#OcarinaOfTimeQuote
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hyruleinterviews.bsky.social
Miyamoto on a multiplayer Ocarina ensemble, 1998.

Source: The Hyrule Journals (@javedlsterritt.bsky.social)

#Zelda
#OcarinaofTimeQuote
#MiyamotoQuote

www.hyruleinterviews.com/1a541fe961fd...
PEOPLE: - Shigeru Miyamoto, age 45. Producer of Ocarina of Time. QUOTE: Miyamoto: The other day I asked, “Could we connect four controllers [in Ocarina of Time] and play the ocarina as an ensemble?”. Maybe if I had asked earlier we could have made it happen.
January 5, 2026 at 1:31 AM
hyruleinterviews.bsky.social
Miyamoto on swapping Zelda 64 from disk to cartridge, 1998.

Source: The Hyrule Journals

#Zelda
#OcarinaofTimeQuote, #OcarinaofTimeMasterQuestQuote
#MiyamotoQuote

www.hyruleinterviews.com/1a541fe961fd...
PEOPLE: - Shigeru Miyamoto, age 45. Producer of Ocarina of Time. QUOTE: Miyamoto: We eventually decided to create the main game [of Ocarina of Time] on cartridge and expand it using the Disk Drive. In the end it turned out to be a good decision to go with cartridges. … Cartridges allow for large amounts of data to be quickly handled and processed at the same time. The N64 reads audio and animation data in real-time. There is a big difference in the scale between a game that relies on repeatedly reading and writing vs loading in real-time. Real-time has fewer restrictions on the … calculations and combinations of actions at any given time, so there is a lot of flexibility with enemies for example, whereas on CD and Disk Drive, you become quite limited.
January 2, 2026 at 10:02 PM
hyruleinterviews.bsky.social
Ricciardi's EGM review of Ocarina of Time, 1998.

Source: Electronic Gaming Monthly (EGM)

#Zelda
#OcarinaofTimeQuote
#RicciardiQuote

www.hyruleinterviews.com/2d441fe961fd...
PEOPLE: - John Ricciardi. EGM Reviews Editor. 27 years later: English Voice Recording Supervisor for Hyrule Warriors: Age of Imprisonment. QUOTE: Ricciardi: [They’ve] managed to take everything that was great about the 2D Zelda games—the exploration, the puzzles, the dungeons, the loads of hidden secrets, etc.—and translate it all into 3D flawlessly. [Ocarina's] beautifully detailed world is so vast and immersive that you'll find yourself constantly losing track of the real world. The controls are excellent, too. The auto-jump feature helps add to the immersiveness, … and Z-Targeting makes combat a snap. … It'll take an average gamer about 40 hours to beat, and trust me—there'll always be something to do, even after you've finished the game. … Oh, one last thing: this game has the coolest final battle/ending sequence of any game ever.
December 25, 2025 at 7:03 AM
hyruleinterviews.bsky.social
Miyamoto on the Zelda development with the most freedom, 2011.

Source: Iwata Asks

#Zelda
#OcarinaofTimeQuote
#MiyamotoQuote, #IwataQuote

www.hyruleinterviews.com/d4112e274538...
PEOPLE: - Shigeru Miyamoto, age 58. Producer of Ocarina of Time. - Satoru Iwata, age 51. President of Nintendo. QUOTE: Miyamoto: We had the most freedom with Ocarina of Time in that respect. Iwata: Because it was the first 3D Zelda game. Miyamoto: That's right. It was the most primitive, and the freest. That's all there is to it. It isn't that subsequent games lost that freedom, only that the games which were put out later simply had more things which needed to have attention paid to them. Of course, even Ocarina had traditional elements dating up to A Link to the Past for the Super Nintendo, so it wasn't completely free. It's just that it was the first 3D Zelda game, and we were able to explore what would be most interesting about making it in 3D without worrying about much else.
December 19, 2025 at 10:40 PM
hyruleinterviews.bsky.social
Miyamoto on cinematic camera work in Ocarina of Time, 2011.

