Why Legend Of Zelda Games Are Almost Always Delayed, According To Nintendo

(Image credit: Nintendo)

Nintendo has a habit of delaying Legend of Zelda games. It's starting to become a tradition that most gamers have accepted. Ever since the N64 the games have been hit with one delay or another, and series creator Shigeru Miyamoto finally explained why.

Gamespot picked out a few quotes from an interview that Kotaku conducted with Nintendo developers Shigeru Miyamoto and Eiji Aonuma, where the two explained where they are with the upcoming Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild and why it's taken them so long to get the game up and out to the general public.

Aonuma first explained that it's difficult to judge what amount of time is required to get a brand new feature implemented, and that can sometimes cause problems, saying...

Every time we make a Zelda, we want to make something new, [...] It's hard to gauge how long that's going to take. And it's also hard to gauge at what point whatever we consider to be new is done

Miyamoto goes into a bit more depth about the delay, explaining that the physics and open-world elements -- especially regarding the enemy AI -- had to be properly fleshed out so that they work as intended.

At this year's E3 in Los Angeles, California we were able to see exactly how the open-world mechanics and physics-based gameplay were implemented in Breath of the Wild. For instance, there are brand new powers at Link's disposal in Breath of the Wild that allows him to physically manipulate some objects, including being able to lift rocks or metal objects and smash enemies with them. In one segment we saw how a rock was rolled around and used to crush a group of goblin forces. In another segment we saw how Link was able to use his magnetic abilities to swing doors open.

The best part about it is that there are no limitations on how these powers can be utilized, so it adds a whole new dynamic to puzzle solving and combat in the upcoming Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild.

According to Miyamoto, they didn't have a specific time-frame on how long it would take them to get some of these features up and working in the game, saying...

I think there's different reasons for delays, [...] One could be that the direction just hasn't been decided, which is probably the worst kind of delay. And the other is that the direction has been decided but putting that into reality--implementing that--is taking time. So it might have taken us six months to do this much. It'll take us a year to do that much.

It definitely ties back into his famous quote that's been reiterated time and time again whenever a crappy game is rushed out onto the market, a quote that Gamespot wisely included at the end of the piece where Miyamoto explained back during the age of the N64 "A delayed game is eventually good, but a rushed game is forever bad".

In this case, the Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild is shaping up to be more than just a good game. The only trouble is now is waiting for it to launch on the Wii U and the Nintendo NX next year.