Zelda Ocarina of Time Switch 2 Releases November 5, 2026: What We Know
The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time for Nintendo Switch 2 releases on
November 5, 2026. Nintendo confirmed the date in the September 8, 2026
Zelda 40th Anniversary Direct, three months after first announcing the
remake on June 9, 2026.
This page tracks everything we know, with every claim labeled Confirmed
or Rumor, and is updated as Nintendo reveals more.
Confirmed: Release Date is November 5, 2026
Digital unlock expected 12 AM EST November 5, 2026
September 8, 2026: The Zelda 40th Anniversary Direct aired today. The
first stretch was anniversary material: an orchestral retrospective (Koji
Kondo said the arrangement was written for the 40th, and noted the 1986
original’s score used just three Famicom channels), Shigeru Miyamoto on the
series’ evolution and on the live-action film, titled simply The Legend of
Zelda and due April 30, 2027 (“When you see the film, you’ll
understand why there isn’t a subtitle”), a Zelda-design Nintendo Museum
ticket from September 9, and a 40th Anniversary concert tour (Japan first,
then North America from February 22, 2027, Europe April 3,
Australia May 13). Then Eiji Aonuma took over to present the Ocarina
of Time remake:
Release date: Thursday, November 5, 2026.
He opened by looking back at the 1998 N64 original before getting to the
remake.
Nintendo’s description of the remake: a “faithful interpretation using
modern technologies.”
First gameplay. Aonuma played through Kokiri Forest live. Heavily
updated, realistic graphics. He talked to Saria; the dialogue shown was
text only, no voice acting heard so far.
A dedicated Jump button. New to this version; the 1998 original had
no manual jump. It also works while climbing, to jump higher up a wall.
Seamless interiors. Walking from Kokiri Forest into the Kokiri Shop
had no scene transition: the shop is part of the same world, not a
separately loaded room like the original.
Hyrule Field looks roughly the same size as the original, just far
better looking, and with real draw distance: Castle Town and Hyrule
Castle are visible from the Kokiri Forest exit instead of hidden in fog.
Autosave. A “Saving…” spinner appeared while running across Hyrule
Field.
Magic meter confirmed. A later save showed six hearts with a green
magic bar beneath them, and the blue Ocarina of Time on the D-pad.
Full day/night lighting. One Hyrule Field shot was at golden hour,
the low sun lighting the field from behind Death Mountain; another was
full night with stars, and the Sun’s Song flipped it to dawn on stream.
The five ocarina notes are L, R, Y, X, A. Songs show their notes as
those button icons on a staff (Sun’s Song is A R X A R X, Epona’s Song is
X Y A X Y A), and the playing animation has a Skip (X).
Lon Lon Ranch and young Epona were shown at sunset, with Epona
walking up to Link after Epona’s Song.
First look at adult Link, in the trailer’s title-screen sequence:
riding Epona with the Hylian Shield on his back.
The ocarina lives on the D-pad (left), next to the Navi button.
A quest tracker, called Threads of Time. A chapter list with a short
story recap and a current objective for each, in a tab next to Key Items
and Map. New to this version.
Quick item swap, like the newer Zelda games: hold a button for a
carousel over the blurred world and pick with the stick, with a Sort (Y)
toggle. No pause-menu trip to change items.
A four-tab pause menu: Collection, Equipment, Items, System. The
Equipment tab shows a rotatable 3D Link with slots for sword, shield, and
tunic, and the rupee counter shows the wallet cap (16 / 200 at that point).
Lock-on targeting is back, same as the original: a four-corner
reticle on the enemy, and Navi turns orange when hovering over one. The
dungeon minimap shows a floor indicator (1F).
Navi is still your helper. Talk to her with D-pad right; her icon
lights up when she has something to say, instead of interrupting. She
also makes ambient comments in a floating bubble (“That’s a big
drawbridge!”) that don’t pause the game.
A conversation log. The dialogue box has a Conversation Log (Y) to
re-read past dialogue, and a Hide option (Left Stick press) to clear the box.
Both new.
A tapestry that fills in as you progress. The tapestry from the June
teaser is a real in-game feature, not just a cinematic: it hangs in the
menu, you can pan and zoom it, and it’s stitched in top to bottom as the
story advances, linked to the Threads of Time log.
A Dash button. Press it and Link rolls once, then keeps running at a
faster pace. No stamina meter, just quicker travel.
Time keeps flowing in Hyrule Market. Nintendo said so directly. In
the 1998 original the day/night clock froze inside the Market and several
other areas.
You can hum ocarina songs into the controller. An audio-input mode
uses the Switch 2’s built-in microphone: hum, sing, or play a real
instrument and the game reads the notes. It has Practice and Reset
options, and there’s a songbook on ZL.
