Are you hoping that Nintendo will be releasing a The Legend of Zelda Maker shortly after the release of Super Mario Maker? Don’t count it, based on Takashi Tezuka’s statements.
The Nintendo EAD developer, who worked on both IPs through the years, has explained that it would be too difficult for them to create something like this:
Zelda Maker might be a challenge to make I think. Personally, making Super Mario Maker that was a challenge in itself, and we hope that it's a success, so thank you for saying that, but I think that might be a difficult task.Now, of course, other gamers comparable to The Legend of Zelda have mod tools and support to allow you to make your own dungeons, similar to those found in the Zelda games. However, Tezuka is alluding to making such tools in such a way that fans would be able to make their own Zelda like dungeons, which is harder than it looks on paper.
Super Mario Maker is apparently based on an internal dev tool that Nintendo has used for decades to design their 2D Mario games. Nintendo went above and beyond to make creating levels not only easy and intuitive, but fun and engaging.
Zelda dungeons are more involved endeavors. For example, whereas you can design short two minute levels in Super Mario Maker, there is a continuity between the Zelda overworld and its dungeons. Furthermore, these games have laid out critical paths, designed in such a way that the player thinks they’ve found the shortest paths on their own. Little touches like this are what distinguish Zelda from contemporaries like the Ys series. These touches are not as apparent as those found in a Mario game, so players are more likely to diverge from the Zelda blueprint.
Assuming Nintendo was OK with that, though the involvement needed to make these Zelda dungeons makes it quite niche. It would appeal to a considerably smaller base than what Super Mario Maker is likely to get.
But then again, perhaps it might still be worthwhile. Do you think Nintendo should consider a The Legend of Zelda Maker? How about a Metroid Maker?? Share your thoughts with us in the comments.
