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- New theory just dropped, connecting nearly every recent Nintendo release straight back to Nintendo movies, and once you see the pattern, you can't unsee it.
- Nintendo movies keep showing up right before or right after games that clearly complement them.
- The original question comes back into focus: whether Ocarina of Time was built specifically for the Legend of Zelda movie landing later in 2027.
- There's speculation that Nintendo could be developing short-form content or a series built around the franchise, followed later by a game meant to tie directly into it.
New theory just dropped, connecting nearly every recent Nintendo release straight back to Nintendo movies, and once you see the pattern, you can't unsee it.
You've probably wondered whether The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time remake was built specifically to ride the wave of next year's Legend of Zelda movie, or whether it's the other way around and the film was shaped around the game.
According to a source close to the situation, Nintendo has apparently admitted that this kind of cross-promotion is intentional, and that at least three different titles were built specifically to line up with the recent Mario movies.
Take Star Fox as an example.
You'll remember Fox McCloud showed up in the Super Mario Galaxy Movie, and if you've never really been into that franchise before, a full remake of the old N64 title would be the perfect way to introduce you to it while the character is fresh in your mind thanks to the film.
Then there's Princess Peach: Showtime!, which lines up almost too perfectly with the way the Mario movie reimagined Peach. You know the usual formula: she gets kidnapped, Mario saves her, credits roll. But the movie gave her a lot more agency, and Showtime! ran with that same energy, letting her actually fight back instead of waiting around.
It's hard to look at the timing and not think the movie pushed that idea forward. You'll also find a mention of Yoshi's Crafted World tied into this pattern, though it's more likely the insider actually meant Yoshi and the Mysterious Book, since the timing lines up better. Either way, the point still stands.
Nintendo movies keep showing up right before or right after games that clearly complement them.
If this pattern is real, you should expect it to keep happening. There have been persistent rumors about two upcoming Nintendo movies, and one of them is reportedly a Luigi's Mansion film. If you think about the release window, it wouldn't be surprising to see the movie land around early October, and then a new Luigi's Mansion game drop right around Halloween to close out the promotional loop.
Given everything the insider claims Nintendo has confirmed about tying games to Nintendo movies, that kind of scheduling would track. You can already see the leaks pointing toward Nintendo actively building projects around this exact strategy.
A new Super Smash Bros. entry is also floating around as a possibility, and honestly, it makes sense as the ultimate wildcard here. You could release a Smash game around literally any movie announcement, whether it's built around Kirby, Yoshi, Luigi's Mansion, or even something tied to Super Mario Galaxy 2.
It's flexible enough to fit almost any promotional window Nintendo wants to hit. That said, there's no indication yet that the director behind Smash has any interest in turning the series into its own movie, though you shouldn't rule it out down the line.
The original question comes back into focus: whether Ocarina of Time was built specifically for the Legend of Zelda movie landing later in 2027.
Based on the leaks floating around, that film is reportedly going to closely follow the Ocarina of Time story itself, which lines up suspiciously well with the timing of the remake. Whether that's intentional or a coincidence is still up for debate, but you can see why people are connecting the dots.
What makes this even more interesting is that reports suggest the Ocarina of Time remake has been in development for around three years at this point, with leaks about it reportedly surfacing as early as 2024. That's a long runway for a project that might have been built with a movie tie-in in mind the whole time.
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There's also a chance the remake isn't tied to the movie at all, and that Nintendo could release something separate to capitalize on the film once it drops. You could still go pick up Ocarina of Time by then since it would only be a few months old, but you might also see some other Legend of Zelda release show up around the same time.
Historically, you get some kind of Zelda game every single year, whether that's a spin-off, a remaster, or a full mainline entry, so it wouldn't be out of the ordinary for another one to appear alongside the movie. Even Pikmin might not be safe from this trend.
There's speculation that Nintendo could be developing short-form content or a series built around the franchise, followed later by a game meant to tie directly into it.
The insider also claims there's interest in expanding into movies built around entirely different characters, though details on that are still vague. Going forward, you should expect this trend to keep showing up with Nintendo movies. Whenever the next one gets announced, whether it ends up being Luigi's Mansion, Smash Bros., Kirby, or even Mario Kart, there's a decent chance you'll see a game, expansion, or piece of DLC drop alongside it.
It might not always be a massive standalone release, but something tied to the franchise seems to accompany these films pretty consistently at this point. There's also a fresh rumor circulating about a potential Metroid movie, and this one gets interesting fast.
Reports suggest two new Metroid games are currently in development, so it's possible one of them, whether that's Metroid Ravenous as a follow-up to Metroid Dread or a full remake of Super Metroid, could be timed to release around the film. Depending on the direction Nintendo takes, you could see either a Metroid Prime 4-style approach or something built entirely around the classic 2D formula.
Whatever ends up happening, this whole pattern around Nintendo movies paints an interesting picture of how the company might be planning its next few years. Between the Zelda film, the Metroid rumors, and the ongoing Mario momentum, it's clear Nintendo movies aren't just marketing side projects anymore. They increasingly look like the blueprint for what games get made next.
