Nintendo has officially kicked off the celebrations for 40 years of The Legend of Zelda with a special Zelda-focused Nintendo Direct.
Coming in at around 30 minutes, the presentation was considerably more focused than a traditional Nintendo Direct, with Nintendo using the anniversary to look back at the history of the series while showing off a huge amount of new information surrounding The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time on Nintendo Switch 2.
There were also updates on the upcoming live-action movie, a new Zelda-themed Switch 2, anniversary merchandise, a worldwide concert tour, Nintendo Museum celebrations and plenty more.
But it was Ocarina of Time that ultimately stole the show.
Check out all of the announcements from the Zelda 40th Anniversary Direct below.
The Legend of Zelda 40th Anniversary
Nintendo opened the presentation with a new orchestral arrangement celebrating four decades of The Legend of Zelda.
It was a fitting way to start the presentation, immediately reminding fans just how much the series’ music has become part of gaming history before Nintendo moved into the announcements themselves.
And while this wasn’t a traditional Nintendo Direct packed with dozens of games, Nintendo had plenty planned for Zelda’s 40th anniversary.
The Legend of Zelda Live-Action Movie
The upcoming live-action The Legend of Zelda movie received an update, with Nintendo officially confirming its title.
Rather appropriately, the movie will simply be called The Legend of Zelda.
Nintendo also confirmed that the film will release worldwide on April 30, 2027.
Shigeru Miyamoto explained that the movie is an original story drawing from the stories, ideas and concepts that have been developed across the Zelda series over the past 40 years.
Unfortunately, we didn’t get our first look at footage from the movie during the Direct. Nintendo did confirm that more information will be shared through the Nintendo Today! app.
Nintendo Museum Gets Some Zelda Updates
The Nintendo Museum in Kyoto is also getting involved in the 40th anniversary celebrations.
Starting September 9, visitors will be able to receive a special The Legend of Zelda 40th anniversary ticket design.
A new Zelda-themed photo opportunity featuring the Master Sword will also be added to the museum from November 5, coinciding with the release of Ocarina of Time.
Nintendo also confirmed that the new Super Family Restaurant will open at the museum in Fall 2026, giving visitors another way to experience Nintendo’s history beyond the museum exhibits.
The anniversary celebrations at the museum are planned to continue for an entire year.
New Zelda Merchandise
Nintendo also showed off a range of new Zelda merchandise, including something that feels particularly appropriate for an Ocarina of Time celebration.
Actual playable ocarinas are coming later this year.
There will be a traditional playable ocarina available through Nintendo, while HORI is also producing an electric version that can play individual notes or entire songs at the press of a button.
And yes, these aren’t just novelty items.
The new Ocarina of Time remake will actually make use of the Nintendo Switch 2’s built-in microphone. Players can hum one of the songs Link has learned, and the game will recognise the melody and have Link play it on his ocarina.
Nintendo also revealed a new LEGO set based on Ocarina of Time, featuring Adult Link and Epona.
The LEGO The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time – Link & Epona set contains 1,750 pieces and is scheduled to release in Spring 2027.
Hasbro is also releasing an Electronic Master Sword in Spring 2027. The 27-inch replica features more than 15 touch- and motion-activated sounds.
The Legend of Zelda 40th Anniversary Concert
If you’ve ever wanted to hear The Legend of Zelda soundtrack performed by a live orchestra, Nintendo has you covered.
A worldwide The Legend of Zelda 40th Anniversary Concert tour will begin in Japan in January 2027 before travelling internationally.
The Japanese tour begins in Tokyo in January, with the North American tour beginning in Chicago in February, the European tour starting in London in April and the Australian tour beginning in Melbourne in May.
Tickets are expected to go on sale later in September 2026.
It’s a fitting way to celebrate a franchise that has produced some of Nintendo’s most recognisable musical themes over the past four decades.
The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time Finally Gets Its Big Gameplay Reveal
And then we got to the main event.
Eiji Aonuma took over the presentation to show off an extended look at The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time for Nintendo Switch 2.
While Nintendo had previously announced the remake, this was the first time we’d really been able to see how the game has been rebuilt.
And honestly, it looks incredible.
Nintendo has completely rebuilt the game’s visuals, with every material receiving new textures and substantially more detail. Characters, environments, lighting and effects have all been modernised while still retaining the recognisable look and feel of Ocarina of Time.
Kokiri Forest, the Great Deku Tree, Hyrule Castle Town and Hyrule Field all look dramatically different from their Nintendo 64 counterparts.
The remake manages to retain the identity of the original game while finally giving Hyrule the visual fidelity that we’ve wanted to see from Ocarina of Time for decades.
In fact, purely from a visual perspective, this might be the best-looking game Nintendo has put on Switch 2 so far.
That’s obviously subjective, but after seeing the extended gameplay, it’s hard not to come away impressed. The combination of detailed environments, improved character models, modern lighting and much denser scenery makes Ocarina of Time look like a completely different game compared to the original.
More importantly, it doesn’t look like Nintendo has simply thrown a new coat of paint over the N64 game.
There are changes throughout the experience.
A Much More Modern Way to Play Ocarina of Time
One of the biggest changes is the camera.
The original Ocarina of Time was built around the limitations of the Nintendo 64 controller and its single analogue stick. The remake introduces full free-camera movement using the right stick.
This makes exploring Hyrule feel considerably more modern and should make combat and general navigation much more comfortable.
