The new content revealed for The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time

Nintendo recently presented its next major project for this year, Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time. It’s a new, faithful remake of the original game that introduced the series into the 3D lands of Hyrule Kingdom. 

While Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time will faithfully portray its original predecessor, it will bring various new additions to improve gameplay. Several new features were shown during the Legend of Zelda Direct to either enhance the in-game immersion or gameplay controls. It will be available digitally and physically for its official launch on November 5, 2026.

Graphical fidelity 

The overall graphics have greatly shifted to become more detailed. Everything in Hyrule Kingdom received a massive overhaul, especially Link with his new outfit and gear. 

The newest addition for this particular entry is voice acting, which wasn’t very present in the original game beyond Navi’s attentive presence. This gives the overall cast of characters more personality, especially Saria and Darunia.

New gameplay actions

With the newly designed Hyrule Kingdom comes new control schemes. Link can now dash and jump freely, providing more convenience to explore the large Hyrule Fields rather than rolling constantly like a Goron in the original.

The new game also provides a convenient option for Link to equip items. It functions similarly to Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild, letting Link quickly switch between available items before jumping back into action.

Camera perspective

Camera control is a lot more convenient for the remade Ocarina of Time. Rather than spamming the lock-on button in the original game, Link can now move the camera freely to view his surroundings. It’s even possible to position the camera for a top-down perspective.

Another new modern feature is motion controls. This lets Link aim more accurately with certain gear, like the Slingshot and Bow and Arrow.

New time shift in city

Time functions differently in the latest Ocarina of Time iteration. Instead of stopping time in certain locations, like the original, time will progress anywhere between nightfall and daybreak.

Specific events will occur at certain time periods, which is why Link needs to use valuable songs to control the time of day. The Sun’s Song is one of the tunes that will greatly benefit Link for finding different quests.

Nintendo Switch 2 microphone

Audio Input is the newest confirmed feature utilizing the Nintendo Switch 2 microphone. When activated, players can hum or sing a tune to make Link play his ocarina, which also lets Navi dance.

It functions as another option for playing one of Link’s various tunes, like the Sun’s Song. It’s also possible to use Audio Input with an instrument, including the upcoming Legend of Zelda Ocarina of Time Playable Ocarina by Hasbro.

Threads of Time

Story progression is a lot easier to recognize for the new Zelda remake with its new feature, Threads of Time. It records accepted quests to make game completion easier and more convenient.

After completing certain quests, an in-game Tapestry gets filled in with new designs. It’s possible to keep track of the tapestry through gameplay or a mobile app.

Zelda Notes

Zelda Notes is a mobile app that mainly functioned for the latest canonical Legend of Zelda games until this year. It will also welcome Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time with multiple exclusive features, such as Today’s Records for recording achievements. 

Similar to its eligible games, there will be certain interactive features, like Gossip Quests for visiting specific in-game locations for digital points and Play Ocarina for playing a digital Ocarina to create and share music. There’s also an Ocarina of Time Quiz, featuring over 2000 daily questions relating to The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time. More features will be available for the game’s launch, such as Photo Studio and Hall of Fallen Foes.

Amiibo

Of course, there are brand new amiibo for the game: Young Link and Young Zelda. The new pair features the latest designs for Princess Zelda, Link, and Navi too.

When scanning the new amiibos for The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time, they unlock in-game masks for the retro Link and Princess Zelda. They won’t be available until 2027, so Nintendo will present more news before the official launch.

Brandon Williams

Brandon has played games ever since the PS2 like Ape Escape, Rampage Total Destruction, and Crash Bandicoot. His love for RPGs would only grow once he played Persona 3, which made him try other immersive games like Shin Megami Tensei Nocturne and Xenoblade Chronicles. He continues to play on modern consoles like PS4 and Nintendo Switch 2.