An official description of the new remake for The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time has been unearthed, suggesting that Nintendo won’t be making any gameplay changes.
When developers make a remake of a game, it’s usually an opportunity to add new mechanics, different approaches to some content, etc. Because if the improvement of the game is predominantly visual, then we are closer to a remaster than a remake.
Case in point with the recently announced remake of a Nintendo classic The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time it might be closer to that definition of a remaster than a full remake. Namely, a description was dug up from Nintendo’s website, which reads:
“Experience Ocarina of Time with stunning visuals, updated design and timeless gameplay.”
The timeless gameplay here sounds like Nintendo is not planning to introduce new mechanics or systems from later Zelda titles in the Ocarina remake. But that doesn’t necessarily mean that they won’t use the opportunity to modernize something in that gameplay. In certain segments, Ocarina of Time is still an archaic game – for example, it doesn’t even have free camera control.
In any case, Nintendo is clear in their communication and they say this is “classic N64 remakeHowever, we have yet to hear what exactly will be changed and improved in that reworking.