While you’re enjoying the amazing landscapes that await you in Breath of the Wild, you might want to take a second to check out a recent article in The New Yorker. It’s an interview with Shigeru Miyamoto and the rest of the team who worked on Breath of the Wild, discussing some of the challenges in creating this massive world.
The part I found interesting is how the passing of Satoru Iwata affected the dev team. If you don’t know, Satoru Iwata was the former president of Nintendo since the GameCube days and his passing was unexpected in 2015. The part I found particularly poignant is the game’s director, Hideomaro Fujibayashi, discussing the impact his passing had on his team:
“When he passed away, there were moments we’d come up with an idea which we’d be excited to talk to Iwata about. Then we’d remember he was no longer here. Miyamoto told me it was the same for him. He’d come up with an idea at the weekend and would feel excited to speak to Iwata about it on Monday, only to remember. The sadness runs deep. This is approaching spiritual talk, but we had the sense that he was watching over our work. That became a source of motivation, a drive for us to improve and be better.”
The whole interview is worth a read because it delves into the idea behind the game, but I think these guys managed to hit their goal. Breath of the Wild has broken the MetaCritic record for the most perfect scores from outlets, so if anything Satoru Iwata would be a very proud man for their accomplishment and the launch of the Nintendo Switch.
Buy on Amazon: The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild
