Remaking The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time 3DS

Along with the unveiling of Nintendo's new 3D-capable 3DS handheld today came a series of demos, some of games penned in for retail release and others that were more-or less tech demos. Among them was a clip of a spruced-up version of The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time.

"More-or-less tech demos?" I hear you ask. Well according to Nintendo maestro Shigeru Miyamoto, Ocarina of Time and a 3D version of Star Fox 64 are both being "actively developed".

It's hard to ascertain exactly what "actively developed" means; it certainly is not confirmation of a remake, but the demo showed that it was indeed easily possible, and that Nintendo are sifting through their back catalogue with an open mind. Miyamoto himself stated that he would love to see Ocarina of Time's ground-breaking Hyrule Field area recreated in 3D himself, so there every possibility that it could happen.

Regularly heralded as one of, if not THE, greatest games of all time, a portable Ocarina of Time in 3D would have Nintendo fanboys and the general gaming community at large foaming at the mouth, myself included.

Nintendo Considering Online Play and DLC for Future Zeldas

Eiji Aonuma talks extra content and multiplayer

Zelda games are single-player epics: one elf questing to prevent the resurrection of a giant evil and destruction of the world. But if Eiji Aonuma can make it work, we may one day see a Zelda game with online functions.

Speaking to GameInformer, Mr Aonuma said he's constantly thinking about how people play together and how best to fit that into the Legend of Zelda world. He's not necessarily thinking of a straight multiplayer option either: stating he's interested in the idea of communication between players, Mr Aonuma gave the example of players playing separately, with the decisions made influencing each other's games.

When asked about potential download content for next year's Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword, Mr Aonuma replied "obviously, we have thought about DLC, and we are thinking about it." A Zelda game with post-release additional content would be a bold step for Nintendo, but would surely please many fans of the green-clad elf.

The days of Zelda games being offline solo pursuits may be numbered.

E3: The Legend of Zelda: The Skyward Sword

Reggie Fils-Aime kicked off Nintendo’s show with the main thing everyone wanted to see: Zelda on Wii. Arriving in 2011, The Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword looked absolutely gorgeous. The video began with a number of Link incarnations spanning the years before settling on the new Link. Falling between the super cartoony look of Wind Waker and the more realistic depiction found in Twilight Sword, new Link is accurately proportioned but remains bright and colorful.

The biggest revelation about Skyward Sword would have to be its use of Wii Motion-Plus. After taking stage with a clever video segment, Shigeru Miyamoto set forth demonstrating the new Zelda in action. Like Twilight Princess the Wiimote itself is used for sword play, but the main new difference is the Nunchuck’s new usage as your shield control. Miyamoto demoed Link’s ability to deflect enemy attacks and even send projectiles back where they came from. He then went on to show several items including a new whip and a beetle that Link can pilot to explore areas or retrieve objects with. There were a few technical issues when Miyamoto broke out the bow and arrow, but he assured the crowd when they got their hands on the demo they’d see it was a fluke. Overall the game looked very pretty and delivered on the trademark Zelda charm.

Leaked Detail For Next Zelda Game

WiiNintendo.com have posted some exciting new details for Nintendo’s new Zelda game which is due to be released on the Nintendo Wii later this year.

Before we go any further, WiiNintendo.com received their scoop from an email and as of yet have been unable to confirm whether or not the email housed credible information.

Anyway, here we go…

■This time around, Link won’t use a bow and arrow, for the new adventure Link will have a crossbow.
■The game is almost finished with Nintendo just adding the finishing touches.
■A playable demo will be revealed at next month’s E3
■There will be a time travel element to the game.
■Link’s hometown will be bigger than it was in previous games.
■There will be more involving character interaction.
■Control of Link will be like nothing else seen on the Wii.
■The game will focus heavily on sword combat.
■And finally, there will be flight sections where you, um, fly…
So there you have them. The one thing I think all the above have in common is that they are all definitely plausible.

What do you think?

Zelda Wii Vitality Sensor?

