Looking ahead: Despite Nintendo's aggressive efforts, PC users have often been able to play games released for the original Switch through emulation just days after launch. Generative AI coding could help recreate a similar situation with Switch 2 games, although things are still in an early, experimental stage. The latest target is a The Legend of Zelda remake that launched to glowing reviews this week.
The Nintendo Switch 2 remake of arguably the greatest Nintendo 64 game has been dumped and run on a PC emulator within hours of launch. However, users should probably stick with the console version for now.
A recent video from Unreal Gaming PC shows Nintendo's remake of The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time running on the recently launched Lichii emulator. Centro Leaks also shared screenshots of a character model and other assets extracted from a dumped copy of the game, while X user NotRexed claims to have started preliminary work on a PC recompilation.
– Centro LEAKS (@CentroLeaks) November 4, 2026
However, since the emulator is barely a week old, the game is far from playable. The video demonstration is plagued by visual glitches, and the framerate frequently drops into the 20s on a system equipped with an RTX 4080 and Ryzen 7 9800X3D. For comparison, the Switch 2 version maintains 60fps at dynamic 1440p when docked and dynamic 1080p in handheld mode, with AMD FSR 1 enabled.
Still, the achievement offers another glimpse of the breakneck pace of Nintendo Switch and Switch 2 hacking over the past month. A free, fan-made PC port of the 2019 remake of The Legend of Zelda: Link's Awakening entered public beta in October. Later that month, the first proof of concept for jailbreaking the Switch 2 emerged, and hackers began running Switch games natively on Apple Silicon devices.
– NotRexed (@NotRexed) November 5, 2026
Enthusiasm for Ocarina of Time is expected to be one of the main drivers of continued development on Lichii and other Switch 2 exploits. The original 1998 release remains Metacritic's highest-rated game of all time, with a 99 Metascore, while the remake debuted with a 96.
The Switch 2 remake earned perfect scores from The Guardian, Eurogamer, GamesRadar, Destructoid, and several other outlets, while IGN, GameSpot, and Forbes awarded it 9/10. Critics say the seminal classic, which helped popularize several conventions of modern 3D gaming, still holds up 28 years later. They also praise its new quality-of-life improvements, with multiple outlets recommending the remake to longtime fans and newcomers alike.