Early Wind Waker Sketch Designs

http://uk.ign.com/articles/2013/02/09/early-design-sketches-for-zelda-the-wind-waker

 

Japan often gets cool things that never make it overseas - and the Zelda Box is one of them. The Japan-only collector's set for The Legend of Zelda: The Wind Waker came with the game, a promo book, a soundtrack, Link and Moblin figures and more. Enviable swag aside, one of the coolest things about this set was the plethora of Wind Waker art buried in the pages of the included guidebook. Nintendo would have it so that those outside Japan never get to see these historic sketches.

 

Thank goodness for the Internet, amirite?

 

By way of some epic fan translations and scans, care of GlitterBerri and posted on History of Hyrule (not to be confused with Hyrule Historia), we can all now enjoy this rare insight into the making of the game. Here's a selection of what's been posted. Enjoy!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Brunette Zelda!

Oh God... the eyes on some of those boat designs are terrifying.

It's interesting that they started with a more adult-proportioned Link, then gradually made him more small and squat. I've often wondered how they decide which one to use.

Actually, I don't think it's an overstatement to say there's a massive conflict between the two. You couldn't have anything as "cool" as the 2004 Legend of Zelda trailer or the 2011 E3 demo without Adult Link. At the other end of the scale, the three best (arguably) 3D Zeldas have had Young Link in them. To me, OOT is the only one that quite nails Adult Link - it feels really good to control him in that game.

Young Link has the advantage of seeing the game through the eyes of a smaller person. I've often wondered if it even has an effect on camera angles, changing how immersive a game potentially is. The Hylian Shield also fits perfectly on Young Link's back, like he's a Ninja Turtle!

The reason I'm saying all this is because I think Wind Waker was the point where they hard a hard decision about which way to evolve Zelda. They made a perfect decision with Wind Waker, but I also think the other approach has potential. I even wonder if it could be two separate series.

I love seeing concept artwork. I often wonder what goes through the minds of the artists until they settle on a specific design (the same goes for any field, really)

I really dig that Yellow Tetra design, for some reason. Makes her look so professional, though I guess they wanted to go with a more modest and worldly pirate design.