Unsurprisingly, such a remake of 1998’s legendary The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time is something that fans have been pining for for a long time, but would Nintendo ever actually do something along those lines? Interestingly enough, it doesn’t seem to be completely out of the question.

In a recent interview with Game Informer, when asked about a potential remake of Ocarina of Time, series producer Eiji Aonuma – who was also co-director on the 1998 title – simply laughed and said, “no comment.” Obviously, that isn’t confirmation by any means, but as we’ve seen so often, refusal to comment is often enough of a comment to spark speculation in and of itself.

Little is known about what the future holds for The Legend of Zelda in the wake of Tears of the Kingdom’s launch earlier this year. Though DLC for the open world title isn’t planned, when it comes to the series’ next game, it will supposedly be something “completely new”, which means it won’t be a follow-up to Tears of the Kingdom. You also shouldn’t expect to see the Ultrahand ability making a return.

Meanwhile, a live action Zelda movie was also confirmed to be in the works last month. For fans of Studio Ghibli’s works, its director, Wes Bell, wants it to be like “a live-action Miyazaki” film.

The finalists were selected over Assassin’s Creed, Candy Crush Saga, Minesweeper, NBA Jam, PaRappa the Rapper, Resident Evil, Rogue, and Words with Friends.

Considered one of the best games of all time, The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time has entered the Hall of Fame as a first-time nominee, with Sid Meier’s Civilization, one of the most influential strategy games to date, was named as a finalist back in 2016, and then again in 2019. Finally, arcade classic Ms. Pac-Man and cultural phenomenon Dance Dance Revolution have both also been shortlisted before, but have now broken into the Hall of Fame at long last.

All four games will be joining titles such as Super Mario Bros., Doom, Mortal Kombat, Tetris, and Animal Crossing in the Hall of Fame.

As for the Nintendo 64’s line-up, fans can look forward to Super Mario 64, WinBack, The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time and other titles coming at launch. Other titles will be added over time, including F-Zero X and The Legend of Zelda: Majora’s Mask. The plan launches in late October and though pricing hasn’t been announced, current Nintendo Switch Online subscribers can upgrade to it.

If that weren’t enough, Nintendo is also releasing special Nintendo 64 and Sega Genesis controllers to recapture the magic of playing these games. Both feature wireless functionality though again, pricing and availability dates haven’t been announced. Stay tuned for more details in the coming months.

Play a growing library of Nintendo 64 and SEGA Mega Drive games anytime, anywhere with #NintendoSwitchOnline + Expansion Pack, a new membership launching in late October. pic.twitter.com/8lmc3b9xTj

— Nintendo of Europe (@NintendoEurope) September 23, 2021

The game is now touted to be 91% complete, following which the game will be converted into code that is native to the PC. Of course, it’s by no means an effortless PC port of the game – however the game may be ported at a later date. Another N64 classic, Super Mario 64 was also decompiled in a similar fashion and received full modding support.

Fans who wish to play the classic can obviously do so with the use of emulators on mobile phones as well as computers. Fans are still clamoring for a full-fledged remake of the classic and were hopeful of some news since 2021 marks the franchise’s 35th anniversary, but Nintendo has stated that no new Zelda surprises are planned for this year.

Right now, the wait is on for the next entry in the Zelda series, the much anticipated and as of now untitled sequel to The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild. We know next to nothing about that the game at this point, and it almost certainly will not release this year by the look of things. Well, in the meantime, another curious thing has popped up about the franchise that could point to another classic entry.

As noted by Twitter user Kelios, a new trademark has been registered by Nintendo for their classic game, The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time. While something like this is usually not noteworthy, it is curious to note that this is not a renewal, but seems to be an entirely different trademark.

What does that mean? Well, it could mean nothing as trademarks are often registered and renewed pretty frequently with no real plans in the work. If you want to be an optimistic person, it could point to the game being potentially inbound for the Switch relatively soon.

The game received a well-received remake on the 3DS (as well as it’s sequel, Majora’s Mask), so it’s not outside the realm of possibly that game could be ported over to the Switch. Wouldn’t be too bad a plan in what looks to be a long wait for the Breath of the Wild sequel, so fingers crossed this means something and isn’t just a random filing.

En Australie aussi pic.twitter.com/gCHJLui9O6

— Kelios (@KeliosFR) July 27, 2020

Cloud Strife – Final Fantasy 7 to Final Fantasy 7 Remake

The iconic Cloud Strife from Final Fantasy 7 will be making his return soon in the remake. However, the process behind his iconic look is interesting – the spiky hair was meant as a contrast to antagonist Sephiroth but also to keep the polygon count low. Final Fantasy 7: Advent Children – and by extension Crisis Core – saw Cloud have a realistic design for the first time with defined hair and facial features. Numerous models were used to capture different expressions and Cloud’s general attire combined elements of his old outfit with a darker, more contemporary look. The overall aim was to showcase how much time had passed in the world and how the guilt of losing Aerith weighed down on him.

