When I first encountered The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time growing up, it scared the crap out of me. The screeching Redeads, the skittering spiders, the disembodied hands — it was basically a horror movie to a young kid’s eyes. I’m older and harder to spook now, of course, which means that I knew the Nintendo 64 game’s fresh Switch 2 remake was bound to hit differently.
Surely I’d laugh at everything that used to creep me out and realize that I was scared of a glorified cartoon! Ocarina of Time’s remake is arguably even more of a horror show than its 1998 predecessor. Though some goofy voice acting might lure you into a false sense of security, the faithful remake uses the technical power of the Switch 2 for chaotic evil.
Every creepy crawler that may have freaked you out in the ‘90s has gotten whatever the opposite of a glow-up is. The remake is terrifying — and I am in full support of that evil creative decision. The important thing to understand about Ocarina of Time if you're totally new to it is that it has the energy of a Grimms’ fairy tale.
You know, the kind that revolves around an evil witch who cooks children alive. Kind of whimsical, kind of messed up. For every funny little moment in Ocarina of Time, like a scooting Zora king or a dancing Goron, you’ve also got a quest where you have to drop into a man’s grave after learning he died after Link traveled forward in time.
It’s dark, though in a very family-friendly Nintendo way. That said, the remake really emphasizes just how unnerving the original game can be. Nintendo didn’t hold back when redesigning some of its scariest monsters.
Take Redeads, for instance. The creatures are essentially zombies that lurch towards Link slowly, but can paralyze him with fear by letting out a blood-curdling screech. If they catch him, they can wrap around his little head and squeeze the life out of him, a traumatizing image for a ‘90s kid.
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