The re-release of The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time and a limited-edition console marking the series’ 40th anniversary are more than just celebratory releases for Nintendo. Together, they show how the company is pairing a beloved classic with the promotion of a new platform—and looking to sustain interest in the Switch 2 amid slowing sales following a price increase. The first signs are encouraging: Nintendo says the game has had a strong launch and demand for the console is good, though it has yet to provide specific figures.
For buyers, the excitement is already having a practical effect: the special-edition Switch 2 is hard to find in online stores. According to IGN, major retailers list it as sold out, but stock may be moved to brick-and-mortar stores. Some locations are also holding overnight events for the launch of Ocarina of Time and offering new batches of the console there. In other words, an online listing showing no stock does not necessarily mean the console has sold out everywhere.
The anniversary model costs $519.99 and comes in a black-and-gold color scheme. It includes the console, themed Joy-Con 2 controllers, and a dock featuring the Triforce symbol. The game itself, however, is not included—it must be purchased separately for $69.99. That’s an important detail when assessing the bundle’s true cost: the collectible design does not make it a complete, ready-to-play package.
At the heart of the campaign is an updated version of Ocarina of Time, the 1998 classic. According to IGN’s description, the Switch 2 version features reworked controls, changes to dungeon puzzles, and expanded areas of Hyrule. For longtime fans, it’s a return to a familiar adventure; for a new audience, it’s a chance to experience it in a modern form. Nintendo senior vice president of game development and publishing Nate Bihldorff points to the dual appeal of remakes: “new games and remakes… are equally important” to the company’s lineup. His remarks, reported by My Nintendo News, emphasize the role of different generations of players: some return to games they hold especially dear, while others experience a remake as something entirely new in 2026.
This approach helps Nintendo tackle several challenges at once. New projects keep its franchises moving forward, while remakes draw on established brands and the interest they already command to attract attention to the platform. A remake need not replace a new game, either: the company presents both as parts of a single strategy. The success of this balance depends on whether an update makes a return playthrough worthwhile without displacing expectations for new games in the same franchise. Judging by the changes announced for Ocarina of Time, Nintendo aims to do more than simply port the old version.
The release arrives at a time when the pace of Switch 2 sales is under particular scrutiny. Nintendo president Shuntaro Furukawa said the installed base has surpassed 25 million consoles and that Pokémon Pokopia helped boost hardware sales globally. In Japan, sales have moderated after an exceptionally fast start and a surge in purchases ahead of the price increase; the company views this as a natural stabilization. The change has been less pronounced in other regions, where more time passed between the price increase announcement and its implementation, and game bundles helped support sales. These assessments were reported by Nintendo Everything.
Nintendo’s comments are encouraging, but they don’t give the full picture. Furukawa described the response to the anniversary console as strong and Ocarina of Time’s launch as “very good,” but added that specific figures are not yet ready to be released. This is a qualitative assessment, not numerical confirmation of the scale of the success. The company also stresses the importance of the upcoming holiday season: year-end sales have a substantial effect on overall shipments, and after the price revision, performance in the coming weeks will be important to meeting its targets.
A few terms are worth clarifying. The “installed base” is the number of devices already in users’ hands, not the number of games sold or active players. “Sell-through” refers to sales to end customers, as opposed to shipments to stores. A “remake” is a newly created or substantially reworked version of an older game; it does not always mean a simple boost to resolution and performance. Finally, a limited-edition console primarily means a device with special styling, which does not in itself guarantee that a game is included.
Taken together, these reports show that Zelda serves Nintendo as both a cultural symbol and a commercial lever. Scarcity of the anniversary model heightens its exclusivity, while the remake appeals both to longtime players’ nostalgia and newcomers’ curiosity. But the appeal of a limited release should not be mistaken for proof of sustained sales growth: no confirmed figures for the game have been released, and Switch 2 sales vary by region and depend on pricing, bundles, and holiday demand. Nintendo’s main question is whether the momentum from a high-profile release can translate into long-term support for the platform. For now, the company is betting on a mix of new games, classic franchises, and special-edition products; how well that formula works should become clearer after the holiday season.
