Two of the Switch's biggest games, Super Mario Odyssey and The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild, are significant re-imaginings of those franchises. Both add aspects that were never possible before and revamp core gameplay elements. Why is now the right time to be rethinking those series?
Reggie Fils-Aimé: I think what you highlight with
Breath of the Wild and
Super Mario Odyssey is certainly that the way those games have reimagined the intellectual property (IP) is different. I would say that
Breath of the Wild is a dramatic departure from the conventions of a
Zelda game. And the producer Mr. [Eiji] Aonuma said three years ago that was his vision. The fact that you could go anywhere [and] attack quests and shrines in any order you want, that was his vision.
With
Odyssey, we have had other sandbox experiences for Mario in the past:
Mario 64 and
Super Mario Sunshine. What's different here is the breadth of kingdoms, the Cappy mechanic, and so yes a departure, but maybe not as radical. But with the mentality of creating an experience that the player says, 'Wow, I've never done that before with a Mario game.' That's what we try to do.
Whether it's with a Metroid experience or a Donkey Kong experience, we're constantly looking to push the envelope on the IP versus doing sequential small iterations with a particular franchise.