In Final Fantasy 7 Remake, Cloud once again sports a more realistic look in keeping with the game’s high fidelity approach. His hair and facial expressions are more defined; the overall outfit has a darker look in keeping with Advent Children; and several elements like the waistband, baggy pants and boots are toned down to look more proportionally accurate. Regardless, this is Cloud Strife through and through.

Doom Marine/Slayer – Doom 1 to Doom Eternal

Though mostly represented as the gun mowing down demon hordes, the Doom Marine or Doomguy had a distinctive design. A helmet covering his entire face, save for a visor over his eyes; chest armor with short sleeves; and the signature green shade adorned the entire set. It was iconic and meant to represent the Marine as a human facing overwhelming odds. Doom 2 didn’t make any major changes to this design. The older games emphasized sprites over full 3D models and this was reflected in whatever we saw of Doomguy.

In Doom 3, however, the human aspect of the Marine was emphasized more, showcasing his face fully. The clothing is more distinct from the armor (he now wears a separate t-shirt below the same); the ab window below the chest plate is covered up; and the pauldrons are more accentuated. All of this to reinforce the Marine being prepared but not overwhelmingly powerful, perfect for the game’s survival horror approach. The Marine was packing an estimated 4400 to 5000 polygons and id Tech 4 allowed for real-time light computation, MegaTextures and shadow volumes to bring the world to life in a creepier way.

With DOOM in 2016, id Software made significant changes to the protagonist. Known as the Doom Slayer now, he had full-body armor with more plating, weathered textures, darker shades of green, and a significantly taller build. It fit well with the Slayer’s motif of being an unstoppable badass that could shred entire armies of demons. The game was developed on id Tech 6 which sported physically based rendering, SMAA and TSSAA anti-aliasing, bokeh depth of field and HDR among many other features, with the aesthetic feeling more heavy metal and visceral than previous titles. Ample amounts of gore and hellish landscapes never looked better.

DOOM Eternal takes the same design, bulks up the Slayer further and adds new weapons like the shoulder mounted cannon and arm-blade. There’s also a return to the classic short sleeves worn by previous Marines.

Jill Valentine – Resident Evil to Resident Evil 3 Remake

An abject professional at heart and in stature, Jill Valentine was designed by director Shinji Mikami and designer Isao Oishi as an anti-thesis to overly sexualized characters. Sporting tactical boots, gloves and a beret, Jill is as no-nonsense as they come. It’s interesting to note that her outfit in Resident Evil 3 received some criticism at the time for going against Mikami’s initial philosophy.

In the HD remake of Resident Evil 1, Jill’s likeness was based on actor/model Julia Voth. This likeness would define Jill’s look for a number of titles including Resident Evil 5, which saw her undergo the most radical change in design yet. Though the shock value of Jill’s return was palpable – especially with the set-up for her apparent demise – many fans reacted negatively to her form-fitting outfit and blonde hair. Resident Evil: Revelations would see Jill adopting a wet-suit in keeping with the infiltration of the Queen Zenobia cruise ship while retaining aspects of her original design. Perhaps the most surprising bit was seeing her with a ponytail instead of the trademark cropped hair.

In the upcoming Resident Evil 3 remake, Jill’s design has changed once again. Model Sasha Zotova provides her likeness, offering a harsher touch to Jill’s expressions. While the clothes have been kept casual, the darker colours, combat boots and tactical gloves reinforce Jill’s status as a former special ops soldier. The RE Engine also provides more freedom for additional details like dirt, grime, cuts, bruises and sweat. How Jill’s demeanor and overall character will change remains to be seen but so far, the design is in keeping with her original approach.

Master Chief – Halo: Combat Evolved to Halo Infinite

It’s easy to underestimate just how many changes Chief’s attire has gone through in the years. This is explained in-universe as upgrades to the Mjolnir Armor. Master Chief was first designed by Bungie developer Robert McLees, art director Marcus Lehto and concept artist Shi Kai Wang. After receiving some more muscle, the Chief would receive his trademark green shade and we got the motorcycle helmet-esque wearing marine in Halo: Combat Evolved.

Halo 2 saw the armor gain much more definition, both in terms of details, texture quality and polygon count. Instead of bright green, Bungie opted for a darker shade. This was carried over into Halo 3 where the armor looked more singular as opposed to a variety of armor sections. Improvements to lighting gave more definition to all of the details, and it felt like the Chief had truly made a generational leap. Then 343 Industries took over the franchise with Halo 4 releasing in 2012.

