Ocarina of Time remake vs. original: What changed, and which one to play

🎵 The same Hyrule, rebuilt

The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time came out on the Nintendo 64 in November 1998. It is the game that taught 3D adventures how to work, and in our review it is still the best game ever made. On November 5, 2026 it came back as a full remake for Nintendo Switch 2, and the first question from anyone who played the original is the obvious one: what did Nintendo actually change?

The short answer: almost everything you see and hear, and very little of what you do. The story, the world, the dungeons and the songs are the ones you remember. The graphics, the music, the voices and the controls are new.

This guide sorts the changes into three piles: what Nintendo has confirmed is new, what stays the same, and what Nintendo has not said yet. Then it answers the practical question of which version to play, because in 2026 there are three.

What Nintendo changed

Everything in this section comes from Nintendo’s own store listing and the Zelda 40th Anniversary Direct on September 8, 2026. We have not finished the remake yet, so this is what Nintendo says the game does, not our verdict on how well it does it.

Graphics, music, voices and cutscenes

Nintendo describes “completely overhauled visuals, orchestral music, voice acting, and expanded cutscenes.” The difference is biggest in Hyrule Field. In 1998 it was a fog bank with a few landmarks, and your imagination did the rest. In the Direct footage you can see across it to the horizon. Castle Town is packed with detail the N64 could never hold.

Voice acting is the change most likely to start arguments. The original had text boxes and the odd grunt, and that silence is part of how a lot of us remember the game. Nintendo also lists new and expanded dialogue, so characters say more than they did in 1998.

The remake supports HDR and VRR on compatible TVs and surround sound.

Jumping, dashing and the camera

In the original, Link jumped by himself. Run at a ledge and he hopped across; there was no jump button. The remake gives you a jump and a dash, and Nintendo talks about “enhanced controls and modern camera movements.” For anyone raised on modern 3D games, that removes the single most dated thing about the N64 version: the feeling that the game is moving Link for you.

Playing the ocarina

The ocarina was never a menu in this game. It is the reason a generation of us can still hum six notes from memory. The remake gives you three ways to play a song: with the buttons, by humming, or with an instrument played into the Switch 2 microphone. The songs still do what they always did, opening new paths and turning day into night.

Aiming the bow and the hookshot

You can aim the Fairy Bow and the Hookshot with the buttons or with motion controls, and you pick which one in the options menu. Nintendo lists the game as playable without motion controls, so nobody is forced to wave the controller around.

New things to find and track

Nintendo lists a handful of features the original did not have:

• Goron gossip and fairy lore: extra background on the world and its people.
• Hall of Fallen Foes: a gallery of the enemies you have defeated.
• Threads of Time: a tapestry that shows how far you have come.
• amiibo: tapping any Legend of Zelda amiibo gives in-game extras. New Young Link and Young Zelda amiibo, due in 2027, unlock retro-style masks.
• Zelda Notes: in the Nintendo Switch App on your phone, it shows what you achieved that day, sets picture-based challenges to find places in the game, and lets you play the ocarina on the phone.

Zelda Notes on Breath of the Wild and Tears of the Kingdom includes a live map with voice navigation. Nintendo’s listing for Ocarina of Time does not mention a map, so do not count on one.

What stays the same

The structure is untouched. The Direct opened where the game opens, in Kokiri Forest, and it is recognisably the same place: same layout, same shapes, the same Great Deku Tree. Link still starts as a child, still collects three Spiritual Stones, still pulls the Master Sword and wakes up seven years later in a Hyrule ruled by Ganondorf.

The dungeons come in the same order, from the Great Deku Tree and Dodongo’s Cavern to the Water, Shadow and Spirit Temples. The songs work as they always did: warps, the Sun’s Song, the Song of Storms. If you played the original, you know where to go. If you did not, you get the same journey the rest of us did, just easier on the eyes.

The rating is the same tier too. The ESRB rates the remake E10+ for Animated Blood and Fantasy Violence, like the 3DS version, minus the Suggestive Themes descriptor the 3DS version had. The N64 original was rated E, because E10+ did not exist until 2005.

What Nintendo has not said yet

Three questions are still open, and they are the ones fans of the older versions care about most.

Master Quest: the remix with rearranged, harder dungeons first came on a GameCube bonus disc in 2002 in Japan and 2003 in North America, and the 3DS version included it. Nintendo’s store page for the Switch 2 remake does not mention it.

The 3DS extras: the 2011 version added a Boss Challenge mode and Sheikah Stones, hint videos for players who were stuck. Nintendo has not said whether anything like them returns.

Dungeon changes: some coverage talks about redesigned dungeons; Nintendo itself has not said how much the puzzles changed. The Water Temple, the dungeon everyone remembers for the wrong reasons, is the one to watch. We will update this guide once we have played through it.

