Remake reveals Zora frozen beneath pond ice in adult timeline

Kotaku’s reviewer describes a major second-act alteration at Zora Domain in The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time Remake for Nintendo Switch 2; the game is rated Everyone 10+ for Animated Blood and Fantasy Violence.

The reviewer reached Zora Domain in the adult timeline after finishing the Fire Temple, expecting the area to mirror the original layout with only visual upgrades. Instead, adult Link can see Zora actively frozen beneath the ice on Zora Domain’s pond, a sight absent from the 1998 original, and the alteration surprised the reviewer during the playthrough. The remake also adds a haunting new music track there, conveying frozen emptiness with snippets of the main Zora theme’s instruments between spooky noises.

In the 1998 game, Zora Domain was frozen, with an iced-over pond, frozen waterfall, King Zora in red ice, and no other Zora visible. Sheik saved Ruto, who became the Sage of Water, and Link later thawed King Zora using Blue Fire. The reviewer says the original kept the area frozen after the Water Temple because of technical limitations, leaving the broader Zora fate unclear even though some Zora appeared in the credits.

Hoping the Zora could be freed after the Water Temple, the reviewer noted that Nintendo no longer faces those technical constraints. The writer wanted to address the discovery before finishing the temple to capture hope alongside horror rather than only the horror of seeing people trapped. Upon seeing the frozen Zora, the reviewer said an expletive aloud several times, describing both horror and hope. The writer feared Nintendo might leave the Zora frozen through the credits but felt hope because of the remake’s excellence and attention to detail.

According to Yahoo Tech, with 80 reviews counted, the remake holds a 96 Metascore on Metacritic, making it the highest-rated game of 2026. The original 1998 game remains Metacritic’s highest-rated game of all time at 99. The 96 is one point below Breath of the Wild’s 2017 score of 97 and makes the remake the highest-scored game since Baldur’s Gate 3 in 2023. On OpenCritic, the remake earned a 95, with reviewers commending its faithful recreation of the original game.

Beebom’s review roundup lists 5/5 at VGC, Eurogamer, GamesRadar+, and TechRadar; 9/10 at IGN and Gamespot; and 9.25/10 at Game Informer. Reviews appeared on Metacritic and OpenCritic ahead of the November 5, 2026, 12 AM ET launch. The remake leads Metacritic’s user-score rankings at 9.6 out of 10, ahead of Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 at 9.4.

GameRant reports that on November 8, the remake had 7,796 user ratings on Metacritic versus 27,653 for Clair Obscur: Expedition 33; by November 9, the remake had 9,534 ratings. User ratings on Metacritic are open to any account holder, regardless of whether they purchased or completed the game. Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 launched April 24, 2025, giving players more than 18 months to rate it. Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 holds a 92 Metascore.

The remake deliberately avoids major alterations to the original, with familiar mechanics carrying over to Switch 2. Some players criticized the remake for lacking new content and omitting Master Quest, though the positive response suggests the faithful approach suited most players. Yahoo Tech describes a remake as a more significant revisitation than a remaster, though this version is not on the level of Final Fantasy Remake.

The GameRant reviewer instinctively searched for secrets remembered from playing the N64 original nearly three decades ago. The original 1998 game released decades before many current players were born, and millions will play Ocarina of Time for the first time on Switch 2.