Source: Iwata Asks

#Zelda
#OcarinaofTimeQuote
#IwataQuote, #MiyamotoQuote

www.hyruleinterviews.com/d4112e274538...
PEOPLE: - Satoru Iwata, age 51. President of Nintendo. - Shigeru Miyamoto, age 58. Producer of Ocarina of Time. QUOTE: Iwata: Ocarina of Time was the first video game in which looking down from a high place made me feel a bit weak in the knees. Miyamoto: … At the time, the phrase "cinematic game" was used mostly in regard to graphics, but to me, that wasn't what cinematic really meant. I thought what we should really be learning was how to use camera techniques to explain situations. … When you want to make it clear that a place is so high it makes your legs go weak, you change the camera angle slightly depending on how high the character has climbed, and when he reaches the top, you slide the camera up farther and make players look down. … I think it was in Ocarina of Time that we first saw clearly that we could use cinematic camera work as a production technique.
December 17, 2025 at 5:19 AM
hyruleinterviews.bsky.social
Mori on the first take of Ganondorf's voice in Ocarina of Time, 1998.

Source: GlitterBerri's Game Translations

#Zelda
#OcarinaofTimeQuote
#MoriQuote, #NagasakoQuote

www.hyruleinterviews.com/0e093b226205...
PEOPLE: - Naoki Mori. Ocarina of Time Cinema Scene Director. - Takashi Nagasako. Voice of Ganondorf in Ocarina of Time. QUOTE: Mori: In [Ocarina of Time] there are bits of voice acting here and there, but the voice actor in charge of playing Ganondorf in the first cutscene you see really made him seem like a devil, somehow awful and evil. Afterwards I took the actor aside and asked him not to play a demon, but cool and dangerous at the same time. A voice like cheap wine.
November 12, 2025 at 8:03 PM
hyruleinterviews.bsky.social
Miyamoto on playing unspoiled being more "Zelda-like", 1998.

Source: The Hyrule Journals

#Zelda
#OcarinaofTimeQuote
#MiyamotoQuote

www.hyruleinterviews.com/1a541fe961fd...
PEOPLE: - Shigeru Miyamoto, age 45. Producer of Ocarina of Time. QUOTE: Miyamoto: Zelda is a game series that is fun to play because of the puzzle solving elements—at least for me. I think that in this way, if you watch other people play the game or follow a strategy guide while playing you reduce the amount of “Zelda-like fun”. I think you would maximize the fun of the game by playing with a subjective feeling, almost as if you yourself were Link. Therefore, I think players will find the most satisfaction when playing [Ocarina of Time] with this mindset and saying things like “The game is fun because I'm playing it!”. I’d honestly be over the moon if players experienced our game in this way.
November 3, 2025 at 4:48 AM
hyruleinterviews.bsky.social
Miyamoto on the "interesting misunderstanding" of Kakariko Village, 1999.

Source: The Hyrule Journals ( @javedlsterritt.bsky.social )

#Zelda
#OcarinaofTimeQuote
#MiyamotoQuote

www.hyruleinterviews.com/24441fe961fd...
PEOPLE: - Shigeru Miyamoto, age 46. Producer of Ocarina of Time. QUOTE: Miyamoto: [We had] been working in the flat world of the Famicom, so we tend to think about the flat layout of the area first, but real villages are different. When I watch TV programs or actually visit villages, I often see that many of them are located on slopes. There are fields, houses, and mountains in the background. So, in [Ocarina of Time], we decided to create a village with ups and downs. The image I had in mind was terraced fields, a waterwheel, and a winding path leading down to a well at the bottom, but what actually ended up being built resembled the form of a staircase [laughs]. But I thought, “This is good too,” and the designer made it on their own, which led to an interesting misunderstanding.
November 1, 2025 at 5:13 PM
hyruleinterviews.bsky.social
#Linktober 29: Link & Epona
Miyamoto on unintended parallels between Ocarina and Mononoke, 1998.

