This week, Nintendo did a very Nintendo thing. With less than one week to go before the official Nintendo Switch 2 Direct we’ve all been waiting for since January, they decided to give us one last [Original] Nintendo [Switch] Direct yesterday. Many people asked the same question, Why would they do this?
Here are some thoughts that went through my head: Are they freaking out internally about the Nintendo Switch 2 release? Has this been planned for a while, but got delayed until the last possible minute? Are they trying to tell us that even if you don’t snag a Nintendo Switch 2 at launch, there’s still plenty of new games coming to the Nintendo Switch?
Yesterday’s Nintendo Direct featured over twenty new titles still to come to the Nintendo Switch — many which will also most likely be on the Nintendo Switch 2. There were also two “sneaky” non-game announcements. One was explaining this new concept of a “Virtual Game Card”–
The other non-game announcement highlighted a brand new Nintendo daily news app called Nintendo Today! Also, it launched yesterday (Available Today!)–
These two non-game announcements made me think maybe Nintendo was trying to cram too much into next week’s presentation, so they gave us these two things a little early.
Nintendo: Let’s give the Virtual Game Card concept some time to sink into their little gamer brains before everything changes with Nintendo Switch 2! Also, here’s some games, you fools!
In all seriousness this Nintendo Direct did feature plenty of upcoming titles. If next week’s Direct is going to focus mainly on the Nintendo Switch 2, I don’t anticipate many game announcements — perhaps some launch titles — so why not give us some games the week before.
Let’s go over my TOP FIVE game announcements from yesterday’s Nintendo Direct:
1 | Shadow Labyrinth
Shadow Labyrinth has been featured in a showcase before this, I had just forgotten about it. The game features Pac-Man in a way you’ve never seen him before. In this action-platformer from Bandai Namco you play as Swordsman No 8 with Pac-Man as your floaty companion. They can also team up as one to perform lethal attacks.
The story of Shadow Labyrinth feels like fan fiction or a comic expanding on a simple world with little to no lore. I like to imagine that this is what is actually going on inside of the classic Pac-Man arcade machine. On-screen you are only really seeing a “Pac-Man Manager” style of game, but deep inside Pac-Man and his buddy are defeating demons (represented by colorful ghosts).
I guess we’ll learn more when Shadow Labyrinth releases on July 18th, 2025.
2 | Metroid Prime 4: Beyond
We finally got it! That Metroid Prime 4 gameplay trailer we’ve been waiting for since E3 2017. That may sound like a long time, but remember the game was totally scrapped and restarted in 2019.
I’m a master of Metroidvanias and classic Metroid games, but I have yet to experience a Metroid Prime game, which is more of a first-person exploration of the Metroid universe. I do own Metroid Prime Remastered for the Switch, and I was waiting for more news on this game to get into it.
I will definitely be playing through Metroid Prime Remastered some time this year, because Metroid Prime 4 Beyond is set to release in 2025.
3 | Rift of the NecroDancer
I was obsessed with Crypt of the Necrodancer, so much so that I had dreams in that world some nights — after playing for hours before bed. Seeing the team get the blessing from Nintendo to make Cadence of Hyrule was also very cool
Rift of the Necrodancer is a completely different type of rhythm-based game, but I trust this team (just like Nintendo did) and I have been patiently waiting for this game to come to the Nintendo Switch.
As much as I enjoy a new sequel to a beloved game, I also enjoy seeing that dev team go and try their hand at something different. There’s also the added bonus of a Celeste music DLC pack — one of my favorite video game albums ever.
Rift of the Necrodancer is out right now on the Nintendo Switch and I hope to get into it very soon.
4 | Everybody’s Golf: Hot Shots
I first tried Everybody’s Golf at a friend’s house. This made me pick up the game for myself. After that we’d play together online and locally, whenever we had the chance. Later, I got back into some real-life golf sims (like PGA Tour 2K) and it just wasn’t the same.
A golf video game needs some sort of silly gimmick to it, otherwise it’s just golf and that’s boring. Not completely true, there have been plenty of fun golf simulation games over the years — Tiger Woods PGA Tour, Golden Tee.
My friend has since moved across the country, so I’m excited for there to be a new version of Everybody’s Golf to bring us together. Plus, I don’t have to play real (outdoor) golf in the Florida head anymore.
Everybody’s Golf: Hot Shots is coming to the Nintendo Switch in 2025.
5 | Marvel Cosmic Invasion
The same team behind TMNT: Shredder’s Revenge is now working on a Marvel beat ‘em up? That’s amazing news!
While the turtles all sport different weapons, they move and fight pretty much the same. The giant cast of Marvel Superheroes consists of many different styles of fighters. Seeing Spider-Man swing across the screen in this trailer was totally awesome.
Ever since we played TMNT: Shredder’s Revenge, I’ve continuously searched for other beat ‘em ups to play through with my partner. This is the next big one I’m looking forward to.
Marvel Cosmic Invasion is set to launch later this year.
Honorable Mentions
There were plenty of other games shown during the thirty-six minute presentation that caught my attention. Here’s some quick write ups on those–
Dragon Quest I & II HD-2D Remake – The HD-2D craze continues! These two remakes were mentioned during the Dragon Quest III HD-2D reveal trailer, but the creator wanted us to start with III before going back to I & II. I just love that HD-2D style.
Patapon 1+2 Replay – I picked this up on PlayStation 4 way too late in life — thanks to Greg Miller. I had some fun with the games, but I think playing them in handheld mode on my Nintendo Switch will make them even better.
Disney Villains Cursed Café – This is a game that I didn’t know I needed, but now I kind of want it. I am just a fan of seeing Disney and these big companies lend out their IP to smaller game studios for these delightful little games. Will they all be for me? Probably not, but they may even introduce me to a new style of game I didn’t know I wanted in my life.
Witchbrook – Chucklefish is a publisher I admire even if all of their games aren’t my cup of tea. .There’s something that makes a game look like a Chucklefish game, even though many of them are so different.
Pokémon Legends: Z-A – Will this be my first true Po[c]ké[t] Mon[ster] adventure, other than the little bit of the original game I played on my nephew’s Nintendo 2DS? Seeing the way the city becomes a battleground at night is what fascinates me.
Star Overdrive – I recently played the demo for this game and now I’m really looking forward to it. I was originally worried about how this game would feel on the Switch, but from the demo alone it felt quite nice.
Monument Valley I-III – I played the first Monument Valley on my iPhone many years ago. I always thought this would be perfect on the Nintendo Switch, and now all three are coming.
The funny part about being a video game player is that we all have so many games sitting patiently in our backlogs, yet the most exciting games are always the ones we cannot play yet.
Overall I’d say this was a pretty fine Nintendo Direct, especially for being the final one of a generation. I don’t think the Nintendo Switch 2 will shadow drop next week, but they have mentioned that pre-orders may begin immediately.
I’m excited to learn more about the Nintendo Switch 2, but at the same time I still have so much left to do on my [Original] Nintendo Switch — The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom, Metroid Prime Remastered, finish Metroid Dread, and much more.
If you missed out on yesterday’s Nintendo Direct, you can watch it all right here:
Let’s see what happens next week…
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