Stream of the Day
Zelda’s legend reborn in style
Nearly three decades on, Nintendo has rebuilt ‘The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time’ with new voices and controls, writes JASON BANNIER.
Nintendo has revived one of its defining games with a ground-up remake of The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time, launched exclusively on Switch 2 yesterday (5 November 2026).
The title features overhauled visuals, expanded dialogue, voiced cutscenes and a symphonic orchestral soundtrack. A recent YouTube trailer offers a taste of these enhancements.
New dash and jump commands aim to provide more direct movement. Right-stick camera control and optional motion aiming update exploration and combat for the newer console.
The original, which released on the Nintendo 64 console, introduced 3D environments to The Legend of Zelda series and featured a lock-on combat system that became a foundation for later entries.
Link begins the story among the Kokiri, a community of childlike forest dwellers protected by an ancient guardian called the Great Deku Tree. A fairy named Navi becomes Link’s guide when he is sent beyond the forest on a mission that leads to Princess Zelda.
The princess warns Link about Ganondorf, the leader of a desert tribe who plans to seize the Triforce. The magical relic consists of three golden triangles representing wisdom, power, and courage, and can grant the wish of whoever claims it.
Link’s quest unfolds across two periods of his life. Players explore the kingdom of Hyrule as both a child and an adult, with different weapons, tools, and routes available in each era. The journey leads through towns, forests, lakes, deserts, puzzle-filled dungeons, and sacred temples.
Music plays a significant role in the adventure. Songs performed on Link’s ocarina, a small wind instrument, can open new paths, change day to night, and trigger other effects. Players can enter the notes with buttons or hum melodies into the Nintendo Switch 2 microphone. The game can also recognise notes played on a real instrument.
The new version includes a guidance feature called Threads of Time, which recaps completed events, displays the next objective and gradually fills a tapestry that records Link’s journey. Zelda Notes, a companion section in the Nintendo Switch app for smart devices, adds daily activity records, location challenges, a virtual ocarina, and a quiz containing more than 2,000 questions.
The remake forms part of Nintendo’s 40th-anniversary celebration for The Legend of Zelda, a fantasy adventure series that began in Japan in 1986. Other anniversary projects include themed Nintendo Switch 2 hardware, a concert tour, new interactive figurines planned for 2027, and a live-action movie.
* Visit the ‘Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time’ page on the Nintendo eShop here.
* Jason Bannier is a data analyst at World Wide Worx and deputy editor of Gadget.co.za. Follow him on Bluesky at @jas2bann.
