Interview:Nintendo Dream September 2nd 2007

This interview featured Eiji Aonuma and other members of the Phantom Hourglass development team. The transcript was found over at <a href="http://www.gemakei.com/news.php?newsId=267" target="new">Gamakei</a>.

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THE SALES OF THE DS ZELDA ARE GOING SMOOTHLY

ND: The game's selling pretty well. And it's very popular too.

Aonuma: Yes, we're very happy!

Fujibayashi: There were many people who thought that Zelda should be played using the D-pad and buttons, but we're glad that they have accepted this game without any objections.

Iwamoto: I think people new to the franchise and veterans stand in the same starting point now with the stylus controls. That may be one big reason why the game's being so well received.

Hagishima: (the PR representative, in a happy tone) I feel the new controls implemented in Phantom Hourglass will be the new standard for action games for the DS. I think it's the fresh start of games with this stylus gameplay.

Aonuma: The gameplay's very important. In the Twilight Princess interview we had, I mentioned the term "Zelda etiquette," and I think the stylus gameplay on itself has its own etiquette now.

ND: Normally, while playing epic games, you need an enthusiastic fighting spirit, but this Zelda title starts off very lightly.

Aonuma: But you need that fighting spirit once you get to the Temple of the Ocean King.

ND: That's true.

THE PHANTOM PACKAGING HAD A KAMISHIBAI STYLE

ND: The stores had all those blue packages [the predominant color of the Japanese box art is blue] lined up on the release date; it was quite a view.

Iwamoto: We had a talk about changing that picture.

Aonuma: We wanted to have a package that would give beginners the impression that they could play the game too, for we think it's no good when someone gets the impression a game is difficult before actually playing it and thus getting on the defensive. So we decided to have a cute design for the first time, and we had a poll to select the best of many samples. The one I voted for didn't win, though (laughs); apparently, it was too childish. Apparently, someone even said it didn't look like Zelda, someone who hadn't played Zelda before. I was confused (laughs). Even people who haven't played Zelda games have an image of the series in their minds; that's something we can't change. So, in order for this new Zelda title to have an appeal without losing the Zelda essence, we decided to have that packaging.

ND: What was the design you supported like, Mr. Aonuma?

Aonuma: There's this kamishibai [picture slideshow, a traditional Japanese form of storytelling] in the game, right? It had more or less the same style. It was an image like none other in Zelda history; it gave you the feeling of the series being reborn. But it wasn't very popular. I realized that having a cute design could end up decreasing the expectations of players, including those who have never played a Zelda game. Conveying the fun of Zelda games to people who haven't played it is very difficult.

ND: The only way to recommend it to your friends is by telling them to try it out.

Hagishima: In that case, you can always lend them your copy of the game.

ND: But I wouldn't like to lend my game with all my notes to someone else.

Hagishima: You have a point there (laughs).

THE FISHING GAME YOU CAN PLAY EVERY ONCE IN A WHILE

ND: Link's sister doesn't appear in this game, does she?

Fujibayashi: No, she doesn't. She probably stayed home in The Wind Waker's Outset Island.

ND: How far from The Wind Waker's sea does this game take place?

Fujibayashi: Right next to it.

ND: Is it that close?!

Fujibayashi: Well, it takes place during their journey after leaving the waters of The Wind Waker.

Aonuma: We can have an unlimited number of stories in the Zelda series. A new adventure may be waiting for them if they just wander into the sea next to the one they're sailing (laughs).

Fujibayashi: The ocean's huge, isn't it (laughs)?

ND: You can go fishing in that huge ocean, right?

Aonuma: (with an evil face) Did you put your full strength into it?

ND: Well, I was afraid the DS screen would break (laughs).

Aonuma: Nintendo products aren't that weak (laughs)!

ND: You do struggle a little.

Aonuma: It really gives you that feeling, so please enjoy the fishing game every once in a while. If you fish all the time, you'll get tired (laughs).

ND: You have to catch up with the fish silhouettes if you want to fish.

Iwamoto: Originally, you were able to fish everywhere, but if you had the chance to fish everywhere at any time, you'd lose interest. So instead, we have the fish silhouettes...

ND: Sometimes you're on your way to an island and instead you go fishing because there's a fish nearby.

Aonuma: There are several events like that at sea. And there's more than one kind of fish silhouette. When you see a new one appear on the screen, you desperately start following it.

ND: Just when you thought you had caught up with the fish, if you aren't fast enough, the fish disappears.

