There’s no doubt that The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time is a seminal piece of software in video game history. It melded high-end graphics with great gameplay, becoming one of the most beloved titles ever. Michael Eurek used his love of the game as inspiration to recreate one of the adventure’s most iconic locations, Zora’s Domain, using Unreal Engine 4 technology. The results: gorgeous scenes that look like real-life vacation spots. Take a gander at the video below.
Many videos like this have surfaced recently, inserting different characters like Mario and Sonic into the Unreal Engine 4 kite demo environment. Those look great as well, but this one is unique because it recreates a location using assets from Epic’s demos, and foliage from the Tropical Forest asset pack from the Unreal Marketplace. The only missing parts are the beloved characters. As for the music, it’s actually the Zora’s Domain theme from The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess.
Over the years many have wanted Nintendo to use more lifelike graphics, which I don’t think works for most of their games, but The Legend of Zelda franchise might be the one exception. We don’t really need a gritty Link or anything, but it would be interesting to explore a hyper realistic Hyrule.
The closest thing we have seen to this artistic approach from Nintendo is in The Legend of Zelda Wii U tech demo shown off in 2012. The most recent Zelda title the Big N is working on has a more colorful palette, making it look like a bright animated film.
What do you think about this recreation? Would you like all of Ocarina of Time to be recreated using this tech? Let us know in the comments below.
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HT: Popular Science
Featured image courtesy of deviantART // MinionSlayer