Yesterday, we got another big 40-minute Nintendo Direct. It was exciting to see some new games, some updates and some surprise shadow drops. There was a lot shown in the 40 minutes so let’s get right into it.
Monster Hunter Rise: Sunbreak DLC
The presentation started off with Monster Hunter Rise: Sunbreak. I’ve tried and tried to get into the world of Monster Hunter many times. I have many friends that are really into this franchise, but I just continue to learn that this franchise isn’t for me. I even tried to watch the movie to see if that would help — it didn’t.
Sunbreak is a new paid DLC for Monster Hunter Rise. The new expansion will release in Summer of 2022.
Mario Party Superstars
We received some new information for Mario Party Superstars. I have never owned a Mario Party game myself, but I have played them at friends’ houses. What looks neat about Superstars is that it’s a collection of mini games from the Mario Party games of the past. It’s sort of like a Mario Party Greatest Hits record. We got to see some new boards coming from the Mario Party 64.
Mario Party Superstars arrives on Nintendo Switch on October 29.
Voice of Cards: The Isle Dragon Roars
This is something new and cool. I love tabletop games with friends, and I always think it’s cool when they add elements of tabletop games to video games.
Voice of Cards: The Isle Dragon Roars is a new RPG card game where every task and activity is handled using cards. The game features turn-based card battles and sweet boards. It looks like it would be a fun physical tabletop game to play with friends on a game night.
Voice of Cards: The Isle Dragon Roars releases on October 28. There’s also a FREE demo available now — and I’ll definitely be downloading it.
Disco Elysium – The Final Cut
Disco Elysium gained a lot of buzz when it first came out on PC. It even won a few big awards. The game started making its way onto consoles later on (PlayStation and Xbox), and now it’s finally coming to Switch.
I still want to play it one day, but I would prefer to play this type of big RPG on my PC. It seems more like a point-and-click, mouse and keyboard adventure.
Disco Elysium arrives digitally on Switch on October 12 with a Physical edition coming in 2022.
Hyrule Warriors: Age of Calamity (Expansion Pass)
Hyrule Warriors: Age of Calamity is gaining a new expansion — Guardian of Remembrance — next month. Although I haven’t played this particular “Warriors” game I have played some that came before. Dynasty Warriors and Fire Emblem Warriors.
The “Warriors” franchise of games features epic large-scale battles where you run around taking out hundreds of enemies all at once. Although I love the Breath of the Wild art-style used in this game, I didn’t buy it because of what happened with the others. These games, although fun, are quite repetitive and I didn’t make it very far in Fire Emblem Warriors before returning the game to my buddy.
The new expansion will be available on October 29.
Chocobo GP
Who doesn’t want a Final Fantasy-themed cart racer? Chocobo GP is a Mario Kart-style racing game featuring the characters from the Final Fantasy universe.
The one announcement that stood out in this one was that there would be 64 player online tournaments. Lately, I’ve been playing Mario Kart 8 Deluxe strictly online and you end up racing with the same eight or so players (with some drop-ins) race after race. A giant tournament sounds like a worthy addition.
Chocobo GP will arrive on Switch some time during 2022.
Smash Bros New Fighter!
We didn’t get much news here. Only that the final Super Smash Bros Ultimate fighter will be revealed on 10/5. Who will it be? Will it truly be our final addition? Is it time to get back into Smash Bros? All of these questions and more will be answered (hopefully) on 10/5 at 10 AM ET (7 AM PT) by Mr. Sakurai.
Kirby and the Forgotten Land
This one was huge. The strongest hero in all of Nintendo (according to the Super Smash Bros. Ultimate opening video). We’re getting a brand new 3D Kirby in the style of Mario 64 and Mario Odyssey? I recently got back into some old school Kirby side-scrolling platform games, so this is a very welcome new addition for me.
The map of this forgotten civilization looks super sweet. The world and art style are also new and beautiful for a Kirby game.
I’m excited to get my hands on this one during the Spring of 2022.
Animal Crossing: New Horizons Update
Some new FREE content is coming to Animal Crossing: New Horizons in November. We didn’t get much more information than that though. We’ll just have to wait for the special Animal Crossing Direct coming next month.
