Interview With LEGO Zelda Concept Creator Michael Inglis
Posted on May 18 2012 by Djinn
Recently we have been covering the Zelda LEGO concept project and the current fan petition supporting it. Due to the rising interest in this project the folks over at Nintendolife interviewed the creator of the entire concept Michael Inglis. In the interview he discusses just how he managed to get this project off the ground and what tools he used to create the concepts. He also covers his reaction to the enormous amount of feedback he received from fans and the response from LEGO. We might also learn exactly which game in the series is his favorite as well.
Jump inside to see what he had to say.
NL: For those who don’t know, can you briefly explain how LEGO CUUSOO works?MI: LEGO CUUSOO is a platform backed by The LEGO Group which allows users to submit ideas for sets. These sets can be ‘Supported’ by other users on the site. When a project reaches 10,000 supporters, it is then reviewed by The LEGO Group and if it passes their review, designers refine and develop the idea and create an official LEGO set. It’s basically a free Kickstarter for LEGO sets.
NL: When you set up your project for The Legend of Zelda last year, what made you choose that particular Nintendo franchise?
MI: The Legend of Zelda was introduced to me at such a young age. It’s basically been a part of my growing up. I invested hundreds of hours into Ocarina of Time as a child and gained a massive appreciation for the series. Being unable to read when I first played it, the scripted narrative of the game went completely unnoticed, so what I was actually doing was left only to my imagination. This initial impression of the game, I feel, was so overwhelming that every other game I’ve played has been compared to this experience and has fallen short. For me, it’s always been Zelda. Perhaps if I was introduced to more Mario, Metroid or Kirby at such a young age, it might have been them.
NL: Can you share what programs or tools you used to create your designs?
MI: All of my models have been created in Autodesk Inventor. I’m obsessed with how accurate a model is, so dimensions and scale are important factors to be taken into account and Inventor handles this brilliantly. The decals used on the Minifigures were designed in Photoshop.
NL: Support seemed to boom once word got around, particularly in late April. At what stage did you realise that the number of supporters was increasing quickly, and what was your reaction?
MI: My initial reaction was obviously delight followed by an immense feeling of panic. I realised that I might not get the Minifigures and set I had been working on over the course of about a month finished in time. I was originally intending to upload the set and the Minifigures all at once, but it became apparent that the project might reach 10,000 supporters before I did that. I had to then upload them individually as I finished them. After a few 14 hour long shifts, I did finally manage to finish everything and fully appreciate all the attention it was getting.
NL: LEGO has posted official congratulations and warned that the process could take several months. How nervous are you for the project’s prospects, especially considering the fact that Nintendo will need to approve?
MI: Having Nintendo’s approval was always the main concern. I was always quite confident that The Legend of Zelda would appeal with The LEGO Group’s core audience. While I am incredibly wary about how closed Nintendo are when licensing their key franchises, I still remain slightly optimistic in that we have seen both Mario Kart K’Nex and Pokemon Mega Bloks in the past. As fantastic as it would be though, I’m still not holding my breath.
NL: We can’t let you go without quizzing you about the games themselves. So, which Zelda is your favourite and why?
MI: Despite all my rambling on about Ocarina of Time, I have grown more and more to appreciate Majora’s Mask as I’ve gotten older. Taking a step back and looking at what is actually going on within the game is incredibly dark and disturbing. I love the fact that each individual character has so much personality and I feel over time, you genuinely feel like you get to know them. I also love the time aspect of the game. The game lures you into a false sense of security by letting you know exactly what someone will be doing at a certain time in the day but rips it straight from you by rendering you completely helpless as the Moon looms over Clock Town. The whole concept, tied with the themes and characters the game presents, I think is truly magnificent.
You can view the complete interview here.
I have been hearing about this story since it first started to gain some momentum months ago. It is good to see that it is actually going somewhere and he has successfully caught the attention of Lego in the process. I always love to hear exactly what tools or programs someone used when they make something. The how has always been an interest of mine and anything like this where a creator goes over not only how they made something but what inspired them is something I like to read. It is interesting to see that he was just as surprised at the success of the petition as the rest of us. I guess we will have to wait and see just how this turns out between Lego and Nintendo.
So what do you think? Do you learn anything new? Think we might get a Zelda themed LEGO set? Let us know in the comments below.
Source: Nintendolife
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