| Ocarina of Time (Switch 2) | |
|---|---|
| Release date | Thursday 5 November 2026 |
| Platform | Nintendo Switch 2 only (no Switch 1 version) |
| Digital price | $59.99 |
| Physical price | $69.99 (first print run has special packaging) |
| Download size | 27 GB (Nintendo’s estimate) |
| Pre-load | Yes, on digital pre-orders |
| Rating | ESRB Everyone 10+ (Animated Blood, Fantasy Violence) |
| Players | 1, in TV, tabletop and handheld mode |
We searched the Virtwave catalogue for “Zelda” on 3 October and got nothing back, so we don’t sell the game itself. We do sell the eShop credit most people pay with. A $50 US Nintendo eShop card plus a $10 eShop card covers the $59.99 digital price before any sales tax. In the eurozone, a €50 Nintendo eShop card is the closest single card.
Ocarina of Time Switch 2 release date and unlock time
Nintendo revealed the date during its Legend of Zelda 40th anniversary Nintendo Direct, and the store page says simply “Releases 11/5/26”. 5 November 2026 is a Thursday. What Nintendo has not published is an exact unlock time. When we read the page data behind the US listing on 3 October, the release date was stored as 5 November at 00:00 UTC. That is a date field, not an announced time, so we would not set an alarm by it. Nintendo’s own pre-order FAQ only says the game becomes playable after a small update that goes live when the game is released. We will add the confirmed unlock time here as soon as the pre-load opens.
“This lets you pre-load the game, so you’ll be able to play as soon as the game is released.”
— Nintendo, Text under the Pre-order button on the US Nintendo Store page, read 3 October 2026
How the pre-order and pre-load work
- Pre-order the digital versionBuy it from the Nintendo eShop on your Switch 2 or from nintendo.com. Nothing is charged yet, and you can cancel any time before payment is processed.
- Payment is taken no sooner than 7 days before launchFor a 5 November release, that means on or after Thursday 29 October. If you are paying with eShop credit, redeem the card before then so the balance is there when Nintendo charges it.
- The game pre-loadsOnce payment goes through, the full game downloads to your console. Its icon appears on the HOME menu, but it will not start yet. Nintendo lists the estimated size as 27 GB, so free up the space first.
- A small update unlocks it on release dayWhen the game is released, a small update becomes available. Keep the console online or in sleep mode and it downloads by itself, or launch the game and accept the update.
Ocarina of Time Switch 2 price: digital vs physical
Both prices are Nintendo’s own: $59.99 in the store page’s digital edition box and $69.99 for the physical copy in the same page’s data. That $10 gap is the main reason to go digital here. The physical version’s advantage is the first print run’s special packaging, which Nintendo says is available while supplies last. Retailers can of course price the physical copy below $69.99. The digital edition is the only one you can pay for with eShop gift cards and the only one that pre-loads.
The Zelda 40th Anniversary Switch 2 bundle
Nintendo is also releasing a Legend of Zelda 40th Anniversary Edition of the Switch 2 on 29 October, a week before the game. The My Nintendo Store lists it at $519.99. Nintendo’s announcement describes the system, a Pro Controller and a carrying case with a Triforce design, and does not list Ocarina of Time among the contents. Budget $519.99 plus $59.99 if you want both on launch day. When we opened the US store listing on 3 October it was already marked out of stock.
Ocarina of Time Switch 2 file size and storage
At 27 GB, the remake is bigger than Mario Kart World, which shipped at 22.2 GB. It is still small next to third-party ports such as Cyberpunk 2077 at 60.6 GB. The figure is marked “estimated”, and estimates move: we found Elden Ring’s Switch 2 estimate was 50 GB and it shipped at 41 GB. Nintendo’s store also notes that ratings and download size may not be final at the time of pre-order.
The catch is the unit. A Switch 2 is sold with 256 GB, but the “GB” on game pages is a larger binary unit, so even an empty console holds at most 238.4 of them before the system takes its share. We built a Switch 2 storage calculator that adds up real nintendo.com sizes against your space and tells you which microSD Express card you would need. Our game download time calculator works out how long 27 GB takes on your connection. One rule from Nintendo Support matters here: Switch 2 only uses microSD Express cards for games, and an old Switch 1 microSD card will not work for them.
