Zelda: Ocarina of Time - this is what a remake for Switch should look like

Zelda

First of all: I'm going to explain in a moment what I would like for a remake of The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time, after a few weeks ago I argued that remakes and remasters are a mistake. But as noted back then: Just because I am generally skeptical about new editions doesn't mean that I find all remasters and remakes bad. The dichotomy is strong in this one!

Table of Contents

1 Not again! 2 Second choice 3 Nintendo makes everything new 4 New building instead of renovation 5 Brave old world 6 Once with bombast, please 7 The Legend of Will-probably-Nix Anyway, Ocarina of Time: Recently there were rumors again that the game - together with other series parts - for the Nintendo Switch is to be implemented. In which way, i.e. maximally lazy as in the case of Super Mario 3D All-Stars, as an HD version of the 3DS remake or as a completely new remake, is not yet clear.

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About the author

The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time - this is what a remake for Switch should look like (9) Source: Lukas Schmid Lukas Schmid has been working at Computec Media in various positions since 2010 and thus at PC Games, first as an intern, then as a freelancer, then as a volunteer, editor and now as chief editor for pcgames.de, videogameszone.de, gamesaktuell.de and gamezone.de. He loves action, adventure, action adventures, shooters, jump & runs, horror and role-playing games, you can hunt him with strategy titles, most rogue likes and military simulations. Every Saturday at around 9 a.m. he tells you in his column what is annoying or happy about him. Hate comments and love letters in the comments under the column, to [email protected] or on Twitter to @Schmid_Luki.

Not again!

The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time - this is what a remake for Switch should look like (2) Source: Nintendo First of all: A simple new edition of the original without adjustments, I can do without that. It is long overdue anyway for N64 games to finally become part of Nintendo Switch Online and, like the titles, be available there free of charge for NES and SNES subscribers. I have Ocarina of Time on I don't know how many platforms, I don't need one more if the adventure is not included in the price of the Switch Online subscription. So the provision of the original on Nintendo Switch Online and at the same time the publication of a more complex new edition, I would have nothing, and I think the cannibalization effect would then also be negligible - the original included in the package is intended for nostalgics and those interested, the extended version for everyone else.

Second choice

The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time - this is what a remake for Switch should look like (3) Source: Nintendo Better, but not exactly what I want: the one 3DS version, only with HD resolution and without the support of a second and only moderately necessary (touch) screen. That would be a step forward, especially since the handheld version contains some very useful improvements - I'm just saying Eisenboots. The fact that you don't have to go to the menu to get dressed like you did on the N64 is a dream, the bossrush mode is nice and so is the master quest mode with changed dungeons I was disenchanted with the original 3DS release. Sure, it looks a lot better than the original. By slavishly adhering to its style, apparently because one was afraid of being too invasive to work on a masterpiece that is still so highly regarded today, it was held back in terms of artistic potential.

This also applies and much more to the gameplay. As I said, there were a few useful adjustments, but apart from that, the game felt more like a remaster than a remake 95 percent of the time. Just don't offend anyone by changing even the smallest things to bring the game up to standards that are clearly advanced! Majora's Mask 3D was much more daring, obviously because the N64 sequel is also loved, but is not on this somewhat problematic pedestal.

Everything new is made by Nintendo

The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time - this is what a remake for Switch should look like (4) Source: PC Games So these are the things I don't want, but what do I want now? From the last paragraph it was already clear: I would like to see a lot more courage and will to throw things overboard. So basically I want a reinterpretation rather than a remake.

If I want to experience Ocarina of Time, then I have enough opportunities to do so, and I don't need another almost unchanged version. When it came to Super Mario 64 on the Switch, when it wasn't clear yet that it would be a simple remaster, I dreamed of ideas like 120 additional stars, new worlds, an expanded repertoire of movements, Luigi as an optional character - things that would transform the classic and brought them closer to the new generation. That this is possible was shown by the heavily revised Super Mario 64 DS, which was ultimately only held back by the weak hardware of the Nintendo DS and the missing analog stick.

New building instead of renovation

The Legend of Zelda : Ocarina of Time - this is what a remake for Switch should look like (5) Source: Nintendo So then: Use the bulldozer, not the file! Send me to the first dungeon, the Deku tree, and suddenly give me another item that didn't exist in the original; places a new boss on the upper world who suddenly attacks me; makes the fabled Temple of Light real; let me find the Triforce and implement the original idea of ​​Zelda inventor Shigeru Miyamoto, who imagined a final boss fight in which you climb up a kilometer-high Ganon in the style of Shadow of the Colossus.

In short: Let no stone unturned! When it comes to the consequence of the change, I think of the often overlooked, but really damn good Silent Hill: Shattered Memories. In essence, it is a remake of the first part of the horror series, but in reality it has little in common with this one. You recognize individual elements and the rough process is the same, but in the end you experience a very own, smartly written and really unique experience.

This would basically even carry my basic aversion to remakes and remaster episodes, because a Ocarina of Time of this type would not be a substitute for the original, but, like Shattered Memories, would actually be something completely new.

Brave old world

The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time - so should look like a remake for Switch (6) Source: Nintendo I already mentioned it, the graphics should also get a drastic makeover, similar to Zelda: Link's Awakening for Switch, but trimmed to be realistic. Here I am of the opinion that the general tone of the original should be retained, but not slavishly. Blocky shapes, simple structures and the like from the original are not necessarily aspects that need to be retained, but are due to the fact that Ocarina of Time is now 23 years old. 3D gaming was only a few years old at the time, it was still in the discovery phase.

Per se, I wouldn't necessarily have anything against it if the Breath of the Wilds engine was used for the remake, but I think something independent would be better. When I think of how I ride a realistic link to Epona over a much expanded and much more interactive level of Hyrule, while a thunderstorm rages around me and in the distance, briefly lit by a striking lightning strike, the outlines of the walls of the With the castle of Hyrule on the horizon, a pleasant shiver runs down my spine.

One bombast, please

The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time - this is what a remake for Switch should look like (8) Source: Nintendo And that brings us to the last point: the presentation and, in combination with it, the story. I don't see any great need to expand it drastically. Held saves princess from villains in a fantasy realm, that is as simple as it is timeless, especially since Ocarina of Time lives to a large extent from the sometimes very quirky characters that populate Hyrule. I'm thinking of the marathon runner or the creepy scientist at Lake Hylia.

The presentation, however, would have to be turned around a lot. Breath of the Wild has taken the first important steps in the right direction. And now: Bring on the high-quality, bombastic cutscenes! Voice output for all characters (except for Link, which would also be a nice surprise)! Orchestral soundtrack! And with these means you tell the well-known story, maybe add a few details, and have an adventure that ideally picks up both long-established fans and inspires a new, younger audience.

The Legend of Nothing Will

Will all of this happen? I am afraid not. I'm pretty sure that we will welcome Ocarina of Time at Switch 2021, but then just in the standard version, along with a few other parts of the series and of course a nice 60 euro sticker on the cover. Hardly any effort is required, it will still sell tens of millions of times and it just fits into the scheme of what Nintendo has been doing in recent years.

But deep down, I hope that Nintendo will surprise everyone once and for all by not doing exactly what everyone expects. You will probably still be able to dream ...

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