A physical ocarina is being sold. Nintendo also said the game can
respond to real instruments, so the ocarina is presumably meant to be
played into the Switch 2’s microphone.
Voice acting confirmed: every cutscene is voice acted, per Nintendo.
The intro was shown with Navi speaking aloud: “So come on, let’s go
together.”
Switch 2 Zelda Edition console and Pro Controller revealed, out
October 29, 2026, a week before the game. The August leak was real.
A new trailer closed out the segment, the second piece of footage
after June’s teaser. It showed voiced cutscenes, settling the voice
acting question, plus sweeping looks at Death Mountain, the Lon Lon Ranch
entrance, Lake Hylia with the Lakeside Laboratory and rope bridges,
Zora’s River with a new built archway, Gerudo’s Fortress with adult Link,
adult Link fighting blue Tektites in Hyrule Field, and a moonlit
Link-on-Epona sequence that recreates the title screen. Dungeon glimpses
too: Dodongo’s Cavern, the Wolfos at the Sacred Forest Meadow gate, adult
Link drawing the Master Sword as a child and returning it as an adult in
the Temple of Time, the shadow bursting out of Kakariko’s well, Stalfos in the
Forest Temple, a fight at the Desert Colossus, a Beamos and an Iron
Knuckle in the Spirit Temple, a Parasitic Tentacle inside Jabu-Jabu, the
Megaton Hammer in the Fire Temple, the Hookshot and Iron Boots in the
Water Temple, a first look at Kakariko Village (Cucco gliding intact),
the Fishing Pond, the Diving Game in Zora’s Domain, the owl ride out of
Lake Hylia, being inhaled by Jabu-Jabu at Zora’s Fountain, the Colossus
exterior of the Spirit Temple, and the Shadow Temple’s Ferry to the Other
World. Death Mountain’s ring cloud shows up red in one adult-era shot.
Bosses and Ganondorf in the trailer: Queen Gohma, King Dodongo,
Volvagia, Phantom Ganon, and Twinrova (Kotake and Koume) with the
shield-reflect mechanic; Ganondorf on horseback in Link’s opening
nightmare, in close-up, holding up the Triforce of Power, and in the
throne-room fight. The Forest Temple’s Twisted Hallway was shown too.
Character reveals in the trailer: young Zelda (green eyes, Triforce
tiara, spotted at the courtyard window, later throwing the Ocarina from
horseback), Impa riding behind her, Saria handing over the Fairy Ocarina,
Darunia, Princess Ruto, and Sheik, red-eyed in close-up and with the harp
teaching adult Link a song.
The Great Fairies are redesigned: wrapped in ivy and leaves, red
pigtails, dramatic makeup. Confirms the reading of the ESRB change.
Goron Tunic, Zora Tunic, Hookshot, Megaton Hammer, and Boomerang all
appear in the trailer.
More details being added live.
September 4, 2026: Nintendo has officially announced two back-to-back
presentations: a Legend of Zelda 40th Anniversary Direct on September 8
(about 30 minutes) and a general Nintendo Direct on September 9 (about
45 minutes), both at 7 AM Pacific. Nintendo hasn’t said what’s in them —
but a dedicated Zelda showcase is the obvious place for the remake’s first
real look. This page gets updated the same day either one airs.
August 2026: Nintendo’s US store listing is now live and carries an
ESRB rating (E10+), but there’s still no release date, no price, and
no pre-orders. The rating quietly drops the “suggestive themes”
descriptor the 3DS version had. A Zelda 40th Anniversary Switch 2 console
leaked in August, and gameplay is widely expected in September. Nintendo
has still shown zero gameplay since the announcement.
June 9, 2026: Page created after the Nintendo Direct where they showed
the remake trailer.
When does the Ocarina of Time remake come out?
Confirmed: Thursday, November 5, 2026, exclusively on Switch 2, announced
in the September 8 Zelda 40th Anniversary Direct. Price and pre-orders were
not mentioned in the Direct (this line gets updated when they are).
The rumors were wrong. Two dates had been circulating: November 12,
tied to the themed console leak, and December 1, from a Swiss retailer
listing. Neither was right, though the November one was a week off. A
separate leak’s August 4 pre-order date also never happened. The usual
lesson: retailer dates are placeholders until Nintendo says otherwise.
What was actually shown?
September 8, 2026: the 40th Anniversary Direct
Confirmed: the first gameplay. Eiji Aonuma played through a couple of
parts of the game live on stream, with heavily updated, realistic graphics.
That ended the three-month stretch where the teaser was the only footage.
Screenshots below are from the stream; click “Show screenshot” to load one.
