IGN spoke to Nintendo of America’s president Reggie Fils-Aime about a number of different subjects relating to Nintendo at GDC this past week, and in the interview he was asked about Zelda Wii, and when we can expect to get our hands on it. Not a lot was revealed, but it’s something nonetheless.
IGN: However, I did, of course, read recent comments from Cammie Dunaway in which she very strongly hinted that we would see the new Wii Zelda unveiled at E3 and released before the end of the year. What’re your thoughts on that?
Reggie Fils-Aime: E3 — you’ll see what we have. I’ve learned that it’s not to Nintendo’s advantage for us to foreshadow what we’re going to have at E3 because even the smallest little hint or perspective gets blown out to huge proportions. So you’re not going to get any more information about E3.
However, a product like Zelda will launch truly when it’s perfect and the best person to answer that question is going to be Mr. Miyamoto. Hopefully, hopefully it’s going to be a title that we can bring to market this year. But it’s not something that we’re going to commit to until we have a much better sense of whether Mr. Miyamoto is going to upend the tea cart and challenge Mr. Aonuma to do new things or whether the development plan is going to stay on track.
IGN: Wii sales were great in February, even if they dipped due to supply constraints. That said, Wii was outsold by a major competitor. So what kind of position would you be in if this happened consecutively for the next, say, six months?
Reggie Fils-Aime: What a ‘what if’ scenario.
IGN: It really is a ‘what if’ scenario, I know.
Reggie Fils-Aime: Focusing on the home console side of the business, we’ve got Monster Hunter Tri coming in April. Oh, by the way, GameStop is doing a great job driving pre-sales and getting consumers excited about it. I got Galaxy 2 coming May 23. I’ve got Sin & Punishment coming in early June. I’ve got Metroid: Other M coming in late June.
IGN: And then Zelda in November — let’s not forget that.
Reggie Fils-Aime: That’s what you’re saying. So I’m feeling pretty good about my lineup and software drives hardware. My biggest issue, is that I need to make sure I’ve got the inventory to support those fantastic launches and that’s what we’re focuses on.
IGN: I just heard from a development source who said they talked to Nintendo and Nintendo told them it would be ready to roll out the successor to Wii in 2012. Is that true?
Reggie Fils-Aime: [Laughs] You know, how do I comment to that speculation?
IGN: Just say yes.
Reggie Fils-Aime: That is all rumor and speculation.
IGN: All righty. All I got. Unless you want to give me some big tease for E3. On Zelda.
Reggie Fils-Aime: On Zelda specifically? I like the way you posed that. “I’m looking for any kind of tease. On Zelda.”
IGN: I’ll take anything. I have no shame.
Reggie Fils-Aime: Well, you would’ve had a much better chance on that. Matt, the way we approach E3 is to wow the consumer, wow the audience — the audience that’s physically there and the audience that’s tuning in on the Internet. That’s our goal. Hopefully we’ll do it.
For the full interview, which includes questions about Pikmin and the Sony Move motion controller, click on over to IGN.
1) The development team is having a positive responee towards MotionPlus controls.
Speaking to IGN about the anticipated title, director Eiji Aonuma said, “With Twilight Princess, we challenged ourself to create the most vast and realistic world the series had ever seen, but we don’t feel that we were able to fully complete this objective. With that as a starting point for our improvements to the series in the future, we are of course working on a new game for Wii.”
Aonuma
Eurogamer: Let’s go right back to the beginning. What’s your earliest gaming memory, and when did you decide you wanted to become a game designer?
Eiji Aonuma, director of the Legend of Zelda franchise, has an apology to make. “The Water Temple in the Ocarina of Time was notorious for being very tough to conquer,” he says. “I am most sorry that it was not easy for you to put on and take off the heavy boots; that all the time you had to visit the inventory.
“One of our lead planners for the game is a programmer, so he has a different, more scientific or mathematical approach, so to say, to creating puzzles,” he wrote to Kotaku. Aonuma is the producer on Spirit Tracks.