Link’s movement has also been reworked. For the first time, players can manually jump using a button.
In the original game, Link would automatically jump when approaching certain ledges or gaps. The remake keeps the spirit of that system while giving players much more direct control over his movement.
The game also features snappier actions, faster loading and smoother overall performance.
Aonuma also demonstrated motion controls for aiming weapons such as the Slingshot, giving players another option for controlling Link’s equipment.
The day/night cycle has been expanded too, with time continuing to pass in places where it previously stopped, including Hyrule Castle Town.
Nintendo has also added more environmental detail to areas that were originally little more than background scenery. It’s the sort of thing that sounds minor on paper, but when combined with the new camera and visual overhaul, it makes Hyrule feel much more like a fully realised world.
Fully Voiced Cutscenes and Expanded Dialogue
Another major change is the presentation of the story.
Characters now have fully voiced dialogue during cutscenes, with Nintendo also expanding the amount of dialogue throughout the game.
This is one of the biggest departures from the original Ocarina of Time, which famously relied on text boxes and character noises for its dialogue.
Nintendo is clearly trying to make the remake feel like a modern adventure while still keeping the story and structure of the original intact.
The game’s music has also been refreshed, with symphonic orchestral arrangements giving the classic soundtrack a much larger sound.
Considering how important music has always been to Ocarina of Time, this could end up being one of the remake’s biggest improvements.
Threads of Time
Nintendo also introduced a completely new feature called Threads of Time.
Essentially acting as a new way of tracking your adventure, Threads of Time allows players to see the progress they’ve made through the story and keep track of their current objective.
A large tapestry gradually fills in as Link progresses through the adventure.
It’s a particularly welcome addition for a game that originally expected players to remember where they needed to go next, and should make the remake considerably more accessible for newcomers without fundamentally changing the adventure.
You Can Now Hum Ocarina Songs
One of the stranger, but more entertaining, additions is the ability to actually hum the songs Link learns throughout his adventure.
Using the Nintendo Switch 2’s built-in microphone, players can hum one of the learned melodies and Link will play the corresponding song on his ocarina.
The new physical ocarinas will also work with the game.
It’s certainly not something that Ocarina of Time needed, but it is exactly the sort of fun little feature that fits the game perfectly.
Zelda Notes Gets Ocarina of Time Support
The remake will also be supported by ZELDA NOTES, the companion feature available through the Nintendo Switch app.
Players will be able to use several new features specifically designed around Ocarina of Time.
Today’s Record lets players keep track of their daily accomplishments and view statistics such as the number of enemies they’ve defeated.
Gossip Quest challenges players to find locations in the game using hint images displayed on their smart device. Completing these challenges earns points that can be used towards the virtual ocarina.
There’s also Play Ocarina, which lets players use their phone or tablet’s touchscreen as a virtual ocarina. Players can follow guides, have songs played automatically or create their own music scores and share them using QR codes.
Finally, there’s an Ocarina of Time quiz containing more than 2,000 questions, with players able to take on a new quiz each day.
Young Link and Young Zelda amiibo
Nintendo also announced two new amiibo based on Young Link and Young Zelda.
Both figures are scheduled to launch in 2027.
Scanning the figures will unlock special masks for Link based on the original Nintendo 64 character models, giving players the ability to bring the old-school look of Ocarina of Timeinto the new remake.
The Zelda 40th Anniversary Switch 2
Nintendo also revealed the first Zelda-themed Nintendo Switch 2.
The Nintendo Switch 2 – The Legend of Zelda – 40th Anniversary Edition features a black console and dock with gold Triforce detailing, along with Zelda-themed Joy-Con 2 controllers.
It will be joined by a matching Zelda 40th Anniversary Nintendo Switch 2 Pro Controller and a special carrying case with screen protector.
All of these products will launch on October 29, 2026, one week before Ocarina of Timearrives.
The special Switch 2 does not include a copy of the game, however, so anyone wanting the full anniversary setup will need to purchase Ocarina of Time separately.
The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time Release Date
After years of waiting, Nintendo finally gave us the release date.
Nintendo is also producing a special first-print physical edition featuring textured foil cover art on the packaging. This special packaging will only be available while supplies last.
It’s a surprisingly close release date, especially considering just how much Nintendo has changed and rebuilt for this remake.
That’s Everything From The Zelda 40th Anniversary Direct
The Ocarina of Time remake was clearly the star of the show, and after seeing the extended gameplay, it’s easy to understand why Nintendo dedicated so much of the presentation to it.
The visual overhaul is enormous, the new camera and movement systems bring the game much closer to modern Zelda, and features like Threads of Time, expanded dialogue, full voice acting and the microphone-powered ocarina add some genuinely interesting new ideas without appearing to fundamentally change the adventure that made the original so beloved.
And visually, this is a seriously impressive Switch 2 game. In my view, what Nintendo showed today looks better than anything we’ve seen running on the system so far. Whether it actually lives up to the legendary reputation of the original remains to be seen, but we won’t have to wait much longer to find out.
And with a new Zelda movie coming in April 2027, a worldwide concert tour, new amiibo, LEGO, merchandise and plenty of anniversary events, Nintendo clearly isn’t planning on letting the series’ 40th birthday pass quietly.
The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time launches on Nintendo Switch 2 on November 5, 2026.
You can check out the full Direct for yourself below:
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