Aside from Mario, Nintendo wouldn't be the gaming giant it is today without hype from its other famous characters.

Case in point, Link from The Legend of Zelda series. Eiji Aonuma, long-time producer of the Zelda series describes how the newest incarnation of Link's adventure on the Nintendo DS, The Legend of Zelda: The Phantom Hourglass, is akin to the original Legend of Zelda game that first came out on the NES.

Aonuma reminisces on the aspects that first drew gamers into the series in making The Phantom Hourglass. Also, he relates how the game setting itself became an unintentional sequel to the story of The Legend of Zelda: The Wind Waker game on the Nintendo GameCube.

However, The Phantom Hourglass still has many unique aspects that make it different from the others in its series. Aside from the inherent stylus control, the game also incorporates a head-to-head multiplayer mode which pits one player Link against another who controls three Phantoms in a sort of "capture the flag" game.

Aonuma ends this interview saying that he aspires to create his own series aside from the Zelda projects. Seeing his already impressive credentials, it would be interesting to see what kind of games Aonuma would make if he were given free rein.

Anyway, take a look at the video interview of Eiji Aonuma as he talks about his latest Zelda platformer on the Nintendo DS.

Check out the video interview of Eiji Aonuma right after the jump!

Game Informer managed to talk with Eiji Aonuma, designer of The Legend of Zelda: Phantom Hourglass, and got some interesting insights about making a Zelda game for the DS, as well as info on two new additional characters making their way to Super Smash Bros. Brawl.

Aonuma said that the DS supported Toon Shading and required a lower number of polygons than other consoles, which helped ease the translation of the game into the DS handheld platform. Tasked with the creation of a DS Zelda game, Aonuma made sure he was is going to make a game specifically for the DS and it clearly shows in the way that Phantom Hourglass makes full use of its touchscreen and stylus features.

While he didn't specify a specific DS hardware limitation, Aonuma did mention that a big difference in Phantom Hourglass was the classic top-view camera angle. He explained that a top-view camera angle was more natural for the DS because players tend to look down at the lower screen while playing. Aonuma even stated that it was also the reason why Phantom Hourglass is his favorite Zelda game to date: because it gave the feel of older, classic Zelda games.

He also alleviated the fears of those who want to get Phantom Hourglass but haven't played its direct prequel, The Legend of Zelda: Wind Waker. Aonuma assured players that a summary of Wind Waker will be shown at the beginning of the game with storyboards, so anyone will be able to pick it up without getting confused.

As for the controls, the development team did not give an option to switch controls to the D-pad. Check out his explanation why:

Actually, the idea of giving the player the option of being able to use the D-pad and the touch screen was brought up in the course of development. But as a game developer, I really don’t like the idea of switching controls, because it removes the player from the experience and the player has to think about which controls they’re using and at what point they have to switch and always keep that in mind. That was a conscious decision on my part to not give the player that option. With regard to the hand getting in the way, that’s something I’ve thought about, but I’ve found a solution in using a longer stylus.

On a related note, Aonuma confirmed the addition of two more Zelda characters, Sheik and Ganondorf, to the roster of Super Smash Bros. Brawl. It was not mentioned whether they would be playable, or act as assist trophies, or whether Sheik would come into play in a similar fashion as Zero Samus. We'll keep you informed so expect more updates as they come happen.

It's a no-brainer that everyone hates game delays. Each time that a release is moved to a later date, the whine of gamers is met with a standard-issue "we want to add more quality to the game and we need more time to do it" type of response. Most of the time, it's enough to silence the fans. According to analyst Michael Pachter, that's only half of the truth.

In fact, business strategy is the other half of the story. True, creative and technical issues are considered, but publishers may opt to hold in the title for a period of time if that's what it takes to generate better profits. Whether the company is looking for a date where it can cash in on holidays or if it wants to go head to head with the competition, nothing happens by accident as even the smallest details are considered.

One good example of a game delayed for business strategy would be The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess which could have been released for the GameCube 16 months earlier than the actual ship. But Miyamoto and crew seem to have had a business-savvy plan in mind to give the old 'Cube and the new Wii a mutual benefit.

In E3 2004, the world first laid eyes on the next installation in the immortal Zelda franchise. It took a year, however, before we got our hands on a playable demo. That was E3 2005 where Nintendo promised a November 2006 release. What happened next was a series of moves that would lead us to the status quo of electronic entertainment.

According to Pachter, Twilight Princess was good to go on the GameCube in the original release date or somewhere close, but director Eiji Aonuma may have hit a snag with Miyamoto and crew. The game was apparently deemed good enough for the Wii and development of a port was ordered. The game was to be released simultaneously for the Wii and the GameCube to give the new console the additional firepower for its launch. It was the logical thing to do.

Nobody can argue with the results. Together with other Nintendo titles, Twilight Princess propelled the Wii to becoming the hottest-selling console on the planet, edging market leader Xbox 360 in the first quarter of 2007. At the end of the day, everyone, including Nintendo loyalists, was happy.

Snooping around Yahoo! Answers while searching for a Nintendo Wii, you might have come around this little official question that Nintendo's Shigeru Miyamoto himself asks. Looks like the game development guru needs a little "tapping the market" for future development. Or he could be suffering from the same dilemma Eiji Aonuma has been with his revival of the Zelda franchise.

So is he going through a midlife crisis? Oh wait, at 54 you sorta had to trudge through a few of those... If he's worried about Nintendo's reputation, that's sort of pegging him pretty high on the modesty meter. Anything with his sweat and blood on it, turns to ornate gold. With 4306 answers (a huge jump from 4220 just a few minutes earlier) and rising, the question is grabbing a lot of positive feedback. That's not to say that there have been a couple of negatives hushed here and there.

