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The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time Is a Remake Worthy of the Game’s Legendary Status (Review)
Almost 30 years after its launch, The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time is still considered by many, myself included, to be the greatest video game in history. Zelda’s first foray into 3D was monumental at the time of its arrival, and went on to be arguably the most influential action-adventure game of its era. While Nintendo has since built on and evolved the Zelda formula seen in Ocarina of Time in countless different ways, it’s this initial 3D title that is still seen as the franchise’s peak.
With all of this in mind, I came into Nintendo’s new remake of The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time with incredibly high expectations. Even though I assumed that I would appreciate the remake as an enormous fan of Ocarina of Time, I was hesitant to believe that Nintendo could tap into the same magic that made the original feel so groundbreaking back in 1998. Instead, after having now played it, I’m left feeling as though Nintendo’s new recreation of Ocarina of Time is one of the greatest video game remakes of all-time, and has more than validated the publisher’s decision to return to this seminal experience.
Rating: 5 out of 5
| Pros | Cons |
|---|---|
| Improvements to visuals and textures are staggering, while still keeping intact the style of the original game | Very little brand-new content that doesn’t do much to stand out |
| New and revised cutscenes make the story and character moments hit harder than ever before | |
| Numerous quality-of-life improvements make gameplay both more satisfying and streamlined | |
| Re-recorded score is phenomenal |
Ocarina of Time’s Gameplay Still Feels Fresh With Some Minor Improvements
At its core, The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time is still very much the same game that released on Nintendo 64 some 28 years ago. While there have been plenty of new quality-of-life improvements and new inclusions such as a dedicated jump button, the game largely plays the same as it ever has.
To that end, what impressed me the most while playing through Ocarina of Time with this revamp is how little Nintendo needed to overhaul the game for it to not feel dated. Functions like the targeting system, sword and shield combat, and the various abilities tied to Link’s many different items still work great. While there has been much more visual flair added, particularly when it comes to combat, Ocarina of Time’s remake really just reiterates how great this game still is.
Instead, Nintendo has really just sanded down the rough edges. No longer do you need to enter a menu every time you want to equip items like the Iron Boots, nor do you have to shift to a first-person perspective to aim your bow or hookshot. These small tweaks might not seem like major ones, but they’re particularly helpful in some of the game’s many dungeons and help keep gameplay more streamlined.
Hyrule Looks Better and More Detailed Than Ever Before
From start to finish, I could not get over just how much detail Nintendo has put into remaking the world of Ocarina of Time. From the fabrics of Link’s clothing to the grassy plains of Hyrule Field, the level of fidelity that has gone into this game is among the best that I’ve ever seen in a remake. Not only do these added details bring greater depth to the various environments that Link encounters across his journey, but they make Hyrule feel like an actual, live-in place and not a far-off fantasy world.
To aid in this new emphasis on scale, Nintendo has made it so that the game is now fully third-person. While much of the original Ocarina of Time was like this, there were areas that had fixed cameras, which greatly limited the depth of certain locations. For this to no longer be the case helps further flesh out this version of the game and give much greater texture to its world.
Character models in Ocarina of Time are generally much better in this remake than ever before. Although there are some that I find a bit jarring (child Link and Zelda, in particular), all of the various side characters, enemies, and bosses scattered throughout the game look fantastic while still resembling their original models. When it comes to enemies, Nintendo has also added an area called the Hall of Fallen Foes, which allows you to more greatly appreciate the work that has gone into these redesigns.
Ocarina of Time’s Storytelling Has Been Majorly Upgraded
Likely the biggest improvement that Nintendo has made to The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time is with its storytelling. Rather than the game’s iconic narrative being relayed entirely via text, plenty of voiced cutscenes have now been folded into the experience. Not only do these moments of the game finally give voices to characters like Zelda and Ganondorf, but they also help make its most emotional moments hit harder.
While much of the story is one-to-one in line with the original Ocarina of Time, a handful of cutscenes in the game have also been overhauled in some key ways. These instances further make clear some parts of Ocarina of Time that were a bit too confusing or misunderstood in the N64 iteration. While these revamped cutscenes aren’t plentiful, they should be noticed and appreciated by those who have played OoT before.
Accompanying the story is a masterfully re-recorded score that features all of the classic songs from Ocarina of Time. Given the audio limitations of the N64, the original soundtrack for Ocarina of Time wasn’t able to contain the sweeping orchestral scores that the Zelda franchise would go on to be synonymous with in future entries. This new version of the game can finally rectify that, giving many of the songs greater vibrancy and depth while not straying away from the roots of their ear-tingling melodies. That being said, some of the more atmospheric tracks in this remake don’t feel as moody as the previous game, leading to me preferring past recordings instead.
As Zelda sits at its 40th anniversary, Ocarina of Time still represents a high point for the series and Nintendo games as a whole, and this remake only further validates as much. The changes Nintendo has made with this new version of the game don’t impede the original in any way, and instead simply amplify the excellent story and gameplay experience in virtually every way. The result is a remake that immediately becomes the defining way to play Ocarina of Time and helps make Link’s legendary adventure all the more timeless.
The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time releases this week on November 5th, exclusively for Nintendo Switch 2. An advance copy of the game was provided by Nintendo for the purpose of this review.
