The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time Took Away Auto Jump, and Poor Link Is Paying the Price

For all of the changes in Nintendo's The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time remake, there's one that's tripping players up more than any of the others: a jump button.

If you've played Metacritic's all-time highest-rated game in the 28 years since its Nintendo 64 release (or most other 3D Zelda games, for that matter), you'll know Hyrule's courageous protector doesn't need a button press to cross small gaps. What was once intuitive for the time has since been rendered obsolete, as Nintendo opted to give players the freedom to send Link a short distance into the air with the simple press of a button in The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time for Switch 2.

What sounds like an innocuous change on its face is, really, revolutionary for the company's decades-old fantasy franchise. For proof, you needn't look further than social media, as the remake's first weekend in players' hands was filled with examples of those who just can't get a handle on that one extra step.

What Nintendo maybe didn't consider, though, is that poor, little Young Link has to pay for it.

"I keep forgetting to press jump," one Reddit user said, sharing a clip of Link taking a dip in Kokiri Forest.

"Same," another replied. "30 years of habit is hard to break."

They're not alone; in fact, they're part of an ocean of players who turned on the Ocarina of Time remake and immediately started sending Link for a swim. As if there was ever any doubt, a fundamental change like this was bound to spawn disagreements. Considering it also happens to be a change for one of the most important game releases of all time, it's become a full-blown talking point for a good chunk of those who have picked up the remake since its Switch 2 launch last week.

"Same but different reason," one player replied, "jump button being X feels unnatural to me." (Note: There is an option to switch jump from X to the B button in the settings.)

"I actually think the auto-jump was one of the most interesting features of the original," someone else said, "particularly considering that people had barely figured out how to do 3D games. It is never not fun to just point Link towards a ledge and seeing him spontaneously do a little jump."

Lo del salto manual en Ocarina of Time cómo lo llevan... https://t.co/bIoqEWLk1Y

My muscle memory betrayed me and I forgot about the new jump button immediately 😭 https://t.co/85A2fQIpn5

the OoT remake experience https://t.co/lV7fb1SkkR

Well, instead of doing a little jump, these days Link is taking little tumbles. Look, I feel everyone's pain. I'm not too far into the remake, but I've still had to watch Link plop into a river or fling himself into a boulder at least once after taking a break.

Thankfully, Link usually won't take too much damage after a fall. Even if he does get caught tripping, the Ocarina of Time remake's new ragdoll physics at least make every mistake a little funny. Even if you're still upset there's no option for auto jump, you can't be nearly as bent out of shape as Link is.

"I love how he just f**kin eats the side of the platform," one player joked. "The way he looked like he broke a rib and his jaw," another said. You can see some of what they're talking about below.

Forgot there's a jump button now... https://t.co/ysdJA8CTTT

Ocarina of Time 64 muscle memory kicked in https://t.co/Rbz6NMTnpr

https://t.co/8k6BkYBxwb

The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time remake launched for Switch 2 November 5. For more, you can see why dataminers have fans hoping for Master Quest DLC – or maybe even a Majora's Mask remake. You can also read about the speedrunners who have managed to break the game in a few hilarious ways in less than a week.

You can also read IGN's review of the game here, or check out our look at the Biggest Changes from the original 1998 game. Be sure to check out our expanding Ocarina of Time remake Walkthrough for comprehensive guides on each main quest area and dungeon, plus where to get Early Heart Pieces, Early Gold Skulltulas, and Early Item Bag Expansions. If you're looking for more, don't miss our complete guides to All Pieces of Heart, All Gold Skulltulas, and All Empty Bottles.