I guess it’s time to go back to Ferdington (my island) and clean up before this new update rolls around.
Mario Golf: Super Rush Update
Mario Golf: Super Rush is also receiving some new content. In fact, it’s already here. We have two new golfers — Koopa Troopa and Ninji. We also got two new courses.
If you haven’t updated your Mario Golf: Super Rush yet, make sure to do that. These updates are absolutely FREE and available right now.
Disney Magical World 2: Enchanted Edition
This trailer first made me think of Disney Adventures in the Magic Kingdom game for the original Nintendo Entertainment System. This was a game my sister and I used to play, where you walk around the Magic Kingdom and each ride is a different level. I also got some major Kingdom Hearts vibes from this one, but that’s mostly because of Mickey and Disney.
Disney Magical World 2: Enchanted Edition is a remake or remaster of a 3DS game. In this adventure game you get to hang out with Mickey and friends in many Disney-themed worlds. It seems to be a sort of Disney-themed Animal Crossing-like game and that sounds totally awesome to me.
Be on the lookout for Mickey and friends this Holiday 2021.
Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic
During the last PlayStation showcase we got news of Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic (KOTOR) being remade for next-gen. It’s exciting that this very popular game will finally be making its way to the Nintendo Switch, but I’ll still hold out for the PlayStation 5 version.
Star Wars: KOTOR comes to Nintendo Switch on November 11
Dying Light 2: Stay Human (Cloud Version) & Dying Light: Platinum Edition
It’s exciting that they found a way to bring these bigger games to the Switch (using the Cloud), but Cloud Versions are not for me. One reason is because I own a PlayStation 5 and PC. So, I would much rather just play the normal version there. I’m sure the Cloud version of gaming will continue to improve as we go.
Dying Light: Platinum Edition, the original game is also coming to Switch (not as a Cloud version). If I hadn’t played through some of Dying Light on PC already this would have been a good way to get familiar with the franchise and see if I’m ready for part two. The game features zombie-killing, survival and some parkour elements which makes a sweet combination and I’m sure Part 2 will expand on those elements.
THe cloud version of Dying Light 2: Stay Human is coming to NIntendo Switch on February 4, 2022. The original Dying Light: Platinum Edition is coming next month, October 19.
Triangle Strategy
Many of us guessed they would drop the word “Project” from this game and name it Triangle Strategy. The same happened with Project Octopath Traveler.
Although I want to love this game, the demo made it extremely complicated and confusing for me. I love the HD 2D art style and I think I will jump into Octopath Traveler before this one comes out — even though they are totally different games.
The team for Triangle Strategy listened to the fans and has added tons of new updates and features from the FREE demo feedback.
Project Triangle Strategy is coming to Switch on March 4, 2022
Metroid Dread
I’ve been a huge fan of MetroidVania games for as long as I’ve had my Switch — maybe longer. It’s funny because I had never really played any Metroid games before getting into all of these games (Hollow Knight, Guacamelee, Steamworld Dig).
I love the look of Metroid Dread. A few years ago I borrowed Metroid: Samus Returns for the DS from a friend to get into the Metroid franchise. I have also tried out some of Metroid (NES) and Super Metroid (SNES) on my Nintendo Switch virtual consoles. I am definitely going to give those some more time in the next two weeks before the release of Metroid Dread.
Metroid Dread releases on October 8. In the meantime you can learn more about Samus at Metroid.nintendo.com.
Nintendo Switch Online + Expansion Pack Update
One of the big rumors for the past few weeks (maybe longer) was that a Nintendo 64 collection was coming to the Nintendo Switch Online. What we didn’t know was that there would also be a Sega Genesis collection.
The Nintendo 64 Launch Lineup of games includes: Super Mario 64, The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time, Mario Kart 64, Star Fox 64, Sin and Punishment, Dr. Mario 64, Mario Tennis 64, WinBack and Yoshi’s Story.
(with more to come: Banjo-Kazooie, Pokémon Snap, The Legend of Zelda: Majora’s Mask, Kirby 64: The Crystal Shards, Mario Golf, Paper Mario, F-Zero X).