Aonuma: At first I complained about that. I wanted the fish silhouettes to be bigger if they were going to disappear soon. But after playing the game for a little while, I realized how fun it was to chase after the fish, anticipating the direction it'll go in and tracing the ship route to intercept it. That way the sea offered some fun different from the one of the islands.

GETTING YOUNGER? THE BEST PUZZLES OF THE SERIES

ND: You used all the functions of the DS, so I think the puzzle-solving element has evolved a lot.

Aonuma: I'm happy to hear that.

ND: It even has a puzzle involving the two screens.

Everybody: ???

ND: The one you solve like this (closes an imaginary DS with his hands).

Aonuma: Ah, we're already talking about that (laughs)?

ND: I had a very hard time with that puzzle. I was stuck, I even yelled onto the microphone in despair (laughs).

Aonuma: The employees older than me all said that couldn't be it.

ND: I completely agree with them (laughs).

Aonuma: But when I asked the young people debugging the game about it, they answered they suddenly realized what to do.

Iwamoto: They said things like, "I didn't know what to do for 30 minutes, but I thought it was great."

Fujibayashi: Or, "I'd totally buy the game just for that element."

Aonuma: You may discover the age of the players based on their opinion of that puzzle (laughs).

ND: Among them, there are many people who value great puzzles.

Hagishima: Out of the people who have been playing Zelda for a long time, there may be just a few who get stuck in the most recent games. But I think they might get stuck in some points of this game. So they'll get to taste again that happiness of being stuck after a long time (laughs).

Iwamoto: We've thought of an ideal way to get that puzzle solved. Players will feel frustrated after trying to solve the puzzle without any success, so they'll get desperate and close the DS. After a while, they'll want to try again, and the moment they open the DS, they'll hear the classic chime that plays after solving a puzzle.

Aonuma: They'll be confused, asking themselves how the puzzle was solved (laughs).

ND: That sounds nice (laughs).

Aonuma: They'll solve the puzzle without even noticing (laughs). For the people that get too immersed in the things that happen on the screen, solving a puzzle by closing the DS may be something they can't think about. But the game uses the two screens and the microphone, which could be considered as exterior elements, so people may not take them into account when they're too immersed in the screen. Changing that point of view is one of the pleasures of solving puzzles.

Hagishima: You have to use your brain (laughs).

Aonuma: See? We do have a chance against our rival (laughs).

THE BOSS FIGHTS MAKE GOOD USE OF THE TWO SCREENS

ND: The game makes good use of the two screens, and it really shows in the battle against the boss of the Temple of Courage, that hermit crab. It was great!

Aonuma: I wanted to have something like that from the beginning, and the team managed to make it possible. In Ocarina of Time, I was in charge of the boss designs, and there were some demo videos in which the screen showed the perspective of the bosses; more specifically, of King Dodongo and Morpha. Back then, they were only used as opening sequences for the fight, and we never implemented that element into the actual game. But this time, we have two screens, so I asked the staff to include that in the game. I thought it'd be really great to have that idea in the game.

ND: At first, I didn't know what was going on. But then, I noticed Link on the upper screen and the camera approaching him. Finally, the boss caught me...

Iwamoto: And that's when the boss appears on the lower screen, making you realize that what was being shown was his perspective.

ND: Having a fight without Link's perspective make you feel nervous. I think it really made good use of the two screens.

Aonuma: Speaking of using both screens, the fourth boss battle is really something. I even groaned the first time I played it (laughs).

ND: That's something we can't reveal at this time, so please don't say anything else (laughs).

Aonuma: But now that we've done this, it will be even harder to develop games from now on.

ND: It may be better to include these elements in small amounts.

Aonuma: Well, we always do our best when making a Zelda game. But we may be making things difficult for us in the future (laughs).

WHAT'S THE FLUTE-STYLUS, THE ACCESSORY THAT WAS PLANNED TO BE INCLUDED WITH THE GAME?

ND: And not only both screens, you also used nicely the microphone.

Aonuma: We did several things with the microphone. At first we thought of using a special flute, though.

ND: (surprised) A flute?

Iwamoto: We thought of it back then when we were only five people in the team.

Aonuma: Yes. (mimics the movements of playing a flute) You'd play it like this to trigger several things.

ND: Ha, ha, ha (laughs).

Aonuma: We even thought of making a stylus with a flute embedded.

ND: A musical stylus!

Iwamoto: It could've been quite an invention.

