Ever wondered what it'd be like to replay Ocarina of Time and notice a bunch of sneaky changes? Well, that's exactly what happened when I got hands-on with the remake on Switch 2 for over an hour.
As someone who's beaten the N64 original multiple times, I spotted tons of little tweaks that reveal the thought process behind rebuilding this classic. Altered puzzles fit modern controls better, miniboss fights got a fresh coat of paint, and new shortcuts plus context clues make getting around way more intuitive. With the November 5 release date creeping up, here are some of the most notable differences I found.
Starting in Kokiri Forest, your wallet now holds 200 rupees from the get-go—no more 99-rupee limit. Those stone platforms near the shop? They no longer hide a secret five rupees; instead, blue rupees are scattered around. There's also a new scarecrow training dummy by the shop counter, where a villager teaches you about raising defenses. And the Kokiri Sword challenge got a makeover: the chest now sits high on a central platform, so you jump to it rather than fiddling with the camera.
Inside the Great Deku Tree, that disappointing recovery heart in the slingshot room is now a few Deku Nuts. Skulltulas also behave differently—whacking them with your sword sends them spinning, exposing their weak spot. It's all about logic: you trigger the opening, it's not given to you.
Hyrule Field feels more alive. Lon Lon Ranch is no longer a walled fortress; you can see horses grazing from outside. Peahats, once relegated to corners, now appear more centrally. I even spotted a cracked ground piece that screams "bomb me"—a much clearer hint at a secret cave than the original's invisible entrances. And that new sign outside Castle Town? It just points to landmarks, not deep lore.
Castle Town got a huge upgrade: full third-person camera control, no fixed angles, and seamless walking from the entrance to the Temple of Time without loading screens. A new blonde NPC warns you not to blow all your rupees at the market—hopefully she has a quest later.
Finally, the Forest Temple has significant puzzle changes. The entrance now uses a traditional hookshot target instead of a tree branch. Similar to the Great Deku Tree's eyeball target, it seems the remake wants to teach item usage on recognizable objects. These are just some of the 29 changes I noticed, and there's plenty more to discover when the game launches.
What do you think of these changes? Will you be picking up the Ocarina of Time remake on Switch 2?
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