Hookshot Brings Ocarina of Time Switch 2 Remake to Windows: Setup and Early Limitations

What Hookshot is​

Nintendo's Ocarina of Time remake launched exclusively on Switch 2 on November 5, 2026, with rebuilt visuals, voiced cutscenes, expanded dialogue, orchestral music and modernized controls. Within hours, people were showing it running through an experimental emulator called Lichii. NotRexed also shared footage of an experimental native PC recompilation that doesn't rely on a traditional Switch 2 emulator.

That native route is Hookshot. The repository describes it as a static recompilation. In its own words, the game's code is translated to C and compiled into a Windows program. The console's system software is reimplemented, and the Switch 2 graphics are rebuilt on Vulkan. All of it happens on your PC, from your own copy of the game.

Don't read this as an official port or a ready-to-run download. The repository says it contains no game, keys or executable, and it doesn't explain how to get them. It calls itself an unofficial fan project, not affiliated with or endorsed by Nintendo.

How the pipeline works​

The README lays out the stages:

• nx2/lift.py translates the game's ARM64 code to C.
• nx2/build.py compiles that C together with host/, which plays the part of the console's system layer.
• host/nvn_native.c records the game's NVN2 graphics calls, and a Vulkan renderer in gpu/vk/ replays them.
• Shader handling: Switch 2 Ampere shaders are lowered to Maxwell and translated to SPIR-V by Eden's shader recompiler.

Credits in the README include Eden, suyu and several other projects whose shader and translation work Hookshot builds on. NotRexed is also credited with earlier projects for Mario Kart World and Tears of the Kingdom.

What you need to build it​

This is where Windows readers need to pay attention. The supported game version is narrow: program 0400486024DEC000, update v131072, build e0f3ccfa. Other versions don't work.

• OS: 64-bit Windows 10 or 11.
• Compiler tools: The Visual Studio C++ tools and the Windows SDK. The README says Microsoft doesn't allow these to be bundled, so you install Visual Studio Build Tools with the "Desktop development with C++" workload. The builder tells you if they're missing.
• GPU: Vulkan 1.3 with mesh shaders and an up-to-date driver. Only NVIDIA has been tested.
• Memory: 16 GB of RAM or more. A run uses about 10 GB.
• Disk: About 60 GB free during the build.

For command-line builds you also need the following:

• Python 3 with lz4, numpy, capstone and unicorn.
• The clang from emsdk at C:\emsdk.
• The prebuilt a64emit, lld-link, zbic and SDL2 tools in third_party/.
• Visual Studio 2022 with .NET 8, but only if you want to modify the builder itself.

Building it step by step​

1. Download the HookshotBuilder zip from the repository's Releases page, extract it, and keep the tools folder beside HookshotBuilder.exe.
2. Run the builder and choose your game's .nup, or your romfs and exefs folders. It checks that the version is correct.
3. Pick a language and an output folder, then start the build.
4. When it finishes, open hookshot.exe in that folder.

DSOGaming's coverage also describes the builder as a small tool that checks your game has the right update before it starts. It puts the full build at about 40 minutes, during which you can keep using the PC.

Command-line users run python -I nx2/make_game.py with either --nup or --romfs and --exefs, plus --out and --language. Adding --check only verifies the game version and builds nothing.

The build reads your game and never changes it. It writes to your chosen folder and to %LOCALAPPDATA%\HookshotBuilder. Where the disk allows, romfs is hard-linked rather than copied. To uninstall, delete the game folder and %LOCALAPPDATA%\HookshotBuilder.

What works and what doesn't​

The project has been tested on only one PC, a Ryzen 5 7600X with an RTX 4060 Ti 16 GB, mostly in the opening area.

One caveat on AMD: the project's release notes mention a build that "possibly fixed AMD" and early green-screen problems on NVIDIA cards. That is a developer's note about a fix, not a test result. I wouldn't treat AMD as supported.

Treat these results as one developer's report on one machine. They don't show a finished port, a steady 60 fps, or support across GPU vendors.

Settings and troubleshooting​

Press Insert in game to open the menu. Everything is off by default, and your choices are saved to hookshot_options.ini beside the game.

• Frame generation: Off, 2x, 3x or 4x.
• Frame pacing: Off or On.
• Resolution: Auto (the game's own dynamic resolution), 100%, 75%, 67% or 50%.
• Upscaling: Off, Catmull-Rom or Lanczos, with sharpness from 0 to 100%.
• Game speed: Per frame or Real time. On Per frame, the game runs slower whenever it's below 60 fps. Real time keeps normal speed.
• Handheld profile, ultrawide (16:9 or monitor's shape), FPS counter: each can be toggled.

Controls work with a gamepad or with keyboard and mouse. On the keyboard, WASD moves and the arrow keys turn the camera.

The README's fixes for common problems:

• Error saying Hookshot supports build e0f3ccfa: check that you chose the right game with its update installed.
• Game opens and closes: update your graphics driver.
• Stutter the first time you see something: this is shader preparation. It improves when you pass through the same place again.
• Wrong language: change the code in language.txt beside the game.

If problems continue, the project asks you to report where you were in the game, your graphics card and a screenshot or video. It also asks you never to send game files.

Analysis: why it matters​

Emulation and static recompilation take different routes. TweakTown's report on the launch-week efforts says the Lichii emulator route showed rough performance. It also mentions a separate native port that, by its account, plays only the introduction before crashing. Hookshot already reaches gameplay in Kokiri Forest, which is notable for something published within days of release.

The caveats are real. Because the code is translated ahead of time, resolution, frame rate and hardware support are easier to push than in a pure emulator. But the README's "not tested" rows are most of the game.

There is also an obvious legal and ethical gray zone. The project says it ships no game, keys or executable and asks users not to share generated files. Its own code is MIT-licensed, while the included Eden and suyu code stays under the GPL. The README says a compiled game as a whole is covered by GPL-3.0-or-later. I won't offer legal conclusions beyond those statements. Nintendo's stance on projects like this is a separate question, and none of the source material addresses it.

Practical advice:

• Don't start the 40-minute build until you've confirmed your game matches the exact supported version.
• Check that you have the roughly 60 GB of free space the build needs.
• If you're on AMD or Intel graphics, expect to be a guinea pig.

Hookshot is a notable early recompilation project. It is not yet a full PC version of the game.