If Master Chief wasn’t a space marine before, it was heavily reinforced this time. His armor was highly detailed with several more components and looked to have Kevlar weaved into the mesh. Eventually, this gave way to a more streamlined design in Halo 5: Guardians. The overall tone felt less busy and seemingly a combination of the designs in Halo 3 and 4.

With Halo Infinite, 343 Industries is making a rather interesting return to the Mark VI armor from Halo 2 and 3. The green tint is more vibrant than before and the shoulder pads are more defined than Bungie’s iterations. But this feels, once again, like a natural evolution of Chief’s design from the older games.

Link – The Legend of Zelda to The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild 2

The Legend of Zelda is an amalgamation of timelines, alternate universes and reincarnations. However, throughout it all, the hero Link has always maintained his signature blond hair and green tunic. Designed by Shigeru Miyamoto, Link started out as a simple sprite in a top-down perspective. He gained more detail and colour in Zelda 2: The Adventure of Link, mostly due to the game’s side-scrolling nature, but The Legend of Zelda: A Link to the Past returned to the top-down perspective with a much more defined sprite with more colours.

From there, Link would see a number of design changes depending on the game. The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time saw the hero in full 3D for the first time and, as a contrast to previous adventures, featured an adult version with sharper facial features and a white undershirt and pants. The Wind Waker depicted Link with a cel-shaded style channeling the animated style and energy of the adventure with complex facial expressions and animations. Games like The Minish Cap would channel this style, emulating Link’s bright blond hair. Link’s model was about 2600 to 2800 polygons – this would be quickly surpassed by Twilight Princess, which saw our hero in a mature form right off the bat. His overall outfit was a darker shade of green with more defined gauntlets and even brownish blond hair.

For Skyward Sword, Link was a teenager but his outfit returned to the bright green shades of yore while his gauntlets were replaced by gloves. The overall aesthetic was more fantastical as opposed to the gritty atmosphere of Twilight Princess while borrowing some cel-shading from The Wind Waker. Brighter colours to reflect the game’s emphasis on the sky.

It’s interesting when you look at Breath of the Wild – Link’s design went through a number of changes including variants of the blue tunic that eventually made it in. Cel-shading was applied again, giving the world a more stylized animated feel without going over the top like The Wind Waker. With the upcoming Breath of the Wild sequel, Nintendo seems keen on replicating the same look, with Zelda taking some cues from it as well, perhaps hinting at her being a playable character.

While Zelda as a series hasn’t always been super-popular in Japan – relative to its popularity in the west, it doesn’t do that great in the land of the rising sun, and the past few entries have underperformed there – Breath of the Wild has reversed that trend, becoming the first game in the series to cross a million units sold in 20 years.

Now, it’s crossed another major landmark. With the sales of the Switch and Wii U versions combined, Breath of the Wild is now the highest selling 3D Zelda game of all time. As ResetEra notes, with 1.258 million units sold, it has narrowly edged out Ocarina of Time, which has so far held the record with 1.257 million units sold. Bear in mind that this doesn’t count any remasters or re-releases on other platforms (and similarly, it doesn’t account for digital sales of Breath of the Wild on either Wii U or Switch).

It’s a notable achievement, and signals the newfound popularity of the franchise around the world.

Note: The views expressed in this article are those of the author and do not necessarily represent the views of, and should not be attributed to, GamingBolt as an organization

Never Giving Up

As in life, video games can present many frustrations. There may be a boss whose patterns you’ve figured out but still can’t beat. There may be that one mission in every Call of Duty (for us, it’s that damn Nightmares mode in Black Ops 3) which you beat your head against again and again. But at the end of the day, you never give up and never give in. Even when everything seems lost.

After yesterday’s Final Fantasy Uncovered event held by Square Enix to show off the game that they have been working on for ten years now in all of its glory, the Twitter account for the title took to sharing some more snippets of information.

The most important thing that we got from these Tweets is that Square Enix is trying to create a vast world, a universe that players can lose themselves in entirely. “The FFXV Universe was created to make the main game FFXV better and create a world people want to get lost in,” the Twitter account said. The inspiration for this, the account added, came from Nintendo’s 1998 seminal action adventure game, The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time. “The inspiration behind the seamless open world in FFXV is The Legend of Zelda Ocarina of Time,” the account said.

Final Fantasy 15 is due out on September 30 this year on Xbox One and PlayStation 4.

Some of the other sales figures of note include Super Mario 3D Land selling 8.29 million units, Mario Kart 7 selling 8.08 million units, The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time 3D selling 2.95 million units and Luigi’s Mansion: Dark Moon selling 1.22 million units. Overall, not a bad run of sales (but seriously, less than 3 million for Ocarina of Time? Sacrilege!)

Let’s not forget Animal Crossing: New Leaf, which is currently only available in Japan but is on its way to selling 4 (!) million units. The title will be making its way to North America and Europe soon, so we expect larger sales in the coming months.