Nintendo Officially Confirms A 'Zelda' 40th Anniversary Direct Is Coming

Sep 04, 2026 - 19:05

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Nintendo Officially Confirms A 'Zelda' 40th Anniversary Direct Is Coming

Published Sep 4, 2026, 10:05 AM EDT

Nintendo lifts the curtain on the most anticipated Switch 2 release of 2026 and more

Link as a child lies curled up on his bed

We're nearing the tail end of 2026, and we still don't know much about The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time remake for Nintendo Switch 2. Well, it seems that Nintendo has been saving all the juicy news for an upcoming Nintendo Direct showcase focused entirely on the seminal RPG's revamp and the series as a whole. That's not all. There's also a second Nintendo Direct planned as well.

When are the September Nintendo Directs?

The first one is for the Zelda 40th anniversary, and it'll be on Tuesday, Sept. 8. The Legend of Zelda 40th Anniversary Direct will start at 7 a.m. PDT / 10 a.m. EDT and last 30 minutes. Nintendo promises to "deliver a variety of The Legend of Zelda related information" during the stream.

The second more general Nintendo Direct is the next day, Wednesday, Sept. 9. It'll be at 7 a.m. PDT / 10 a.m. EDT and last around 45 minutes. Wednesday's Nintendo Direct will focus on Nintendo Switch 2 games launching this winter, Nintendo says.

Nintendo will then follow the Sept. 9 Direct with a Nintendo Treehouse: Live stream, "featuring gameplay of select titles featured from the Nintendo Direct." Wednesday's Nintendo Treehouse: Live livestream will last roughly 110 minutes.

The Legend of Zelda franchise celebrated its 40th anniversary in early 2026, and Nintendo is pulling out all the stops for it. Beyond a slick Zelda-themed Nintendo Switch 2 console and Pro Controller, the Japanese company has also been putting the finishing touches on an upcoming film starring Bo Bragason as Princess Zelda and Benjamin Evan Ainsworth as Link.

Early teases for the Ocarina of Time remake revealed that Nintendo has given the whole game a makeover. Rather than appearing with the jagged edges of a Nintendo 64 render, the new Link looks like something out of a Pixar movie. Nintendo is likely to announce the game's specific 2026 release date during the Direct, but the Fairy may already be out of the bottle.

A Swiss retailer that has accidentally leaked the release date of Switch 2 games in the past was recently spotted listing Ocarina of Time's official release as Dec. 1, 2026. If true, then there will be a full month between Ocarina of Time and Grand Theft Auto 6. A holiday release for such a high profile game, alongside fancy new hardware colorways, will help ease fans into accepting the Nintendo Switch 2's recent $50 price increase. The console may be more expensive, but Nintendo's had a strong selection of hits this year that will be further bolstered by a remake of one of the most influential and beloved games of all time.