Kokiri Forest
The first thing shown. Aonuma started here, in the opening area.
Show screenshotFirst look at Kokiri Forest. Note the HUD: hearts top-left, a Deku Stick mapped to R in the top-right slot with a second ZR slot beneath it, and a minimap bottom-right.Show screenshotThe main path. A Kokiri house is on the right, its lit interior visible straight through the doorway. Signposts use Hylian script.Show screenshotTalking to Saria. Dialogue is text with a speaker nameplate, and the box has a Hide - Left Stick press option and a Conversation Log (Y), both new.Show screenshotThe new Jump button in action, hopping the stream by the stepping stones. The 1998 game only jumped automatically off ledges; this is a manual jump on demand.Show screenshotInside the Kokiri Shop, reached with no loading transition from outside. Stock sits on physical shelves with price tags underneath: Recovery Heart, Deku Nuts, Deku Sticks, Deku Shield.Show screenshotFrom the trailer: Saria’s goodbye at the forest exit, under the great mossy roots. She’s holding the Fairy Ocarina to her chest, about to give it to him, with Navi and her own fairy glowing on either side.Show screenshotSaria holding out the Fairy Ocarina. A proper look at her redesign: bright green hair, big violet eyes, a wooden pendant, and a knitted green outfit with the Kokiri spiral worked into it.
Link’s nightmare
The game’s opening: Link dreams of a rider at the castle gate in a storm.
Show screenshotFrom the trailer: the nightmare. Ganondorf rears his black horse over Link at the castle gate under a fork of lightning, the towers behind them lost in rain.Show screenshotGanondorf, first proper look. He leans down out of the dark with one huge hand open toward Link. Red hair, green skin, dark armor trimmed in gold.
Great Deku Tree
Show screenshotThe Great Deku Tree from the meadow. The level of detail for the Deku Tree is truly amazing.Show screenshotInside the Deku Tree, with the big web over the hole in the background. Navi is back as the helper. Talking to her is D-pad right, and the prompt explains her icon lights up when she has something to say, rather than interrupting you.Show screenshotA Deku Baba, far more detailed than the original: a spotted blue head on a red stalk with vine-like tendrils. Lock-on targeting works like it always did: four reticle corners frame the enemy and Navi turns orange when she’s over one. Navi can also give you hints about how to defeat the enemies. The dungeon minimap shows the room and a 1F floor indicator.Show screenshotAnother Deku Baba, stunned by a thrown Deku Nut: it locks rigid and glows electric blue for the duration, so the stun state is unmistakable. The Deku Nut count in the ZR slot dropped from 5 to 4 for the throw.Show screenshotOpening a chest. The camera drops to a cinematic close-up with the HUD hidden while Link heaves the lid up, and mist spills out over the rim. The chest itself is the classic design, iron-banded wood with a big front clasp, at a level of detail the original couldn’t get near.Show screenshotThe slingshot ladder, given some extra detail, caught here mid-fall. In the original you hit the ladder itself with a seed and it dropped. Here it’s held up by two stone levers with a glowing eye at the pivot: shoot the eye and the levers give way, letting the ladder come down.Show screenshotFrom the trailer: burning the big web. Link stands right on it with a lit Deku Stick and the fire runs outward along the strands in a ring, embers glowing where it’s caught. A much more dramatic version of the original’s quick puff of flame.Show screenshotFrom the trailer: Queen Gohma, the first boss, a close-up of her eye.Show screenshotGohma rearing to full height in the boss room.
Hyrule Field
Aonuma stepped out of the forest with four hearts and the Fairy Ocarina on
his D-pad, so the demo had cleared the Deku Tree off-screen before this.
