A new rumor making the rounds online is that Nintendo plans on bringing its classic game The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time to the Nintendo Switch. This rumor seems to stem from Nintendo renewing the Ocarina of Time trademark in Australia and Europe, fueling speculation that the company plans on releasing something new related to the critically-acclaimed Nintendo 64 game.
Trademark renewals happen all the time and usually don't mean much. Most of the time, trademark renewals are simply video game companies protecting their IPs, and so fans shouldn't get their hopes up that this means anything Ocarina of Time-related is on the way for the Switch. That being said, there are a couple of big Zelda anniversaries coming up in 2021, and so it wouldn't be all that surprising to see Nintendo re-release arguably the most beloved game in the series.
For one, 2021 marks the 35th anniversary of The Legend of Zelda franchise. Nintendo is rumored to be celebrating Super Mario's 35th anniversary this year with the release of a 3D Super Mario collection, so who's to say it won't give Zelda the same treatment in 2021? Of course, Nintendo has yet to actually confirm that the 3D Super Mario collection exists, but it has been leaked by credible sources, including known industry insiders and even Amazon.
Meanwhile, the other big Zelda anniversary coming up in 2021 is the 10 year anniversary of The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time 3D for the Nintendo 3DS. Considering this, it seems like there would be no better way to celebrate than by releasing an Ocarina of Time remaster for Switch in 2021, with Ocarina of Time 3D's enhanced visuals and other new features in tow.
Then again, Nintendo may not want to re-release classic Zelda games and instead focus on releasing the next big game in the series. The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild 2 has been in active development for quite some time, with some rumors pointing to it being even farther along in development than previously believed. One could argue that releasing a brand new Zelda adventure to celebrate the franchise's 35th anniversary makes more sense than re-releasing older games, so maybe the Switch's big 2021 game will be Breath of the Wild 2.
That being said, Nintendo has been pretty secretive about its upcoming releases. However, there are rumors that a Nintendo Direct is planned for some time this month, so maybe more clarification will come then. But while such a Direct may showcase the company's holiday 2020 games, fans shouldn't expect it to reveal any information on its 2021 plans.
The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time is available now for the Nintendo 64.