The original The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time needs little introduction. It’s sat as history’s highest-rated video game for the last 28 years, and is a revolutionary title for millions of gamers, myself included. I was six years old when the original was released. Between how many times I obsessively replayed the game’s early dungeons as a kid, and the many hundreds of hours I’ve watched streamers play it in recent years, OOT might be the video game I know best.
I’m probably not alone in this, either. Ocarina of Time is downright important to many of us around the world, and it was a very tall order to remake this specific game from the ground up in 2026. Amazingly, Nintendo really did pull it off. OOT Remake is an absolute joy. It’s also not quite the same game we grew up with, for better or worse.
Hyrule Reborn
The most obvious thing to discuss first is just how incredible The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time remake looks. Though the visual style did have to grow on me a little bit at first, I came around to being continuously floored by how cool everything in Hyrule looks in 2026.
Seeing these iconic locations and characters reimagined is a true treat, even if I’d occasionally find myself preferring an older style or design. By and large, the game looks wonderful, and despite perhaps more “cartoon-y” or even anime-like takes on certain aspects, most of the OG tone and vibe are preserved.
I replayed the 1998 game for the N64 a couple of weeks before the remake’s launch, so my comparisons are very fresh. I was concerned the weirder, more horror-inspired locations like Bottom of the Well and Shadow Temple wouldn’t translate well to this new style, but the devs nailed (and even improved) them for the most part. Spirit Temple specifically is now a little too clean and bright for my tastes, but it’s still hard to deny how good it looks.
Bosses, specifically, all look incredible in this new style. Most main characters are now voice-acted, which leads to many familiar moments that hit even harder emotionally thanks to the line delivery and performances. Saria giving Link the fairy ocarina as he leaves the forest for the first time is now nearly tear-jerking, something 1998’s limitations couldn’t quite get across.
This time around, Nintendo and crew have also added a ton of extra lore and background to the game’s story and characters, which I found quite satisfying. This is possibly my favorite world in all of gaming, and so seeing more nuance and detail added to something I already knew so well was a joy.
And of course, there’s also Ocarina of Time’s iconic soundtrack and ocarina songs, which are mostly better than ever. Saria’s Song gets a haunting update in certain moments, while the emotional swelling of several other familiar songs makes most of them hit that much harder.
Technically speaking, I noticed no issues with dropped framerates or anything else of the sort during my entire playthrough. There is some minor graphical pop-in, particularly in Hyrule Field, but it’s really a non-issue unless you’re hyper-sensitive to these things.
A Well-Deserved, Multi-Layered Update
Though I still adore the 1998 version of The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time, there’s no denying that it’s officially showing its age in many ways, particularly in the controls and camera manipulation. This new remake feels as smooth as butter, to the point that it is initially jarring. Ultimately, however, I warmed to most control updates and modernizations, with a couple of exceptions.
I still used Z-Targeting to manipulate my camera, rarely utilizing the new right-stick controls. I also think the change to only having one item equipped at a time (swapped out with a menu whenever you need something else) is actually a downgrade from the N64, which allowed three equipped items at once to be used simultaneously. This change removes some combat and exploration freedom, which is kind of a bummer.
But it’s hard to complain too much. Sword and shield combat is fluid and much more precise overall. Any ranged weapon is a freaking blast to use, made even better with Switch 2 gyro aiming. While the dedicated jump button is a huge initial adjustment, it’s also clearly better than how jumping functioned in the OG. All of this combines into a standout gameplay experience, and it’s impressive just how improved Nintendo made pretty much everything in this regard.
Having a recent playthrough of the 1998 game under my belt, it was also incredibly interesting to discover everything else tweaked for the remake. For example, many gold skulltula locations (the game’s most prevalent collectibles) have been adjusted. This is sometimes ever so slight a difference, and sometimes quite drastic. It’s a smart choice to tweak these things enough to be familiar, but not for OOT veterans to be on autopilot either.
Another huge update is that the majority of enemies behave in slightly different ways, or with an altered moveset. In a remake that many feared would be too 1:1, I found these enemy changes to be a genius way to make the moment-to-moment gameplay fundamentally different.
And then there are the dungeons, perhaps the most iconic collection in any video game ever. All of them are recreated beautifully. While I still prefer some of the originals, others are genuinely improved here, such as the infamous Water Temple, Jabu-Jabu’s Belly, and arguably even the beloved Forest Temple. The Adult Link portion of the game also shines brighter. I loved working through all five Adult dungeons, and while the Child ones are still good, they don’t feel quite on the same level anymore in comparison.
Occasionally a Bit Too Smooth
2026’s The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time is an absolute triumph and stands side-by-side with the OG as a masterful video game experience. There are, however, just a couple of ways in which I found the remake to lack quality.
The most glaring detail is that the remake is very easy. Sure, I’d just replayed the original title, but I still made it through the remake completely deathless, and extremely comfortably. No, the 1998 game isn’t incredibly demanding either, and some of the challenge can be chalked up to the old control scheme, too. Even so, I breezed through the remake. I have no problem with easy video games, but I still couldn’t help but feel things were dialed down a bit too much here, with no real way of raising the challenge, either.
This also extends to the design of the game in other ways, such as a lack of difficulty in solving puzzles in dungeons, or simply figuring out where to go in the world on your own. Dungeons are mostly streamlined and much more well sign-posted (or hinted at by Navi) from start to finish. Since I knew all the dungeons anyway, this didn’t really affect me much personally, but it’s something to consider for a newcomer.
At the end of the day, however, it’s hard not to think that Nintendo navigated most of this about as well as we could’ve hoped. Plenty of us came to the remake as Zelda veterans who know OOT like the back of their hands. But the fact is that this version of the game is how many players are experiencing the journey for the first time.
With this in mind, the Ocarina of Time Remake does a really nice job of ushering in a massive new player base to make sure they’re comfortable and clear in their objectives (now shown by the Threads of Time menu screen, serving as a quest log). I think there’s a magic of exploration, self-discovery, and challenge that’s not as prevalent in this version of the game as a result, but I understand the purpose of these tweaks/additions as well.
While I personally think the game was ever-so-slightly watered down in these ways, there’s just no denying how fun it still is to play. At the end of the day, I was able to accept and even embrace the changes and had a wonderful time with the game from start to finish.
The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time Review Verdict
The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time has held strong nearly three decades later as a masterpiece-level gaming experience. Seeing such an important title so beautifully remade from the ground up is thrilling to witness, and such an insanely strong nostalgia trip for long-time fans.
The game has never looked or felt better, and serves as the perfect entry point to the legendary Zelda franchise for anyone still unfamiliar with Link and his adventures.
OOT veterans and diehards might find the remake too easy and straightforward, but it’s nearly impossible to go hands-on with this game and keep a giant smile off your face all the same. This is one of the most fun video games you’ll play this year. Ocarina of Time is still a stone-cold classic in the modern day.
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The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time
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The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time
Ethan Krieger got started as a sports journalist covering the NBA, but video games have always been his main passion. Since then, he's edited and written for multiple gaming outlets,…
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