A video that showed Legendary Zelda producer Eiji Aonuma standing alongside Nintendo’s Shigeru Miyamoto in a very fetching high-vis vest and hard hat combo at Universal Studios Orlando has been pulled from the internet – prompting speculation he was there because a Legend of Zelda attraction is in the works.
Aonuma could be seen in a behind-the-scenes video from Universal designed to show employee life at the park, and highlight how it will grow in future. Aonuma’s inclusion appears to be an accident, however, as the post has since been removed from Instagram. We’ve asked Nintendo for comment.
Despite its short life online, the internet has aleady been analysing the video’s blink-and-you-will-miss-it shot of Aonuma and Miyamoto chatting together (thanks, Famiboards). Why are they there? What are they discussing? What is the Link between their presence and the parks’ future?
Miyamoto’s presence at Universal is understandable, as a Super Mario attraction is already a thing, with a Donkey Kong Country area heading to Nintendo World Japan later this year. So, yes, business needs to be done.
But Aonuma? The exec is synonymous with Legend of Zelda series, so maybe once Donkey Kong has drummed up some visitors, the next Nintendo IP ripe for theme-park adaptation could be that of Link and Zelda’s. Just in time for that Legend of Zelda movie? The internet seems to think so (or hope so).
It has got us here at Eurogamer wondering what a Zelda-themed park attraction could look like. I reckon a Goron minecart rollercoaster would be a lot of fun, but perhaps too similar to DK’s own Mine Cart Madness. My other thought was a decked out Great Deku Tree to enter and explore. A Deku-d out tree…
Ed likes the idea of a full Kokiri Forest area, with the Lost Woods as well. When the sun sets, fireflies could illuminate the lush vegetation, as Saria’s Song from Ocarina of Time plays. That made me immediately say that there needs to be a desert area, so we can hear Gerudo Valley.
Aonuma last caught the internet’s attention when he said in December that linear Zelda games were a thing of the past. “Why do you want to go back to a type of game where you’re more limited or more restricted in the types of things or ways you can play?” he questioned.
