handheld Zelda games. Outside of PH, and ST, I don't really know how involved Anouma was with the handheld games.

I think that Miyamoto is probably holding the series back more then Aonuma is. I think that Miyamoto really needs to give Aonuma complete freedom on the Zelda series.

 

[Satsy]

I have one gripe with one of the current games released and it's not to do with storyline nor Aonuma: It's to do with the texture and render of the backgrounds when you're driving the train in ST. While they could most certainly get away with not putting too much effort into backgrounds in PH considering you spent most of your time on a boat, I'm finding the painful lack of effort put into the background walls in ST to be rather bothersome.

I also had a gripe with PH, but it's the common gripe, and they changed that formula for ST and that's fine.

And for all my small-time gripes this hasn't stopped me playing both of them through to the end.

There hasn't really been a decline as far as quality or storyline goes. Heck there have been some improvements in places, even to character development! I may not like ST's Zelda much but she definitely has more character than... well, most of the other Zeldas in the series.

The series is simply growing. You're probably just experiencing growing pains.

 

[DuckNoises]

Twilight Princess was the first Zelda game that give us characters that went though character development(Midna, Colin).

I disagree with this statement wholeheartedly. OoT had lots of character development, and MM has the most character development to a near irrefutable degree. What's more is that in OoT, all three main characters had significant character development. While TP poured in large amounts of effort of character development into Midna, the rest of the game stayed still. There was also an abhorrent absence of character development where it was really needed, particularly Ganondorf and Zelda, who barely have under an hour of combined time in the game, and were shoved in with what seemed a lacklustre effort. What annoyed me the most is that it felt like the game didn't even stay true to what character development it introduced, namely Midna, which had such great potential. Most of the game's character development felt like it was abandoned at the end as if it had never happened, and it felt like such a missed opportunity.
I'd say character development existed as early as ALttP, as you saw Ganon's character evolve as described by the world around you, if only in the past tense.

 

[Mr.Verto]

Athenian, while I do agree with you on a slow "decline" in quality, I wouldn't necessarily attribute it to Aonuma. It may just be the fact that he and Miyamoto aren't as much a "team" as they used to be, because Miyamoto has been promoted to General Manager of Nintendo (sometime since OoT), which is an extremely tasking job. I wouldn't say that it is Aonuma's fault, it's more of the fact that Miyamoto hasn't been as involved as he used to be. Aonuma is great, but I don't think it will be easy for him to achieve what was achieved when great minds worked closer together. They used to be a team, after all -- and what's left of a team when their leader (of sorts) has gone?

Miyamoto now probably has the single most time-consuming job at Nintendo, and it's a shame that he probably can't take as much time to add his special brand of genius to all of his projects. It would be beyond fantastic to see him take the occasional break from his General Manager responsibilities and to resume being director of Zelda, but he is a very, very busy man.

Again, I see this general "decline" in quality (heck, I even made a graph of how I think it's declining), but I wouldn't attribute it directly to Aonuma. He's great at what he does, and someone has to continue Miyamoto's legacy when Miyamoto himself can't. He's made lots of great games, and I don't think it's necessarily Aonuma's fault.

The only possible fault that I could see in Aonuma is not so much a fault of his own, but more of a comparison to Miyamoto. In my eyes, Miyamoto has largely been an "anti-gimmick" sort of fellow, and I feel that Aonuma is more open to change. This is why a lot of Aonuma's games are much more polarizing, because they seem to take bigger risks with some of the game play. In the hardcore gaming world, too much change is often shunned, which may result in some people's disapproval with some of the games he's made.

To reiterate, I don't think Aonuma's the problem, it's merely that Miyamoto doesn't have quite as much time to put his ideas into the games as he used to. They worked better as a team; Aonuma is one of the star players of that team, but things can't be as great as they used to be when their best player can no longer be there all the time.

I believe this a good theory, It is nobodies fault is just that they have not dedicating enough time to Zelda (weird cause is one of the biggest franchise of Nintendo) and 2 minds think better than a single one.

 

[Link-182]

I believe Miyamoto is holding zelda back. He pretty gave Aounuma complete freedom in Majora's Mask and its probs my favorite, because it was so unique. Auonuma probably has crazy awesome ideas but Shiggy wants zelda to stay in a certain area.
Wind Waker was amazing. I feel WW was the last amazing zelda game. So, its been 7 years... thats long enough to lose hope in zelda. But it only takes one incredible masterpiece to bring it back up. If Skyward Sword ends up becoming an incredible, unforgettable experience, then zelda is back on track. I actually feel like TP would have been better if they didnt mess with it for a year, the beta stuff looked way cool and ya, I think when nintendo declined as a company toward the casual gamers, is when zelda declined, and now that they are starting to get their act together, I have a feeling it'll shoot back up again as well.

 

[Zemen]

I personally couldn't disagree more. I feel that every game that has been made under Aonuma's reign has worked out fine if not amazingly fine. There is not a single game in the series that doesn't feel exactly like a Zelda game should feel. That's just my opinion, of course, but I honestly don't see anything going downhill with Zelda. If anything, SS will be the start of the decline of the series. I'm not saying SS looks bad or sounds bad, because frankly I'm pumped for the game, but I'm saying since the game is sounding like it's going to be SO much different from the rest of the games that if there was ever a time for Zelda to lose it's touch, this game would be that time. Other than that I don't see anything wrong with games we've gotten in recent past. I have enjoyed every Zelda game as far back as I can remember (with the exception of ALTTP, just couldn't get into that game).