Published Sep 11, 2026, 3:00 AM EDT
‘Zelda: Ocarina of Time’ Is Coming Back 28 Years Later. A Generation of Veterans Grew Up With It
The kids who first explored Hyrule in 1998 are nearly 40. Now ‘Ocarina of Time’ is returning for a generation of veterans who grew up gaming.
When The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time arrived on the Nintendo 64 in November 1998, many of the veterans now reading Military.com were still children. A player who was 9 years old when Link first rode across Hyrule Field would be 37 today. That also happens to be the average age of the veteran gamers surveyed last year by the Entertainment Software Association, placing Nintendo’s upcoming remake squarely in the path of a generation that grew up with the original, served during the post-9/11 era and kept playing along the way.
Nintendo will release its rebuilt version of Ocarina of Time exclusively for the Switch 2 on Nov. 5. Nearly 28 years after the original, the remake offers veteran players a chance to return to one of the defining games of their childhood, maybe even alongside children of their own. Gaming has remained a significant part of military life for many of those players. In the ESA survey, 78% of veteran gamers said playing during deployments boosted their morale, while the same percentage said gaming with fellow service members strengthened their camaraderie. Seventy-three percent said games helped foster teamwork and cooperation. The USO has leaned into that relationship, too. Its gaming programs operate at more than 250 centers worldwide, while portable Rapid Response Gaming Kits bring Nintendo Switch consoles and games to troops serving in remote or austere locations. The organization says the kits are meant to give service members a way to relax, spend time together and stay connected during deployments.