The Sega Genesis Launch Lineup consists of: Sonic the Hedgehog 2, Streets of Rage 2, Ecco the Dolphin, Castlevania: Bloodlines, Contra: Hard Corps, Dr. Robotnik’s Mean Bean Machine, Golden Axe, Gunstar Heroes, M.U.S.H.A., Phantasy Star IV, Ristar, Shining Force, Shinobi III: Return of the Ninja Master and Strider.
These two new features will require a new Expansion plan. More details will be revealed (pricing, release date) soon. The new plan is set to take effect in late October. There will also be brand new, wireless N64 and Genesis controllers on sale to Nintendo Switch Online members ($49.99 each).
Shadownrun Trilogy
Shadowrun is a popular tabletop RPG franchise in the style of D&D but in a Cyberpunk future. There were also a few video games based on the franchise. I remember playing one of them on Xbox 360.
The Shadowrun Trilogy is coming to Nintendo Switch in 2022.
Castlevania Advance Collection
I’ve been a fan of the Castlevania franchise since my NES days. I recently purchased the old school collection of games, which includes my original NES Castlevania game (which I still own).
This collection has some newer releases from the franchise. I prefer to stick to my NES and SNES collection though. This Advance Collection will contain regional versions of each game, artwork and other special features.
Castlevania Advance Collecition is available now.
Actraiser Renaissance
Actraiser Renaissance is a newly remastered HD version of the original Nintendo 64 game, Actraiser. The game features two main phases: (1) a side-scrolling action phase with swordship and magic, and (2) a world building and creation phase. You can also alternate between the new and rearranged original music.
Actraiser Renaissance is now available on Nintendo Switch.
Deltarune Chapter 2
From Toby Fox the creator of Undertale, Deltarune Chapter 2 is now available for FREE. I still haven’t finished Undertale — I got stuck fighting some spider — so I never started Deltarune Chapter 1. Since they are both available for FREE maybe I’ll finally get into Deltarune.
Sizzle Reel
Next we got a quick sizzle reel of upcoming games. It featured Hot Wheels Unleashed, Surviving the Aftermath, Shin Megami Tensai V, Wreckfest, Arcade Archives Pac-Man and one other title. You can catch this reel at the bottom in the full presentation video.
Mario Movie
Although we did not receive a trailer or any footage from the upcoming Mario Movie (from Illumination Studios), we did get a cast list.
Mario movie cast – Chris Pratt (Mario), Anya Taylor-Joy (Peach), Charlie Day (Luigi), Jack Black (Bowser), Keegan-Michael Key (Toad), Donkey Kong (Seth Rogen), Charles Martinet (surprise cameos), Kevin Michael Richardson, Fred Armisen, Sebastian Maniscalco.
We also now know that the movie is set to hit theater Holiday 2022. December 21, 2022 in North America.
Splatoon 3 Update
This was a quick update to show off some of the new features and mechanics used in Splatoon 3. For one, we saw a roller ball weapon — something like Wrecking Ball in Overwatch. We also saw a paint grappling hook type weapon — also like someone from Overwatch, Widowmaker.
We got some news on the fuzzy squidy dudes (aka Mammalians) and the story mode will be named Return of the Mammalians. The full presentation can be dissected for tons of easter eggs and new info, or we can just wait for more info.
Splatoon 3 is set to release in 2022.
(One More Thing..) Bayonetta 3
This was the first time I was able to guess what the “one more thing” was. I usually look at whatever it is confused and hope to be excited.
I played through the first Bayonetta game after hearing great things about it. The gameplay was a lot of fun, but I also got a bit bored towards the middle. At some point I was hoping for the game to end, this is why I still haven’t played Bayonetta 2.
Bayonetta herself sort of looks like Tina Fey. The third installment to the Bayonetta franchise was first announced in 2017, and I think they went silent until yesterday. We did get a good look at Bayonetta 3, with some good gameplay footage.
Bayonetta 3 is set to release next year, in 2022. Oh, and who was that dude in the end? Maybe some Bayonetta 2 reference.
“That’s all for today’s Nintendo Direct,” but you can catch the entire presentation below:
VIDEO GAME BOOK CLUB 