Show screenshotFirst look at Hyrule Field, from the Kokiri Forest exit. The Castle Town gate and Hyrule Castle are visible from all the way over here. Check out the full Hyrule Field map in the bottom-right with Lon Lon Ranch in the middle.Show screenshotRunning through the field. The red mesas on the left are the Gerudo side of the map, and a ruined tower stands at the entrance to Lake Hylia. Same layout as the original, much more in it.Show screenshotApproaching the Castle Town gate, the castle on its hill behind. Bottom-left: a Saving… spinner, so the game autosaves.Show screenshotLooking north-east: the Kakariko Village windmill on the hill with Death Mountain behind it, the steps up to the village at the left, and a waterfall off the cliffs to the right show the entrance to Zora’s River. The tall grass reacts as Link runs through it.Show screenshotA later save, at golden hour. Two things on the HUD: six hearts with a green magic meter underneath. The magic meter is segmented, unlike the original N64 game. And the D-pad ocarina is now the blue Ocarina of Time, which means all 3 spiritual stones have been collected. Death Mountain’s crater is smoking, with the windmill silhouetted below it, and the low sun is lighting the whole field from behind.Show screenshotHyrule Field at night. Stars and drifting clouds over a deep blue sky, the western mesas in silhouette, and the grass gone dark. Six hearts, the magic meter, and the Ocarina of Time on the D-pad: this is the later save again.Show screenshotPlaying the Sun’s Song. The camera pushes in on Link with the ocarina, golden light streams up around him, and a parchment panel confirms the song. The notes are drawn on a staff as controller button icons (A, R, X here) rather than the original’s C-buttons. Bottom right: Skip (X), so the playing animation can be cut short.Show screenshotA moment later: dawn. Same spot, same rock, but the sky has gone from starlight to pink cloud and the low sun is raking gold across the grass. The Sun’s Song still does exactly what it did in 1998.Show screenshotAudio input for the ocarina. The mic icon and Inputting audio… at the top mean the Switch 2 is listening: hum, sing, or play a real instrument and the game reads the notes. The bottom bar spells out the rest of the ocarina controls: the five notes are L, R, Y, X, A, there’s a songbook on ZL, and audio mode has Practice (−) and Reset (+) options.Show screenshotFrom the trailer: Death Mountain at dusk, seen across the field. The crater glows orange and the smoke above it is a full billowing column lit from underneath, with the Kakariko windmill tiny at its foot and a stone footbridge in the foreground. Twisted trees on the left, a waterfall off the cliffs on the right.Show screenshotFrom the trailer: adult Link in Hyrule Field at sunset, Hylian Shield and sword on his back, squaring up to two blue Tektites in a shallow flooded stretch of the field. The big one’s single eye is glowing. Enemies out in the open field like this are a change from the original’s Peahats and night-time Stalchildren.
Hyrule Castle Town
Show screenshotApproaching Castle Town across the meadow. The outer wall runs the full width of the view with round towers along it, the gatehouse in the middle flies blue banners, and Hyrule Castle sits on the hill behind. The grass here is full of wildflowers.Show screenshotThe drawbridge, down. The chains run up both towers, the portcullis is raised (you can see its teeth at the top of the arch), the torches are lit, and both towers carry huge blue Hylian Crest banners. Navi’s “That’s a big drawbridge!” is a floating bubble, not a dialogue box: she comments on things without stopping play.
Through the gate is the Market.
Show screenshotThe entrance street into the Market. Half-timbered houses, flower boxes on every sill, blue Hylian bunting strung across the street, and the fountain plaza with townsfolk at the far end. Hyrule Castle’s spires show above the roofs. The minimap swaps to a town map once you’re inside the walls.Show screenshotThe dancing couple from the original are back, still spinning by the fountain, which is now topped with a winged Hylian Crest. Her line: Hee hee! Your gaze… Behind them, the Shooting Gallery’s bow-and-target sign is visible on the right.
The Back Alley off the Market:
Show screenshotThe Back Alley. Narrow, shadowed, and packed with detail: red shutters, a hanging Hylian shop sign, an iron lantern, barrels and sacks by a doorway, laundry lines overhead, and notices pinned up on the wall to the left.Show screenshotThe old man from the original Back Alley is still here, propped against the wall: “Who will listen to me…” He says it in a floating bubble as you pass, the same ambient-chatter system Navi uses, so you don’t have to stop.Show screenshotFrom the trailer: the escape. Zelda and Impa gallop out through the rain on a white horse, Zelda twisting back with the Ocarina of Time raised, a beat before she throws it into the moat. First look at Impa: white ponytail, dark Sheikah armor, sword at her hip.
Hyrule Castle
Show screenshotFrom the trailer: the castle courtyard, and the scene everyone remembers. Link arrives to find a small figure in white and pink at the top of the steps with her back to him, peering through the ornate window. Purple flowers climb the stone all around.Show screenshotYoung Princess Zelda, first look. Gold Triforce tiara on the white-and-pink headdress, magenta bodice with gold trim, pale blue sleeves embroidered with the Hylian crest, and green eyes.
Kakariko Village
Show screenshotFrom the trailer: first look at Kakariko Village, from above, as Link floats down holding a Cucco, wings out. Red-tiled roofs, the big blue-roofed house with laundry lines, the brick-and-timber Cucco pen with someone sitting on its rail, stairs up to the higher tier, and bunting strung across the paths. The Cucco glide works exactly as it always did.Show screenshotFrom the trailer: Sheik, close. Red eyes over the face wrap, blonde bangs, blue shoulder plates, and rain coming down with something burning behind, which fits the Kakariko fire scene before the Shadow Temple.Show screenshotFrom the trailer: the shadow escaping the well. Adult Link, Master Sword out, as huge purple hands boil up out of the dark around him in the rain. This is the cutscene that sets up the well and the Shadow Temple, and it’s a lot more menacing than the original’s.
