#SkywardSwordQuote
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Kaneko her design for Impa in Skyward Sword, 2013.

Source: Hyrule Historia

#Zelda
#SkywardSwordQuote
#KanekoQuote

www.hyruleinterviews.com/Hyrule-Histo...
PEOPLE: - Yuki Kaneko. NPC Designer on Skyward Sword. QUOTE: Kaneko: For young Impa [in Skyward Sword] we referenced Impa and Sheik from Ocarina of Time. We also gave her an androgynous look, like a male role in an opera. The aging Impa’s costume also follows the passage of time, her entire body is dressed to reflect that. Her pendulum braid measures time, ticking away the seconds, and the entire triangular robe she wears becomes a sundial, with her age being measured by the braids in her hair.
May 18, 2026 at 5:34 AM
hyruleinterviews.bsky.social
Fujibayashi on holing up to outline Skyward Sword's story, 2011.

Source: Iwata Asks

#Zelda
#SkywardSwordQuote
#FujibayashiQuote, #IwataQuote

www.notion.so/dc4631410a43...
PEOPLE: - Hidemaro Fujibayashi, age 39. Director of Skyward Sword. - Satoru Iwata, age 51. President of Nintendo. QUOTE: Fujibayashi: [With about two years left on Skyward Sword], we had to think about a number of things all at once … and the cinematic scene staff were beginning to join the team, so we were under pressure to make the hakogaki soon. Iwata: The hakogaki is a rough synopsis of the essential points of the script. Fujibayashi: Yes. Time was running out, so I told everyone that I didn't feel well and holed up at home one whole day to write it! [laughs] Iwata: I can't condone such behavior, but you wanted to concentrate alone. Fujibayashi: Yes. I locked myself in and from morning to evening did nothing but write the synopsis. Iwata: Even though you didn't feel well? [laughs]
August 27, 2025 at 3:05 AM
hyruleinterviews.bsky.social
Hirono on the design motif for the Skyloft villagers, 2013.

Source: Hyrule Historia

#Zelda
#SkywardSwordQuote
#HironoQuote

www.hyruleinterviews.com/29a41fe961fd...
PEOPLE: - Akiko Hirono. NPC Designer for Skyward Sword. QUOTE: Hirono: In the beginning it was decided that all residents of Skyloft [in Skyward Sword] would be modeled after birds. That’s where the idea to give Henya a rooster’s body came from. Groose’s pointy hairstyle was inspired by a rooster’s comb. Owlan’s and Horwell’s designs were based on the Rito tribe from The Wind Waker.
December 27, 2025 at 4:51 AM
hyruleinterviews.bsky.social
Hirono & Kobayashi on Zelda's design in Skyward Sword, 2013.

Source: Hyrule Historia

#Zelda
#SkywardSwordQuote
#KobayashiQuote, #HironoQuote

www.hyruleinterviews.com/29a41fe961fd...
PEOPLE: - Ryūji Kobayashi. Player Design Lead in Skyward Sword. - Akiko Hirono. NPC Designer in Skyward Sword. QUOTE: Hirono/Kobayashi*: [In Skyward Sword, Zelda] isn’t a princess, So the first thing we did was remove any sort of regal ornamentation from her head. Afterward, her look was much too simple... We wanted her to look like a typical village girl, but we also wanted to establish her as a heroine at the same time, so this is what we decided upon. Her outfit is a pretty sky blue, and compared to previous iterations, we went with a dress that was more red than purple. We had a director who requested Goddess Zelda be dressed “simply, and in white.” *It’s unclear who is speaking
November 4, 2025 at 4:24 AM
hyruleinterviews.bsky.social
Aonuma on the difference between his leadership on console vs handheld Zelda, 2009.

Source: Iwata Asks

#Zelda
#PhantomHourglassQuote, #TwilightPrincessQuote, #SkywardSwordQuote, #SpiritTracksQuote
#IwataQuote, #AonumaQuote

www.hyruleinterviews.com/d6e65557dce3...
PEOPLE: - Satoru Iwata, age 49. President of Nintendo from 2002-2015. - Eiji Aonuma, age 46. Director of Twilight Princess, Producer of Phantom Hourglass. QUOTE: Iwata: Aonuma-san, you're involved with both [Twilight Princess and Phantom Hourglass]. Are there any differences in how you work on the two? Aonuma: When I work on the Wii edition, I'm right on-site, and I often do my job from a director's perspective. On the Nintendo DS version, I do proper producer's work. ...That said, when I worked on the previous game, Phantom Hourglass, I was simultaneously making Twilight Princess, so I couldn't keep a very close eye on things right from the beginning. Then, when Twilight Princess was finished and I went to the Nintendo DS version's office, the development was already pretty far along.
January 31, 2026 at 2:33 AM
hyruleinterviews.bsky.social
Aonuma on Skyward Sword feedback and breaking free of expectations with Breath of the Wild, 2017.

