After one long year of waiting Nintendo fans were greeted with a Nintendo Direct. Nintendo Directs are digital presentations focused on upcoming games for Nintendo platforms. They often announce new games and set social media abuzz when one happens. This most recent one took place on Wednesday, Feb. 17.
The Direct opened up with a disclaimer that certain release dates may be changed due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Then they jumped right into a trailer for the newest Super Smash Bros DLC Fighters, Pyra and Mythra from the game Xenoblade Chronicles 2.
Following that they showed a trailer for Fall Guys for the Nintendo Switch, a game that was incredibly popular last summer but has since died down in popularity. They then revealed Outer Wilds for the Switch, which is best described as Groundhog Day but you have to stop a supernova.
Afterward, they announced remakes for two mystery games for the NES that never left Japan titled Famicom Detective Club and Famicom Detective Club 2. The next few announcements were Samurai Warriors 5, part of the long-running Warriors franchise.
Legend of Mana a remake of the Japan-exclusive spin-off of the critically acclaimed Mana series. Afterward, they revealed new information about the upcoming Monster Hunter: Rise.
Then fans got the reveal of Mario Golf Super Rush, which introduces the new speed gold mode where golfers must race to where their ball landed and whichever player sinks the ball first wins. They also announced the return of the story mode featured in the Gameboy Mario Sports games.
Nintendo followed that trailer with a rapid-fire presentation of Tales from the Borderlands, Capcom Arcade Stadium, Stubbs the Zombie: Rebel without a Pulse, and a new trailer for No More Heroes 3.
They then revealed Neon White, D.C. Superhero Girls, and Plants vs. Zombies: Battle For Neighborville Complete Edition. Nintendo then announced an enhanced port of the game Miitopia where you can play as Batman and team up with magical wizard George W. Bush to defeat your father. It’s essentially a cookie-cutter fantasy story, but you can put any of your Mii’s in MadLibs-style, leading to some wacky combinations.
They followed up with more information about the Mario crossover items in Animal Crossing: New Horizons. After that they announced a tactics game in the style of Fire Emblem developed by the studio that made Octopath Traveller using the same art style used in that game. After they revealed a Star Wars game titled Star Wars Hunters from the developers that brought you such hits as Words with Friends and Oil Well Drilling.
Then they revealed a dodgeball game titled Knockout City as part of EAs Originals program, World’s End Club, a game by the developers of the hit Danganropa series, a Hades physical release, a collection of the 3D Ninja Gaiden games, Hyrule Warriors: Age of Calamity DLC, a new trailer for Bravely Default 2, Ghosts’ and Goblins Resurrection, SaGa Frontier Remastered, and an Apex Legends port.
They then announced that there is no news for a Breath of the Wild sequel, and an enhanced version of Skyward Sword for the Wii that features the option for button controls where the Wii version just had the player swing their hands around. Finally, they closed out the show with the announcement of Splatoon 3.
Overall reactions to this direct from fans were a bit mixed with some liking the direct and others believing it was not worth the 500-day wait in a critical make or break point for the Nintendo Switch as it enters the ending half of its lifespan on the market.