Lon Lon Ranch
Show screenshotFrom the trailer: the ranch entrance from Hyrule Field. The barn has a small windmill on its roof, a carved sign in Hylian script hangs over the gate arch, lanterns are lit either side of it, and the thatched stable sits to the right behind the wall. Tall wheat-coloured grass in front, pink evening cloud above.Show screenshotLon Lon Ranch at sunset. Horses gallop loose in the corral, the stable pergola is on the left, and the ranch’s stone tower stands against the sun. The minimap shows the ranch’s oval track.Show screenshotPlaying Epona’s Song at the ranch, the notes shown as X Y A X Y A. Golden bokeh fills the frame while the song plays; Skip (X) is there if you’ve heard it enough.Show screenshotYoung Epona walks up to Link after the song, the two of them nose to nose in the low sun with Navi between them. The foal’s white blaze and dark mane are both there.Show screenshotFrom the trailer: the moment after Epona’s Song. Link is still holding the Fairy Ocarina and looks up, startled, as young Epona shoves her grinning face over his shoulder. She likes him now.
Lake Hylia
Show screenshotFrom the trailer: Lake Hylia. The Lakeside Laboratory on the left is a tall white tower topped with a rickety observatory platform and weathervane, chimney smoking, half-timbered house at its base. Two rope bridges run out to the big rock island in the middle of the lake, the same layout as the original, with the water reflecting the evening sky.Show screenshotFrom the trailer: the Fishing Pond is back. Young Link has the rod bent double with a fish thrashing on the line, the pond owner watching from the hut behind. Clear water over pebbles, reeds along the bank, and the light coming through the trees.Show screenshotFrom the trailer: Kaepora Gaebora hauling Link up out of Lake Hylia by the talons, water still streaming off him. The owl ride is back. The Fishing Pond hut with its fish-flag sign is straight ahead behind the two stone pillars.
Zora’s River
Show screenshotFrom the trailer: Zora’s River, on the way up to Zora’s Domain. Young Link hops the mossy rocks toward a set of steps and an ornate archway with twisted columns, with blue-tiled water channels carved in Zora motifs alongside. The original’s approach was bare rock and a waterfall; this is a proper built entrance.
Zora’s Domain
Show screenshotFrom the trailer: the Diving Game in Zora’s Domain, seen from above. Link is diving for the blue rupees the Zora scattered across the bottom, the prize being the Silver Scale. Light ripples down through the water onto the lake bed.
Gerudo’s Fortress
Show screenshotFrom the trailer: Gerudo’s Fortress, the Gerudo hideout in the desert canyon, with adult Link running through. The buildings are terraced red sandstone with stepped geometric carvings, red canvas awnings over the doorways, and wooden watchtowers up on the cliff tops. Two Gerudo guards stand in the background in purple and yellow.
Goron City
Show screenshotFrom the trailer: Darunia in Goron City, all mane and beard and grin, reaching down to plant a hand on Link’s whole head. Purple eyes, iron bracelets, and the Goron ruby symbol marked on his shoulder.
Dodongo’s Cavern
Show screenshotFrom the trailer: Dodongo’s Cavern. Young Link, carrying the big Hylian Shield on his back the way you could in the original, throws a bomb at the cracked wall.Show screenshotFrom the trailer: King Dodongo, jaws open all the way. Rock plating, a wall of teeth, one glowing eye, and Link down in the corner of the frame for scale.
Jabu-Jabu’s Belly
Show screenshotFrom the trailer, and one of the best shots in it: looking out from inside Jabu-Jabu’s mouth at Zora’s Fountain. The roof of the mouth and the teeth frame the round stone platform with its Zora-emblem fountain, and tiny Link is standing dead center, about to be inhaled.Show screenshotA beat later, from the outside: Link airborne and flailing as Jabu-Jabu inhales him, Navi caught in the same pull. The fountain platform’s Zora emblem is right below him.Show screenshotFrom the trailer: a Parasitic Tentacle inside Jabu-Jabu, a huge green veined thing hanging from the ceiling with a spiked tip crackling purple. Link is locked on and the Boomerang is mid-flight, the faint arc visible to the left. Fleshy red walls and a stomach-valve door on the right.Show screenshotFrom the trailer: Princess Ruto, after Jabu-Jabu. She swims up to him through the sunlit water. Smooth blue-teal skin, fins, big violet eyes. First look at her.
