Last week’s Nintendo Direct was noteworthy for revealing that a Nintendo Switch 2 remake for Ocarina of Time is set to be released to the public sometime this year in honor of the Legend of Zelda Franchise’s 40th Year Anniversary. Amusingly enough, this is an example of the saying “history repeats itself” as this actually isn’t the first time Ocarina of Time received a remake during a milestone celebration for the franchise. The first instance of this was when Ocarina of Time received a remake on the Nintendo 3DS in 2011 in honor of the Legend of Zelda Franchise’s 25th Year Anniversary. That makes today the 15th Year Anniversary of when the 3DS remake of Ocarina of Time was released in North America.
For the sake of those who aren’t in the know for one reason or another, Ocarina of Time is the 5th (mainline) game in the Legend of Zelda Franchise and the series’ 1st entry for the Nintendo 64 which also makes it the 1st 3D game in the series. Chronologically speaking, this is the 4th game in the timeline (being preceded by Skyward Sword, Minish Cap and Four Swords) and serves as the introduction for the “overall” main villain/big bad of the series, Ganondorf/Ganon.
The game also acts as the “nexus” of the series’ famous timeline because after the events of this game, the timeline splits into 3 separate branches. The “Kid Link Branch” depicts the history where the “Hero of Time” (the title that this incarnation of Link is also called) is sent back in time to live the 7 years of life he missed out on when he initially pulled the Master Sword which consists of Majora’s Mask, Twilight Princess and Four Swords Adventures. The “Adult Link Branch” depicts the history where the Hero of Time helps in defeating and banishing Ganondorf before being sent back in time to live the 7 years of life he missed out on when he initially pulled the Master Sword which consists of Wind Waker, Phantom Hourglass and Spirit Tracks. The “Downfall Branch” depicts the history where Ganondorf succeeds in killing the Hero of Time and claims the entire Triforce which consists of A Link to the Past, the Oracle Duology (which consists of Oracle of Ages & Oracle of Seasons), Link’s Awakening (going by the Hyrule Historia placement, its placement with the Oracle Duology was switched around in Hyrule Encyclopedia), A Link Between Worlds, Tri Force Heroes, Echoes of Wisdom, the Original Game and The Adventure of Link. At the time this article has been written, Breath of the Wild and Tears of the Kingdom have been confirmed to take place after Ocarina of Time in the far distant future but it has not yet been clarified which of the 3 branches of the timeline these two games are set within.
Besides updated graphics, the 3DS remake also includes other quality of life improvements including 4 buttons for items with a 5th button reserved specifically for the ocarina, the ability to pull up song sheets while playing the ocarina, the option to use motion controls for aiming and the addition of color-coded borders leading to the water level altering spots within the infamous Water Temple. The 3DS remake is also notable for including “Master Quest” Mode, a version of the game that modifies the dungeons with altered puzzles and enemies leading to it essentially being the game’s “hard mode”. Master Quest was initially released on the game’s GameCube port that was given as a bonus to those who pre-ordered Wind Waker while the 3DS remake allows access to the mode after beating the final boss on one file of the “standard mode” and includes further changes in the form of a mirrored map (much like the Wii port of Twilight Princess) and having enemies hit twice as hard.
As far as new additions go, the 3DS remake includes a “boss rematch” mode that becomes available after learning the “Prelude of Light” song and is presented “in-universe” as Link dreaming about his battles with the bosses he encounters throughout his quest. Another addition comes in the form of the “Sheikah Stones” located in Kokiri Forest (outside Link’s House) & the Temple of Time which provide brief clips as hints for players that are at a loss for how to progress in the game and is presented “in-universe” as Link receiving visions from the Sheikah Stones. It should also be noted that the Sheikah Stones are only present in the “standard mode” and are not included in Master Quest mode. Due to the fact that the Switch 2 remake has been described as “Ocarina of Time reborn” by Nintendo, many have speculated that the Switch 2 will be more liberal with changes from the Nintendo 64 version when compared to the 3DS version but only time will tell if that ends up being the case or not.
Was the 3DS remake your first exposure to Ocarina of Time? Will the Switch 2 remake be your first exposure to Ocarina of Time? What changes from the 3DS remake do you think will be kept in the Switch 2 remake? What changes do you think the Switch 2 version will make compared to both the Nintendo 64 version and the 3DS version?