Source: Creating a Champion

#Zelda
#BreathoftheWildQuote, #SkywardSwordQuote
#AonumaQuote

www.notion.so/13c41fe961fd...
PEOPLE: - Eiji Aonuma, age 54. Producer of Skyward Sword and Breath of the Wild. QUOTE: Aonuma: With Skyward Sword, the player descended from the sky to specific points on the surface map, and we received a lot of comments from players saying that they wanted to explore the space between the different areas. That gave us an opportunity. We had always aimed to create worlds in the Zelda games that you could play in endlessly, yet, at some point, we became constrained by expectations. So I told the [Breath of the Wild] staff, ‘This time, let's build the game without shying away from anything. Let's stop thinking about what Zelda has been up until now.’ … I wanted to play in this big, expansive world, but I was completely at a loss when it came to what sort of play that might be.
August 10, 2025 at 6:45 PM
hyruleinterviews.bsky.social
Fujibayashi on the cutscene he wanted to do in Skyward Sword no matter what, 2011.

Source: Iwata Asks

#Zelda
#SkywardSwordQuote
#FujibayashiQuote, #AonumaQuote

www.notion.so/dc4631410a43...
PEOPLE: - Hidemaro Fujibayashi, age 39. Director of Skyward Sword. - Eiji Aonuma, age 48. Producer of Skyward Sword. QUOTE: Fujibayashi: There was one scene [in Skyward Sword] I wanted to do no matter what. It's toward the beginning. Zelda jumps down from Skyloft toward Link as he is flying on Loftwing, and Link panics and tries to catch her. I wanted to portray Zelda's personality in this game all at once in that scene. She's bright and lively, emotional and impulsive. We made that cinematic scene, but when Aonuma-san saw it, he said, "It's so long… It's too long!" I thought, "Oh no! If it stays like this, he's gonna cut it!" Aonuma: What bothered me the most at the time was how, toward the beginning, cinematic scenes were running one after the other.
September 13, 2025 at 5:53 PM
hyruleinterviews.bsky.social
Kiuchi on the design of the Imprisoned and Demise, in Skyward Sword, 2013.

Source: Hyrule Historia

#Zelda
#SkywardSwordQuote
#KiuchiQuote

www.hyruleinterviews.com/Hyrule-Histo...
PEOPLE: - Takafumi Kiuchi. Enemy Designer for Skyward Sword. QUOTE: Kiuchi: With the only instructions that it should be enormous and that “its vulnerability is on its head,” we were allowed to design the Imprisoned [in Skyward Sword] as we pleased. Its design looks more like a kaiju than a monster. Trying to show the impressive presence and the overwhelming power of Demise, we drew him again and again until we got it right. To give him some resemblance to Ganondorf, we didn't just make his hair red, but set it on fire. [laughs] His sword looks like a black Master Sword.
July 22, 2026 at 7:03 PM
hyruleinterviews.bsky.social
Hisada on perceiving gameplay objects against the background in Skyward Sword, 2011.

Source: Iwata Asks

#Zelda
#SkywardSwordQuote
#HisadaQuote

iwataasks.nintendo.com/interviews/w...
PEOPLE: - Hanako Hisada. Skyward Sword field designer & landform coordinator. QUOTE: Hisada: Early on in development [of Skyward Sword], we had made not just the backgrounds, but the enemies and objects in a watercolor style, but everything, including enemies, blended into the background. You totally couldn't pick out your goal. Then we used half-toon rendering, which is similar to cel-shaded animation, to represent characters and others, to make them stand out. When we tried using that technology, it didn't look flat like with cel-shaded animation, but a little airy and soft. As mentioned earlier about animations, the backgrounds were realistic and simple, soft characters were moving around in front of them, and it didn't feel off at all, so we thought, 'This might work!'
August 28, 2026 at 1:15 AM
hyruleinterviews.bsky.social
Hirono on the direction she was given to design Ghirahim in Skyward Sword, 2011.