Everybody: (laughs)

Aonuma: As you may have noticed, there aren't any musical instruments in Phantom Hourglass. Since we were making a Zelda game, we wanted to have a musical instrument, so we came up with the idea of the flute-stylus, but once we actually tried it... (smiles bitterly)

Iwamoto: It didn't work very well.

Aonuma: The volume and the scale change depending on the way you blow, so you would've needed some training to produce the exact note. We wanted it to produce several different notes, but all the notes sounded just the same. In the end, it proved to be something difficult to do, so we gave it up.

ND: You really did make a flute-stylus?

Iwamoto: We didn't really make our own, but we experimented with many commercially-available little whistles.

Aonuma: At that time I was very interested in including the flute-stylus as an extra.

Iwamoto: I also liked the idea very much and wanted to make it possible.

ND: But if you had done so, it would've been difficult to play the game in the train.

Iwamoto: That's one reason why we gave it up. Still, I really wanted to have it (laughs).

PUT ALL YOUR FEELINGS INTO SHOUTING ONTO THE MICROPHONE!

ND: When you buy the salvage arm in Cannon Island, you have to shout.

Iwamoto: You have to let your "soul's scream" to be heard (laughs).

ND: And you can't cheat there by scrubbing the microphone.

Fujibayashi: Because you certainly need your soul's scream (laughs). So, you can't just scrub the microphone or blow, you do have to speak for the game to react. And if your voice isn't loud enough, it'll cost you 1000 rupees, in contrast to 200 rupees, which is the cheapest price you can get.

ND: At the editorial department, I shouted very loudly, despite my shame and reputation. But I had to pay 1000 rupees.

Fujibayashi: I was also ashamed when I was playing through the game debugging it. Everyone was working quietly when I started shouting, "Aaah! Aaah!" The people around me couldn't help to ask what I was doing (laughs).

Aonuma: What did you shout?

ND: Give me!

Fujibayashi: It may have been better if you had shouted like this (loudly), "Give meee!"

Aonuma: You may have gotten the 200 rupee price if you had shouted this (even louder), "Pleeease!" Feelings do matter, after all (laughs).

Fujibayashi: It's important to put all your feelings into your voice.

ND: But I wouldn't like to do it inside a train.

Aonuma: In that case, you can get down at the next station, yell "Pleeease!" and quickly get back in the train before the doors close (laughs).

ND: That would be some weird person (laughs)!

THE TEMPLE OF THE OCEAN KING MAKES YOU FEEL YOU'VE GROWN UP

ND: Now, let's talk about the dungeons. The Temple of the Ocean King has a time limit. What were the pro's and con's of it?

Aonuma: (looking cool) Were there pro's and con's?

Everybody: (laughs)

ND: You're playing innocent (laughs). Don't you think people may not like solving puzzles within a time limit?

Aonuma: Maybe, but... (to Iwamoto) Which was first, the phantoms or the hourglass?

Iwamoto: The phantoms.

Aonuma: We first created the enemies you can't defeat, the phantoms. Since they're invincible, you have no other choice but to run away from them. If you just kept running away from them, you wouldn't really feel that nervous, so we needed something else. Thinking of that, we decided we needed a time limit. We thought it'd be fun to have a dungeon like that.

ND: Ah, it makes you feel nervous, unlike the usual dungeons.

Fujibayashi: It's some kind of "time-attack" sensation.

Iwamoto: You have to visit the Temple of the Ocean King several times, but the feature of writing notes on the map is very useful.

ND: Indeed. You can check the notes you previously wrote down, and it feels like you're studying along the way. At first you may think it's impossible to do what you have to do within the time limit, but...

Aonuma: You start to feel less nervous.

Iwamoto: Your nervousness turns into happiness after realizing your improvement.

Aonuma: I think improving thanks to the experience you acquire is one of the main features of the Zelda series, and it's part of that dungeon, frankly challenging you. The player feels he's grown up. As new games are added to the franchise, it seems like that feeling becomes weaker.

ND: In Twilight Princess, you had that feeling of becoming good at sword fights.

Aonuma: On the other hand, some people had the idea that growing up just meant having more hearts... The Temple of the Ocean King was born when we were thinking of another way to convey that sensation of growing up more straightforwardly.

THE IDEA THAT CAME UP IN THE VERY LAST STAGES OF DEVELOPMENT: THE HOURGLASS

ND: Didn't it occur to you using the Phantom Hourglass in other dungeons?

