Interview:Nintendo France Q&A 2017

Nintendo France Q&A 2017

Date	Q1 2017
Interviewee	Eiji Aonuma
Interviewer	Fans
Description	French Zelda fans ask Eiji Aonuma a series of questions regarding Breath of the Wild.
Source	[1]

Adrien: How did you come up with the idea of putting nature at the very center of The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild?

Eiji Aonuma: The games in the Legend of Zelda series have always been about Link’s evolution in his own world. At the beginning of the game, he isn’t very strong, but he gradually gets stronger. If the various [Zelda] games take place in environments with lots of nature, it’s because we thought those were the best for the kind of stories we wanted to tell. And this time around, nature is an even more important element than ever before, that’s a directorial choice. Since you’re completely free to go wherever you want, that you get to travel a lot, we had to create this huge world with vast plains, in order to provide players with a fully immersive experience. It’s for this very reason that we paid a lot of attention to animations, ambient sounds, and sound effects for nature, so that you can really be engrossed in the various environments.

Robin: Among all the new elements introduced in The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild, which one did you enjoy working on the most, in order to make the experience unique?

Eiji Aonuma: What I prefer in this game is that you have unprecedented freedom to do whatever you want. The game was designed in such a way that you can climb all the mountains. The main gameplay mechanic consists in climbing mountains, and the world was created so that once you are high above ground, you can see everything it’s made of. If you find an interesting place, you can head there using your paraglider. You will climb, look around, fly… again and again. It’s a unique method of transportation I haven’t seen in any other game, and I think it’s really fun and novel. This is my favorite aspect of the game.

Lambert: Where does The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild end up in the Zelda timeline?

Eiji Aonuma: I’m not going to tell you where the game ends up in the Zelda timeline before you’ve had the chance to play, but if you watched the third trailer, then you heard about the voice that said Hyrule is a country that went through many battles against Ganon. I’d say this is a clue as to when the game takes place.

Anthony: When watching the latest trailer, I asked myself… Is this game more mature than the previous ones?

Eiji Aonuma: Naturally, by watching the trailer, you get the impression the game has a pretty serious tone. But it’s because when editing it, we use serious-looking and impressive segments, that will be the best at grabbing the attention of viewers. But just like other Zelda titles, Breath of the Wild is a game that will make you feel lots of different emotions. Just like in other Zelda games, there are serious and dramatic moments, but also some lighthearted ones, that will make you laugh I hope. It’s a game that will both move you and make you laugh.