Source: Iwata Asks

#Zelda
#SkywardSwordQuote
#HironoQuote, #IwataQuote

www.notion.so/6872a9834266...
PEOPLE: - Akiko Hirono. Character Designer for Skyward Sword. - Satoru Iwata, age 51. 4th President of Nintendo. QUOTE: "Iwata: What were you given to begin working with [for Ghirahim’s design in Skyward Sword]? Hirono: He is an opponent for sword battle, and a Demon Lord who has some sort of objective, and his personality was a little affected and vain. Iwata: That was your assignment, and that's how he ended up?! [laughs] Hirono: He's an important character, but I didn't have any more details, so we all threw out ideas and solidified his image. Design-wise, the opinion arose that if there is a shape to serve as a symbol of a character, that character will make a stronger impression, so he turned out with a design that features lots of diamond shapes."
January 29, 2025 at 4:55 AM
hyruleinterviews.bsky.social
Aonuma on how Ghirahim is like Dark Link, 2011.

Source: 1UP

#Zelda
#SkywardSwordQuote
#AonumaQuote

www.notion.so/14141fe961fd...
PEOPLE: - Eiji Aonuma, age 48. Producer of Skyward Sword. QUOTE: "Aonuma: The [Skyward Sword] demo shows when you first meet [Ghirahim], and plainly he's looking down at Link, stopping his sword with his fingers and so forth. In terms of story image he's kind of like Dark Link; he sees right through Link's moves in battle. You can sort of swing your sword wildly and still hold your own against a lot of foes, but there's no way you can beat Ghiraham like that. You need to keep your distance and watch his moves, and it's something you'll need to change your strategy for. I think he's a pretty good change of pace as bosses go, and he'll change gradually throughout the game."
February 17, 2025 at 1:12 AM
hyruleinterviews.bsky.social
Aonuma on how the move to an open world was informed by the reaction to Skyward Sword, 2017.

Source: Nintendo Everything

#Zelda
#SkywardSwordQuote, #BreathoftheWildQuote
#AonumaQuote

nintendoeverything.com/aonuma-on-ze...
PEOPLE: - Eiji Aonuma, age 53. Producer of Skyward Sword & Breath of the Wild. QUOTE: Q: What motivated the choice of such an open, systemic world [for Breath of the Wild] Aonuma: The wish to create an open world game came shortly after Skyward Sword was finished. We realized that the way you flew from one area to another, with no opportunity to walk instead, had frustrated a lot of people who wanted to know what was hidden between the regions. One of the greatest thrills of the Zelda series lies in exploring and looking for hidden things, so after a few preliminary tests, we reckoned that the Wii U had the power we needed to create a satisfying open world—one that would allow players to visit the entire world with no loading times. Everything stemmed from that intention.
August 18, 2026 at 2:52 AM
hyruleinterviews.bsky.social
Aonuma & Wakai on how Skyward Sword came to have an orchestrated soundtrack, 2011.

Source: Iwata Asks

#Zelda
#SkywardSwordQuote
#AonumaQuote, #WakaiQuote, #MiyamotoQuote

www.notion.so/dc4631410a43...
PEOPLE: - Eiji Aonuma, age 48. Producer of Skyward Sword, Director of Twilight Princess. - Hajime Wakai, age 38. Composer and Sound Director for Skyward Sword. - Shigeru Miyamoto, age 58. General Producer of Skyward Sword, Producer of Twilight Princess. QUOTE: Aonuma: During the roundtable at E3, a reporter asked if we would use an orchestra for [Skyward Sword], and Mr. Miyamoto replied, "An orchestra suits The Legend of Zelda, so we'll be thinking about it." When I came back to Japan, Wakai-san came up to me in a fluster and said, "Is the music going to be orchestral this time?!" I was like, "No, I don't think so." Wakai: That's right! Aonuma: I only experienced recording one track with an orchestra for Twilight Princess, but it was a lot of work, so schedule-wise, I was certain we couldn't do it for the whole game. To my surprise, though, Miyamoto-san said, "Record it with an orchestra!"
June 29, 2025 at 3:32 AM
hyruleinterviews.bsky.social
Aonuma on how the Wii MotionPlus didn’t exist yet when Skyward Sword development began, 2010.

