Shigeru Miyamoto is credited as one of the creators ofThe Legend of Zeldaseries alongside Takashi Tezuka, and still works at Nintendo as an Executive Fellow and Representative Director. As the creator and director of many titles, Miyamoto has had plenty of fascinating ideas for the series, as well as interesting contributions beyond what most game directors would typically have for a game. He also acts as the face of Nintedo at time and is one of the most well-respected directors in gaming, still having great ideas well into his seventies.
Video game directors are probably bigger now than they have ever been, with more and more players knowing their names. Almost everyone who is a fan of games knows names like Hideo Kojima, Hidetaka Miyazaki, and Neil Druckmann, andwhile Miyamoto isn’t as trendy a name, he is one of the most legendary figures in the gaming industry. While he has provided direction for the series, he has also helped with providing some ofZelda’s legendary music, helping the games be the icons they are today.
Miyamoto Played Mandolin In The Wind Waker Intro
And Helped Set The Scene For The Game
Zelda: Wind Wakerstarts with an exposition-heavy introduction, setting the scene for the game as a whole while talking about how great a prior version of Link was. While there are a lot of instruments played throughout the intro, which plays a stripped-back version ofZelda’s main theme, according to an interview IGN had with Eiji Aonuma, the series' producer, which is viewable on theweb archive,Miyamoto played the mandolin for this intro. It also serves as the first instrument heard during a new playthrough.
Eiji Aonuma isZelda’s current producer and responsible for the most recent titles, from theWildsera to the remasters.
Aonuma states that this was more than just a fun thing that the director wanted to do to get involved with the music, and stated that it was’the result of some discussion that we really needed to have that kind of sound to start things off and be part of that music.‘It seems that Miyamoto provides direction for all parts of a game, and the mandolin helped set the scene for the intro.With its dissonant chords before the flute kicks in,Wind Waker’s intro is still great to this day, viewable on YouTube thanks toNintendoMovies.
Shigeru Miyamoto Is A Man Of Many Talents
And Is Paramount To How Zelda Is The Way It Is Today
Miyamoto is one of the greats of Nintendo for a reason, and wasthe main man of the series from its first title up until around theOcarinagames, and while he hasn’t been as hands-on since the turn of the millennium, he still holds plenty of influence on the franchise. Since then, Eiji Aonuma, the producer of theZeldaseries, has largely taken the reins, although it seems he still defers to Miyamoto when it comes to ideas and where to take the series. It is Miyamoto’s brain child, after all.
Still, Miyamoto’s work on theZeldaseries has allowed him to show off his many talents, such as playing the mandolin, and has been known to play guitar on many occasions. Having also created Mario, he has played the Italian plumber’s theme on guitar,having famously done so with The Roots on the Late Night Show with Jimmy Fallon for the Switch’s release. He hasn’t done anything quite as grand for theSwitch 2’s release, but his love of music is evident.
Nintendo Games Having Great Music Makes So Much Sense
Miyamoto’s Love For Music Bleeds Into The Team
Nintendo and its titles have some of the most iconic themes in gaming.Almost everyone knowsMarioandZelda’s theme the second it’s played, and a great score is simply expected when it comes to a new Nintendo title. It helps that the company has a wealth of talented composers too, such as Koji Kondo, who composed the originalMarioandZeldatheme, Mahito Yokota, and Kazumi Totaka, who also voices Yoshi, just to name a few.
Still, it has to help a composer when one of the company’s most senior members understands music as a musician does. Miyamoto might not be the composer that Kondo is, but being able to play around and help inform the sound team about what something should sound like is a massive asset, and probably had quite an effect onThe Legend of Zeldaseries. Either way, it helped with introducingWind Wakerto the world.
