According to a resurfaced discussion between former Nintendo president Satoru Iwata and series creator Shigeru Miyamoto, Clair Obscur briefly stole its crown. It's renowned for the way it revolutionized open-world adventure games as a genre, and its groundbreaking graphics, music, and gameplay for the time.

But as it turned out, we just narrowly avoided Ocarina of Time - it's only thanks to extensive experimentation by OOT's developers that it turned out so good. Still, you can see vestiges of Miyamoto's original vision in the final product, and it's fascinating to imagine how it would've turned out if he had continued down the same path.

Ocarina Of Time Was Almost A Lot Smaller

"Ganon's Castle Might Be Enough"

According to an "Iwata Asks" interview on the Nintendo website, originally conducted to commemorate the release of Ocarina of Time 3D on the Nintendo 3DS, Miyamoto almost decided to set the entirety of Ocarina of Time within Ganon's Castle. It seems like this was originally just a consideration of the N64's capacity - Miyamoto worried that, due to the console's limited specs, they might not be able to develop a game with a bigger world. He's quoted as saying, "no one knew how big in scale it would become" - not in reference to its success or its legacy, but its sheer size. The interview continues:

"Miyamoto: We put constructing the system first, and since we were going to determine the story in line with the system's capacity, at first I thought only having Ganon's Castle might be enough.

Iwata: Huh? At first you imagined Ganon's Castle as the only setting?

Miyamoto: Yes. I thought about putting in all kinds of adventures into the different rooms, like making a dark meadow or an ocean — like in Princess Peach's Castle in Super Mario 64."

Of course, he was eventually proven wrong, and Ocarina became the massive, open-world game we know it to be today. Still, a Zelda game that takes place entirely within a single castle sounds like a fascinating idea, especially the way Miyamoto envisions it here. With new challenges and unique conditions in every room, I don't think it'd feel small at all. It'd probably play a little more like a roguelike, where you never know what you'll find in the next room until you step through the door.

OOT Was The Product Of Extensive Experimentation

"Putting Together A Puzzle"

A collage of artwork from The Legend of Zelda. Two versions of Link, from Oracle of Ages and Skyward Sword are featured prominently. The background is comprised of images from Phantom Hourglass, Tears of the Kingdom, and Link's Awakening.

This early concept for Ocarina of Time got Miyamoto thinking, though, and started a new kind of development. Programmers at Nintendo would attempt to develop one feature at a time, like Link's ability to swing his sword in different directions, or ride horses. Then, they'd see how it could fit into the game, and ultimately, if it was interesting and could serve the bigger vision for Ocarina of Time, it'd make the final cut. Iwata calls this kind of development "making a game as if putting together a puzzle."

A surprised Link and a screaming Ganondorf from Zelda The Wind Waker.
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This paints a fascinating picture of OOT's development cycle, and was likely key to its success. Experimenting with new features, like the divide between Young and Adult Link, inspired Miyamoto to take the narrative in new, creative directions. They considered many of the characters based on their potential functions in the story first - a process, Miyamoto says, that brings OOT's story closer to something like Twin Peaks.

OOT Is A Landmark Entry For A Reason

It's A Good Thing Miyamoto Eventually Expanded

Princess Zelda from Ocarina of Time centered. On the left is Link from A Link to the Past lying on grass under a tree. On the right are Link and Zelda from Breath of the Wild.

As interesting as Miyamoto's castle-only version of OOT might have been, I'm glad he eventually decided against it. Exploration is a vital part of Zelda, and Zelda games that don't emphasize exploration tend to flop critically and commercially. Its best entries - your OOTs, your Breath of the Wilds - tend to have excellent, well-developed open worlds ripe for exploration. Overall, it's a good thing that Ocarina of TIme turned out as big as it did.

Still, this is a fascinating insight into OOT's development. As the first 3D Zelda, it only makes sense that Miyamoto had a lot on his plate, and experimenting with various features was clearly a smart way to cope with that. The result is that The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time is fondly ed as one of the greatest games ever made.

Source: Nintendo

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The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time
Action
Adventure
Released
November 21, 1998
ESRB
E10+ for Everyone 10+: Animated Blood, Fantasy Violence, Suggestive Themes
Developer(s)
Nintendo
Publisher(s)
Nintendo
Engine
Zelda 64 Engine