'The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time,' widely considered the ultimate masterpiece of the Nintendo 64 and an essential title when discussing 3D action-adventure games today, officially launches on November 5. Ahead of its release, the revealed review scores stand at 96 on Metacritic and 96 on OpenCritic.
With these review scores published, 'The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time' now holds the highest Metacritic score among games released this year. Maintaining this score even with over 80 reviews logged, it is virtually guaranteed to remain the highest-rated game on Metacritic among 2026 releases unless a wave of unusually low reviews arrives. Though, it remains lower than the 1998 Nintendo 64 original's score of 99.
Top-tier Nintendo Switch 2 graphics—previously demonstrated in pre-release gameplay previews—and various quality-of-life enhancements were highlighted as major strengths in full reviews. The original's dense world design and signature puzzle-solving also continue to earn high praise over time. However, some critics noted that the game relies heavily on the original's perfection, leaving relatively little that feels new.
The remaining question is whether GTA6, widely regarded as the year's most anticipated title, can push this score aside—adding another layer of excitement to the remainder of the year. 'The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time' will be playable on Nintendo Switch 2 starting November 5.
