Video games don’t always have the best lifespans. They’re a bit like strawberries or whatever fruit you prefer. When they’re ripe, they’re wonderful, but after a while, well … best to move on to something newer.
Not so with Ocarina of Time, which feels as inspiring and fresh now as it did over a decade ago. It also looks absolutely wonderful in its 3DS incarnation.
Yeah, I know. It’s a classic. Blah blah blah. Re-release. Blah blah blah. And, to a certain extent, I agree: Nintendo has been relying perhaps too heavily on their classics as of late. But I counter with this: These games are classics for a reason.
Especially Ocarina of Time.
The story told here is the same you remember. Exploration! Adventure! Trying but failing to kill the persistently annoying Navi! Defeat the evil Ganondorf!
The 3DS version of OoT gives the game a major graphical boost, to boot. Characters looks crisp and vibrant. Alive versus the woodenness of the original.
The controls have also obviously been reworked. This is not going to be a problem for anyone, I don’t think, but the game did seem to play better with that weird old N64 controller of yesteryear.
(I’ve found the 3DS remapping to be great, though the number of items you can map is down from three to two — but to balance this out, there are two items that can be activated from slots on the touchscreen.)
And I suppose I should say something about the 3D there in the headline. Well .. it’s nice? I do think that Ocarina of Time does far and away a better job with 3D than anything else yet on the system (I’m also tempted to give that award to Resident Evil: The Mercenaries), but I’m not the world’s biggest fan of 3D to begin with. Again, it’s definitely done well here, but the gimmick is neither necessary nor the attraction.
Being able to play OoT on your 3DS is the attraction, and seeing it with those significantly upgraded graphics is the attraction. It’s a brilliant game that reminds you of being an adventurous kid in a wide open world.
It’s a true joy.
Final Grade: A
The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time 3D is rated E 10+ and is available for the 3DS.