Source: The Hyrule Journals

#Zelda
#OcarinaofTimeQuote, #PrincessMononokeQuote
#MiyamotoQuote

www.notion.so/1a541fe961fd...
PEOPLE: - Shigeru Miyamoto, age 45. Producer of Ocarina of Time. - Hayao Miyazaki, age 57. Director of Princess Mononoke. QUOTE: Miyamoto: During development [of Ocarina of Time] some staff argued about making it a unicorn or a moose, but we ended up going with a horse. The game was certainly influenced by Mr. Miyazaki’s Princess Mononoke. Both were roughly in development around the same time and when [I saw the film] I was surprised at the similarities. Scenes of Link firing the bow and arrow while riding Epona or the Giant Goron walking behind the mountain stirred thoughts like “Oh that’s Ashitaka!” or “That looks like the Nightwalker.” We really struggled with the similarities. However, in the end we decided that building up Hyrule as a country was enough to differentiate it.
October 30, 2025 at 3:20 AM
hyruleinterviews.bsky.social
#Linktober 16: Merchant
Haruhana on 'tough requests' for character designs for Ocarina of Time, 2011.

Source: Iwata Asks

#Zelda
#OcarinaofTimeQuote
#HaruhanaQuote

www.notion.so/94f214a3332f...
PEOPLE: - Yoshiki Haruhana, age 41. Ocarina Character Designer. QUOTE: Haruhana: I would get tough requests [for character designs in Ocarina]—like a request to draw someone who would buy ghosts. But I've never seen anyone like that! [laughs] I'd think, ‘What kind of person would buy a ghost?’ and then sit around, grinning to myself, and thinking, ‘What can I do about this?’ It's easy to focus on how the characters look, but I feel like they don't really become distinctive until you see how they act when their dialogue and demo videos come together.
October 17, 2025 at 4:06 AM
hyruleinterviews.bsky.social
#Linktober 9: Blupee

Aonuma on players not seeing everything they ought in 3D, 1998.

Source: GlitterBerri's Game Translations

#Zelda
#OcarinaofTimeQuote
#AonumaQuote

www.notion.so/0e093b226205...
PEOPLE: - Eiji Aonuma, age 35. Ocarina of Time Dungeon Director. QUOTE: Aonuma: The 3D world [in Ocarina of Time] has a camera, so it’s important that the player be able to see what routes to follow and not overlook something important. By changing the camera viewpoint just a little you might not be able to see something you ought. For this reason we put in Navi, your little follower. She’ll help you notice something that you’d previously be able to see using a fixed-point camera.
October 9, 2025 at 11:35 PM
hyruleinterviews.bsky.social
#Linktober 4: Nostalgia

Miyamoto on how Ocarina of Time was built to evoke nostalgia, 2003.

Source: Nintendo Prime

#Zelda
#OcarinaofTimeQuote
#MiyamotoQuote

www.notion.so/12641fe961fd...
PEOPLE: - Shigeru Miyamoto, age 50. Producer of The Legend of Zelda (1986) and Ocarina of Time. QUOTE: Miyamoto: [When making Ocarina of Time] we thought of how we should translate the fun of the first Zelda game into a 3D environment, so that it made you feel free in this world you’re exploring. Sometimes you remember a place nostalgically after some years. [laughs] When you grow up and go back to a place you thought was huge as a kid, like a street, you realize there is barely any space for a car to fit in. So, after remembering the time when you were growing up, you realize there was a time when you saw things like that. Thinking it was a good idea to have that inside the game, we had some very narrow places and we included the game mechanic of going back to those spots [as adult Link].
October 4, 2025 at 6:59 PM
hyruleinterviews.bsky.social
#Linktober 2: Magic/Sorcery
Miyamoto on changing Ocarina’s spells into songs and items, 1999.

Source: Shmuplations

#Zelda
#OcarinaofTimeQuote
#MiyamotoQuote

www.notion.so/8d67b7d41dfe...
PEOPLE: - Shigeru Miyamoto, age 46. Ocarina of Time Producer. QUOTE: Miyamoto: In Ocarina there was a version where you could use 5 or 6 magic spells, but they didn't really leave much of an impression on me, and I decided those effects would be better served as items, or as Ocarina songs. I do hope that in the future magic can be used as a way to show off the power of the new 3D visuals. It's not that I ‘dislike’ it, you see, I just think relying on magic is taking the easy way out somehow.
October 2, 2025 at 10:28 PM
hyruleinterviews.bsky.social
Linktober #1: Knight
Kondo on his favorite song from Ocarina of Time, 2011.

