STACK Mar #137

60 / 99

The
TWILIGHT
Returns
What prompted the decision to remake The
Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess?
Mr. Aonuma: Before starting development on
the new Zelda title for Wii U that we’re currently
working on, we tested HD remakes of past Zelda
titles in order to consider the Wii U’s graphical
power.
We worked with Twilight Princess and Wind
Waker, and the results of creating HD versions for
both titles were good, so we planned to develop
them officially.
We created the remake and released Wind
Waker first, considering the order in which the
original title first released.
We planned to remake Twilight Princess next,
however the Zelda team had already started to
develop the new Zelda title for Wii U. Therefore,
we looked for a company who could create the
remake.
As a result, Tantalus accepted our offer
which allowed our dreams for a remake
version for this title to come true.
When was the decision made
to create a HD remake for
Twilight Princess? How long does
a process such as this usually take?
The decision was finalised when it was
decided that Tantalus would collaborate for this
title, and the project started at the end of 2013
with the verification of technology.
The process for such decisions varies
depending on the situation and specific project,
so unfortunately there’s no solid answer.
The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess is considered not only one of
the best launch titles in Nintendo console history, but one of the most
notable entries in the entire Zelda franchise.This month it's back,
remade for theWii U, and STACK was extremely fortunate to talk
with industry and Zelda luminary Eiji Aonuma about the project.
What are some of the biggest
challenges in remaking a game like
Twilight Princess?
It is, needless to say, that we have
to make many programming changes
in order for a title to work on different
hardware, and in creating a remake HD
version, we have to replace the existing
artwork with more highly detailed
textures. In addition, if we draw in every
detail, it might evolve to lose its original
qualities, so it’s challenging to create a
balance in that regard.
Also, we wanted to ensure the feeling
of playing could be enjoyed by current
players even 10 years after release, so
through a process of trial and error we
fixed many points.
How do you gauge whether there is
an audience for a remake of a title
like this? Do you poll for feedback or
consult forums?
Of course, I sometimes check the
reactions and feelings of players via
the Internet and so on. However, in the
case of this remake, we didn’t decide
to proceed based on the research of
players’ requests, but rather from the
perspective of whether we thought it
would be worthwhile for Zelda fans.
Actually, I am not totally sure if many
fans will purchase this title, so I am
nervously excited (ha ha).
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60 MARCH 2016
GAMES