This Legend Of Zelda NES Remake Is The Perfect 40th Anniversary Celebration

Published Sep 12, 2026, 1:00 AM EDT

Tom Wilson is a Gaming Features Writer at Screen Rant. Over the past five years, Tom has worked as the Editor-in-Chief at The Game Crater, as a Staff Writer for GamingIntel, a List Writer at TheGamer, and, of course, as a Senior Writer at ScreenRant. Tom has experience writing reviews, guides, news, and features, and has been responsible for teams of writers, training them and editing their work.

Tom graduated with a Masters in Multimedia Journalism, and has since gone on to build up his portfolio of games journalism work.

The Legend of Zelda is having a rather historic moment as it begins its 40th anniversary celebrations in earnest. The recent Nintendo Direct dedicated to everything Zelda showcased a number of exciting new projects in the works, as well as revealed details on those that had already been announced, giving fans a pretty good insight into what to expect from Nintendo over the coming year. Frankly, it all looks rather incredible, with the slew of games and merchandise celebrating the series in exceptional fashion.

Alongside the latest Legend of Zelda 40th anniversary announcements is one that fans may have likely missed. Nestled between the Ocarina of Time gameplay and the reveal of a whole new Nintendo Switch 2 themed after The Legend of Zelda, a remake of the original NES game was showcased, including a lengthy look at its gameplay. Offering stunning new visuals and gameplay tweaks, the remake could prove to be one of the best yet, although there are a few expected caveats fans should be aware of.

The Legend of Zelda NES Remake Looks Incredible

It is rather baffling that Nintendo has never opted to remake the original Legend of Zelda game from 1986. Sure, there have been reimaginings of it, and Oracle of Seasons was originally designed as a remake of LoZ but eventually pivoted to being an original release when development stalled. However, for whatever reason, Nintendo hasn't remade the original game in its totality for a modern console. This is perhaps even more surprising considering Nintendo is remaking Ocarina of Time, a game that released 12 years after the original game and still largely holds up today.

Consequently, the task has been left up to savvy fans with an abundance of time to spare and a deep passion for Nintendo's library of classic games. One fan in particular has taken it upon themselves to complete this seemingly impossible task and has remade The Legend of Zelda from the ground up in a rather unexpected fashion. You see, rather than opting for an Unreal Engine 5 remake (which seems to be so popular for Zelda fan remasters), user Relevant-ish opted to remake The Legend of Zelda in Dreams.

For those unfamiliar, Dreams is a PlayStation 4 title that allows players to make their own games. It has led to several truly ambitious projects, including a full-blown Avatar: The Last Airbender game, and gained a lot of traction early on for the stunning creations players were able to make using its robust tools. This remake of The Legend of Zelda, which is perfectly timed to release alongside the aforementioned new 40th anniversary projects, allows people to play the original game with revamped visuals on a non-Nintendo platform, a feat once thought impossible.

The Legend of Zelda In Dreams Is An Unexpected Yet Complicated Treat

Gameplay of The Legend of Zelda remake was showcased via the YouTube channel Dreams Content just before Nintendo revealed official gameplay of the Ocarina of Time remake. It was perfectly timed to create a buzz surrounding the ambitious fan-made project and, as aforementioned, further celebrate the ongoing anniversary. The gameplay shows off the project's stunning visuals, which are heavily inspired by the Link's Awakening remake (although created entirely within the Dreams engine), alongside sequences of Link exploring the overworld, clearing a dungeon, and unlocking his sword.

While the Legend of Zelda NES remake does look tantalizingly incredible, it comes with a minor caveat. As Dreams projects are limited in space, this remake has been portioned into multiple different projects, meaning it can't be played as one single experience. You can roam around the overworld and see what it has to offer in one project and complete a dungeon in another. Each one still utilizes the same visuals and gameplay, but requires jumping in and out of them in order to get the complete experience.

It's a shame, but a limitation of Dreams. Fortunately, Nintendo hasn't brought down its unrelenting team of lawyers on the project and had it taken down. So, anyone with a copy of Dreams can play the remake entirely for free. All you need to do is go on Dreams, locate the project, and then download it. It's amazing to see fans pour so much effort into recreating their favorite games, especially ones in need of a remake like The Legend of Zelda, and I sincerely hope it inspires Nintendo to finally remake the 40-year-old game.