Eiji Aonuma
Eiji Aonuma | |
|---|---|
 Eiji Aonuma at the Game Developers Conference 2007 | |
| Born | Eiji Onozuka (小野塚 英二)[1] March 16, 1963[2] |
| Occupation(s) | Video game producer, video game director |
Eiji Aonuma (Japanese: 青沼 英二, Hepburn: Aonuma Eiji, born March 16, 1963) is a Japanese video game designer and video game director. He currently works for Nintendo as the Group Manager of Nintendo EAD Software Development Group No. 3. He has directed and produced several installments in The Legend of Zelda series of video games.
Early life
Aonuma attended the Tokyo National University of Fine Arts and Music where he majored in design, working on moving mechanical figures. He graduated in 1988.[citation needed]
Career
Nintendo
After graduating, he interviewed at Nintendo. Aonuma met Shigeru Miyamoto during the interview, and showed Miyamoto samples of his college work. His first projects involved graphic design, creating sprites for Nintendo Entertainment System games such as 1991's NES Open Tournament Golf. Aonuma was director of development on 1996's Marvelous: Mouhitotsu no Takarajim for the Super Nintendo Entertainment System.[3]
In a move which Aonuma attributes to his position on the Marvelous team, Miyamoto recruited Aonuma to join the development team for the Zelda series.[3]
He spent several years as a lead developer of The Legend of Zelda series: 1998's The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time and its sequel Majora's Mask, both for the Nintendo 64; and The Wind Waker, the first Zelda game for the Nintendo GameCube. After The Wind Waker, Aonuma considered moving onto other projects, but was convinced by Shigeru Miyamoto to continue with the Zelda series.[4] He codeveloped The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess, the second major Zelda game to be released for the GameCube and a launch game for the Wii. He was voted Designer of the Year for his work on Twilight Princess in Electronic Gaming Monthly's 2006 1Up Network Awards.[4] He then codeveloped a sequel to The Wind Waker for the Nintendo DS, The Legend of Zelda: Phantom Hourglass, followed by another Nintendo DS title, The Legend of Zelda: Spirit Tracks. He codeveloped Link's Crossbow Training, which is the first game to use the Wii Zapper. He has since produced The Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword for the Nintendo Wii, The Legend of Zelda: A Link Between Worlds for the Nintendo 3DS, and is producing The Legend of Zelda for the Wii U.[5][6][7]
Other work
Aonuma is a member of the band The Wind Wakers, named after The Legend of Zelda: The Wind Waker, which is composed of several Nintendo employees who perform concerts four times a year for employees of the company.
Gameography
| Year | Game title | Role |
|---|---|---|
| 1991 | NES Open Tournament Golf | Sprite designer |
| 1996 | BS Super Mario USA Power Challenge | Graphic designer |
| 1996 | Marvelous: Mōhitotsu no Takarajima | Director |
| 1998 | The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time | Designer |
| 2000 | The Legend of Zelda: Majora's Mask | Director |
| 2002 | The Legend of Zelda: Wind Waker | Director |
| 2003 | The Legend of Zelda: Collector's Edition | Producer |
| 2004 | The Legend of Zelda: The Minish Cap | Supervisor |
| 2004 | The Legend of Zelda: Four Swords Adventures | Producer |
| 2006 | The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess | Director |
| 2007 | Link's Crossbow Training | Producer |
| 2007 | The Legend of Zelda: Phantom Hourglass | Producer |
| 2009 | The Legend of Zelda: Spirit Tracks | Producer |
| 2011 | The Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword | Producer |
| 2013 | The Legend of Zelda: The Wind Waker HD | Producer |
| 2013 | The Legend of Zelda: A Link Between Worlds | Producer |
| 2014 | Hyrule Warriors | Supervisor |
| 2015 | The Legend of Zelda: Majora's Mask 3D | Producer |
| 2016 | The Legend of Zelda | Producer |
References
- ^ "今度のゼルダは「ダンジョンがたいへん」らしい。その１". 「ゼルダの伝説 時のオカリナ」の情報・産地直送！. Hobo Nikkan Itoi Shinbun. 28 November 1998. Retrieved 27 June 2010.
- ^ "ニンドリドットコム〜ゼルダの伝説 夢幻の砂時計 開発スタッフインタビュー〜". NINDORI.com. August 2007.
- ^ a b Szczepaniak, John. "Before They Were Famous". Retro Gamer (35). Imagine Publishing: 77.
- ^ a b Electronic Gaming Monthly, Issue 213, March 2007. Page 79.
- ^ McWhertor, Michael. "The Legend of Zelda: A Link to the Past sequel coming to Nintendo 3DS this holiday". Polygon.
- ^ "IGN: GDC 2004: The History of Zelda". IGN. Retrieved October 10, 2014.
- ^ "IGN: Miyamoto and Aonuma on Zelda". IGN. Retrieved October 10, 2014.
External links
 | This article's use of external links may not follow Wikipedia's policies or guidelines. (September 2013) |
- Eiji Aonuma at Nintendo Miiverse
- Eiji Aonuma's profile at MobyGames
- IGN E3 2005 Interview
- Unlimited Gamer: Eiji Aonuma Interview
- Eurogamer: Eiji Aonuma expresses discontent with The Wind Waker
- NintendoWorldReport GDC 2007 Interview
- MTV GDC 2007 Interview
- IGN GDC 2007 Interview
- Game|Life E3 2007 Interview
- Game Informer August 2007 Interview
- 1UP October 2007 Interview
- Eiji Aonuma at IMDb