Big Games Coming from Retro, Miyamoto

Could Retro be working on the next Legend of Zelda?

A lot of the complaining after Nintendo's E3 presentation this summer revolved around two things: the lack of an exciting new IP from Nintendo, and the absence of any project whatsoever from Retro Studios.

Well, there's finally some good news addressing both those complaints, and the news comes directly from Nintendo. Late last week, Nintendo of America President Reggie Fils-Aime had this to say about upcoming Nintendo projects.

"I could get myself fired by breaking all of the news here on [GameTrailers TV], but rest assured, Mr. Miyamoto and the team at EAD are working on fantastic projects. Rest assured that Retro is working on a fantastic project. We've got big games in development that are coming that are going to continue to drive the install base of the system."

 Fils-Aime is referring to a brand new IP from Shigeru Miyamoto, who revealed back in January he was working on a new game, in addition to Pikmin 3 and Luigi's Mansion 2. No other details have emerged about the project.

As far as the Retro game, there has been wild speculation. Miyamoto only fueled the fires when he said in December of last year that Retro would be an ideal candidate to work on an upcoming Zelda game.

Said Miyamoto:

"We have already collaborated with Retro for the Metroid Prime series in the past. And I think when we talk about any other franchise, Zelda might be a possible franchise for that collaboration."

For those who don't know, Retro is a first-party Nintendo developer that earned its stellar reputation after developing Metroid Prime, a commercial and critical success that redefined one of Nintendo's most beloved franchises. Most recently, Retro developed Donkey Kong Country Returns for Nintendo Wii, and collaborated with Nintendo EAD on Mario Kart 7. Fans have been guessing for months what the next Retro project will be, whether a new Metroid Prime game for Wii U or the upcoming Zelda game. Other fans have expressed interest in Retro rebooting another lapsed franchise, like Star Fox or F-Zero.