TL;DR: In The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time on Switch 2, Y swings the sword, X jumps, holding A dashes, ZL targets and ZR uses your equipped item. L or R opens Quick Select. D-pad Left takes out the ocarina, and its five notes are L, R, A, Y and X. Before you leave Kokiri Forest, change two settings: Camera-Rotation Speed and Targeting Type.
The biggest change for anyone who played the 1998 Nintendo 64 original of Zelda is that the sword no longer sits on B. It moved to Y, jumping is now a manual button press on X, and the right stick finally gives you a free camera. Nintendo's official store page sums the remake up as "jump and dash through the action with enhanced controls and modern camera movements". Below you'll find the full button map, every Special Action combo, all 12 ocarina songs in both input layouts, and the settings worth changing.
The default layout comes from the in-game Controls screen as published in Vulkk's launch-day controls guide, and the design reasoning comes from Nintendo's Ask the Developer interview. Data as of November 2026, game version 1.1.1. Planning your run? Our breakdown of how long the Zelda: Ocarina of Time remake takes to beat covers story and 100% times.
Zelda: Ocarina of Time remake controls: every default button
You can open this list in-game at any time. Press + and switch to the System tab. The right column shows where each action lived on the Nintendo 64, which explains most of the muscle-memory mistakes in your first hour.
| Action | Switch 2 button | N64 original |
|---|---|---|
| Move | Left Stick | Control Stick |
| Rotate Camera | Right Stick | None (fixed camera) |
| Reset Camera | Press Right Stick | Z |
| Attack | Y | B |
| Jump | X | Automatic at ledges |
| Actions (talk, open, roll) | A | A |
| Dash | Hold A | None |
| Put Away | B | A |
| Target | ZL (hold) | Z |
| Use Item | ZR (tap or hold) | C-Left / C-Down / C-Right |
| Quick Select Items | Hold L or Hold R | Pause menu only |
| Equip Accessory | D-pad Up | Pause menu only |
| Play Ocarina | D-pad Left | Ocarina assigned to a C-button |
| Talk to Navi | D-pad Right | C-Up |
| Open Map | â (Minus) | L toggled the mini-map |
| Open Menu | + (Plus) | Start |
N64 bindings are from StrategyWiki's control table. The item bar works best with a small inventory. Hold L or R, scroll to the Hookshot, Megaton Hammer or Bombchus, then release. Nintendo Wire notes this feels far less clunky than in Tears of the Kingdom because Ocarina of Time has fewer items.
Outside of two swap options, the in-game layout can't be remapped. If you need a different layout, use the system-level Button Mapping in Switch 2 settings. On-screen prompts won't follow a system remap, so expect the HUD to show the default buttons.
Can you jump in the Zelda: Ocarina of Time remake? Jump, dash and how to sprint
Yes. Press X to jump anywhere. Auto-jump is gone. In the Ask the Developer interview, the team explains that players used to recent Zelda games kept asking why Link could jump in one spot but not another. So they carried over the jump button from newer entries and rebuilt the terrain to suit it. Young Link and Adult Link jump slightly different distances, so a gap you cleared as a child may feel different as an adult.
To sprint, hold A. Dash is mapped to the Roll Attack button on purpose. The developers wanted to keep the old habit of rolling across Hyrule Field by tapping A, and added the dash as a hold on the same button. Breath of the Wild players will grab for B at first. Nintendo Life's preview calls that the main early irritation.
If X feels wrong for jumping, turn on Swap Jump Controls in Options. It puts Jump on B and moves Put Away and the other B actions to X, per Vulkk's options rundown. Some October previews described this as a jump/attack swap. The release build swaps X and B.
Special Actions: every combat combo
The Special Actions page (+ â System â Special Actions) lists every move that needs more than one input. The Jump Attack has two inputs because the team couldn't agree. One developer wanted the original single-press version, another preferred Breath of the Wild's jump-then-swing, so both shipped.
| Move | Input |
|---|---|
| Horizontal Swing | Y |
| Vertical Swing | Left Stick forward + Y |
| Thrust Attack | ZL + Left Stick forward + Y |
| Spin Attack | Hold Y, release |
| Jump Attack (modern) | ZL + X, then Y |
| Jump Attack (classic) | ZL + Left Stick forward + A |
| Roll Attack | Left Stick + A |
| Target Move | ZL + Left Stick sideways |
| Side Jump | ZL + Left Stick sideways + X (or A) |
| Backflip | ZL + Left Stick back + X (or A) |
Inputs as listed in the in-game Special Actions screen, via Vulkk. For veterans, the classic A-button Jump Attack is the one to learn. It works the same as on N64 and keeps your thumb off the camera stick.
