The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time never gets old

<figure> <img alt="A screenshot from the video game The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time." data-caption="" data-portal-copyright="Image: Nintendo" data-has-syndication-rights="1" src="https://platform.theverge.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2026/11/NS2_TheLegendofZeldaOcarinaofTime_scrn_02.png?quality=90&#038;strip=all&#038;crop=0,0,100,100" /> <figcaption> </figcaption> </figure> <p class="has-drop-cap wp-block-paragraph"><em>Breath of the Wild</em> changed everything. Two decades after <em>The Legend of Zelda</em> made the transformational shift to 3D, <a href="https://www.theverge.com/2017/3/2/14787082/the-legend-of-zelda-breath-of-the-wild-review"><em>Breath of the Wild</em> reinvigorated the franchise</a> with an open-ended adventure that was built around player freedom and expression. Instead of following a set path, players could go wherever they wanted and tackle challenges in a variety of ways. That philosophy filtered down to subsequent games, letting players author their own creative solutions to puzzles in titles like <a href="https://www.theverge.com/23718926/zelda-tears-of-the-kingdom-review-nintendo-switch"><em>Tears of the Kingdom</em></a> and <a href="https://www.theverge.com/24253919/the-legend-of-zelda-echoes-of-wisdom-review-nintendo-switch"><em>Echoes of Wisdom</em></a>. As a result, <a href="https://www.theverge.com/column/1022402/new-zelda-and-gta-represent-a-games-industry-that-no-longer-exists"><em>Zelda</em> has never been bigger</a>, and the traditional, more linear <em>Zelda</em> games had become a thing of the past …</p> <p><a href="https://www.theverge.com/games/1025415/the-legend-of-zelda-ocarina-of-time-review-nintendo-switch-2">Read the full story at The Verge.</a></p>