Source: Iwata Asks

#Zelda
#OcarinaofTimeQuote
#KondoQuote, #YokotaQuote

www.notion.so/39d16d85bfa1...
PEOPLE: - Koji Kondo, age 49. Ocarina of Time Composer. - Mahito Yokota, age 37. Ocarina of Time 3D Orchestration Director. QUOTE: Kondo: As I was playing the Nintendo 3DS version [of Ocarina of Time], there were several [tracks] that struck me as well-done. Although, it's a little embarrassing to say so myself! [laughs] One plays when you go to Zelda's castle and hide in the garden so the guards can't find you. I forgot the title, though. Yokota: That's ’The Courtyard Game at Hyrule Castle.’ Kondo: It sounds like a game of hide-and-seek. It represents that feeling of final relief you get when you're able to hide from the guards by carefully making stealthy steps. I thought, ‘I did a pretty good job!’ [laughs]
October 1, 2025 at 10:14 PM
hyruleinterviews.bsky.social
Miyamoto on first-person Ocarina of Time, 2008.

Source: Iwata Asks

#Zelda
#OcarinaofTimeQuote
#MiyamotoQuote

www.notion.so/b5e9f8738b76...
PEOPLE: - Shigeru Miyamoto, age 55. Producer of Ocarina of Time. QUOTE: Miyamoto: When we were developing Ocarina of Time, I even proposed using a first-person perspective. … I thought that the FPS system would be the best way of enabling players to take in the vast terrain of the Hyrule Field. Besides, by not having the player’s character on the screen, we can spend more time and machine power on creating enemies and the environments. … The idea of having a child Link in the game was born, and then it became necessary for the hero to be seen on the screen. That, and also the fact that it’s a total waste not to have Link visible on screen when he is so cool looking! [laughs]
August 20, 2025 at 4:08 AM
hyruleinterviews.bsky.social
Miyamoto on the timeline of the Zelda saga, 1999.

Source: Shmuplations

#Zelda
#OcarinaofTimeQuote, #ALinktothePastQuote, #TheLegendofZeldaQuote
#MiyamotoQuote

www.notion.so/8d67b7d41dfe...
PEOPLE: - Shigeru Miyamoto, age 46. Producer of Ocarina of Time, A Link to the Past, & The Legend of Zelda. QUOTE: Q: Before it was released, Nintendo announced that Ocarina of Time would “unlock the mysteries of the entire Zelda story”. Could you tell us about that in your own words? Miyamoto: Maybe “mysteries” was a bit of an exaggeration, but you do learn the story of where the Triforce came from, and it is meant to be "episode 1" of the Zelda saga. The basic order is Ocarina, then the original Zelda, followed by A Link to the Past.
August 12, 2025 at 11:07 PM
hyruleinterviews.bsky.social
Mori’s dissatisfaction with Zelda's expression in the final scene, 2011.

Source: Iwata Asks

#Zelda
#OcarinaofTimeQuote
#AonumaQuote, #MoriQuote

www.notion.so/dc4631410a43...
PEOPLE: - Eiji Aonuma, age 48. Dungeon Director for Ocarina of Time. - Naoki Mori. Cinema Scene Director for Ocarina of Time. QUOTE: Aonuma; Some people are still playing it, so I can't be too specific, but in the last scene [of Ocarina of Time], [Mori] just couldn't settle on an expression for [Zelda’s] face. Mori: Yes, that's right. Aonuma: Did you eventually find something that satisfied you? Mori: That was for the Nintendo 64 system, so there were hardware limitations to what we could express. I asked about adding one more expression for eyes, but they said it was impossible. I proceeded with what was available, but it just didn't look right to me. I ended up frustrated to the very end. Aonuma: Ever since, Mori-san has wanted Zelda to have more vivid facial expressions.
July 2, 2025 at 9:15 PM
hyruleinterviews.bsky.social
Miyamoto & Iwata on plunging into the unknown with Ocarina of Time, 2011.

Source: Iwata Asks

#Zelda
#OcarinaofTimeQuote
#IwataQuote, #MiyamotoQuote

www.notion.so/95b5a4ce641c...
PEOPLE: - Satoru Iwata, age 51. President of Nintendo. - Shigeru Miyamoto, age 58. Producer of Ocarina of Time. QUOTE: Iwata: How did you view the project [Ocarina of Time] when that long development spanning two and a half years began? Everyone was just plunging ahead into unknown territory, right? Miyamoto: That's right. Back then, no one knew which direction the overall game industry was heading. Iwata: That's true now, too. [laughs] Miyamoto: I suppose so. [laughs] But back then, for example, if you had a big three-billion-yen project, no one knew if it would end up costing five billion, or two billion. …The only person who knew was the person who budgets the scheduled projects. But that person can't guarantee anything when it comes to how fun the game is.
June 27, 2025 at 11:39 PM
hyruleinterviews.bsky.social
Miyamoto on how they decided to make more vertical areas in Ocarina of Time, 2011.

