Eiji Aonuma explains how Nintendo’s longtime developers maintain Zelda’s continuity while helping new staff understand design decisions. In an era when studio closures and layoffs have unfortunately become all too common in gaming, Nintendo has many staff members who have worked on the same franchises for decades.
For example, Aonuma has worked on the Legend of Zelda franchise since the production of the first Ocarina of Time for the Nintendo 64. Now, with that game remade nearly 30 years later for a new generation, the Nintendo veteran has time to reflect on the full-circle experience.
How Nintendo’s Veteran Staff Keep Zelda’s Legacy Alive
Speaking to GameSpot, Eiji Aonuma discussed Nintendo’s culture of keeping many long-time developers on staff and how it helps preserve the legacy of games like The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time during this remake process.
Aonuma explained that this streamlines processes because it’s easier to discuss how and when to implement new ideas. It also makes it easier to explain to new staff how things are done and why, while still leaving room for them to add their own creative touches.
I think you see a real benefit to having some very long-term-tenured staff members around who have shared the same experiences over time because every time you get to the next step, it’s easier to discuss how to proceed, or if you’re going to do something new. When you have new staff coming in, of course you want to make sure that you’re bringing everyone up with a lot of discussion, explaining how to do things, why you’re doing things certain ways, as well as the language that you’re using, but that takes some more time as well. So you need a bit of a balance. You don’t want your new staff doing things by rote or without understanding the reasons, you have to invest there. And so you do see the Zelda team change over time, but there is a continuity of core staff, certainly at least from one project to the next, so that we have that base that we can build from and bring up new staff within it. And this is something that I think Nintendo has done for a very long time, even since Miyamoto originally worked on projects like this. And it contributes to some of the sense of continuity that you do feel in games in the Zelda franchise, for example.
Aonuma previously said some people working on this game had never even played the original Ocarina of Time. Learn more about how that shaped the remake experience here.
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I'm Robert DeFelice. I spent years covering pro-wrestling industry for outlets such as Fightful. After years in wrestling journalism, I’ve transitioned to video games, another passion of mine.
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