Sacred Forest Meadow
Show screenshotFrom the trailer: the Wolfos guarding the way into the Sacred Forest Meadow, and young Link squaring up to it with the Deku Shield. Behind them the gate is sealed by a fence of glowing purple spikes, a magical barrier instead of the original’s plain gate. The Wolfos is far more animal than the old model: matted fur, yellow eyes, tongue out.Show screenshotFrom the trailer: Sheik, first look, playing the golden harp. Braided blonde hair under the head wrap, the red Sheikah eye on the chest, bandaged arms, and a dark forest full of drifting green light behind.Show screenshotSheik teaching adult Link a song, Link answering on the Ocarina of Time. The firefly-lit forest setting points to the Minuet of Forest in the Sacred Forest Meadow.
Temple of Time
Show screenshotFrom the trailer: young Link on the Pedestal of Time approaching the Master Sword, about to pull. The blade is nearly as tall as he is.Show screenshotSword up. Link hoists the Master Sword overhead with both hands and the chamber dissolves into a swirling blue starfield: the seven-year jump beginning.Show screenshotFrom the trailer: adult Link on the Pedestal of Time, Master Sword raised in both hands, about to drive it home and travel back to being a child. A clear look at the Master Sword (blue winged hilt, Triforce on the blade) and the Hylian Shield slung on his back.
Forest Temple
Show screenshotFrom the trailer: adult Link against two Stalfos in the Forest Temple’s dark wood-panelled halls. Both carry round shields and shoulder armor; the one on the right is lit up red with its sword raised. They flash red briefly upon being hit.Show screenshotFrom the trailer: the Twisted Hallway. The panelled corridor corkscrews ahead of Link so the red carpet climbs the wall, lanterns and all. Still disorienting, now with proper lighting.Show screenshotFrom the trailer: Phantom Ganon, floating up by the paintings and hurling an energy ball the size of Link, who’s lunging in with the Master Sword to bat it back. The whole room is lit green. The volley fight is intact.
Fire Temple
Show screenshotFrom the trailer: adult Link in the Goron Tunic swinging the Megaton Hammer into one of the Fire Temple’s big carved Goron-face statues, the kind that block doorways. Chunks are flying and the whole cavern is lit red-orange. First look at both the tunic and the hammer.Show screenshotFrom the trailer: Volvagia erupting out of the floor in a flare of blue and purple fire, mane blazing, while Link in the Goron Tunic runs in with the Megaton Hammer ready. Lava pools, stalactites, and pillars carved with Goron faces pouring lava.
Water Temple
Show screenshotFrom the trailer: adult Link in the Zora Tunic, waist-deep, firing the Hookshot at a golden target above a gated doorway. The chain is out and taut. Above the arch, the Water Temple’s eye emblem sits in a teal mosaic between carved columns. First look at the tunic and the Hookshot.Show screenshotFrom the trailer: Iron Boots on, walking in the flooded Water Temple in the Zora Tunic. The whole scene is submerged, light rippling through the water onto the hex-tiled ledge, with carved columns and a lantern-lit doorway on the far side.
Shadow Temple
Show screenshotFrom the trailer: the Ferry to the Other World, the Shadow Temple’s boat. A giant skull with glowing blue eyes for a figurehead, chains running up into the dark, a Sheikah-eye bell hanging from the crane arm, and Link very small on the deck. Mist fills everything below the dock.
Desert Colossus
Show screenshotFrom the trailer: young Link fighting in the Desert Colossus, mid spin attack, as spiked enemies erupt from the sand in a burst of purple. The two flag-strung pillars in the background mark the way through the wasteland.
Spirit Temple
Show screenshotFrom the trailer: the Colossus itself, the Spirit Temple’s exterior. A giant seated figure carved into the red sandstone with its two huge hands cupped either side of the entrance, and the temple door, torches lit, tucked between them at the base. Someone very small is standing in the doorway.Show screenshotFrom the trailer: a Beamos in the Spirit Temple firing its purple eye-beam at young Link, who’s ducked low as it sparks off the floor beside him. A second Beamos waits on the left. Sandstone walls with red geometric trim and a shaft of light from a barred skylight above.Show screenshotFrom the trailer: an Iron Knuckle, the heavily armored axe-swinger, bringing its axe over in a streak of red at adult Link. Red-carpeted sandstone with an iron gate behind, which reads as the Spirit Temple, where Iron Knuckles stood guard in the original.Show screenshotFrom the trailer: Twinrova. Kotake, up on her broom in the glyph-covered arena, fires an ice beam and Link takes it square on his raised shield in a burst of blue.Show screenshotA beat later: the beam reflects off the shield in a V. Looks like the Mirror Shield still works.
