INTERVIEW: ROGER LANGFORD, NINTENDO Sky’s the limit
Nintendo has been celebrating Zelda’s 25 years with re-releases, remakes, a symphony concert tour and an all-new blockbuster adventure. Junior product manager Roger Langford runs us through the celebrations
Who are you targeting with your Zelda celebrations? We wanted to ensure that every fan could experience the celebrations in some way. The 25th Anniversary also offers the chance for newcomers to experience the The Legend of Zeldafranchise for the first time.
In what way do the celebrations offer newcomers a chance? The re-release of Ocarina of Timeon 3DS gives fans an opportunity to experience one of the greatest games ever all over again with enhanced graphics and improved controls. The culmination of the anniversary celebrations is of course the release of The Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword on Wii. This all- new adventure takes players to the start of the Zelda timeline to learn how these adventures came to be. Everyone can join in with the free DSiWare download
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of Four Swords Anniversary Edition. This offers everyone a chance to play one of the rarer Zeldatitles. Simply log onto the DSiWare store on your 3DS or DSi console and download.
What makes The Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword so special? It represents one of the deepest and richest game experiences ever produced by Nintendo, taking more than 100 staff over five years to build. Skyward Swordlets players guide Link on a journey that blends intense ground- based adventures with breathtaking exploration above the clouds. For the first time in a Zelda game you can use Wii MotionPlus technology to experience a unique combat system. At launch we have a limited edition bundle containing a gold Wii Remote Plus.
Is it getting a suitably big marketing push? Skyward Sword has been hotly anticipated since its initial reveal at E3 2010 and since then excitement for the game has been building. We started the marketing activity in August coinciding with the launch date announcement, including takeovers across all major gaming websites to herald the release date and also inform fans of the Limited Edition Gold Wii Remote Plus. Since then we have continued our online push with MPUs running from September, across all major gaming sites. We have also had a host of print ads in all major gaming publications such as Edge, GamesTMand GamesMaster. For the launch we’ll be broadening out the campaign with 60- and 40- second TV ads. The ad will be in the most prominent of TV spots from the week of launch for two weeks. We also have one of our biggest ever online campaigns for launch, which will include taking over all major gaming sites as well portals such as IMDB and Sky Sportsto ensure that all gamers know the
most anticipated Zeldagame ever is out on November 18th.
You have also taken Zelda on tour, how has that been received? We gained nothing but positive feedback about our 25th Anniversary stand from GAMEfest, Eurogamer Expo as well as our Zelda 25th Anniversary takeover at GameCity. It is important to give fans a chance to experience Skyward Sword as early as possible so we can get the positive word of mouth out there.
What were your thoughts of the Zelda concert last month? The 25th Anniversary Symphony was a magical experience for those that were lucky enough to attend. To have the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra performing such iconic themes was amazing to witness. Mr. Aonuma and Mr. Kondo also being in attendance was a treat for everyone. We had over 80 media attend from various outlets across Europe, which will translate into some excellent PR coverage for the event and the Zelda franchise.
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