Nintendo, if you're listening: Seven in the morning is too early for this. Time to fire up the old Nespresso machine.
Anyway, Nintendo has finally decided to join the June reveal party and give us a long-awaited, long-form Nintendo Direct presentation. The rumours have been absolutely out of control with respect to an imminent Ocarina of Time remake, ever since notable leaker NateTheHate's Star Fox prediction turned out to be correct. We're also well overdue for a new mainline Mario game, and I'm personally holding out for Super Mario Maker 3(D?). So then, what actually happened this morning? I'm going to collect the largest announcements here and have a list at the bottom of everything else that got shown; Otherwise I'd be doing this for hours.
Rhythm Heaven Groove
In a Direct where the whole world is positively screaming for Zelda, was Rhythm Heaven Groove really the best opener they could have chosen? There's also a new rhythm RPG mode where you defeat enemies by performing attacks with button combos timed to the music! This launches July 2nd.
Onimusha: Way of the Sword
Impressive that the Switch 2 can handle this, which is going to be a theme throughout the Direct. Not much to add here that hasn't been shown elsewhere, besides the Switch 2 version including Joy Con motion controls for those who partake. Launches September 25.
Pokopia - Undersea Update + Expansion Pas
The surprise hit Pokopia is back for another round, with both a free update and a paid DLC expansion pass. The free update is an undersea update, allowing you to expand your towns underwater, and releases August 2026. The Expansion Pass DLC contains Bubbly Basin, a new town with new Pokemon and new items to find; 2 more waves of the Expansion Pass are scheduled for the future.
Fire Emblem: Fortune's Weave
Fire Emblem: Fortune's Weave sure does look like a Fire Emblem game. Choose one of four heroes and follow them as they endeavour to win the Heroic Games in the Dagdan Empire. It's scheduled to launch September 17.
Donkey Kong Challenge Event + Bananza Mario 40 Collab
Now this is unique. Starting today, and for a limited time, play bite size pieces of Donkey Kong games, sort of like SNES Remix. Complete the challenges and earn collectible digital trading cards! The challenges range in difficulty, up to the difficult Developer Challenges. Meanwhile, in Donkey Kong Bananza, the DK Isle + Emerald Rush expansion is getting a limited time Super Mario Bros Collab occuring in 4 waves. Take on the Emerald Rush with a Mario twist, starting today.
Xenoblade Chronicles Switch 2 Upgrades
I win! Nintendo and I have been in a game of chicken over this; I didn't want to play Xenoblade Chronicles X/2/3 until there were Switch 2 editions. And now there are! All three games include extra content. They're going to release in waves over the course of this year. I guess I have a lot of gaming to do!
Xenoblade Genesis
Nintendo followed up the Switch 2 upgrades with a double-down, and now I'm even more hard pressed to ever catch up amidst one of the most stacked gaming years I've ever seen. An all new Xenoblade game, subtitled Genesis, is scheduled for release in 2027. It seems to be leaning further to the fantasy side of science fantasy this time around.
Nintendo Switch Sports Resort
Wuhu Island is back! It truthfully doesn't look like anything is revolutionary here, besides the high octane sport of... thumb wrestling. My soul cringes on behalf of the person who had to dub over Koizumi-san demoing that mode. I'm sure it'll be fun for an afternoon, but I really feel like the ship has sailed on the novelty of motion control sports games (except for maybe golf). Nintendo Switch Sports Resort launches October 22 on Switch 2.
Star Fox
A brief moment was taken to show off Star Fox again in anticipation of it's June 25 release. I've already played this demo, and I have to say I'm impressed with the new story content between missions in this game. The cutscenes have branching paths based on how you complete the missions, and the dialogue is well written and well acted. Even the training mode has a lot of personality. I'm pumped to get in the Arwing in the full version!
Final Fantasy Resonance
An all new Final Fantasy game, and the first all original HD2D entry in the franchise, Final Fantasy Resonance launches Oct 22. Going back to Final Fantasy's roots, Resonance is a proper old school turn based RPG - no ATB this time. It's also an loose adaptation of Brave Exvius, which was a mobile game (with microtransactions that have been thankfully removed in this version). You can also call in stars from other Final Fantasy games like Cloud Strife to fight for you like a summon. These "summons", if you want to call them that, are known as Visions.
The Duskbloods
A quick little trailer for the Duskbloods was shown, but not much new. A closed network test will happen this summer. It's a shame FromSoft isn't getting the space it deserves to show off this game properly.
Splatoon Raiders
More of Splatoon Raiders was shown off, including more combat options and weapons. I'm just glad it wasn't to show off more Amiibos. At the same time, new Blue and Light Yellow Joy-Con 2 controllers were revealed. and A Splatoon Raiders Direct is scheduled for June 30th.
Kingdom Hearts IV
This was almost a bigger shock to the system than what came after it in the presentation. How did Nintendo convince Square Enix to debut gameplay of Kingdom Hearts IV on Switch 2 and not on the more powerful PS5 Pro? Do they have dirt on Square Enix? Anyway, KH4 is coming to Switch 2 at launch alongside the other platforms! And while the gameplay shown was not as high fidelity as you'd expect it to be on other systems, I came away impressed with the visual quality running on Switch 2. Blink and you'll miss it shots of Riku, Donald and Goofy, Luxord (or is it Ludor?), and some new faces were all showcased. As usual with a Tetsuya Nomura project, I am left with more questions than answers.
The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time Remake
Well, I guess NateTheHate is number one on Nintendo's hitlist after this. It's really real! Ocarina of Time is getting it's remake, and it's coming out in 2026! A brief sampling of what appears to be the opening cutscene of the game was shown, showing a drastic departure from the pastel and watercolour art style of Breath of the Wild, into a much more realistic grounded look. I'm certain the new look will draw comparisons to the many many Unreal Engine "remakes" of OoT that exist on YouTube. This may actually just be UE5, but we can't know for sure just yet. Nintendo's shown so little of the game that the wait for more information is going to be harder than the wait for the reveal!
Here's a collection of everything else announced that i didn't think warranted a full section. There's only so many hours in my day.
Dragon's Dogma 2: Dark Arisen - October 9
Stellar Blade - 2026
Orbitals - Sept 3
Rayman Legends Retold - October 1
A Big Walk - August 4
ONE PIECE: Gourmand Gourmet - October 23
Ninjala 2: The Uncharted Planet - Spring 2027
Jujutsu Kaisen Rumble Survivaton
Lords of the Fallen 2 - Fall
Lies of P Complete Edition Augst 6/physical Oct 2
Devil May Cry 5 Devil Hunter Edition - June 23
Muramasa Revenant Blades
Runescape: Dragonwilds - September 15
Hello Kitty Party Land - October 29
Pikuniku 2 - 2027
Dragon Quest Monsters: The Withered World - Dec 3
Deltarune Chapter 5 - June 24
Metaphor: ReFantazio - November 12
Minecraft - 2026
Kingdom Hearts Collection I-III October 8
All in all, it was an overabundance of filler this year from Nintendo, in my opinion; too much stuff available in superior forms on other platforms, or games that have already been out for some time on other platforms. It remains to be seen if the portability factor will be enough to lure people in on those. On the other hand, the Nintendo first party stuff hit as hard as it ever has. It's apparently the year of N64 remakes, and I'm so ready to save the Lylat System and Hyrule all over again in 2026.
What stuck out to you in this year's big Nintendo Direct? Sound off in the NoGameOvers Discord Server! See you next June!