Nintendo Pays Homage to Original 1998 Commercial for The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time in New Remake Trailer

Nintendo has released a new The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time remake trailer that pays homage to the 1998 commercial for the N64 masterpiece — and we’ve got a comparison video showing just how close it is to the original.

Cast your mind back to 1998 and you might remember seeing a commercial for Ocarina of Time that had phrases like “A dark time is approaching,” “Willst thou run?” and “Have ye what it takes?” It’s an iconic advert that certainly got my teenage blood pumping at the time.

Now, Nintendo has recreated the advert in a new trailer for the Ocarina of Time remake. It features some of the same shots and even some of the same language. “Willst thou flee? Or Fight?” the trailer asks, leaning heavily on nostalgia as Link encounters Ganondorf on his horse — just as we see him do in the original trailer.

Check out a comparison in the video below.

Reaction to the new trailer has been overwhelmingly positive, with warm memories of weekends spent in the glow of a CRT television successfully rekindled. “THEY DID THE TRAILER THING OMG,” one person said. “NO WAY THEY DID IT,” another added. “THY WILL PREORDER AS SOON AS THY GETS PAYDAY,” one fan joked.

There is one major difference though: Nintendo’s recreation does not include the custom-recorded version of the track "Riddle of Steel / Riders of Doom" from the 1982 film Conan the Barbarian, as the original trailer did. Music rights!

Marketing for the Ocarina of Time remake has ramped up, with Nintendo releasing a number of new commercials ahead of the game’s November launch. Nintendo recently released two new TV spots for Japan that, while brief, reveal a tantalizing glimpse at some never-before-seen characters, chief among them Dark Link.

As Nintendo has pulled back the curtain on The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time remake, we’ve begun to get a better understanding of how this Nintendo Switch 2 exclusive will look and feel to play. IGN has already got you covered with an extensive hands-on preview, as well as a roundup of all the changes we’ve noticed so far compared to the N64 masterpiece.

The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time remake launches on Nintendo Switch 2 on November 5, 2026. While you wait, check out a special episode of Nintendo Voice Chat where we dive deeper into our Zelda preview.