Iwamoto: If we had done that, the game would be annoying (laughs).

Aonuma: We decided to have just one dungeon you had to visit many times. The main system's you go to another dungeon, get an item, and keep advancing in the Temple of the Ocean King. There also was a time limit in Majora's Mask, but I still had nagging doubts about that system; I wondered if we couldn't implement it in another way. And the hourglass item was born as result.

Fujibayashi: The idea of the hourglass came up during the final stages of development.

Aonuma: Originally, we had decided to increase the amount of time you could spend inside the dungeon every time you came in. When we thought of an item that could have that function, we agreed that it should extend the time when you defeated a boss, but we didn't have any ideas on how the actual item should be like.

Fujibayashi: And we continued working on the game like that, without settling that part.

Aonuma: But in the very last stages, we came up with the idea of the hourglass and we decided it was the best. We didn't have everything arranged since the beginning, some details took shape during development. It's always the same with Zelda titles (laughs), the story doesn't come first. So, I think that he (pointing at Mr. Fujibayashi, the person in charge of the scenario) has the most problems in the end, when he must join everything coherently.

Fujibayashi: In the very last stages of development, I was told to tie all the loose parts. And there was still someone who told me how Lineback was supposed to act (luaghs).

Iwamoto: I told you something along the lines of, "Lineback wouldn't act like that!" (laughs)

Aonuma: Lineback's like Mr. Iwamoto's child (laughs). Regarding Lineback, they couldn't agree on the most important thing, they both had their own opinion, but in the end he had to fix it.

THE WI-FI BATTLE SYSTEM BORN FROM A PROJECT AIMED AT STUDENTS

ND: The system of the Temple of the Ocean King is also used in the battle mode, right?

Aonuma: The battle mode's fun too! The phantoms make you feel extremely nervous.

ND: If you play the battle mode after clearing the game...

Aonuma: (Happily) Exactly! And if you go into the Temple of the Ocean King after playing the battle mode via Wi-Fi, the phantoms won't be scary anymore.

Iwamoto: The actual people you play against in the battle mode are scarier.

ND: Did you have plans for using the Wi-Fi from the beginning?

Aonuma: Yes. The petitions for online play in a Zelda game have been very numerous since some time ago, especially from aboard. But it'd feel strange if we turned Zelda into a battle game to cross swords via Wi-Fi against an enemy you can't see.

ND: It would become a game with lots of blood.

Aonuma: So we decided to adapt the system of the Temple of the Ocean King into a versus mode. The phantoms are controlled with the stylus and Link carries the triforce gems to his base. A simple game like this one is similar to playing tag or hide and seek.

ND: What's the complete story behind the battle mode?

Aonuma: Nintendo organizes a seminar aimed at students. I was a lecturer around two years ago, and an idea I had as an example of a project became the basis for the battle mode. It was basically a board game called "Scotland Yard." It was a tag-like game where the police needed to use their reasoning to find the whereabouts of the thieves. I thought noises could act as clues to guide the police to where the enemy was. In the end, it was just a prototype, but that's the battle mode's origins.

ND: I see.

Aonuma: For that project, I had thought that the pursuer and the pursued should move in a turn-based system. But when Mr. Miyamoto looked at it, he remarked that it's fun when things change in video games in real time, so that game couldn't have a turn-based system, and that's why I was called an "amateur." I had no other choice but to agree... And then I showed a tape of that talk to the students and said (scratching his head), "That's what I was told" (laughs).

ND: So you used that as a teaching material (laughs).

Aonuma: That project was for the seminar, but I really wanted to develop it someday. When we decided to use the Wi-Fi for this Zelda title, I told the staff the idea I had some time ago, and we used it as a basis.

BATTLE VIA WI-FI WITH PEOPLE AROUND THE WORLD STARTING IN OCTOBER

Aonuma: I like games similar to tag. I also enjoy playing hide and seek. Doing something behind your oponent's back is fun, and I thought it'd be fun too on the DS.

ND: It gives me the impression that the battle mode also incorporates elements from the GC game Pac-Man Vs.

Aonuma: Yes. We included elements from Pac-Man Vs. and from some other games. Mr. Miyamoto said this Zelda title was OK after having a look at the battle mode, but once he played the adventure mode, he thought it was a great game.

ND: I have the feeling Mr. Miyamoto wanted to propagate the fun of versus games similar to Pac-Man Vs.

Aonuma: Yes, I also remember him saying something like that, so it's like if we were being guided by Buddha's hand.

