ALEX BROWN
Nintendo announced on November 11 that The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time remake sold more than 5.2 million copies worldwide in its first four days on Nintendo Switch 2. That’s the highest four-day total for any Nintendo-published Switch 2 game, and it includes 810,000 copies in Japan. The figure combines physical and digital sales of the remake, which launched November 5.
We covered the critical reception last week in our Ocarina of Time remake reviews roundup. This is the first hard sales data, and it shows fans turned up in huge numbers.
How does 5.2 million compare with other Zelda games?
Four days in, the remake has already outsold the lifetime totals of several series favorites:
- Phantom Hourglass: 4.76 million
- A Link to the Past: 4.61 million
- The Wind Waker: 4.43 million
- A Link Between Worlds: 4.26 million
- Skyward Sword: 4.15 million
It now sits just behind the 2011 Nintendo 3DS version (6.44 million) and is closing in on the 1998 Nintendo 64 original, which sold about 7.6 million copies over its lifetime. According to Kotaku, the N64 game sold roughly one million copies in its opening week, so the remake’s start is about five times faster.
A big moment for Switch 2
Bloomberg and The Japan Times noted that the Switch 2 has had an uneven first year, partly because rising memory costs pushed hardware prices up. A blockbuster Zelda heading into the holidays is exactly what Nintendo needed. Based on Nintendo’s figures, only Mario Kart World, which was bundled with the console at launch, has sold more on Switch 2; the remake has already passed Donkey Kong Bananza‘s 5.05 million as of September 30.
For perspective, Tears of the Kingdom sold about 10 million copies in three days in 2023, so the remake isn’t the fastest Zelda ever. But it’s comfortably ahead of Breath of the Wild‘s first month on the original Switch.
Japan sales
Japan accounted for 810,000 of the 5.2 million, about 16% of the total. That’s a strong share for a series that historically sells best in the West.
What’s new in the remake?
Nintendo describes it as a full remake with reimagined visuals and improved controls that keeps the original structure: Link travels between childhood and adulthood to stop Ganondorf. One fun extra: if you play or hum an ocarina melody near the console, Link performs the song in-game. The game also supports the Zelda Notes companion feature in the Nintendo Switch App.
The timing is notable. The remake launched two weeks before GTA 6’s November 19 release, which PlayStation and Xbox say is the most pre-ordered game in their storefronts’ histories. Nintendo clearly wanted Link to get his moment first, and it worked.
Related on Nerdism
- Zelda: Ocarina of Time Remake Reviews Are In
- Xbox 25th Anniversary: Wolfenstein 3 Confirmed
- GTA 6 Preloads Are Live
Sources: Gematsu (Nintendo announcement), The Japan Times / Bloomberg, Variety, TheGamer