Ocarina of Time remake tops Metacritic's 2026 list with a 96

The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time remake has become the best-reviewed game of 2026 so far. Reviews arrived ahead of its Switch 2 launch this week, and the early verdict is strongly positive.

According to Nintendo Life, the game has a Metascore of 96 based on 81 critic reviews. That puts it at the top of Metacritic's Best Games of 2026 list and high on the site's all-time rankings.

How it compares on Metacritic

GameSpot notes that Metacritic is a sister site of its own. It says a few more reviews may still arrive over the next few days, but it doesn't expect the score to move much. With only a few months of the year left, GameSpot suggests the remake could hold the top spot, though it also says GTA 6 could have something to say about that.

Here is how the top of the list looks, per Nintendo Life:

Rank	Game	Metascore
1	The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time	96
2	Sektori	93
3	Resident Evil 2: Deluxe Edition	93
4	The Witcher III: Wild Hunt - Remaster	92

Famitsu and Digital Foundry weigh in

The first review came from Japan's Famitsu. Nintendo Life explains that the outlet's four critics each score out of ten and the results are added together. The remake received 9, 9, 9 and 10, for a total of 37 out of 40.

Digital Foundry also published a tech review. Nintendo Life reports that John Linneman praised the remake, with only a couple of minor nitpicks. The resolution figures it cites are:

• Docked: 1080p up to 1440p
• Handheld: 720p up to 1080p

Handheld mode also uses some tweaks, including more aggressive level-of-detail distances and texture downgrades. Even so, Nintendo Life's summary of the review calls the game very crisp and handsome overall.

Other reviews

Other outlets have published their own reviews today. IGN called it "a beautiful retelling of a legend and a rich adventure that stands on its own." Eurogamer also has a review live.

Nintendo Life's own review describes the remake as stunning but "not quite definitive" in its headline. It says walking out into Hyrule Field for the first time is a revelatory experience.

A patch is already out

Nintendo has also released an update ahead of launch. Nintendo Life reports that the game moved from Version 1.0.0 to Version 1.1.1, which adds support for Zelda Notes. Players should be prompted to update the next time they check the game.

Nintendo Life's review round-up collects more of the early reactions if you want to read further before deciding.