ND: By the way, do you have the release dates for the rest of the world?

Aonuma: North America's getting it in October, and Europe's release date is not far from that. So, you can play against people from other countries starting in October. Europe's getting the game a bit later, so they might not want to play against Japanese people (laughs).

ND: Japan got Mario Kart DS after America, so there were many Japanese players who had a hard time.

Fujibayashi: This time we'll have our revenge with Zelda (laughs)!

EVERY NOOK AND CORNER OF THE GAME IS FILLED WITH LOVE FROM THE STAFF

ND: How many people did you have in the staff?

Aonuma: At the end there were around 40 people, but up until the middle stages, there were about 20.

Iwamoto: And in the beginning we were only five people (laughs).

Aonuma: Those were times of misfortune (laughs). Even when I asked to have more people in the staff, they answered me to wait a bit longer.

Iwamoto: We were told that more people would join us after Twilight Princess was finished, so we just kept working steadily (laughs).

Everybody: (laughs)

ND: The postman's cute. Were there many women in the staff this time?

Aonuma: There were a lot of women in the staff. The chief designer's a woman herself.

ND: The kamishibai is very nice.

Aonuma: That's also the work of women.

ND: I laughed a lot with the second one (laughs).

Aonuma: Really (laughs)! The story the kamishibai tells is very serious, and then you realize the situation and say, "So it was you showing the pictures?" (laughs) The team did a good job there; and not just there of course, every nook and corner of the game is filled with love from the staff. Everyone did their best until the very end, trying to make the game better and better. So I really want to say to the staff that they did a great job!

ND: By the way, Mr. Aonuma, you've been continuing to work on Zelda games, but to whom will you hand the baton over?

Aonuma: (pointing at Iwamoto and Fujibayashi) It has to be these two people!

ND: They both turned their eyes away (laughs).

Aonuma: Why are you running away (laughs)?! I think this game's the big triumph of their team work. I worked together with Mr. Fujibayashi in the Minish Cap and Oracles games, but it was the first time I worked with Mr. Iwamoto. Honestly speaking, I was uneasy on how well he would direct a Zelda game, but he did a great job at the helm. We had an ideal development team. They're already gifted with the gray power. No, sorry, it isn't gray power, it's thickheadedness power (laughs). When making a Zelda game, I think it's also important to be optimistic after crashing with an obstacle.

Hagishima: (reaffirming) In other words, you need nerves of iron.

Everybody: (laughs)

THE FEELINGS OF THE FANS WILL GIVE BIRTH TO THE NEXT ZELDA

ND: It may be too soon to ask this, but what will the next game of the series be like?

Aonuma: Right now I'm thinking Phantom Hourglass was headed in a good direction.

ND: I agree. And I'd like to do some puzzle solving with the Wii remote.

Aonuma: I feel the system we implemented in the DS version could also change the way a Wii Zelda game might be played.

ND: It's not all about gorgeous graphics.

Aonuma: However, there are people who'd like a Zelda game with those kind of graphics. The challenge is having a good balance between graphics and new gameplay elements.

ND: You have a toon-shaded Link and a realistic Link. Could we see a different kind of Link in the future?

Aonuma: That's also a possibility. I think we need to recognize that there's a big difference between playing with the realistic Link and with the one in this game. If we start mixing both styles, the result may be something totally uncertain. The reason why Phantom Hourglass ended up being a good game is because we could draw a clear dividing line. We started with a clear idea of how we wanted it to be, and decided some things that the game didn't need. So, even if you have gorgeous graphics, I think that having a clear idea of what you don't need is important.

ND: Will you continue making Zelda games, Mr. Aonuma?

Aonuma: What I tell these two people, and the staff, is that the next game we make doesn't have to necessarily be a Zelda game. They can start thinking of the next project and have Zelda-centered ideas, but it's completely OK if their ideas come from non-Zelda games. Don't you think the roots of Phantom Hourglass come from the game "Marvelous"?

ND: Yes. So you'll be working on a Marvelous game next?

Aonuma: That's not what I meant (laughs). I realized many things while developing this Zelda title. While thinking on the next Zelda, I review all the elements we were able to implement in this game, in all shapes and spices, and that's inspiring; it makes me feel like we can make another Zelda game. Ah, it hasn't been decided whether I'll be involved in it, though (laughs). The opinion of fans is very important. So, the feelings of the fans will give birth to the next Zelda!

