Ocarina of Time ZELDA NOTES: Setup and All 11 Features

ZELDA NOTES support for the Ocarina of Time remake arrived in Version 1.1.1, the update Nintendo released on November 4, 2026, the day before launch. Nintendo's patch notes say the version "is now supported" and tell you to "follow the instructions displayed at the start of the game to configure ZELDA NOTES." If you played offline on day one and the phone app shows nothing, that update is the first thing to check.

Our Ocarina of Time Switch 2 remake guide gives ZELDA NOTES one section: the four features Nintendo's US launch post highlights and the eleven names Zelda Wiki lists. This post covers the rest: what you need, the setup, what each of the eleven features does in Nintendo's own description, what the app records about your playthrough, and which features cost Rupees. Almost all of it comes from Nintendo's UK and Japanese ZELDA NOTES pages, which describe every feature, and from Nintendo's US support articles. Zelda Wiki fills in a few lists. I have not used the app myself. Where Nintendo says nothing, I write "not documented."

The short version

What you need

One age note from the app FAQ: voice chat and sharing screenshots and videos uploaded from a Switch 2 are restricted to Nintendo Account holders aged 13 and older. The FAQ does not say whether that touches ZELDA NOTES; for Photo Studio, which uses in-game screenshots, the effect is not documented.

Setup, step by step

Nintendo has not published a step-by-step ZELDA NOTES article for Ocarina of Time. Its "How to Use ZELDA NOTES" support page still covers only Breath of the Wild and Tears of the Kingdom. Pieced together from the update notes and the troubleshooting article, the order is:

1. Update the game. Connect the Switch 2 to the internet. With Software Auto-Updates on, the update installs by itself. To do it by hand: highlight the game on the HOME Menu without starting it, press + or -, and pick Software Update, then Over the Internet. The same screen shows your current version number. Nintendo says your save data stays usable after the update.
2. Install the Nintendo Switch App on your phone and sign in with the Nintendo Account that owns your save.
3. Make a save. The account needs existing save data for the game before the game-specific features open.
4. Start the game while online and follow the ZELDA NOTES prompt Nintendo says appears at the start of the game.
5. Open ZELDA NOTES in the app and choose Ocarina of Time. Nintendo's support page says you "must be connected online while playing" to begin using a game's ZELDA NOTES features.

Nintendo has not documented where the ZELDA NOTES setting lives in the game's menus, or whether the link starts on or off, so if step 4 shows no prompt, look in the game's options.

Do you need Nintendo Switch Online?

No. Nintendo's US ZELDA NOTES page says "A Nintendo Switch Online membership is not required to use the Nintendo Switch app or ZELDA NOTES." The UK page says the same, and the Nintendo Switch App FAQ puts ZELDA NOTES under "Features that can be used without a membership."

The confusion comes from Nintendo's own launch post. Its footnote for the Nintendo Switch App says a membership is "required for certain features." That is true of the app as a whole: NookLink, SplatNet 3, Smash World and app voice chat need a membership. It does not apply to ZELDA NOTES. Where a membership does matter in this family is the Breath of the Wild and Tears of the Kingdom upgrade packs, which Expansion Pack members get at no extra cost. Ocarina of Time is a standalone Switch 2 game, so that does not apply.

All 11 features at a glance

Nintendo's UK page numbers the eleven features in this order. The descriptions are summaries of Nintendo's text.

Ask the Developer Vol. 24 Part 4 frames the split: some features carry over from the Breath of the Wild and Tears of the Kingdom version, while others, "such as the ocarina-playing mode," are unique to this game. Five features from those two games (Navigation, Voice Memories, Daily Bonus, Item Sharing, Autobuild Sharing) are not in Nintendo's list for Ocarina of Time. The overview post covers that comparison.

In Nintendo's screenshot, Kakariko Village shows skull markers, some with check marks, and an Area Completion percentage of 14%. Nintendo's Japanese page names Gold Skulltulas among the things the map helps you find and says you can check the completion rate of each area, aiming for 100%. No full remake Gold Skulltula list is documented yet, so the Map is the in-app way to track them (see our remake collectibles changes).

Gossip Quests

Gossip Quests are a scavenger hunt. The app shows a "Rumor" card with a cropped image and a line of text, and you go find that spot in the game. Zelda Wiki says the app tells you when you are near the target, and you tap Found! in the app when you are standing there. Points go into a pool you spend on sheet music for Play Ocarina.

Nintendo's example rumor is a good test of how literal these are. "A giant Goron with three faces" is the big Goron-faced urn in Goron City (Zelda Wiki logs this quest as the Revolving Vase), the one shown in the image at the top of this post.

