The Zelda Ocarina of Time remake has shot to the top of Metacritic’s best games of 2026 so far, makes its all-time top 30
Nintendo’s remake is comfortably the highest reviewed game of the year to date
The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time Remake has shot straight to the top of Metacritic’s list of the best games of 2026.
The Switch 2 exclusive remake of the 1998 Nintendo 64 classic currently has a Metacritic score of 96 at the time of writing, based on 70 reviews.
This puts it comfortably at the top of the site’s Best Games This Year page, where it has dethroned twin-stick shooter Sektori (which has a score of 93).
The score is also high enough to make it into the site’s Best Games of All Time list, where it currently sits at number 24 at the time of writing. Sitting at number 1 on this list is the original Nintendo 64 version of Ocarina of Time, as the only game to ever have a Metacritic score of 99.
This puts it ahead of such games as Half-Life, Gran Turismo, Metal Gear Solid 2, Elden Ring and Mass Effect 2, but behind titles like The Orange Box, Baldur’s Gate 3 and the original release of Resident Evil 4.
Given that the games ranked from 16th to 34th in the Best Games of All Time list all have Metacritic scores of 96 – with their rankings determined by more granular calculations – it’s likely that the Ocarina of Time remake’s position on the list will move up or down slightly as more reviews come in.
Its position at the top of the 2026 list appears more sturdy given the three-point gap, though of course it remains to be seen whether this will last until the end of the year, what with the release of Grand Theft Auto 6 just two weeks away now.
Further reading
VGC’s Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time remake review gave the game five stars, praising Nintendo‘s decision to not completely overhaul the original but simply add “thoughtful modernizations” where relevant.
“The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time’s Switch 2 remake is a remarkable restoration of one of gaming’s most beloved adventures,” we concluded. “Rather than reinventing a masterpiece, Nintendo has carefully refined what made it special, creating the definitive way for a new generation to discover it and returning players to fall in love all over again.”