Great Fairy Fountain
Show screenshotFrom the trailer: the redesigned Great Fairy. Red hair in enormous ivy-wound pigtails, a crown of leaves, heavy pink and gold eye makeup, and her whole body wrapped in vines and leaves. Still every bit as theatrical as the original, just dressed. That squares with the ESRB dropping the 3DS version’s “suggestive themes” descriptor.
Ganon’s Castle
Show screenshotFrom the trailer: Ganondorf, close and calm. Amber eyes under the jewelled forehead piece, red hair, dark armor with red Gerudo embroidery and gold at the throat.Show screenshotGanondorf with the Triforce of Power blazing in his raised hand, mouth open in a shout, the whole frame lit magenta.Show screenshotThe Ganondorf fight. Link braced with a golden gauntlet raised as Ganondorf’s purple magic spirals across the throne room at him. The gauntlet is the Golden Gauntlets.
Title screen
Trailer shots recreating the original’s title sequence: Link rides Epona
across a moonlit Hyrule Field, then stops at a stream for her to drink.
They’re also the first proper look at adult Link.
Show screenshotA rider on horseback, tiny on the ridge under a full moon, in a haze of blue night. The original’s title screen was Link riding Epona across Hyrule Field at night; this looks like the same idea.Show screenshotCloser in: Link galloping along the ridge on Epona, cap streaming behind him, moon over his shoulder. Cinematic, no HUD, so it’s most likely the title or intro sequence.Show screenshotEpona drinks from the stream, which is the beat that confirms this is the original’s title sequence. Misty daylight, a little weir in the stream, and waterfalls coming off the cliffs in the background.Show screenshotAdult Link, first proper look. Epona rears and he throws an arm out for balance; the Hylian Shield is strapped to his back, a sword hilt behind his shoulder, blue earring, long sideburns. Epona is a chestnut with a white mane and feathered hooves.Show screenshotEpona rears with Death Mountain behind, and the cloud around its peak has gone red, swirling, the way the original’s did once the adult era began and the mountain turned angry. The windmill is tiny at its foot.
Menus
The pause menu has four tabs, switched with L and R: Collection,
Equipment, Items, and System.
Show screenshotThe Equipment tab. A rotatable 3D Link (R stick) in the middle, with rows of hexagonal slots for sword, shield, and tunic; Kokiri Sword, Deku Shield, and Kokiri Tunic are equipped, with empty slots for upgrades beside each. Rupees show as 16 / 200, so the wallet cap is visible at a glance.Show screenshotQuick item swap, in the style of the newer Zelda games: hold the button and the world blurs behind a horizontal carousel you flick through with the stick, no trip to the pause menu. Shown here with Deku Sticks ×7, the Fairy Slingshot with 30 seeds, and Deku Nuts ×3. Sort (Y) switches between two orderings; this one is By Type.Show screenshotThe quest tracker, called Threads of Time, in a tab between Key Items and Map. Each chapter gets a short story recap (here, the owl Kaepora Gaebora telling Link he’ll meet a certain princess) and a current objective: Head to Hyrule Castle. See Tapestry (Y) jumps to the tapestry view.Show screenshotThe tapestry from the June teaser, in the menu. The top is stitched in already (the Deku Tree, Kokiri Forest, the castle gates) and everything below the Triforce medallion is still blank, filling in as the story goes. You can Move (L) and Zoom (R) around it, and See Events (Y) goes back to the Threads of Time log.
June 9, 2026: the announcement teaser
Confirmed: a roughly one-minute cinematic teaser (no gameplay yet). It
showed a big tapestry. Confirmed on September 8: that tapestry is an
in-game feature that fills in as you complete the game.
The tapestry showed images of Hyrule Castle, the Temple of Time, the Great Deku Tree,
images of the Kokiri themselves, and also an image of Link himself on the tapestry (shown lying on a branch inside the Great Deku Tree).
It showed a redesigned young Link, Link asleep in his House (in the Kokiri Forest). You can see the Triforce of Courage glowing
on Young Link’s hand (as it did with Adult Link in the original versions of Ocarina of Time).
The teaser had a realistic art style, with an orchestral score and a narrator. You could hear hints of
the Forest Temple as well as Saria’s Song and the Kokiri Forest theme. Nintendo’s
own wording is that the game has been “reborn,” and this is the second
remake after the 2011 Nintendo 3DS version. The 3DS version was very much a “remaster” in
the traditional sense - although they rebuilt the game from the ground up, it was almost
identical in every aspect to the original N64 version.
Is it a full remake or a remaster?
Confirmed: in the September 8 Direct, Eiji Aonuma described it as a
“faithful interpretation using modern technologies.” Before that,
Nintendo’s only published wording was that the game is “reborn” for Switch 2
(the official listing never uses the word “remake.”)