Play Ocarina

Play Ocarina puts a playable ocarina on your phone. Nintendo lists three modes:

• Free Play: play whatever you want by tapping the holes.
• Guided Play: follow the notes of a score.
• Demo Play: the ocarina plays the song by itself.

You can also write your own score and share it as a QR code. Photo Studio can attach that QR code to a screenshot.

Zelda Wiki sorts the scores into two lists. Scores in the first group are collected as you progress through the game. The second group is bought with Gossip Quest points.

That is 14 songs Link learns and 10 background themes. Exactly what unlocks each of Link's Scores in the app is not documented; the obvious guess is learning the song in the game, but I have not seen it stated. The in-game button inputs for those songs are in our Ocarina of Time songs guide. The phone ocarina is separate from the remake's microphone feature, where you hum a song into the console. That one is covered in the overview.

The Ocarina of Time Quiz

Nintendo's sample question asks which of four chests holds the Kokiri Sword and shows four photos as the answer choices. That is the "images" Nintendo means: some questions ask you to recognize places, not just remember names.

What the app records

This is what the app learns about your playthrough, going only by Nintendo's descriptions:

Two of those put your data in front of other people: Global Play Data and the Hall of Fallen Foes leaderboard. Whether you can opt out of the leaderboard is not documented. What a shared Play Ocarina QR code reveals about you, such as your name, is not documented.

Our Hall of Fallen Foes guide covers the in-game half of that feature: the unlock, the boss statues and the timed rematches. The app half is the record list, medals and leaderboard above.

Where the Rupees go

ZELDA NOTES spends in-game Rupees. Nintendo documents the transfer in one direction only, game to app. Its instruction is to visit the shops in each town to send Rupees to ZELDA NOTES. Two features spend them:

• Ocarina of Time Quiz retries: 20 Rupees each.
• Gossip Quest hints: reveal the general location of a quest target. The price is not documented.

No documented feature sends Rupees back to the game. Zelda Wiki's remake page says the Rupee economy was rebalanced, with shop items generally more expensive and Great Fairies now asking for Rupee donations; its Wallet page adds that wallet capacities went up. Our remake collectibles changes post covers wallet sizes and the new costs.

If ZELDA NOTES will not load

Nintendo's troubleshooting article for game-specific services, condensed (the membership step does not apply to ZELDA NOTES):

1. Update your phone's OS.
2. Check Nintendo's network status page for an outage.
3. Update the Nintendo Switch App and the phone's default web browser. On Android, also update Android System WebView.
4. Make sure the app is signed in to the Nintendo Account that has your Ocarina of Time save.
5. Check parental controls on the Switch 2: "Communicating with Others" must not be restricted.
6. Sign out of the app and back in.
7. Confirm the account has access to Ocarina of Time, and play the game while connected online.
8. Delete and reinstall the app.

Nintendo also notes the game update "must be applied in order to use the game's Internet features," so an un-updated cartridge is the first suspect.

What is not documented

• The exact in-game menu for linking or unlinking ZELDA NOTES, and whether the link starts on or off.
• The point price of the Goron City score (Zelda Wiki prices the other nine at 300 points each), and the full list of all 100 Gossip Quests (Zelda Wiki has 16).
• The Rupee price of a Gossip Quest hint.
• The medal or title list for Ocarina of Time's My Play Data (Zelda Wiki only has medal lists for the Breath of the Wild and Tears of the Kingdom editions).
• The name of the second Quiz difficulty level, and any reward for Quiz scores.
• Whether the Hall of Fallen Foes leaderboard can be hidden.
• What happens to app data if you delete a save or start a new file. Nintendo says nothing about it.
• Whether the Map's Area Completion counts every collectible type, or only some of them.

Quick Action Checklist

• Check the game version on the HOME Menu (+ or - on the icon). You need 1.1.1 or later.
• Install the Nintendo Switch App (iOS 16+ or Android 9+) and sign in with the account that owns your save.
• Skip the Nintendo Switch Online upsell. ZELDA NOTES does not need it.
• Start the game online and accept the ZELDA NOTES prompt.
• If you want a spoiler-free first run, turn on the Map's option to hide places you have not visited.
• Take the free Quiz attempt at each level daily. Retries cost 20 Rupees each.
• Spend Gossip Quest points on the 10 background themes (300 points each where Zelda Wiki lists a price). Per Zelda Wiki, Link's 14 songs come from progress in the game.
• Scan the same Zelda amiibo five times to earn its bonus daily scan.