Source: Iwata Asks

#Zelda
#OcarinaofTimeQuote
#MiyamotoQuote

www.notion.so/95b5a4ce641c...
PEOPLE: - Shigeru Miyamoto, age 58. Producer of Ocarina of Time. QUOTE: Miyamoto: I thought [cucco-gliding] would be weird if the graphics were more realistic, but when we made it, I was happy to see that it fit perfectly. I realized that that kind of thing is more fun in 3D space, so all of a sudden I said, ‘Let's make the landforms more three-dimensional.’ … Then about that time [in Ocarina’s development], whichever village I saw, I thought it was rather bleak and boring. I started referencing villages in mountainous districts in China such as you might see in a documentary television show. I was saying, ‘See? There are all kinds of villages!’ and ‘Can't we make a more distinctive village?’ And just then, it connected perfectly to the chickens.
June 19, 2025 at 12:41 AM
maxnichols.bsky.social
I agree 1000% and I appreciate this articulation of it.

I think Miyamoto and by extension the Zelda team would agree with you (though whether they consistently lived up to this philosophy in games afterwards is debatable I think)
Miyamoto on how experiences build up and come to feel like a story, 2011. Source: Iwata Asks #Zelda #OcarinaofTimeQuote #IwataQuote,#MiyamotoQuote,#AonumaQuote https://www.notion.so/95b5a4ce641c4c69b0099add3353da6f PEOPLE: - Eiji Aonuma, age 48. Producer & Director of various Zelda titles. - Shigeru Miyamoto, age 58. Co-Creator of Zelda, producer of many Zelda titles. QUOTE: Aonuma: We have tended to lower the difficulty of recent Zelda games because we want everyone to reach the goal, like by placing healing items right before a boss battle and so on. But Miyamoto-san has been complaining that without anything to get stuck on, the games don't stick with you as memories.
June 13, 2025 at 10:05 PM
hyruleinterviews.bsky.social
Aonuma on being asked to design dungeons, 2017.

Source: Den-fami Nico Game Magazine

#Zelda
#OcarinaofTimeQuote
#AonumaQuote

www.notion.so/ccd8776d3b62...
PEOPLE: - Eiji Aonuma, age 54. Dungeon director for Ocarina of Time. QUOTE: Interviewer: So how did Mr. Aonuma come to join the production of Ocarina of Time? Aonuma: Well, that’s actually a really interesting story. I joined the project some time after it had started. I was invited to join because there was nobody who could ‘design the dungeons.’ I was like, ‘what do you mean there isn’t anybody who can design…?’ Everybody: [laughs]
June 2, 2025 at 10:25 PM
hyruleinterviews.bsky.social
Aonuma on incorporating "adventure" elements into dungeon designs, 2004.

Source: Game Developers Conference (GDC)

#Zelda
#OcarinaofTimeQuote
#AonumaQuote

www.notion.so/f87f768d9182...
PEOPLE: - Eiji Aonuma, age 41. Dungeon Director of Ocarina of Time. QUOTE: Aonuma: In Ocarina of Time, in addition to doing the dungeon design, I also took up the challenge of incorporating adventure elements into dungeons. By which I mean, giving the dungeon some type of theme, such as rescuing trapped Goron or hunting down the Poe sisters.
May 16, 2025 at 4:06 AM
hyruleinterviews.bsky.social
Miyamoto and his years-long quest to get proper flute or ocarina music in Zelda (1998, 2001, 2003)

