"Heyyyyyyyy"

OK, Zelda producer Eiji Aonuma didn't really say "so be quiet", but the series supremo's comments on the Legend of Zelda series timeline show he doesn't consider the timeline to be critically important to enjoying Link's adventures.

Aonuma's comments from the Hyrule Historia book (as translated by Patas at GlitterBerri) reveal that while the timeline is indeed a chronological ordering of the series, Zelda games aren't developed with a primary focus on where they fit into the series overall:

Chapter 2, “The Full History of Hyrule,” arranges the series in chronological order so it’s easier to understand, but from the very beginning, Zelda games have been developed with the top priority of focusing on the game mechanics rather than the story. For example, in Ocarina of Time, the first instalment of the series I was involved in, the main theme was how to create a game with pleasant controls in a 3D world. Or in the DS game, Phantom Hourglass, the focus was having comfortable stylus controls. Finally, in the most recent game, Skyward Sword, we focused on an easy way to swing the sword using the Wii Motion Plus.

Of course, reading that Zelda games are created to be great games first and foremost is no surprise to anyone who's played one, but what's your take on Aonuma's timeline comments?

[source glitterberri.com]