There’s nothing quite like waking up to an early morning Nintendo Direct to get you excited for the near future of video games. Nintendo certainly didn’t disappoint this morning either, with a strong showing of exciting new titles and some much-needed updates on stuff we haven’t seen in a while.
Check out everything we saw today:
Nintendo Switch Sports
As if Nintendo hasn’t sold enough Switch consoles, they’re finally bringing back Wii Sports with a few old favourites and the addition of soccer, badminton and volleyball. You can even play soccer using the joy-con attached to your leg a la Ring Fit Adventure!
The game is launching April 29 with an online play test happening February 18-20.
Mario Kart 8 Deluxe
Sorry, not a new Mario Kart game. Instead, the evergreen Mario Kart 8 Deluxe is getting new paid DLC courses in the Booster Course Pass, which includes remastered courses from past games. In total, over six waves before the end of 2023 we’ll have a whopping 48 new courses to enjoy. Wave 1 with 8 tracks is coming March 18, 2022.
The pass will even be free for Nintendo Switch Online + Expansion pass members!
Xenoblade Chronicles 3
The Direct closed out with a big one – Xenoblade Chronicles 3 is a brand-new entry in the beloved JRPG franchise that promises to tie together the futures of the first two games and looks absolutely gorgeous. It’ll be coming to Nintendo Switch at some point in September 2022.
Fire Emblem Warriors: Three Hopes
I’m not sure if fans were scrambling for this but Fire Emblem Warriors is back with a new game based on the world of Fire Emblem: Three Houses. This one’s coming on June 24, if you’re keen for some hack-and-slash action with your faves.
Advance Wars 1+2 Reboot Camp
We got another quick look at the upcoming remake of the first two Advance Wars games and it’s looking fantastic. New modes, additional voice work and more are coming to these classics when Reboot Camp arrives on April 8.
No Man’s Sky
Here’s a surprise! No Man’s Sky, a game that’s gone from mildly-disappointing to an absolute must-play is now coming to Nintendo Switch at some point in 2022. It even looks to be a native Switch app rather than something cloud-based which’ll be impressive if it works.
Mario Strikers Battle League
A brand-new 5v5 Mario Strikers game is coming and looks to be bringing its aggressive brand of Soccer-esque gameplay complete with plenty of skills, items and frantic action to master. Includes up to 8-player co-op on a single Nintendo Switch as well as an online mode complete with clubs. Coming June 10.
Splatoon 3
We got a fresh look at Splatoon 3 with some Salmon Run co-op gameplay showing players in a hectic battle to retrieve eggs, as well as a big and scary-looking salmon boss. Splatoon 3 is coming later this year.
Front Mission 1st
Front Mission is back with a gorgeous-looking remake of the original game coming later this year, and we even got a pre-announcement of a remake of Front Mission 2 coming soon after.
Disney Speedstorm
A free-to-play Disney combat racer developed by the team behind Asphalt? With cross-platform online play? Where the heck do I sign up?? Coming later this year.
Star Wars: The Force Unleashed
The beloved third-person Star Wars adventure is coming back, including the Wii version’s motion controls Coming April 20.
Assassin’s Creed The Ezio Collection
The complete Assassin’s Creed Ezio trilogy complete with enhanced Switch features, all DLC and bonus short film features. Coming very soon on February 17.
SD Gundam Battle Alliance
Action-packed gundam battles in SD Gundam Battle Alliance are coming, complete with a single player campaign and online multiplayer, at some time later this year.
Chrono Cross The Radical Dreamers Edition
We’re finally getting a remaster of this absolute classic JRPG with enhanced visuals, gameplay improvements and a remastered soundtrack. It’s not far off either – Chrono Cross: The Radical Dreamers Edition is coming to Nintendo Switch on April 7.
Kirby And The Forgotten Land
KIRBY CAR.
Seriously, this game looks more incredible every time we see it, and “Mouthful Mode” just seals the deal. Watch this trailer, I beg you.
Kirby and the Forgotten Land is coming March 25.
MLB The Show 22
For the first time ever, MLB The Show is coming to Nintendo Switch. Featuring single joy-con play, cross-platform play and cross-platform progression there’s a lot for MLB fans to get excited about here.
Kingdom Hearts Integrum Masterpiece for Cloud
The Kingdom Hearts games are coming to the Switch tomorrow, playable solely through cloud gaming (so probably not much use to us here in Australia, sadly). Available as a complete collection or as individual packs.
Klonoa Phantasy Reverie Series
Remember Klonoa? The first two games are launching on July 8 for the Switch with the Phantasy Reverie series. These are top-notch classic platformers so if you’ve never tried them now’s the best time.
Portal: Companion Collection
Portal and Portal 2 are coming to the Nintendo Switch later this year complete with Portal 2’s excellent split screen and online co-op.
Live A Live
Previously Japan-only RPG Live A Live is getting the HD-2D treatment and reaching the rest of the world on July 22. Play as seven different characters in seven different time periods in whichever order you like, including the wild west and distant future.
Taiko no Tatsujin: Rhythm Festival
Strive to become a taiko master with classic Taiko no Tatsujin gameplay across 76 songs, including music from The Legend of Zelda. New practice options and multiplayer modes as well as a song subscription service will all be available when it launches later this year.
Triangle Strategy
The next big HD-2D title from X is coming soon on X with a brand-new demo going all the way to Chapter 3 out later today that’ll allow players to transfer their progress to the full game.
Cuphead – The Delicious Last Course
We got another delicious look at the massive DLC expansion coming to the uber-punishing Cuphead on June 30th.
Metroid Dead
A free update is coming to Metroid Dread later today, bringing the Dread Mode and Rookie Mode difficulty settings to have you either dying in a single hit or living long enough to see the game through. Another free update in April will bring a Boss Rush mode as well.
EarthBound
The original EarthBound and EarthBound Beginnings are being added to Nintendo Switch Online’s classic game offering later today!