BONUS INTERVIEW: MR. MIYAMOTO'S ANGER AND MR. AONUMA'S ANGER

ND: How's Mr. Aonuma like when he gets angry at the staff?

Fujibayashi: He's right next to the development area, so he gets angry openly.

Aonuma: I'm a person with intense emotions. I easily say things like (loudly), "Great!" or "Are you stupid?!" But Mr. Miyamoto will suddenly come to the development area and just say, "No, no" (laughs).

ND: You told us about Mr. Miyamoto's mails in our Twilight Princess interview.

Aonuma: It hurts more when someone gets mad at you in a mail, without showing any facial expressions, than when he does so openly in front of you. So I wonder whether Mr. Miyamoto sends those mails on purpose. I don't do that kind of evil things (laughs).

Everybody: (laughs)

Aonuma: When I need to say it, I face the person and just tell him, "Stupid!"

Iwamoto: But Mr. Aonuma sends mails too (laughs). "This is no good."

Aonuma: Even when we're sitting right next to each other (laughs). But when I send mails, it's because I want to tell the same thing to other people of the staff. When I want to tell something just to Mr. Iwamoto, I openly do so (mimics the gesture of grabbing someone by the collar), "What are you doing?! This is all wrong!"

Iwamoto: (nods silently)

Everybody: (laughs)

ND: What kind of person is Mr. Miyamoto for you, Mr. Aonuma?

Aonuma: Of course, I respect him a lot, and admire him. He's around 10 years older than me. Lately, my hair's turning gray, and it made me aware of the fact that people get old, but Mr. Miyamoto doesn't.

ND: He always looks young.

Aonuma: Not just his appearance, but his feelings don't change either. His way of thinking about games is the same, it doesn't even get blurry. His attitude towards work, his energy, they haven't changed. However, we can't be depending on him forever, so I have to

ND: So that you can support Mr. Miyamoto too.

Aonuma: Yes, so thinking like that, I was very happy to hear Mr. Miyamoto say this game was good when we finished it. I think I finally was able to give Shigeru Miyamoto's Zelda my personal style to create a Zelda game. I had been trying to equal Shigeru Miyamoto's Zelda all this time, so from now on...

ND: From now on...?

Aonuma: I'll try to surpass Shigeru Miyamoto, perhaps?!

Everybody: (laughs)

~FIN~

THIS MONTH'S Z-TARGETTING: MR. AONUMA AND PIRATES
-By Saohen

Mr. Aonuma talks very energetically, but it's hard to convey it in print. He's like a young boy coming back home after his first adventure, talking while his whole body shows his feelings. I'd really like to use caps in most of his comments and end them with an exclamation mark or a "(laughs heartily)," but it'd be hard to read that way, so I restrain myself.

The first game the hot-blooded Mr. Aonuma directed was "Marvelous ~Mou Hitotsu no Takarajima~." Do you know that game? There surely are many people who don't. The game came out for the Super NES four months after the release of the N64. It was a new 2-D action-adventure game released at a time when people were thinking of 3-D and wanted more polygons. It wasn't advertised on TV (that I remember), and it wasn't featured a lot in the Nintendo Dream (back then called "64 Dream") magazine (Sorry, Mr. Aonuma!). So, if you know this game, you can be proud of being a game connoisseur.

The main story had three young boys working together to find a hidden pirate treasure and rescue their beautiful teacher. In few words, it was a mix of Zelda's action-adventure and Heisei Shin Onigashima's text-adventure elements. The game had caves, pirate ship, the sea, and many other locations. It was also filled with puzzles. So you can say The Wind Waker and Phantom Hourglass were based on Marvelous.

Tetra was already the leader of a pirate crew, and she retakes his role in Phantom Hourglass. When I asked him why he liked pirates that much, he answered, "Well, I like historical plays a lot, and I admire the samurai lifestyle." I think I know why.

Bushidou, or the samurai code of chivalry, was the philosophy that samurai were supposed to be loyal to their master, resigning to their own convenience. After a long development process, Twilight Princess was finished, and Mr. Aonuma continued working on Phantom Hourglass without taking a single day off to rest. He worked hard to make his master (Shigeru Miyamoto) happy. And now, I have a proposal for Mr. Aonuma.

Why don't you release Marvelous for the Virtual Console? It was originally planned to be a CD-ROM for the Super NES, but since it was released as a cartridge, the movies were cut off. I think many people would be happy to play Marvelous on their Wii with those precious cinemas included.