Thomas Mahler, co-founder and CEO of Moon Studios, criticized the pacing and media reception of The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time Remastered after playing it. While he praised the game's visual style and art direction, he expressed disappointment with the actual gameplay experience.
Mahler believes this game is more barren and disorienting than The Legend of Zelda: A Link to the Past, with the remaster failing to address issues from the original. He cited examples where players must hold the analog stick for about two minutes just to traverse empty and tedious areas.
He stated that such design choices could be justified by hardware limitations during the Nintendo 64 era, but remastered projects on Switch 2 hardware should not retain these outdated elements unchanged. These critiques focus on pacing and design rather than constituting a comprehensive rejection of the work.
When discussing media scores, Mahler argued that The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time Remastered should receive no more than a 7.5 to 8 today, criticizing some reviewers for focusing excessively on polished visuals while lacking an understanding of game design.
The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time Remastered achieved a score of 96 on Metacritic based on 84 media reviews, described as the highest record of the year; judgments regarding design merits and appropriate scores reflect Mahler's personal opinions.