The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time 3D (3DS Review) by Carl B.

The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time 3D
Publisher: Nintendo
Developer: Nintendo, Grezzo
System: Nintendo 3DS
Release: June 19, 2011

June 20, 2011, by Carl B. - On November 21, 1998, Nintendo released the first 3D Zelda adventure on the Nintendo 64. The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time had been in development for the better part of four years, seeing several delays and revamps to the project – if Nintendo released a batch of screenshots in July, the game would look completely different a few months later. When the game finally released, though, gamers experienced the closest thing to perfection in the history of the industry. On June 19, 2011, Nintendo released a completely re-mastered version of Link's classic adventure on the 3DS, but should this masterpiece have been tinkered with all these years later?

2D image of Nintendo 3DS game.
Ocarina of Time 3D is the exact same core game that released 13 years ago. Players take control of Link, a young boy living in the safe confines of the Kokiri Forest. Link is summoned by the Great Deku Tree, guardian of the forest, and is tasked with preventing Ganondorf, evil King of Thieves, from conquering all of Hyrule. Every memorable moment from the Nintendo 64 game is present in Ocarina of Time 3D, from first stepping out into Hyrule Field to the epic final battle with Ganon. This time, however, the game looks better than it ever did in 1998.

Every animation, texture, and character model has been completely redone. The game's world is the same as the N64 version, but without the blocky models and muddy textures of the original game. To put it simply, Ocarina of Time 3D is a gorgeous game. When comparing the two versions side by side, it's evident that Nintendo was able to better portray the game's official artwork with in-game character models with the powerful 3DS system. Both child and adult Link look very different from their Nintendo 64 counterparts.

Nintendo and co-developer Grezzo did a great job with fleshing out every little detail in the game to make Hyrule come to life even more than the original game was able to offer. In 1998, the Castle Town Market was composed of a pre-rendered, background image similar to Final Fantasy VII. In Ocarina of Time 3D, the Market is made up of full 3D models – no more blurry background images. Shops and houses have been given this treatment as well.

Pictured: Castle Town Market. 2D image of Nintendo 3DS game.
The best part about the revamped visuals is the impressive 3D effect. Out of every game released so far on the platform, the 3D here really shows off what the system is capable of. When the game originally released in 1998, it was amazing to see Death Mountain on the horizon of Hyrule Field and have the ability to walk over to it. With the 3DS remake, the vastness of Hyrule Field is truly realized, as objects on the horizon appear to be further away with the deep 3D effect. One of the coolest uses of 3D in the game comes in the form of particle effects, which fly out of the screen at the player.

Although the core game is 100% intact, Nintendo and Grezzo made several changes to make the experience more enjoyable in 2011. The biggest addition is the introduction of the touch screen item menu, HUD, and map system. Through a simple tap, players are able to assign their equipment to the Y or X buttons, or two virtual touch screen buttons. The ocarina is automatically placed on the lower left hand corner of the touch screen, so players won't have to waste a button with it. By far, the best part of this new inventory system is being able to assign the Iron Boots and Hover Boots to the virtual buttons, taking away the need to pause the game to switch them on or off. The HUD and map system is also entirely on the bottom screen, giving more room for the action on the top screen.

Inventory fixes aren't the only changes made with Ocarina of Time 3D. Even though I personally have never had problems with the dungeon, Nintendo went out of their way to make the Water Temple more accessible this time around. The dungeon itself relies heavily on adjusting water levels, and in the original game, there were no markers for the different water levels. This time around, there are color coded doors and pictures that show players which water level they're adjusting. Having the map on the bottom screen is also very handy not only for the Water Temple, but for all the dungeons in Ocarina of Time 3D.

2D image of Nintendo 3DS game.
Combat has remained mostly unchanged from the original version, so all the special attacks that were added in The Wind Waker and Twilight Princess aren't in Ocarina of Time 3D. Still, the game's Z-Targeting mechanic is second to none. It's amazing, really, that the game that invented the lock-on still does it better than many of today's games that mimic it.

The one altercation to combat makes use of the gyro sensors in the 3DS system. The Bow, Slingshot, Hookshot and other projectile based weapons in Ocarina of Time 3D can be controlled either by the Circle Pad or by moving the 3DS itself to aim. It actually feels really smooth, too, and it gives the player the ability to quickly aim and shoot at targets – aiming with gyro controls allowed me to beat the Shooting Gallery for the first time in the 13 years I've played Ocarina of Time. Moving the 3DS with the 3D slider on can break the effect, so it's recommended to move with the system and the image won't be broken. This is more of a design flaw with the system itself rather than with the game, as it works very well for aiming.

2D image of Nintendo 3DS game.
After beating the game for the first time, players will unlock Master Quest mode, which was on the GameCube port of Ocarina of Time. There have been a few changes to Master Quest in Ocarina of Time 3D: the world is now mirrored (similar to the Wii and GameCube versions of Twilight Princess) and all enemies do double damage. This means that an Iron Knuckle, which does four hearts in regular quest, will do eight hearts of damage in Master Quest. Naturally, all the dungeons are completely different from normal quest and are ultimately much harder.

A boss rush mode has also been incorporated, where players are able to take on the bosses they've beaten in their adventure. Boss rush does record the best times a player has beaten a boss, but there aren't any online leaderboards. For those who haven't played Ocarina of Time before, Nintendo has added hint movies in the form of Shiekah Stones that players can view If they get stuck in a particular part of the game.

The Verdict

Sound
14/15 - The soundtrack in Ocarina of Time 3D is the same version that was in the 1998 game, upon Koji Kondo's request. There is, however, one orchestrated soundtrack, which only makes me wish the entire soundtrack was re-mastered, no matter how amazing the midi tracks are.

Graphics
20/20 - It doesn't have the realism of the upcoming Resident Evil: The Mercenaries 3D, but Ocarina of Time 3D is still a gorgeous game. The 3D effect is very impressive – you won't want to turn it off.

Appeal
22/25 - The same core game is intact: fantastic dungeons, 100 gold skultulas, and every other original quest. This means that there's nothing really new for returning fans, other than the boss rush and Master Quest modes.

Gameplay
39/40 - The lock on system that the original game pioneered is still fantastic, and the new inventory system is genius. The game still holds its own after 13 years.

Overall
95/100 - Ocarina of Time 3D is a remake of the greatest game of all time, which begs the question: should Nintendo have even messed with this masterpiece? Anyone who has gone back and played Ocarina of Time on their Nintendo 64 will instantly know how amazing the core game is, but the visuals haven't aged as well. Ocarina of Time 3D solves this problem with flying colors, while making the game more accessible by 2011's standards. At this point, it's the definitive version of the best game ever.