Miyamoto Interviews> October 19th 1999, Gamepro

GamePro: Was the creation of Zelda Gaiden motivated by unfinished creative business? Were there things in Ocarina of Time that you still wanted to do?

Miyamoto: Yes, actually. For the 64DD, thought of changing the dungeons and making some parody games based upon the Ocarina of Time, but at the same time the creators felt they wanted to do more and could do more utilizing the N64's cartridge system. So we added to the original Ocarina of Time's code, and we decided to make use of the Expansion Pak memory kit so that we could explore new ideas that we couldn't do in the Ocarina of Time.

GamePro: Rumors have suggested that Ocarina of Time is compatible with the 64DD-the "hooks" are still in the cartridge to interact with the peripheral. Is this true?

Miyamoto: Yes. In fact, there is some code already included in the Ocarina of Time such that once it is hooked up with the 64DD system, and once certain software is inserted into the 64DD hardware, we can make something quite new. But it all depends on how they make the 64DD system itself. Unfortunatly, I'm not in a position right now to comment on what kind of game the new Zelda will be when it's connected with the 64DD system.

GamePro: Will you create another N64 game, or is all your effort focused on Dolphin?

Miyamoto: Well, I should say on the surface that no, I am not making anymore N64 games as a director and that I am concentratiing on development for the Dolphin, but in fact, I have been supporting the producers who are still working on N64 games. So, though I say I'm not making games for the N64, that doesn't mean that I'm not involved in the development of any N64 games.

GamePro: What are your initial impressions on the Dolphin's Hardware?

Miyamoto: It should be a good machine if it's not very expensive, For the N64, we were working with Silicon Graphics [SGI], and SGI had no knowledge or experience of making video games, Working with that kind of company taught us a lotm and that kind of knowledge has actually been included on the Dolphin, So I think the new machine should be far better, I believe that the Dolphin is going to be a good machine in terms of cost-effectiveness.

GamePro: Sometimes, limitations inspire creative solutions, After so many years of developing for cartridges, do you see DVD as a valuable creative asset or just a temptation for designers to fill with crap?

Miyamoto: Well, I think for the third party licensees. the use of DVD software will be very good because it can decrease the risk of manufacturng costs. When I think about our own teams at Nintendo, I should tell you that DVD may not be the best media for us to opt for. But I think that now the time has come for us to work on this kind of optical media. Because we now have larger RAM capacity inside the console, inside the console, in terms of the cost of the hardware, we don't need to be so worried about the memory size of the RAM. If I may add, everybody knows that we cannot make the Ocarina of Time on the PlayStation. Many licensees and developers for the PlayStation realize that CD-ROM is not the perfect media for them to work on. At the same time, though, they realize that in terms of business costs, the CD-ROM makes more sense, and there are actually some games that can never be realized on cartridge-based systems. Now, with the advent of DVD-based systems, we may be able to solve the problems of both sides.

GamePro: Since we appear to be fast approaching the N64-to-Dolphin transition, looking back, what are your favorite N64 games aside from those you've personally created?

Miyamoto: It's rather difficult... I like games like Smash Bros. even though they are not made by me. I liked Konami's soccer game [International Superstar Soccer 64]. And of course, Rare is good at making games. I'm sorry, I can't think about anything else right now. In other words, I want to say ours are the best!

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