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The story
Data-mining of The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time Remake has revealed that the high-difficulty “Master Quest” mode (nicknamed “Dark Zelda” by fans) will reportedly be unlocked via paid DLC rather than a free update, according to overseas media. Since a November 6 report had already said the mode wouldn’t be included in the Switch 2 version, this new information suggests that “not included” actually meant “DLC-only.” On 5ch’s console/industry board, opinions split between those who accept that packing even the hidden mode into a full-price complete remake for free just isn’t realistic these days, and critics who argue that content which should’ve shipped with the game from the start shouldn’t be carved out as paid DLC.
Further details have emerged from data-mining on The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time’s Master Quest, including confirmation that it’s unlocked by owning the DLC (not via an update), that the overworld is mirrored, and that dungeons have been altered.
Source: nintendoeverything.com / Original article here
What people said
Go ahead and pay up for the garbage DLC, you dumb fanboys lol
PS5 fans "too" — even if they kill off the free [pirate] store, a new one pops up right away, so it's still a steal 🤣
Re: #3 obviously means playing it on an emulator, right? Isn't "too" just the natural way to phrase that?
And here comes another guy who can't read Japanese properly 🤣
Like people keep saying, it's about what KIND of DLC it is.
Don't carve off content that should've been in the game from the start and sell it separately.
Is it really something that "should've been there from the start," though?
With a remake this painstaking, if they threw in the hidden mode too, there's no way they could sell it at this price point these days.
Charging extra for it as DLC seems fair to me.
Even the original N64 Ocarina of Time didn't have Master Quest built in from the start, so there's nothing to complain about with it being DLC lol
You really think they haven't comfortably recouped development costs from the full-price base game alone…?
Oh wow, so you know this game's actual development budget? That's impressive.
So how much was it? Give me a source.
I like Nintendo games too, but their fanboys are genuinely creepy.
They'll force a defense of literally anything — it's basically a cult.
It got scrapped, was handed out as a Wind Waker preorder bonus, then included in the 3DS version —
and this time they've packaged it as a combo of the mirrored map and double-damage hard mode.
The dungeon puzzle solutions change too, you know.
Quit spoiling stuff, you damn old farts.
It's the bonus mode that was included in the GameCube version and the 3DS version.
Yeah — instead of just double damage, I'd want boss changes on the level of Kirby's buffed hard-mode bosses, at least a little.
Nothing but "complete edition" cash grabs.
Found the guy who doesn't even know what "complete edition" means.
Kids might not get their DLC bought for them, but a demographic that doesn't turn a profit is dead weight anyway.
Hey Furukawa (Nintendo's president), your job is to post solid profits and deliver returns to shareholders, so just go sell more Switch 2s already.
You're staying on as president for a while yet, so beating Switch 1's numbers is literally your job — get it done.
Even assuming they haven't actually played it, this isn't even a real complaint.
But the Nintendrones (mocking nickname for Nintendo fanboys) themselves said they didn't want Master Quest.
[Sad News] Switch 2 version of "Ocarina of Time" won't include Master Quest
https://krsw.5ch.io/test/read.cgi/ghard/1793935596/
12 Anonymous, Desperate as Always 2026/11/06 (Fri) 12:42:57.43 ID:e4ObebJh0
If they put that effort into other replay content instead, that's honestly better.
Nobody plays through a game twice in a row anymore these days.
PS5 "too"?
The Nintendrone just admitted to pirating their Switch 2.
Where does it even say "Dark Zelda" in there?
"Master" and "Dark Zelda" mean the same thing.
Back in the original N64 days it was called "Dark Zelda," but now it's called "Hard Mode" or "Master Mode."
It's the high-difficulty mode you unlock after clearing the game once.
🐷(fanboy): <Whoaaa, as expected of Nintendo!
Nintendo: <We cut Master Quest — you can buy it back as DLC.
🐷(fanboy): <GRAAAH! 💢 (a drawn-out, resentful "well… guess it can't be helped" grunt)
Cut it out lmaooooooo
It's the hard-mode second playthrough.
Double damage taken,
dungeon gimmicks and layouts changed into a separate, harder version,
everything mirrored left-right.
Stuff like suddenly needing bombs at the Deku Tree that you didn't originally.
Well, the Nintendrones said they didn't want it.
[Sad News] Switch 2 version of "Ocarina of Time" won't include Master Quest
https://krsw.5ch.io/test/read.cgi/ghard/1793935596/
12 Anonymous, Desperate as Always 2026/11/06 (Fri) 12:42:57.43 ID:e4ObebJh0
If they put that effort into other replay content instead, that's honestly better.
Nobody plays through a game twice in a row anymore these days.
Background and Key Points of This Debate
“Master Quest” (aka “Dark Zelda”) was originally planned for the 64DD add-on, got cancelled, and has since been offered as a Wind Waker preorder bonus and included in the 3DS version — it’s a mirrored-map, high-difficulty mode, not something new to this remake. A November 6 report claimed the Switch 2 version “won’t include” it, and this latest data-mining suggests that absence isn’t permanent but rather that it’ll be unlocked later through paid DLC rather than a free update. It’s easy to overlook that this is still speculation based on file analysis, not an official announcement. The thread split along two lines: those who accept that “there’s no way a full-price complete remake can include even the hidden mode for free given today’s development costs,” versus critics who argue “don’t carve off content that should’ve shipped with the game as paid DLC.” Since nobody could actually cite real development-cost figures, the debate mostly just went in circles.
※This article is excerpted and summarized from the 5ch (Hardware/Industry) thread “[Sad News] Ocarina of Time Remake Reportedly Unlocks Master Quest via DLC“.
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