Camera and Z-targeting settings
ZL is Z-targeting, the lock-on system Ocarina of Time introduced to The Legend of Zelda series in 1998. With a shield equipped, ZL also raises it. In Zeltik's hands-on footage, tapping ZL out of habit to snap the camera behind Link makes him pull out his shield each time. Recenter the camera with a right-stick click instead.
| Setting | Choices | Default | Pick |
|---|---|---|---|
| Invert Vertical Camera | On / Off | Off | Your habit |
| Invert Horizontal Camera | On / Off | Off | Off |
| Camera-Rotation Speed | Speed levels (includes Slow, Normal) | Normal | Slow if you came from the N64 or 3DS version |
| Targeting Type | Hold / Toggle | Hold | Toggle for long boss fights |
Toggle locks on with one ZL tap and releases with the next. It saves your index finger in fights like Dark Link or Phantom Ganon, where you stay locked for a minute or more. Hold is better for crowds. Game Informer found no quick way to switch between targets, so with several enemies you release, aim the camera and lock again. On Toggle that takes two presses instead of one. Vulkk recommends Slow rotation speed for returning players.
Gyro aiming: which items use it and how to turn it off
The remake keeps the gyro aiming from The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time 3D on the Nintendo 3DS. It's on by default under Options â Motion-Control Aiming, and you can always fall back to the right stick. Here's what the coverage so far confirms:
| Item | Gyro aim | Source |
|---|---|---|
| Fairy Slingshot | Yes | The Click, launch build |
| Fairy Bow | Yes | The Click, launch build |
| Hookshot | Yes | The AU Review hands-on |
| Longshot | Not confirmed | Not confirmed |
| Boomerang | Not confirmed | Not confirmed |
| First-person look | Not confirmed | Not confirmed |
Leave gyro on. The Bow in the Forest Temple's painting room and the Hookshot targets in the Water Temple are small, far away and often moving, and a wrist tilt corrects faster than a thumbstick. Turn it off if you play handheld on a moving train, or if your crosshair keeps creeping sideways. That creep is gyro drift, not the game. Our gyro drift fix guide walks through the fixes. For what gyro actually does, read gyro aiming explained.
How to play the ocarina: every song and its buttons
Press D-pad Left to take out the ocarina. While you're playing, D-pad Right shows every song you've learned with its notes, so you never need to memorize a melody. There are two button layouts, set under Options â Swap Ocarina-Playing Controls:
- Normal (two-handed): the default. Notes from lowest to highest are L, R, A, Y, X.
- Classic (one-handed): notes from lowest to highest are R, B, A, Y, X. The face buttons act like the N64's C-buttons, so this is the layout for anyone who learned the songs in 1998.
The game has 12 fixed songs, the same as the original. Nothing new was added, and the Scarecrow's Song is still the one you compose yourself (games.gg). Normal inputs are from VICE's song list, cross-checked with games.gg. The Classic column converts each note using the note order Vulkk lists for that layout.
| Song | Normal (two-handed) | Classic (one-handed) | Where you learn it | What it does |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Zelda's Lullaby | Y X A Y X A | Y X A Y X A | Impa, after meeting Zelda at Hyrule Castle (child) | Triforce-marked puzzles, Water Temple water levels |
| Epona's Song | X Y A X Y A | X Y A X Y A | Malon at Lon Lon Ranch (child) | Calls Epona as an adult; cows give milk |
| Saria's Song | R A Y R A Y | B A Y B A Y | Saria in the Sacred Forest Meadow (child) | Talk to Saria for hints; Mido, Darunia, Skull Kid |
| Sun's Song | A R X A R X | A B X A B X | Royal Family's Tomb, Kakariko Graveyard (child) | Day/night switch; freezes ReDeads and Gibdos |
| Song of Time | A L R A L R | A R B A R B | Zelda at the castle moat, after the three Spiritual Stones (child) | Opens the Door of Time; moves blue Time Blocks |
| Song of Storms | L R X L R X | R B X R B X | Kakariko windmill musician (adult) | Rain, hidden grottos; drains the well as a child |
| Minuet of Forest | L X Y A Y A | R X Y A Y A | Sheik, Sacred Forest Meadow (adult) | Warp to Sacred Forest Meadow |
| Bolero of Fire | R L R L A R A R | B R B R A B A B | Sheik, Death Mountain Crater (adult) | Warp to Death Mountain Crater |
| Serenade of Water | L R A A Y | R B A A Y | Sheik, Ice Cavern after the Iron Boots (adult) | Warp to Lake Hylia |
| Nocturne of Shadow | Y A A L Y A R | Y A A R Y A B | Sheik, Kakariko Village after three temples (adult) | Warp to Kakariko Graveyard |
| Requiem of Spirit | L R L A R L | R B R A B R | Sheik, Desert Colossus (adult) | Warp to Desert Colossus |
| Prelude of Light | X A X A Y X | X A X A Y X | Sheik, Temple of Time after the Forest Temple (adult) | Warp to the Temple of Time |
Playing songs with your voice or a real ocarina
Set Options â Ocarina Mic Input to Humming or Instrument (it starts at None). Then hum, whistle or play a melody and Link repeats it. The game tracks pitch relative to the previous note, so you don't need perfect pitch. The microphone is in the Switch 2 console, not the controller. Docked on a TV across the room, the console may not hear you, and a Pro Controller doesn't help because it has no mic (Vulkk). Mic input works best in handheld or tabletop mode.
