Highlights
- A skillful fan has created a stunning Studio Ghibli-inspired film of The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time using Unreal Engine 5, showcasing the enduring legacy of the game's rich narrative and gameplay mechanics.
- The fan project features over 30 characters, four different environments, and a third-person perspective, capturing the essence of Ocarina of Time in a visually stunning and cinematic way.
- The music for the film, composed by another YouTuber, is inspired by Studio Ghibli's beautiful soundtracks, adding to the immersive experience and showcasing the dedication of the creators in faithfully recreating the aesthetic.
One skillful fan has recreated a Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time film with stunning Studio Ghibli visuals for the game's 25th anniversary. Released back in 1998 for the Nintendo 64, it was the first game in the franchise to feature 3D graphics. Since then, fans have recognized Ocarina of Time as a genre-defining game with a rich narrative, great music, and fun gameplay mechanics.
Twenty-five years is a momentous milestone, and it has left fans with a wave of nostalgia for one of the Legend of Zelda’s most timeless games. With older titles like Final Fantasy 7 getting a complete remake, the anniversary has left some fans wondering what the game and characters would look like with modern graphics. One fan group, Curiomatic, has recreated Ocarina of Time’s Link using Unreal Engine 5, which shows the character having a similar graphical style to Kena from Kena: Bridge of Spirits. And while there is no news from Nintendo, remakes such as Link's Awakening point to the company being open to the idea of bringing older titles in the franchise to modern consoles. For now, however, fan projects are a good way to commemorate the enduring legacy of this beloved title.
A YouTuber called RwanLink has taken things up a notch by using Unreal Engine 5 to create a short fan film of Ocarina of Time in Studio Ghibli’s unique aesthetic. According to RwanLink, the 600-hour project that took over four months to make is not meant to be a game but rather a film. The video features over 30 characters, along with four different environments and a third-person perspective. The third-person perspective has RwanLink exploring Castle Town and coming across some familiar characters such as the Happy Mask Salesman, Malon of Lon Lon Ranch, Princess Zelda, Impa, and even Ganondorf and Fi.
Music for the fan film was composed by another YouTuber named Mosik and featured several tracks, some entitled “Your Destiny,” “Hyrule Castle Town,” and “The Master Sword.” According to Mosik, to keep with the Studio Ghibli aesthetic, their inspiration for the score was influenced by music composed by Joe Hisashi for some of Studio Ghibli’s most beautiful films such as Laputa, Howl’s Moving Castle, and Princess Mononoke.
RwanLink and Mosik’s project has been gaining traction on YouTube, with fans being especially awestruck at the dedication to creating the film, mostly solo, in just four months. One commenter remarked that the world-building, cinematic shots, and musical cues are very similar to Studio Ghibli’s.
The beautiful visuals have left some fans wishing that Nintendo’s announcement of a live-action Legend of Zelda film was instead for an animated one. However, with The Super Mario Bros. movie being a box office hit and Shigeru Miyamoto being a producer, chances are that the Legend of Zelda film will be a success.
The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time
The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of TIme marks the first time that The Legend of Zelda made the jump to 3D, giving players the ability to explore Hyrule in an entirely new way.
- Franchise
- The Legend of Zelda
- Platform(s)
- Nintendo 64 , GameCube
- Released
- November 21, 1998
- Developer(s)
- Nintendo
- Publisher(s)
- Nintendo