Via GlitterBerri's Game Translations, Shmuplations, and Nintendo Prime

#Zelda
#TheLegendOfZeldaQuote #OcarinaOfTimeQuote
#MiyamotoQuote #KondoQuote
PEOPLE: - Shigeru Miyamoto, age 46. Producer of Ocarina of Time. QUOTE: Miyamoto: I like international music such as Inca or Latin. I really wanted to put in an ocarina [in Ocarina of Time], it seemed really Zelda-esque. Playing an instrument is a much more enjoyable way to accomplish things than just casting a spell. PEOPLE: - Koji Kondo, age 39. Composer for The Legend of Zelda (1986). - Shigeru Miyamoto, age 48. Producer and Co-Director of The Legend of Zelda (1986). QUOTE: Q: Did Miyamoto have any requests for The Legend of Zelda (1986)? Kondo: I remember he had me make a lot of different sounds for when you use the flute [when you warp]. He was very particular about that one sound. “It shouldn’t just be ‘pretty’. I want it to evoke something more mysterious”, he told me. PEOPLE: - Shigeru Miyamoto, age 50. Creator of the Zelda series. Producer of Ocarina of Time. QUOTE: Miyamoto: Ocarina has the most, not magical, but the most Zelda-like music theme; it immerses you completely into the game. I had been looking forward to music with a flute or an ocarina, but it wasn’t possible to fully use them until now. That game gave us the possibility of including those instruments.
May 7, 2025 at 3:23 AM
hyruleinterviews.bsky.social
Some Star Wars quotes from Zelda devs (1998, 2013)

Sources: GlitterBerri's Game Translations, Polygon

#Zelda
#OcarinaOfTimeQuote, #TheWindWakerHDQuote
#MoriQuote, #AonumaQuote
PEOPLE: - Naoki Mori. Ocarina of Time Cinema Scene Director. QUOTE: Mori: [Ocarina of Time’s] ending reminds me of Star Wars. It also sort of references Dark Crystal. More than figuring out where the scene cuts should be, we were worrying about how to project that atmosphere. I definitely watch anime a lot. So much so that I’m called Captain Anime. [laughs] Anime I consider interesting I show people with reckless abandon. ‘This is great!’ I say. Recently I’ve been enjoying ‘Perfect Blue’, which is a psycho thriller. It’s not because we used it as a reference for the games, but the transitions of scenes were interesting. PEOPLE: - Eiji Aonuma, age 50. Director of The Wind Waker, Producer of the The Wind Waker HD. QUOTE: Aonuma: With The Wind Waker HD the first thing we did was release a still during a Nintendo Direct presentation and there were quite a few fans who said, ‘That’s not my Wind Waker.’ They said it looked different from the Wind Waker they’ve experienced. It is certainly a bit of a balancing act. I too was one of those Star Wars fans who saw the HD Star Wars and was a little bit disappointed because it wasn’t my Star Wars. I understand those feelings and I understand the possibility of it happening. So it’s something we’re aware of.
May 5, 2025 at 5:07 AM
hyruleinterviews.bsky.social
Those times the Zelda series could have gone first-person

Via Iwata Asks (2011) and GDC (2007)

#Zelda
#OcarinaOfTimeQuote #TwilightPrincessQuote
#KoizumiQuote, #AonumaQuote, #MiyamotoQuote
PEOPLE: - Yoshiaki Koizumi, age 43. Ocarina of Time 3D Gameplay Director. - Shigeru Miyamoto, age 58. Ocarina of Time Producer. QUOTE: "Koizumi: [Miyamoto] wanted to make [Ocarina of Time] a first-person game. In the beginning, he had the image that you are at first walking around in first-person, and when an enemy appeared, the screen would switch, Link would appear, and the battle would unfold from a side perspective. ... But—while it wasn't very nice of me toward Miyamoto-san—I didn't try a first-person scene even once! I was making the model for Link, so I couldn't stand to see my Link not appear." PEOPLE: - Eiji Aonuma, age 43. Director of Twilight Princess. QUOTE: "Aonuma: We tried changing the camera perspective [in Twilight Princess] from … third person to … first-person perspective in battle. For this prototype, all we did was change this perspective to the first-person view we currently had. We haven’t tweaked things like the spacing between Link and enemies, so it’s really awkward, but having played this version in first person, we didn’t think this was the most effective way of presenting battles. Link normally has a variety of movements, but when he enters into battle with his enemies, which has come to be known as core scene in Zelda, if that variety is lost, it feels very strange."
February 28, 2025 at 1:23 AM