Nintendo will launch its The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time Switch 2 remake head-to-head with GTA 6 in November, fans believe.
Eagle-eyed Nintendo fans have seen a pair of new amiibo figurines dated for November 11, and believe this will also turn out to be the date that Ocarina of Time arrives on Switch 2 — due to some pretty convincing evidence.
As noted by a user on reddit, Nintendo typically releases amiibo on the same day as new games — even if the games and amiibo themselves are unrelated. One reason for this could be to cut down on shipment costs for physical items, with amiibo travelling to distributors alongside stock of physical games.
Regardless of the reason, the evidence is there — and has been used to accurately reveal unannounced Nintendo game release dates in the past.
“For context the Mineru’s Construct amiibo had its date announced before Fortunes’ Weave, Meta Knight and Shadow Star had its date announced before Pokopia, and Dedede and Tank Star had its date announced before Rhythm Heaven Groove,” the redditor wrote, listing three examples of games and amiibo arriving at the same time this year, even though the figures and games were unrelated.
This time around, Nintendo has listed the Sword Kirby and Dragoon plus the Noir Dedede and Hydra amiibo for launch on November 11. Following the above pattern, fans believe this will be revealed as Zelda: Ocarina of Time’s launch.
No other major game is currently dated for November other than GTA 6, such is the gravitational pull of Rockstar’s hugely-anticipated blockbuster. After so long in development and at such huge a budget, GTA fans expect the game to be nothing short of a pop culture phenomenon — and from the glut of games launching beforehand in September and October, rival publishers clearly feel similar.
Nintendo, meanwhile, looks set to continue its monthly cadence for launching Switch 2 exclusives, with the promising-looking Fire Emblem: Fortune’s Weave on September 17 and Nintendo Switch Sports Resort on October 22. Xenoblade Chronicles 3: Nintendo Switch 2 Edition then arrives on December 3. Currently, Nintendo has not announced any game for arrival in November — but it is still keeping Ocarina of Time’s date under wraps.
Would launching opposite GTA 6 be a bad idea? While other publishers are steering well clear, fans see Nintendo as just about the only company that could still make an impact. Anticipation for Ocarina of Time is huge, and there’s a theory that it will serve a very different audience to GTA 6. And, of course, GTA 6 is not available on Nintendo platforms.
Nintendo is expected to finally reveal Zelda’s release date later this year while finally celebrating the franchise’s 40th anniversary. Fans hope we’ll get a trailer for next year’s live-action Legend of Zelda movie at the same time, and perhaps even confirmation of the series’ next all-new title. In the meantime, mark November 11 on your calendars, next to November 19 for GTA 6.
Tom Phillips is IGN’s News Editor. You can reach Tom at tom_phillips@ign.com or find him on Bluesky @tomphillipseg.bsky.social
