Summary
The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdomproducer Eiji Aonuma reveals that aZelda-focusedSuper Mario Makergame is unlikely to happen in the future. This long-awaitedBreath of the Wildsequel allows for so much more freedom than before,allowing forTears of the Kingdomplayers to get incredibly creative, where there are multiple solutions to puzzles in an open-world setting. WithTears of the Kingdom’s open nature and multiple solutions, some might think the franchise would have the potential for players to make their own dungeons and puzzles in the same vein asSuper Mario Maker.
Super Mario Makerand its sequel are level-creating games, with the fun being derived from a player having the ability to create their own levels and courses that many other people can run through. Even whenSuper Mario Bros. Wonderwas released earlier this November, fans are going back and working on either re-creating levels fromWonderor making something creative. WhileTears of the Kingdompushed the envelope with its ability to create anything, it’s not likely thatZeldawould get its own level-maker game, according to Aonuma.
In aninterview with Polygon, the series producer was asked if the emphasis on creativity inTears of the Kingdomwould lead to aMario Maker-esque game that allowed players to create their own dungeons and levels, to which Aonuma said no. Through his interpreter, Aonuma states that the emphasis on creativity shouldn’t be a requirement, but rather something that is encouraged through the game’s design. “I think it’s important that we don’t make creativity a requirement,” says Aonuma to Polygon. “Instead, we put things into the game that encourage people to be creative, and give them the opportunity to be creative, without forcing them to.”
WhileTears of the Kingdomhad stretched the creative limits in allowing fans to solve puzzles, the developers had expanded on what was previously possible inBreath of the Wild. When directly asked if there would be aZelda-themedMario Makerlevel-creating game, Aonuma states that while there might be fans who want the ability to create from scratch, that isn’t likely to appeal to everyone. He instead believes that the enjoyment comes from the ability to discover their own way to progress, whichTears of the Kingdomprovided multiple routes. As such, Aonuma believes forcing players to build things from scratch and forcing them to be creative isn’t a good fit for the series.
I think it’s important that we don’t make creativity a requirement. Instead, we put things into the game that encourage people to be creative, and give them the opportunity to be creative, without forcing them to.
While fans might be sad to hear that an officialZeldaDungeon creator is likely out of the question, there are games that offer similar options. For example, indie gameSuper Dungeon Makerallows players to use similar gameplay mechanics from theZeldafranchise like bombs and keys to create their own 2D dungeons.Quest Masteris also a similar game that allows players to create their own top-down 2DZelda-esque dungeons. While fans can also playMario Makerlevels that re-create classicZeldaadventures, it likely won’t be the same feeling as creating and exploring a dungeon from one of the 2D games.
The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom
WHERE TO PLAY
The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom is the sequel to the beloved open-world adventure, The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild. This installment once again sees Link and Zelda battling to protect Hyrule from falling to Ganondorf. This new adventure takes place in the same land of Hyrule as Breath of the Wild but sees something called the Upheaval, which allows link to travel to Sky Islands, as well as deep into the Depths beneath Hyrule. Players can use special abilities to fuse together weapons, and build items to help them progress through the release.
