Satoru Iwata: Nintendo 2013 R&D Preview

[gumby_trucker]

Best Nintendo news I've heard in a long time!

Realistically I still expect a short term drop in quality for some games, such as the Zelda series, although with Fujibayashi working along side Aonuma there is still hope.

But the benefits clearly out-way the costs. There have been too many examples of Miyamoto upending tea-tables, causing delays in schedule and budget increases, only to eventually come up with something that isn't necessarily better than the original design the developers had in mind.
I eagerly await to see their unsupervised output, now that they will be able to stretch their legs a little.

Furthermore, giving Miyamoto the opportunity to actually return full time to the role of developer, rather than doing it from the back seat as has been more common in the last decade, will surely bring forth many original ideas and novel concepts, even more so if the main focus of his team(s) will be smaller projects.

Another concern that will sooner or later arise, is the effect his absence will have on creation of killer-app type games such as Wii Fit, but this is without a doubt something Nintendo have planned for ahead of time.