Iwata: Monster Hunter Tri graphics set a visual bar

Put the Zelda team under pressure.

In a newly translated edition of the "Iwata Asks" series of interviews - originally published on the Japanese Wii.com site in July, 2009, Nintendo president Satoru Iwata revealed he and many others at Nintendo were hugely impressed by the graphics of Monster Hunter Tri, so much so that they put the Zelda team under pressure.

"I can tell they [Nintendo's internal developers] feel like you did [visually] what they hadn't yet," Iwata told Monster Hunter Tri producer Ryozo Tsujimoto and director Kaname Fujioka.

Iwata added: "Looking at the graphics objectively, I feel like the game's visuals are one of the representative examples of what can ultimately be done with Wii."

"I think it has placed the Zelda team under a considerable amount of pressure. (laughs)"

Monster Hunter Tri is scheduled for release for Wii in Europe on April 23.