Is it Hylian unlikely that this could be the best game of all time, again?

The battle for Hyrule begins. The evil Ganondorf is scheming to steal the mythical Triforce from the Sacred Realm and take over the world. Now Link must become the hero of time and save the kingdom in this classic tale, built from the ground up for the Nintendo Switch 2 system. Enjoy completely overhauled visuals, voiced cutscenes, expanded dialogue, and symphonic orchestral music. You can also jump and dash through the action with enhanced controls and modern camera movements, making this an excellent entry point into the Legend of Zelda™ series.

The original Ocarina of Time stands for me as my favourite game of all time. I got it for Christmas the year it was released, I was just a kid, but it serves as a reminder of a truly great Christmas that I’ve never forgot. I opened up all my presents to find no Ocarina of Time, only for my parents to bring out one last present, wrapped in bubble wrap to disguise it as a pair of socks or something…I kept thinking, why have they held back this obvious pair of socks as a final present only to open it up and find the amazing Ocarina of Time staring back at me. the joy and relief that overwhelmed me that day still hits hard to this day. It’s one of my favourite memories and every time I go through Ocarina of Time (which is at least once a year since release) I’m filled with happiness.

I enjoyed the 3DS remake, but have always wanted a more up to date version of what I consider my favourite game of all time. With the Switch 2 remake out now, was it a case of “be careful what you wish for?” The Final Fantasy VII Remake Trilogy definitely divided opinion on how remakes of classics should be handled, by changing the story and dragging out the one game into 3 separate ones. So, has Nintendo handled it right with Ocarina of Time?

The design choice for characters like Link and Zelda were the subject of much debate when first unveiled, but I honestly thought it was charming, especially Young Link. The game is designed to be faithful to the original, but it does also make some small changes to areas as well as puzzle solutions to keep veterans on their toes. Even the Fairy Fountains cost Rupees to gain magic spells now, while there’s also a newly added area called Hall of Fallen Heroes that you can access by sleeping in a bed. This gives you the chance to replay bosses and minibosses you have defeated for a better time, which you can view in the ZELDA NOTES portion of the Switch Online app.

The ZELDA NOTES also acts as a way of keeping track of how many Gold Skulltulas, chests and other items you have collected so you can work towards 100%. There’s even a checklist of things to do not unlike an achievement list, which I will definitely work on doing. I would have really liked for them to include their own version of Master Quest, the mirror/harder difficulty mode that came out on the 64DD in Japan, but released everywhere else on the Gamecube Bonus Disc for Wind Waker and the 3DS remake. It’s hinted as being added as a future update/DLC but we’ll see.

Besides the visual changes, you’re given free roam of the camera, given a jump button and even a sprint so you don’t need to keep rolling to get around quicker.

The game runs at a solid framerate with next to no load times between areas. Cutscenes have been vastly improved with voice-acting and changed to include things we never actually saw in the original game but were only hinted at. Ganondorf also has a lot more sass and attitude in this, which I have to admit I love. The soundtrack is also redone with some truly amazing symphonic orchestral music that almost makes me want to cry, it’s that good.

The Verdict

In terms of a full-fledged remake, The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time shows how it’s meant to be done. It brings the classic to a modern audience, while making subtle changes for veterans but also not losing sight of what made the original so incredible in the first place. The original will always be the game that set the standard, but this remake raises the bar and makes me really hope for a Master Quest add-on and afterwards, Majora’s Mask to get the same remake treatment. But for now, I am highly content.

Score: 10.0