The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time remake is, by most standards, a pretty faithful remake to the original game, but Nintendo wasn't scared to make changes where necessary. I was a little bummed to learn the fun references to the Super Mario Bros. series had been removed, not to mention some Zelda: Skyward Sword art that was in the Ocarina of Time 3DS remake, but with how carefully Nintendo positions every game, remaster, and remake into its existing portfolio, I'm not at all surprised.

In case you aren't a Zelda historian, the original game has several Mario references including character portraits and heavy design influences on characters like Talon, Malon, and Ingo, who strongly resemble Mario, Peach, and Luigi, respectively. It makes a lot of sense as Zelda: Ocarina of Time and Super Mario 64 were both being made at the same time, but 30 years later, the remake doesn't share that same connection to Mario 64. That's why the portraits have been removed from the remake, even though it's still pretty clear Talon, Malon, and Ingo have doppelgangers hanging out in the Mario universe.

"Certainly, at the time, when we put those there, I don't think anybody thought it was too big a deal. Maybe there was a more carefree or comfortable approach to that sort of thing," Zelda series producer Eiji Aonuma tells Game Informer . ' We don't want that moment to interrupt their experience of the world in that way.

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