While it will come as no surprise to fans of The Legend of Zelda series that its developers are hugely talented individuals, it’s nice to see that Variety has given some recognition to one of Nintendo’s most influential creators. In this year’s Variety Top 500 Entertainment Leaders list, Skyward Sword, Breath of the Wild, and Tears of the Kingdom director Hidemaro Fujibayashi landed a spot amongst other creatives.
The short blurb for Fujibayashi doesn’t offer any new insight into his creative decisions or struggles with getting the Zelda series to the mega-blockbuster status it now holds, but it does lay out some simple facts. Breath of the Wild, indeed, was a near-instant success when Nintendo’s Switch console launched in early 2017. Tears of the Kingdom also amassed 10 million sales within three days of launch and has gone on to eclipse 20 million units. The man is responsible for steering the ship and leading to the two most popular titles in the series’ history.
While The Legend of Zelda series has seen many individuals at Nintendo shift in and out of the director’s chair, it’s hard to imagine that Fujibayashi won’t be helming at least one more major release for Nintendo. With Tears of the Kingdom taking six years to develop, we can only hope that the next Zelda title doesn’t leave us waiting an entire generation to experience it.
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Written by Peter Glagowski
Peter has been a freelance gaming and film critic for over seven years. His passion for Nintendo is only matched by the size of his collection.
