Nintendo Officially Confirms A ‘Zelda’ 40th Anniversary Direct Is Coming
Developing story first seen 3 hours ago
Nintendo has confirmed a Legend of Zelda 40th Anniversary Nintendo Direct will air on Tuesday 8 September 2026, dedicated entirely to the franchise and expected to finally deliver concrete details on the long-awaited Ocarina of Time remake for Switch 2. A second, broader Nintendo Direct follows the next day, Wednesday 9 September, covering upcoming Switch 2 titles for winter 2026 — and a Swiss retailer that has previously leaked accurate release dates has already listed Ocarina of Time's launch as 1 December, a month ahead of Grand Theft Auto 6, though Nintendo has yet to confirm this officially.
The anniversary Direct runs from 7am PDT (10am EDT) for 30 minutes, with Nintendo promising "a variety of Zelda related information." Wednesday's follow-up Direct lasts around 45 minutes and is itself followed by a roughly 110-minute Nintendo Treehouse: Live stream showing gameplay from featured titles. Nintendo has already marked the franchise's 40th anniversary with Zelda-themed Switch 2 hardware and an upcoming live-action film starring Bo Bragason and Benjamin Evan Ainsworth, and early footage suggests the Ocarina of Time remake has been given a striking, Pixar-style visual overhaul.
- Zelda 40th Anniversary Direct confirmed for 8 September 2026
- Second general Switch 2 Direct follows on 9 September
- Retailer leak suggests Ocarina of Time remake launches 1 December
New here? Start with this
Nintendo is holding a Nintendo Direct dedicated entirely to The Legend of Zelda on 8 September 2026, marking 40 years since the series began. The event is expected to bring the first solid details on a remake of Ocarina of Time, a classic 1998 game, for Nintendo's Switch 2 console, something fans have been waiting on with little official information so far.
The broadcast is one of several Zelda-related activities this year, alongside special edition hardware and a live-action film adaptation starring Bo Bragason and Benjamin Evan Ainsworth. A second, broader Direct covering other upcoming Switch 2 games follows the next day, along with a longer livestream giving deeper looks at featured titles.
This matters to followers of Nintendo and the Zelda franchise because the remake's release date and scope have long been the subject of speculation, and any official confirmation would end months of uncertainty. Unverified retailer listings have already suggested a possible release window, though Nintendo itself has not confirmed a date.
Full account
Nintendo has confirmed a dedicated Nintendo Direct to mark the 40th anniversary of The Legend of Zelda, alongside a second, separate broadcast focused on wider Switch 2 releases. The anniversary presentation is scheduled for Tuesday 8 September, beginning at 7am PDT (10am EDT, 3pm BST) and running for roughly half an hour. Nintendo has said only that it will share "a variety" of Zelda-related news, leaving the exact contents under wraps ahead of time.
A further, more general Nintendo Direct follows the very next day, Wednesday 9 September, at the same time slot of 7am PDT (10am EDT, 3pm BST), though this one is billed to last around 45 minutes and will centre on Switch 2 titles due out this winter. Nintendo plans to follow that broadcast with a Nintendo Treehouse: Live stream lasting approximately 110 minutes, showing extended gameplay footage of titles featured in the Direct. Running two Directs on consecutive days, capped off by a lengthy Treehouse session, is an unusually dense schedule for the company.
Anticipation is running high largely because of The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time remake for Switch 2, which Nintendo confirmed earlier in the year but has since said very little about. Fans are hoping the anniversary Direct will finally bring substantive details, such as a release date, given that unofficial early looks have already shown the game rebuilt with a softer, more modern visual style in place of its original Nintendo 64 look. The 40th anniversary celebrations extend beyond the games themselves, with Nintendo also having released Zelda-branded Switch 2 hardware and continuing work on a live-action film adaptation featuring Bo Bragason and Benjamin Evan Ainsworth.
Beyond the Ocarina of Time remake, expectations for the anniversary stream include possible news tied to the wider Zelda film and other franchise activities, though Nintendo has not detailed specifics. The following day's general Direct is expected to round out Nintendo's winter line-up for Switch 2, giving a fuller picture of the console's release calendar heading into the end of the year.
Where outlets differ
One source frames the story primarily around the Ocarina of Time remake and speculates on a possible December 2026 release date based on an unverified retailer listing, tying this to the Switch 2's recent price rise and competition from Grand Theft Auto 6; the other source does not mention a leaked release date or the price increase at all.
The second source places more emphasis on how unprecedented the back-to-back Direct and Treehouse schedule is, explicitly calling it a first for Nintendo, whereas the first source reports the same schedule without characterising it as unusual.
The first source discusses the Zelda film cast and the Zelda-themed console/controller in more depth as part of the 40th anniversary context; the second source raises the film only briefly as a speculative possibility for the Direct's content.
Time zones are presented differently: one source gives PDT/EDT, the other also includes BST, reflecting different intended audiences.
More coverage
- Eurogamer — Next week, for the first time ever, Nintendo is hosting two Directs back-to-back – and the first one is dedicated to The Legend of Zelda's 40th anniversary
- IGN — Nintendo Confirms 2 Nintendo Direct Broadcasts for Next Week, Including a Dedicated Legend of Zelda 40th Anniversary Broadcast