A Link Between Worlds' first pitch didn't impress Miyamoto, according to development team

Nintendo's Shigeru Miyamoto wasn't to thrilled with the first pitch the team behind The Legend of Zelda: a Link Between Worlds brought him. In fact, he told the team it "sounded like an idea that's 20 years old."

Speaking in the latest Iwata Asks, the team gave various details on how it went about creating the game, and convincing Miyamoto it was worth developing.

"A Link to the Past wasn't on our minds at all. We didn't even have the idea of Link entering walls. We were thinking about a Zelda game with the theme of communication. When we presented it, Miyamoto-san said, "This sounds like an idea that's 20 years old'," director Hiromasa Shikata.

"As soon as we started the presentation, I could clearly see Miyamoto-san's facial expression rapidly darkening. I thought, 'This is bad,' added assistant director and lead programmer Shiro Mouri. "At the end when he said, 'This sounds like an idea that's 20 years old,' that was the killing blow. We were down on the floor."

"He had ripped it apart so badly that I was distraught," added software developer Hiromasa Shikata. "We decided to rethink it from the start, and one day when the three of us were having a meeting, I suddenly said, 'What about having Link enter into walls?'

"When we showed this to Miyamoto-san, he said, 'Let's do it.' We were stoked."

Assistant director Kentaro Tominags said the game stil didn't get the green light right away, as subsequent meetings when from good to bad to mediocre until, finally, they had the go ahead from Miyamoto.

Despite it's less than stellar start, the game has proved to be a hit with critics, as you can see via our reviews round up through here.

The Legend of Zelda: A Link Between Worlds is set to release on the 3DS November 22 across North America and Europe before coming to Japan on the 26th of December.