The Nintendo Wii isn't exactly short of peripheral hardware. While the Balance Board and MotionPlus are relatively self-explanatory and their uses pretty easy to comprehend, the Vitality Sensor has left a question mark over gamers' heads. Since its flagship game was announced last summer, things have gone quiet again.

That is until now, when Shigeru Miyamoto became the latest game developer to hint at the possibility of Vitality Sensor support for one of their upcoming games. Prior to receiving his Academy Fellowship award last Friday, Miyamoto spoke to games™, and offered the possibility that the new Legend of Zelda for the Wii could very well utilise the accessory.

"Whenever we are going to use any new device it is possible to expand the appeal to those who are new to the videogaming world. At the same time, however, it is also fun to think of ways in which we might apply that new technology to exisiting [sic] forms of gameplay – just like the way we are working on the new Legend Of Zelda together with Wii Motion Plus... So maybe you might like to ask me to incorporate the Vitality Sensor into Zelda so that as you become more scared, the enemies become even tougher."

With scepticism regarding the sensor device's ability to improve one's gaming experience, the Wii Vitality Sensor is going to have a lot to prove. It has to be a product that allows developers to come up with compelling uses for it in their games. Suda51 has already stated that he has ideas for using the device. What those ideas are he didn't reveal, but one thing's for sure; quirky applications are all well and good but if games don't offer compelling uses of the device, it will obviously fail. Although Miyamoto hasn't specifically confirmed that the new Zelda will use it, it's a step in the right direction for the sensor.

Zelda Wii confirmed for 2010?

Nintendo's Cammie Dunaway has suggested that the forthcoming Legend Of Zelda game will be released for Wii this year.

In an interview with Wired.com, Nintendo of America's executive vice president said that the website owed her a steak dinner for doubting that new Mario, Metroid and Zelda games would be released in one year.

Of course the release dates for Mario Galaxy 2 and Metroid: Other M were confirmed (June) at Nintendo's media summits this week but Dunaway believes that Nintendo will enjoy a good second half of 2010 as well.

"One of the things that's true for Nintendo is that we're not driven by a calendar for our release dates. When the games are ready to go, when the quality is perfect, that's when we release.

"We all benefit if we can keep a pretty steady pace, so the development teams have worked hard to make sure that we've got a full lineup this year. If you compare the first half of 2010 with the first half of 2009, it's night and day. And from some of the things that Mr. Iwata has talked about, and that we will talk about at E3, like Zelda, you know that we're going to have a good back half of the year, as well."

With new Mario, Metroid and Zelda games pencilled in for 2010, could this be one of the best years ever for Nintendo fans?

New Zelda game to appear at E3

Japanese game website Andriasang brings more news about the anticipated next Zelda game. So far very little has been revealed about the game aside from the fact that it will use the Wii Motion Plus controls for greater accuracy in imitating player movement. It's now been revealed that Eiji Anouma, producer on the project is hoping to have a playable version of the game available for the press to play at this years E3. He also says that extra pressure has been put on the team to try and get the game ready for a release by the holiday season of 2010.

There hasn't been a new Zelda game to play on a Nintendo console since the release of The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess in 2006. If Nintendo doesn't make their tenuous deadline, it will be five years since a console Zelda game has been available to consumers.

Zelda Sequel Confirmed For 2010 / DS 2 Hint

You are now less than 365 days away from a new console Zelda game. Nintendo CEO Satoru Iwata confirmed to Japan's Asahi Shimbun daily today that the Wii Zelda sequel, first revealed at last year's E3, will be released this year.

Iwata was pretty open for this particular interview. He also revealed that Nintendo will be announcing Vitality Sensor games in July, with an aim to release product as soon as possible (not very specific, for sure, but better than nothing!)
DS also got some mention. Actually, make that DS 2! Iwata told the paper that a successor to the DS would require high resolution visuals and sensors for detecting player motions.

He wouldn't share a time frame for the successor's release, though, instead pointing to the DS's success in 2009. According to Iwata, 2009 was DS's best year ever in North America.