Side by side

Twenty-eight years of Ocarina of Time

The remake is not the first time Nintendo has brought this game back. It is the first time Nintendo has rebuilt it from the ground up, and the history explains why so many people have played it on a console other than the N64.

• 1998, Nintendo 64: the original, released in November in Japan and North America. It introduced Z-targeting, the lock-on system that 3D action games still use, and context-sensitive buttons that change what they do depending on where Link stands.
• 2002 and 2003, GameCube: Master Quest appeared as a bonus disc, first in Japan and then in North America, with the same world but rearranged, harder dungeons. The original was also part of the Legend of Zelda Collector’s Edition disc in 2003.
• 2007, Wii Virtual Console: the N64 game as a download on the Wii.
• 2011, Nintendo 3DS: Ocarina of Time 3D, the first real remake, with new graphics, gyro aiming, Sheikah Stones for hints, a Boss Challenge mode and Master Quest included.
• 2015, Wii U Virtual Console: the N64 game again, on the Wii U.
• 2021, Nintendo Switch Online: the N64 game as part of the Expansion Pack’s Nintendo 64 library.
• 2026, Nintendo Switch 2: the full remake, rebuilt with new visuals, sound and controls.

That list is also why the voice acting matters so much to some fans. Through seven releases, Link and everyone around him stayed silent. The Switch 2 version is the first one where the characters speak.

Which one should you play?

There are three versions you can get today, and each fits a different player.

A first-timer or a child: the remake. Everything that makes the N64 version hard to hand to a child raised on modern games, the fog, the automatic jumping, the silent text boxes, is gone, and the game underneath is the same.

A returning fan: also the remake, if you own a Switch 2. The structure is the same, so the nostalgia lands, and seeing Hyrule Field without the fog is a genuinely new experience. If you are worried about the voice acting, you are not alone, but it is hard to judge from trailers.

A purist, or someone without a Switch 2: the N64 original in Nintendo Switch Online. It is part of the Nintendo 64 library in the Expansion Pack tier, plays on the original Switch as well as the Switch 2, and costs nothing extra if your family already has the membership. It is the game exactly as it was, fog and all.

The 3DS version was the best way to play for years, and it is the only one with Master Quest built in. With the 3DS eShop closed since March 2023, it now means a used cartridge and a 3DS, so for most people it is a collector’s choice.

Before you buy the remake, check two practical things. It needs a Nintendo Switch 2; it does not run on the original Switch. And it takes 24.9 GB. The Switch 2 has 256 GB of built-in storage, which fills up quickly in a family where everyone has their own games, and extra space means a microSD Express card, because the older microSD cards from the first Switch cannot hold Switch 2 games. If the remake is a present, clear the space before the big day, not on it.

If you are still deciding which Zelda to start with at all, which Zelda game to play first goes through the whole series.

❓ Frequently asked questions

What is different in the Ocarina of Time remake?

Nintendo rebuilt the visuals and sound: new graphics, orchestral music, voice acting, expanded cutscenes and new and expanded dialogue. Link can now jump and dash under your control, the camera moves freely, and you can play ocarina songs with the buttons, by humming or with an instrument into the Switch 2 microphone. New features include a Hall of Fallen Foes, a Threads of Time tapestry for your progress, and Zelda Notes support in the Nintendo Switch App.

Is the Ocarina of Time remake the same game as the original?

The story, the world and the structure are the same: Link as a child, the jump seven years ahead, the same dungeons in the same order, and songs that still open paths and change day to night. What changed is how it looks, sounds and controls. Nintendo has not said in detail whether individual dungeons or puzzles were redesigned.

Does the Ocarina of Time remake include Master Quest?

Nintendo has not confirmed it. Master Quest, the harder remix of the dungeons, came on a GameCube bonus disc in 2002 in Japan and 2003 in North America, and was part of the 3DS version. Nintendo’s store page for the Switch 2 remake does not mention it.

Can I still play the original Ocarina of Time?

Yes. The N64 original is part of the Nintendo 64 library in Nintendo Switch Online with the Expansion Pack, playable on Switch and Switch 2. The 3DS version can no longer be bought digitally, because the 3DS eShop closed in March 2023.

How much is the Ocarina of Time remake?

Nintendo lists the digital version at $59.99. It needs a Nintendo Switch 2, takes 24.9 GB of storage and is rated E10+ by the ESRB.

Which version of Ocarina of Time should a child play?

The remake. Voice acting, a modern jump and camera, and aiming with buttons or motion make it easier to follow than the N64 original. Like the ESRB, our age guide puts the line at ten, with a parent nearby for the darker second half.