Nintendo had their latest direct today and took the time to make a lot of announcements, and give us some more information on some games coming the switch and 3DS family of consoles. The real icing on the cake was the announcement of a brand new Super Smash Bros. game, which, from the trailer, will be featuring Inklings and Breath of the Wild Link. Everything talk about is listed below. For those of you interested in watching the direct, it has been embedded at the end of the article.
3DS Family
WarioWare Gold
WarioWare Gold is an upcoming entry in the WarioWare franchise. Available on the 3DS August 3rd the game will be the largest in the series so far, featuring over 300 mini-games, utilizing the microphone, tilt controls and of course buttons on the 3DS, showcasing many fan favorite characters redesigned in style.
Dillon's Dead-Heat Breakers
Dillon's Rolling Western finally receives a much deserved sequel in Dillon's Dead-Heat Breakers. This game is a tower defense action, featuring teams comprised of Dillon and his friends while also introducing anthropomorphic Mii characters to fight alongside them. Dillon's Dead-Heat Breakers has a demo available on the 10th of May with the full release coming May 24th.
Mario & Luigi Bowser's Inside Story + Bowser Jr.'s Journey
In the latest entry into the Mario & Luigi RPG franchise, the titular brothers are tasked with finding a cure for Blorbs, a disease that threatens all life in the mushroom kingdom by seemingly inflating those inflicted like balloons. Unfortunately the brothers are swallowed by Bowser, forcing the trio to work together to find a cure before its too late. The gameplay has been flipped on its head by making the player switch between controlling the Mario Bros. and Bowser in order to progress. Also featured is the untold story of Bowser Jr. as he trails behind his father in an attempt to uncover the truth behind the scenes. Mario & Luigi Bowser's Inside Story + Bowser Jr.'s Journey is set to release sometime in 2019.
Detective Pikachu
Detective Pikachu chronicles the adventures of Tim and the detective as they try to unravel the mysterious affliction causing Pokémon to run amok throughout Rhyme city. This game is available for pre-purchase now, and will be releasing on March 23rd. Also announced was a 5.3' Amiibo statue of Detective Pikachu.
Luigi's Mansion
A Gamecube classic has be remade for the 3DS, Luigi's Mansion has had it's gameplay more streamlined, now featuring the map on the bottom screen for easier access, and a new boss rush mode. This game is set to release sometime this year, hopefully Luigi hasn't lost his Gameboy Horror.
Switch
Kirby Star Allies
A new entry in the Kirby franchise sees everyone's favorite pink marshmallow befriending 'Dream Friends' allowing for local player co-op. At launch the roster of friends is limited to King DeDeDe, Meta Knight & Bandanna Waddle Dee, with free updates post-launch to increase the number of friends available. The first free update will be coming on March 28th, just 12 days after the games March 16th release and will add fan favorite characters; Rick, Kine, Coo, Marx & Gooey. This game looks simultaneously beautiful and adorable.
Okami HD
Okami is back with new ways to play, the brush mode of the original game can now be played with touch screen in handheld mode, or with motion control in tabletop and TV mode. Okami is coming to your Switch screens sometime this summer.
Sushi Striker: The Way of Sushido
This new game features gameplay similar in concept to Bejeweled or Poyo Poyo, the player chains together sushi with the same colored plates, with the twist being that the player flings it at their opponent to do damage. The story features Musashi, a sushi striker raised in a world were sushi is forbidden, the player is tasked with helping him take down the empire in glorious conveyor belt sushi combat. This quirky gem comes to the switch and 3DS on June 8th.
Octopath Traveler
Square Enix's long awaited RPG has finally received a release date, July 13th. In the direct we are introduced to two new characters, the merchant Tressa, with the ability to recieve items from NPC's, and the apothecary Alfyn, with the ability to acquire information other characters are not savvy to. Also revealed is the dual job system. Similar to Bravley Default, the party members are allowed a base job and an additional job to expand options and strategies in battle. On its release there will also be a special edition featuring a pop-up book introducing all of the main characters, a map, a sound selection CD and a coin replica of the in game currency.
Travis Strikes Again: No More Heroes
The long awaited 3rd installment in Suda51's No More Heroes series features protagonist Travis Touchdown entering the video game world to take down anyone he can find in Travis Strikes Again: No More Heroes. The game features seven different 'games' which each culminated in a boss battle of epic proportions. The game features local Co-op and an adventure mode which tells a brand new story featuring the 'one and only' Badman. The game is slated to release sometime this year.
