An undeniably legendary title in 1998, the announcement of an Ocarina of Time remake was met with a blend of excitement, skepticism and revulsion from old and new Zelda fans alike, with a good portion of criticism directed at its visual style. But did Nintendo's revisit of one of their most popular games pay off, or should this Ocarina just be lost to time?
I'll just come right out and say it: I was never the biggest fan of 1998 Ocarina of Time. Even when it was new it felt rather hampered by the leap to 3D, with pretty slow and clunky gameplay, a really empty overworld and items which came as standard pickups in earlier entries (like bombs) now being things you have to take numerous extra steps to utilize, which felt a bit uninspired. Not to mention lacking many of the fun gadgets and features from previous games, with the substitutes (what few there are) being largely forgettable. It was a solid enough first effort for the franchise in 3D, but I've enjoyed basically every later 3D Zelda more than it, and every time I revisit I'm quickly reminded of why I haven't done a full playthrough in a very long time.
The original game is still highly regarded of course, seemingly mostly by grognards who liked it at age ten - that magical period where their brain latches on to anything new they experience as Unquestionably The Best Thing Of All Time - and therefore they think it's some perfectly timeless masterpiece that's beyond all reproach. They probably also haven't played it in a long time or done any earnest comparison to later entries in the series (and greater genre) that do most everything it does better. Either that or they just let the fanboy cult do all their thinking for them; after all, it's Objectively The Best Game Ever because it got a higher arbitrary number on Metacritic than any other game and therefore enjoying anything else more than it is the mark of a Fake Gamer, regardless of how much evidence may arise that the score was skewed and/or inaccurately calculated (or that, big number in 1998 or not, the game just may not hold up as well decades later).
So with all that said, when the remake of Ocarina of Time was announced I actually got pretty excited for it. These are the kinds of games I want to see remakes of - games that were passable in their time but could really use a modern overhaul, rather than taking ones that still hold up fine and slamming in a ton of boring busywork and grittier graphics and DLC glut to exploit its reputation for a quick buck. The first two Dragon Quest games got an excellent overhaul last year, so Ocarina of Time seemed like another perfect candidate for another legendary-but-dated title to revisit.
Visuals are of course the most immediate change in this remake, and they look fantastic. The character models were apparently based on puppets, giving them a slightly uncanny but still charming look, and per series standards they're still very expressive and detailed. There's almost a Jim Henson's Dark Crystal vibe to the game with the realistic environments and slightly unreal characters. They did away with the screen flashing whenever you land a killing blow in combat, though it still pauses the action momentarily to emphasize the moment. Voice acting is added too, with most of the major cutscenes and dialogs now having it in full while retaining the minor NPC vocalizations for the rest. Characters in general have quite a bit more dialog now too, and Navi's is a lot less intrusive, rarely interrupting the action and her voice clips being less frequent and shrill.
The game feel clearly takes a lot of notes from more modern Zelda titles in its design, with far fewer loading seams, a smooth 60 FPS and a control layout more reminiscent of the Wilds games. There's a jump button now, which may take some getting used to if you played the older version with its auto-jumping a lot. The camera is fully controllable with the right stick and movement in general feels much more organic and less stiff, which all lend themselves to a much smoother experience. Only one sub-weapon or gadget can be equipped at a time now (activated via ZR), but you can quickly scroll through them with the R button and the right stick. Gyro aiming is implemented too, making ranged combat very quick and intuitive. Other convenient elements are added in as well, like beds to pass time in towns and the "Threads of Time", which basically serves as a quest log. It also includes a tapestry that gets filled in as the story progresses, adding a clever visual element to it. Many of the puzzles now have more evident visual cues too - bombable areas on the overworld are now clearly visible, trees concealing Gold Skulltulas will have falling leaves, and golden webs will appear at places where they spawn at night, among other things. The map screen will also keep track of all the collectibles you've acquired in a particular area, which cuts down on guesswork considerably. Time does pass in towns and villages now too, and you'll even see NPCs move to different areas as the times change.
The game's design is at its core largely unchanged, though many of its lackluster elements have been improved. One notable one for me is the lousy minigames in the original; Dampe's Graveyard Tour is now much less tedious to complete for one. Link doesn't seem to get knocked down nearly as easily anymore either and gets up more quickly when he does, which alleviates some irritating fights from the original version. Some frequently-swapped items like the Ocarina and the Iron Boots are mapped to D-pad hotkeys, which cuts down on tedious menuing. Some extra content is added too, like hidden "Faerie's thoughts" that give clues and the Hall of Fallen Foes that showcases every enemy type you've defeated and even lets you rematch bosses without having to start a new save file. One clever feature is the ability to play the ocarina in-game via the microphone using real-life instruments, including some ocarinas Nintendo themselves plan to sell as merchandise. By no means necessary, but a clever bit of marketing on their part.
So while Ocarina of Time is still recognizable as the groundbreaking 1998 adventure, its 2026 iteration still proves to be a dramatic improvement, making many tweaks to the core design and overall making it a substantially more cohesive, smooth-playing experience. I would compare it to 2023's Super Mario RPG remake, which kept the strong elements of the original intact while giving it a substantial visual makeover and adding many tweaks and new features that new and old fans alike can enjoy. I know people are going to endlessly defend the 1998 version of OOT as "perfect" and "timeless", even when they see absolutely no irony in modding the hell out of it to make it feel more modern and add more content; but for me, the Switch 2 remake of Ocarina is going to be my go-to version from now on.
Developer: Nintendo EPD
Publisher: Nintendo
Released: 2026
Platforms: Switch 2
Recommended Version: N/A