Very likely, but not formally announced: an unpublished description
left in the code of Nintendo’s own website reads “The N64 classic reborn
as a full remake for Nintendo Switch 2.” That is Nintendo’s own text, so
“full remake” is about as close to confirmed as an unannounced detail gets,
but it was never actually published.
When will we see gameplay?
Confirmed: it has been shown. The first gameplay aired in the Zelda
40th Anniversary Direct on September 8: Eiji Aonuma playing Kokiri Forest
live. Some reports also point to a playable demo at Tokyo Game Show later in
September; that part is still unconfirmed.
Will there be a Nintendo Direct in September 2026?
Confirmed — two of them. On September 4, Nintendo announced back-to-back
presentations:
The Legend of Zelda 40th Anniversary Direct — September 8 at
7 AM Pacific / 10 AM Eastern / 3 PM UK, about 30 minutes.
A general Nintendo Direct — September 9, same time, about
45 minutes.
The September 8 show has aired, and Ocarina of Time was in it: Eiji
Aonuma presented the remake with live gameplay. What was shown is logged in
“What’s new” above. The September 9 general Direct is still to come.
What’s the ESRB rating?
Confirmed:E10+ (Everyone 10+), with the descriptors Animated
Blood and Fantasy Violence, listed on Nintendo’s own US product
page.
Worth noting if you’re comparing versions: Ocarina of Time 3D carried a
third descriptor, “suggestive themes,” and this Switch 2 listing does
not. The original N64 release predates the E10+ category entirely and was
rated E.
Confirmed: the Great Fairies have been redesigned. The missing
descriptor had been read as a hint, and the September 8 trailer settled it:
the Great Fairy shown is wrapped head to toe in ivy and leaves, with red
pigtails and dramatic makeup. Still theatrical, just covered up. Screenshot
in “What was actually shown” below.
Is Master Quest included?
Unknown. The 3DS remake included Master Quest, so there’s precedent,
but nothing has been announced. Treat any claim you read as speculation
for now.
Will it have voice acting?
Confirmed: every cutscene is voice acted. Nintendo said so outright in
the September 8 Direct. The intro was shown with Navi speaking aloud (“So
come on, let’s go together”), and the new trailer that closed the segment
had voiced cutscenes throughout. Regular NPC dialogue looks to be text: Aonuma’s conversation with Saria during the
gameplay demo was unvoiced. That split is how Breath of the Wild and
Tears of the Kingdom handled it too. The June teaser’s narrator is possibly
Rauru, one of the Sages.
Who is developing it, and on what engine?
Rumor. Reports point to Monolith Soft involvement and the Breath of
the Wild engine, with development reportedly starting around 2022 and
Grezzo (the 3DS remake studio) not involved. None of this is confirmed by
Nintendo.
Are there special editions or a themed console?
Confirmed: a physical ocarina. Announced in the September 8 Direct, sold
alongside the game. Nintendo said the game can respond to real instruments,
so this is presumably meant to be played into the Switch 2’s microphone
(which also picks up humming). Pricing not yet announced.
Confirmed: a Switch 2 Zelda Edition console and Pro Controller, out
October 29, 2026. Officially revealed in the September 8 Direct, launching
a week ahead of the game. Back in August, box-art photos of a Zelda 40th
Anniversary Switch 2 console and Pro Controller leaked
online,
described as black and dark green with a gold Triforce and the Hylian Crest
on the controller. Pricing and bundle contents are still to be confirmed.
Will my N64 knowledge still apply?
Almost certainly - remakes of this scale historically preserve the
original’s structure (the 3DS version did), and Nintendo calls this one a
“faithful interpretation.” The first confirmed control change is a
dedicated Jump button, shown in the September 8 Direct; the original
only had automatic ledge-jumping. Our entire
walkthrough is being rewritten right now with fresh
screenshots, and it’s built for both versions: when the remake arrives,
confirmed differences will appear inline, pick Switch 2 in the
version picker at the top of any page to see them.
Hyrule’s geography is the part least likely to change, so the interactive
map should carry over largely
intact: Gold Skulltulas, Heart Pieces, Great Fairies, and ocarina song spots
pinned on a zoomable map of the overworld and every dungeon interior, with a
child/adult toggle. Anything you tick off there syncs with the trackers on
the rest of the site, and if the remake moves something the pins get
corrected without resetting your progress.
Track your playthrough either way
Whichever version you play, the Gold Skulltulas
tracker, the interactive map, and the
progress dashboard work in your browser with no account,
no annoying pop-ups, and no auto-playing videos. That’s the
whole point of this site.
