Today’s Nintendo Direct for The Legend of Zelda revealed a bunch of new info about the franchise, but the highlight is a first look at the Ocarina of Time remake.
Sporting a realistic yet nostalgic art style, the legendary game beloved by millions also has a number of modern-day improvements, like a dedicated jump button and the ability to swim. Graphically, it’s quite impressive, although I’m sure the art style will be controversial to some.
In the gameplay demo, Zelda devs explored the Kokiri Forest and visited the Deku Tree, and Navi says her trademark “LISTEN!” line, so this is indeed Ocarina of Time brought to a new generation with Switch 2’s hardware capabilities in mind.
Hyrule Field was up next, and it looks glorious enough to bring me right back to the 90s and the first time I played the game on Nintendo 64. Except now, Link can sprint. Yay.
Another new feature is called Threads of Time, which shows story progress and what your next objective is in case you get lost. It’s illustrated by a large tapestry that will actively fill in as you advance through the story, which now has full voice-acting during cutscenes.
In the demo, Hyrule Castle followed, and Hyrule Castle Town showcased another nice change: no more fixed camera in this particular location. But the single biggest and coolest new addition to this game (in my opinion) is that you can hum learned songs into the Switch 2’s microphone to play the Ocarina. And of course, a new Ocarina peripheral is being sold to coincide with it.
The merch continues with new Young Link and Young Zelda Amiibo, and a stunning limited-edition Switch 2 themed around the game, and a Pro Controller to match it.
At the end of the demo, Nintendo revealed the big news: the Ocarina of Time remake is coming soon. Real soon, actually: the official release date for the Switch 2 exclusive is coming on November 5.