What is new in the Switch 2 remake
- Rebuilt for Switch 2: Nintendo says the game was built from the ground up for the system, with visuals overhauled down to the textures of each material
- Voice acting: cutscenes are fully voiced and expanded, and characters have more dialogue
- Symphonic orchestral music in place of the 1998 soundtrack
- Modern controls: you can jump and dash with new button commands, and the camera moves the way modern games do
- Hum the songs: sing an ocarina song Link has learned into the Switch 2 and he plays it
- HDR and VRR output on compatible TVs, plus linear PCM surround sound
- Sixteen languages, among them British and American English, Japanese, Korean, Polish, Russian and both Chinese scripts
Zelda Notes, amiibo and the ocarina accessories
| Extra | What it does | When |
|---|---|---|
| Zelda Notes (Nintendo Switch App) | Daily accomplishments, find-the-location photo challenges, a virtual ocarina on your phone, and a quiz with over 2,000 questions | With the game |
| Any Legend of Zelda amiibo | In-game extras when tapped | With the game |
| Young Link and Young Zelda amiibo | Masks with a retro graphical style | 2027 |
| Two ocarina accessories, one an electric version by HORI | Physical ocarinas tied to the game | Later in 2026 |
| Save Data Cloud | Backs up your save; needs a Nintendo Switch Online membership | With the game |
Ocarina of Time Switch 2 FAQs
When does Ocarina of Time come out on Switch 2?
How much is Ocarina of Time on Switch 2?
Is Ocarina of Time coming to Switch 1?
How big is Ocarina of Time on Switch 2?
Can you pre-load Ocarina of Time?
Is the Zelda Switch 2 bundle worth it for Ocarina of Time?
Rayyan covers console and PC gaming wallets for Virtwave, with deep specialism in PlayStation Network, Xbox, Razer Gold and Steam. He has been writing about digital gaming commerce since 2020.
Can you play the N64 original now?
Paying with a Nintendo eShop gift card
In our store on 3 October, the $50 US Nintendo eShop card was €45.49 and in stock, and the $10 card was €9.49. Codes are delivered digitally. Two other Switch 2 launches are coming before Zelda: the Kingdom Hearts Collection on 8 October and Dragon’s Dogma 2: Dark Arisen on 9 October.
Sources & how we checked this
- Nintendo Store — The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time (Switch 2): release date, $59.99 digital and $69.99 physical prices, the 27 GB estimate, languages, rating, Zelda Notes and amiibo.
- Nintendo news — the Legend of Zelda 40th anniversary Direct: new features, humming ocarina songs, the ocarina accessories, the physical first print and the 40th Anniversary Edition system.
- Nintendo Store — Switch 2 The Legend of Zelda 40th Anniversary Edition: $519.99 and its stock status.
- Nintendo Support — Nintendo eShop Pre-Order and Pre-Load FAQ: the seven-day payment window, cancellation and the release-day update.
- Nintendo Support — microSD card compatibility with Switch 2: microSD Express only.
- Nintendo Store — Nintendo 64 – Nintendo Classics: the N64 original on Switch Online + Expansion Pack.
Method: we opened each page on 3 October 2026 from Poland with US pricing and took the screenshots in this post the same day. We read the release date and file sizes from the store pages’ own data. We also searched our catalogue to confirm we don’t stock the game, and opened each gift card page we link to check its price and stock. We will update this post when the pre-load opens and again at launch. Our standards are set out in our editorial policy.
Before 5 November: a checklist
- Decide digital ($59.99, pre-loads) or physical ($69.99, special first-print packaging)
- Free up at least 27 GB, or plan a microSD Express card; old Switch 1 microSD cards will not hold Switch 2 games
- Redeem any eShop credit before 29 October, the earliest date Nintendo takes payment
- Cancel before payment is processed if you change your mind
- Leave the console online or in sleep mode on launch night so the unlock update downloads by itself
- Back up saves with Save Data Cloud if you have Nintendo Switch Online
