The Legend of Zelda: A Link Between Worlds Changed Due To 2DS

Eiji Aonuma, producer of Nintendo’s Zelda series, stated in a Gamespot interview that The Legend of Zelda: A Link Between Worlds had to be altered for the 2DS. The reason behind these changes is that, originally, some of the puzzles were designed to be solved by using 3D. However, when the 2DS was announced and then released, the developers had to make some changes to accommodate 2DS users. Here’s more of what Aonuma had to say on the matter: 

“It’s not that you can’t play it with 2D, it’s just that it becomes clearer when you have the 3D effect on. We found out about the 2DS during development, not before, and we also made changes so that we were sure that you could still play and solve the puzzles only with 2D. It’s definitely still playable in 2D!”

Exactly how 3D would make a difference in these puzzles is unclear, but Aonuma adamantly believes that those playing on the 3DS and 3DS XL should definitely use the 3D feature in order to get the full effect. 

“A Link Between Worlds is being developed with 60 frames per second, and previous Zelda titles were about half that, about 30fps. The reason for this is because the 3D effect is much more stable with a higher frame rate, with the 60fps. If it’s lower than it’s sometimes hard for your eyes to focus on the appropriate image. We think we’ve created a game that even those who found it difficult previously to see the 3D effect would be able to see it better and enjoy it more with this title.”

This is curious news given how Nintendo has put less emphasis on the 3D capabilities of their handheld as of late. It’ll be interesting to see the results when A Link Between Worlds is released on November 22, 2013.