HORI's licensed Electric OCARINA OF TIME was made for this feature. It costs $49.99, runs on three AA batteries (not included) and has an Auto-Play mode that performs all 12 songs at the press of a button. It's listed on the My Nintendo Store, where pre-orders sold out in September. Any real ocarina works too.
Best settings to change first
Options holds 13 settings plus amiibo and ZELDA NOTES toggles. Defaults below are from the menu as shown by Vulkk and Nintendo Everything.
| Setting | Default | Recommended | Why |
|---|---|---|---|
| Invert Vertical Camera | Off | Your preference | Match the shooters you play |
| Invert Horizontal Camera | Off | Off | Inverted horizontal is rare outside older third-person games |
| Camera-Rotation Speed | Normal | Slow (veterans), Normal (BotW players) | Slow feels closer to the original's camera |
| Motion-Control Aiming | On | On | Faster small corrections on the Bow and Hookshot |
| Targeting Type | Hold | Toggle | Less strain in long locked-on fights |
| Swap Jump Controls | Off | Off, unless X keeps fighting your thumb | Puts Jump on B, Put Away on X |
| Ocarina Mic Input | None | Humming (handheld only) | The mic is in the console, not the controller |
| Swap Ocarina-Playing Controls | Normal | Classic if you played on N64 | Face buttons act like C-buttons |
| In-Game Interface | Normal | Normal on a first run, Pro on a replay | Master hides the lock-on marker and live hearts |
| Subtitle Display | On | On | Expanded cutscenes are fully voiced |
| Subtitle Speaker-Name Display | Off | On | Helps in crowded scenes |
| Voice Language | English | Any of 9 | Japanese, English, two French, German, two Spanish, Italian, Brazilian Portuguese |
| Controller Vibration | Normal | Mild in handheld | None / Mild / Normal |
Keep your manual save current. The remake has 5 auto-saves and 1 manual save, not the three files from the N64 and 3DS versions. Link's name is also fixed now that cutscenes are voiced (Vulkk).
Which controllers work with Zelda: Ocarina of Time on Switch 2
The game supports TV, tabletop and handheld modes (Nintendo). Here's how each controller handles it:
| Controller | Gyro aiming | Extra buttons | Verdict |
|---|---|---|---|
| Joy-Con 2 (handheld or grip) | Yes | None | Default; the only setup where mic input sits next to you |
| Switch 2 Pro Controller | Yes | GL / GR back buttons | Best for TV play |
| Switch Pro Controller (original) | Yes | None | Fine, no back buttons |
| NSO GameCube controller | No | No â button | Can't open the map, Key Items or Threads of Time |
| NSO N64 controller | No | No second stick | Not practical: no free camera |
Compatibility notes for the NSO controllers are from Vulkk's testing. The Switch 2 Pro Controller is the pick because of its back buttons. Hold HOME, open the GL/GR assignment and map GL to L (Quick Select) and GR to D-pad Right (Navi). That keeps your thumbs on both sticks during fights. Vulkk suggests the same setup.
If Link creeps forward on his own in Kokiri Forest, or the camera slowly turns while you aren't touching anything, the cause is the stick, not the remake. Run your controller through our online gamepad tester to see raw axis values. If they don't settle at zero, follow the Switch 2 Joy-Con drift guide before your warranty runs out.