Dark Souls: Remastered
Dark Souls has a special place in my heart where I find losing entertaining. The Switch edition is scheduled to have a network test sometime before launch to introduce Nintendo fans to the long running series of difficult games. It's release coincides with a Salaire of Astora Amiibo which allows player to perform the praise the sun emote with 'reckless abandon'. Dark Souls Remastered is scheduled to release on May 25th.
Mario Tennis Aces
In this direct Nintendo has dropped a lot of information about Mario Tennis Aces. The game will feature 15+ characters, each with different play styles and 4 player multiplayer. The gameplay is interesting for a tennis game, rackets have health bars and characters can perform special moves for offensive and defensive purposes. The direct goes into a lot more detail than I will but to summarize it, let's just say that Nintendo has managed to sell me a tennis game, and I don't even watch tennis. The game is slated to release June 22nd with a pre-launch online tournament for players to decide if they want the game, the details of the tournament are TBC.
Captain Toad Treasure Tracker
Captain Toad is coming to the Switch in all his toadstool glory. The game will feature all the levels available on the Wii U version and new levels based around Super Mario Odyssey. This version will feature two player Co-op similar to that of Super Mario Galaxy. Captain Toad Treasure Tracker is slated to release July 13th, with a 3DS version somewhere in the near future.
Undertale
Not much was said about Undertale in its short time on the direct, however the game has already sold me with the bad joke made during it's spotlight. The game is slated to be 'Coming ...Eventually.'
Crash Bandicoot N. Sane Trilogy
Yes you heard that right, the long time Playstation exclusive Crash Bandicoot is coming to Nintendo Switch! There isn't much to say that hasn't already been said about the PS4 version. The game is slated to release on July 10th.
Little Nightmares: Complete Edition
The amazing horror-puzzle title Little Nightmares makes it's debut on the Switch May 18th, featuring a new Pacu mask, acquired by using a Pac-Man Amiibo. I know I'll be picking this one up.
South Park: The Fractured But Whole
In an unexpected turn, South Park: The Fractured But Whole joins the Switch line up, bolstering the list of adult oriented games on the system. the games first two DLC's will be available at launch on April 24th, with it's third DLC coming sometime in the near future.
Hyrule Warriors: Definitive Edition
One of the Wii U's better titles finally gets it's Switch release date; May 18th, and not much else was said about it during the direct. This game looks amazing on the switch and I'm excited to see just how well it does.
ARMS
Popular Nintendo fighter ARMS is going to be having a US and Canada Open tournament starting today through the games online ranked match mode. The only requirement is that you be a citizen of either country. The finals will take place in March 31st and will be live-streamed from Nintendo of America headquarters. I'm hoping Reggie will try and take on the winner again, like when he tried to fight HungryBox and failed miserably. To run alongside this, there will be another Global Test-punch on the same day, which is basically a free trial. Also mentioned was the presence of Koskue Yobuki, a producer of ARMS, and Hasashi Nogami, a producer of Splatoon and Splatoon 2 will be presenting at the GDC.
Splatoon 2
A lot of information was released about Splatoon 2 during the direct; Version 3.0 will be releasing in late April, featuring 100+ new items, new stages and a new rank 'x' which is higher than S+. Callie was revealed to now appear in Octo-canyon after certain requirements have been met and a new single-player DLC 'Octo-Expansion' featuring a syntwave type logo and sinister story was announced. The DLC features a new character Agent 8 as she awakes in an underground test facility with no memories. The DLC is 80 levels long and will allow you to play as Agent 8 in multiplayer after completing the DLC, it's coming with a $20 price tag, with pre-purchase available now for a summer release. pre-purchasing gives the player exclusive gear.
Super Smash Bros. 5
Yes, you read that right: Super Smash Bros. 5 has been announced! If nothing else this promises to be a system seller. The game will likely feature the usual cast, with the addition of the inklings from Splatoon and what looks like Breath of the Wild Link, who will hopefully have a new move-set to better reflect his latest incarnation. The game is slated to release sometime this year.
What are your thoughts on the latest Nintendo Direct? Are you excited for anything in particular, I know I am. In fact there is very little on this list that I'm not excited for. Let me know what you think in the comments below.
