Zelda: Ocarina of Time Switch 2 Reveals New World Map
The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time makes its big comeback on November 5 when a remake tailor-made for the Nintendo Switch 2 arrives. Updated character designs and much more environmental detail seem to be the biggest…
The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time makes its big comeback on November 5 when a remake tailor-made for the Nintendo Switch 2 arrives. Updated character designs and much more environmental detail seem to be the biggest changes in what is shaping up to largely be a one-to-one recreation of the 1998 original, and now a new world map shows that Hyrule hasn't undergone any major renovation.
The new, somewhat diegetic map of Hyrule was shared by the Nintendo of Europe social accounts, showing the kingdom's familiar layout. It's immediately noticeable, however, that this new rendition is more comprehensive in depicting all the explorable locations in the game. The original map of Hyrule made for Ocarina of Time feels more like a diorama of the game world, including certain odd details but leaving a lot to the imagination.
Ocarina of Time Remake Map Depicts Every Major Location
While the new map shows everything in the right place, it also has an odd scale. It shows every major stop on Link's journey, separating many that overlap so that they appear almost separate. Kakariko Village, for instance, can be easily spotted by its windmill, but it would appear that the well—from which the Bottom of the Well is accessed—has been depicted separately to the east, with the Kakariko Graveyard and the entrance to the Shadow Temple each further still.
Something similar has been done to Kokiri Forest. The village and the Great Deku Tree are joined by distinct icons (for lack of a better term) representing the Lost Woods, the Sacred Forest Meadow, and the entrance to the Forest Temple. It's a fun little scavenger hunt for those who are intimately familiar with the N64 original, and it's beautifully drawn, but it is a major departure from classic depictions of Hyrule in Ocarina of Time.
Ocarina of Time Remake Map Compared to the Original
At first glance, the new Ocarina of Time world map looks a lot like the old one; everything is in relatively the same spot. But it's fascinating how the new map sort of abstracts the game world, making it appear larger, where the original has a sort of uncanny faithfulness to what Hyrule actually looks like in the game.
Zora's River is a great example. In the Hyrule World Atlas map that accompanied the original release of Ocarina of Time, the meandering layout of Zora's River is represented surprisingly clearly. Zora's Domain is there, and Lord Jabu-Jabu can even be spotted, but they're not given nearly as much attention as they are in the new rendition. The updated map plants a flag on a detailed Zora's Domain, clearly shows Jabu-Jabu, and even depicts an unexpectedly grand entrance to the Ice Cavern. Zora's River is left as a lone bend.
Other areas benefit from the new map's scope, like the Haunted Wasteland, which more faithfully depicts the distance between Gerudo's Fortress and the Desert Colossus. While the new Ocarina of Time world map is larger and more detailed, it conversely makes the game world feel smaller—there's much less left to the imagination. Ocarina of Time is not an exceptionally large game, but it does a wonderful job of feeling labyrinthine and built on top of itself, so this new map feels a bit odd with all the locations laid out.