If you haven't already, lead ol' Shigeru back to the light and give him your two-cents worth for his question: "How old were you when you first heard the term, "Nintendo," and what does the name mean to you now?" Jump right over to the Yahoo! Answers page by clicking the "Read" link below.

 

We featured The Legend of Zelda: Phantom Hourglass' outing at the Game Developers Conference (GDC) a few days back. The focus was the multiplayer mode, which was then via DS to DS wireless linkup. Game Informer has reported that this title will be the first in the Zelda series to sport online play.

The Legend of Zelda: Phantom Hourglass has a multiplayer mode where two players can play either Link (to collect Triforce pieces) or evil overlord of the three baddies (of course, to thwart little Link). Eiji Aonuma confirmed that this will also be compatible with the Nintendo Wi-Fi Connection service. Better late than never, eh? The franchise is two decades old - though considering technological advances through the years, it's perfectly fine (or at least for this writer).

Can't wait to join our green capped friend in another adventure? The Legend of Zelda: Phantom Hourglass is still set for a Q4 release. So patience.

Concealed under Shigeru Miyamoto's shadow, Eiji Aonuma always looked up to the game designer legend and his past works for inspiration. As Nintendo's successor to Miyamoto, Aonuma had a lot of pressure with his own works on Zelda, he knew that there would be a time that the core fans of the long running Zelda series would grow tired of the entire franchise as a whole. He called this the "gamer drift."

Turns out he was right, after hitting the road bump of his developer career with The Legend of Zelda: Wind Waker. It eventually became a huge commercial flop locally in Japan, after garnering sales way below Nintendo's expectations. There was very little it could offer as groundbreaking, and since then, Zelda became a franchise in distress.

Because of Wind Waker, Nintendo decided to create a task force operation to combat "gamer drift." They analyzed gaming angles, what was cool and what was new, and formulated philosophies to reverse the adverse effects gamer drift had on the Japanese industry. Amazingly, the fruits of their labor have been realized - in the form of the Nintendo DS and the Nintendo Wii.

Click on Full Article to read on more about Eiji Aonuma's retrospective look on Zelda.

Nintendo people will not be divulging any information about its upcoming activities the Game Developers Conference. This may be a major disappointment for Ninty fans, but Nintendo developers have a reason for doing so. The game developer giant has an upcoming major stock trade, and any inside information regarding the status of the company will greatly affect investor behavior.

It's been announced that Nintendo developer Shigeru Miyamoto will be delivering the keynote address to the upcoming GDC, but it's still uncertain how this "gag order" will affect his speech. Nintendo developers Eiji Aonuma and Koji Kondo will also be speaking at press conferences, but the gag order extends to them, as well as to other Nintendo executives including Reggie Fils-Aime and Perrin Kaplan.

This does not mean that the Nintendo people will completely remain mum on the GDC. The developers are allowed to talk about past projects of the company, but not about the upcoming titles. We just all have to be patient and see what Nintendo will come up in the next few months, or see if they really will keep their promise and not say anything new from March 5 to 9.

As the Game Developers Conference (GDC) 2007 is drawing ever so near now, the organizers have confirmed the appearance of two new speakers for the event. Both of them hail from the Nintendo empire and have been mainstays in the industry.

Eiji Aonuma will be giving a lecture on the Zelda franchise. He's been able to work on the series ever since Ocarina of Time, and after directing Twilight Princess, the mastermind will now be giving a talk entitled "Reflections of Zelda". He'll be discussing how the development team was able to propel Link through the epic journeys he's been through, across the different Nintendo platforms.

From director to composer, we now go to Koji Kondo. He's the brains (and sounds) behind Mario and Zelda music. His lecture is called "Painting an Interactive Musical Landscape" and will be talking about his method of composing interactive music. Given how viral the music of Zelda and Mario have become, it's going to be an interesting to know where he finds the inspiration for all that.

It's been quite a while since we have given you guys an update on the upcoming addition to the Legend of Zelda Series, Zelda- Phantom Hourglass. Well, it is a good thing that the latest issue of Nintendo Power has revealed a few juicy details about the latest adventures of Link and friends. The updates are:

• The first Nintendo DS Zelda game was originally planned to be a Four Swords game, but now that Eiji Aonuma has the chance to revive The Wind Waker, he choose this path. Phantom Hourglass will set the tone for all future DS Zelda games.
• It will see the return of Bow and Arrow, Hookshot and some sort of musical instrument, alongside the items we have already seen.
• A Ganondorf return is highly unlikely in Phantom Hourglass. However, before his defeat in The Wind Waker, his evil influence spread across the Great Sea.
• The King of Red Lions ain't going to return in this one.
• There is one master dungeon you need to complete in the game. You can only progress so far though, so to proceed you need to work your way through other dungeons.
• The Darknut-like enemies we have seen in the multiplayer mode is a new type of enemy, called the "Chaser". These enemies will chase you through the entire dungeon, but by using certain pots, Link can get immune for certain moments.
• Though Eiji Aonuma did not want to give any details on this yet, he confirmed that the microphone will be used in Phantom Hourglass.

We already know that the game would be fully touchscreen enabled. As for the multiplayer details, it is a 1-on-1 game wherein one player will be Link, while the other would take control of 3 Darknuts. Link’s goal is to grab a Force Gem from one of the center bases and carry it to one of his own areas at the side of the maze. The other player, controlling the three Darknuts, must try to catch Link before he scores any points and when Link is caught, players switch sides. That's it for now! We assure you that we will keep you posted.