Zelda Timeline 2026

Last verified: 2026-11-10

Ocarina of Time on the timeline

Ocarina of Time is where Nintendo's single history becomes three. The Switch 2 release on 5 Nov 2026 is the same node.

At a glance

Original platform
Nintendo 64
First release
1998-11-21
Timeline placement
The split point: defeat creates the Downfall branch, the adult ending leads to the Adult branch, and the child ending leads to the Child branch. The 2026 Switch 2 remake retells the same story and is not a separate timeline node.
Link
Link (Hero of Time; young and adult)
Zelda
Princess Zelda / Sheik
Main antagonist
Ganondorf
Official key art for The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time on Nintendo Switch 2
Original parchment chart of the Downfall, Child, and Adult branches

Key art © Nintendo, used with a link to the product page. Chart art on this site is original.

Link in this game is the Hero of Time, played as a child and as an adult. Zelda is the princess and, for a long stretch, Sheik. The antagonist is the Gerudo king whose name the series has used ever since. The Hyrulean Civil War sits in the same era on Nintendo's page, before the game itself. Four Swords is the story predecessor. There is no single story successor, because the ending is the split.

Japan shipped the Nintendo 64 game on 21 Nov 1998, North America on 23 Nov 1998, Europe on 11 Dec 1998. The 3DS remake, Ocarina of Time 3D, released on 16 Jun 2011 in Japan, 17 Jun in Europe, and 19 Jun in North America. The Switch 2 release is 5 Nov 2026. I have those three packages as one story. Master Quest is not part of the 2026 package in the sources I used, and I am not going to describe a mode the store page dropped as if it were included.

Defeat leads to the downfall path and eventually the NES games. The adult world Link leaves behind leads to the flood and The Wind Waker. Going home as a child leads to Majora's Mask. I have heard people hope the 2026 release will announce that those three futures are one future. I have not seen Nintendo say that. The chart still shows one Ocarina entry. I will not upgrade a wish into a patch note.

The adult and child versions of Link are the same person at two ages, which is why the timeline can branch without inventing a second hero inside this cartridge. Later games borrow the title Hero of Time. Twilight Princess treats him as a legend on the child path. The Wind Waker treats the adult victory as the history that was abandoned. Both can be true because they are different columns.

If you are choosing a place to start, this game is the hinge. Skyward Sword is earlier in the story and explains the sword. Breath of the Wild does not require you to have finished this one. The release-order page is where the 1998 and 2026 dates sit next to every other box.

Sources