Source: Official Nintendo Magazine

#Zelda
#SkywardSwordQuote, #WiiMotionPlusQuote
#AonumaQuote

www.notion.so/ac79957b8190...
PEOPLE: - Eiji Aonuma, age 46. Producer of Skyward Sword. QUOTE: Aonuma: The fact of the matter is that Wii MotionPlus was actually not conceived at the beginning of the development of this new Wii version of [Zelda]. We thought about the possibility of integrating the Wii MotionPlus technology into the [Skyward Sword] idea so we then had to start experimenting. Now we have come to the stage where a very convenient result has been realized. In the end, Wii MotionPlus will be something really great for improving the playability of the game.
August 25, 2025 at 9:55 PM
hyruleinterviews.bsky.social
Aonuma on his typical day as the Zelda producer in 2010, 2010.

Source: Official Nintendo Magazine

#Zelda
#SkywardSwordQuote, #ALinkBetweenWorldsQuote
#AonumaQuote, #FujibayashiQuote, #ShikataQuote

www.notion.so/ac79957b8190...
PEOPLE: - Eiji Aonuma, age 46. Producer of Skyward Sword & A Link Between Worlds. - Hidemaro Fujibayashi, age 37. Director of Skyward Sword. - Hiromasa Shikata. Director of A Link Between Worlds. QUOTE: "Aonuma: As soon as I come to my office I start checking my emails from the Japanese companies as well as from NCL and overseas companies. Then I start chatting with the directors on my right and left hand - my desk is situated between the DS director [Shikata] and the Wii director [Fujibayashi]. I start talking with them about the progress made in the last day and then we decide a priority order of what we as a team need to do in the next 24 hours or so. If there are any versions of the software ready by the morning I start checking those."
February 27, 2025 at 1:04 AM
hyruleinterviews.bsky.social
Linktober day 29: Water
Fujibayashi & Fujino on the sand sea in Skyward Sword.

Via Iwata Asks, 2011.

#Zelda
#SkywardSwordQuote
#FujibayashiQuote, #FujinoQuote
#Linktober

hyruleinterviews.notion.site/Iwata-Asks-S...
People in quote: - Hidemaro Fujibayashi, age 39. Director of Skyward Sword. - Yohei Fujino. Planner for Skyward Sword's Sand Sea and Sand Ship. Quote: "Fujibayashi: [About Skyward Sword’s Sand Sea] The first thing I thought was, ‘What would be interesting to contrast with a desert when it transforms?’ And if there's a sea, there's got to be a boat. … Fujino: I thought it sounded interesting. He wanted to have a boat, so I gathered a bunch of resources about ships. Fujibayashi: His desk was really something. It was piled high with books about water vessels, cross-sections, blueprints, and such."
October 29, 2023 at 6:40 PM
hyruleinterviews.bsky.social
Fujibayashi on how Tears of the Kingdom's Temples were informed by past games.

Via Polygon, 2023.

#Zelda
#TearsOfTheKingdomQuote, #BreathOfTheWildQuote, #SkywardSwordQuote
#FujibayashiQuote

hyruleinterviews.notion.site/Tears-of-the...
PEOPLE: Hidemaro Fujibayashi, age 50. Director of Skyward Sword, Breath of the Wild, & Tears of the Kingdom. QUOTE: "Fujibayashi: I was involved with Breath of the Wild, you know, and one of the themes for Breath of the Wild was ‘moving dungeons.’ And I was also involved with Skyward Sword, and that had more of the hardcore, standard puzzle-solving dungeons. And I felt like I had a good idea of what the fans like about those two things. So I feel like I attempted to take those things and put them together into one sort of hybrid format. That’s what Tears of the Kingdom is."
November 1, 2023 at 3:38 PM
hyruleinterviews.bsky.social
Linktober Day 7: Sky
Aonuma on what inspired the sky overworld in Skyward Sword.

Via Iwata Asks, 2011

#Zelda
#SkywardSwordQuote
#AonumaQuote
#Linktober

hyruleinterviews.notion.site/Iwata-Asks-S...
People in quote: - Eiji Aonuma, age 48. Producer of Skyward Sword. - Satoru Iwata, age 52. President of Nintendo. Quote: "Aonuma: Usually, when we make a Legend of Zelda game with a continuous body of land, we need an overlapping part to join one game field to the next. This time [for Skyward Sword], we made all kinds of gameplay for the forest, volcano and desert areas, and needed to create roads for going back and forth among those places. Every time, it was quite a struggle to figure out how to handle those roads. … The first thing we thought of this time was that perhaps we didn't need [them]. Iwata: And what did you think of? Aonuma: Course selection in Super Mario games."
October 7, 2023 at 10:31 PM