I am going to open up by saying this Nintendo Direct continues to prove why Nintendo has been killing it. This Direct Model they have adopted continues to provide all kinds of hype for a variety of gamers, there is almost always something worth getting excited about no matter what kind of games you like, and that was no exception here. What's more, I think more than any Direct I can think of, this one was full of bangers. So much worth looking at here.
Mario and Luigi: Brothership
I've never been huge on the Mario and Luigi RPGs, but they are still all quite fun. Plus, they have had a solid audience for ages that have really liked them. I dug into this one a bit because I had no idea why we've not had a Mario and Luigi game for so long, finding out the developers, AlphaDream, declared Bankruptcy. Despite these games having a pretty solid fan base, it sounds like it wasn't big enough to justify the production costs. Mostly it seems that every entry seemed to have some pretty rapidly declining sales, and the collections that were released dropped well below the million sales mark. Considering the series had a much stronger start reaching about 4 Million, that was a huge drop in sales.
My own experience with the series is it did become stale pretty quickly, but I'm glad after all these years it's getting another shot. I hope some ideas breathe some new life into it, as well as keep its original charms. I've been pretty happy with a lot of recent Nintendo Titles, and the visuals look good, so I have some pretty high hopes here.
Nintendo World Championships: NES Edition
I have no interest in this, but I get it. I am far from being immune to nostalgia bait, and make no mistake that is what this is. First and foremost this is here to appeal to all those old-timers who want to relive a lot of their youth while simultaneously flexing their skills in these old games. I don't even say that like it's a bad thing, I am all here for that kind of thing.
Don't get me wrong, it's also going to appeal to a lot of other people who just like playing fun and competitive games. It's not for me, but I suspect this game is going to take off with its intended audience. It's like I said at the beginning, so much of this direct is going to appeal to a lot of people.
Fairy Tail 2, Switch Sports, Fantasian Neo Dimension
These three are ones I have no clue if they are appealing to their target audience or not. Never watched Fairy Tail, though a party-based Musou RPG kind of game seems interesting, never been a sports game guy and have no clue how well Switch Sports did, and I'm not excited for a console release of a Mobile RPG even if Sakaguchi and Nobuo are involved. At the very least seeing those names can at least peak my interest enough to keep an eye on it. Still though, nothing bad either in these.
MIO: Memories in Orbit
Ever since Hollow Knight, I have been keeping my eye on a lot of different Metroidvania-style games, because there have been a lot of great ones I've found since playing that game. And the newest one that has caught my eye is this because it is just gorgeous to watch. And a striking visual style is a really quick way to get my attention. Not much info can be gleamed aside from a look at how you move around, but at the same time I don't care, this is on my list of games to get at release now.
Disney Illusion Island, Hello Kitty Adventure.
I didn't pay attention to Illusion Island cause I have no intention of giving Disney my money, but the idea of a Hello Kitty game that seems to invoke some Animal Crossing vibes is something I can't help but feel should have happened sooner. Neither for me, but at least interesting things to pop up.
Go ahead and lump the Loony Toons game and Among Us content in with that statement.
Farmagia
You are running a farm that grows monsters out of the ground instead of plants, and you use them to raise an army. This idea is so dumb I am already hooked, just inject this nonsense directly into my veins.
All the Remakes, re-releases, and Expansion pass stuff.
I won't go over all this individually, because I'll end up repeating myself. The switch is giving so many new chances for older games that deserve it here. Plus, their HD remasters or remakes all look fantastic. Notably using the 2DHD style for the first three Dragon Quest games is a perfect match. And people being able to play Perfect Dark from the N64 online? That is going to get some people hyped.
I said it before, I am all in favor of some good Nostalgia bait, and Nintendo is delivering in that regard here.
Funko Fusion
Look... every conference has its low point. And for the life of me, I will never understand how Funko Pops, some of the most consistently lazy nerd figurines you will ever find, have managed to sustain their business this long. Seriously, those things are just awful.
Phantom Brave: The Lost Hero
This is the one that hurt me. I enjoyed Phantom Brave back in the day, it had a certain charm to it you didn't see in any other of the NIS Strategy RPG titles. So I want to love the series making a comeback. The problem is that NISA, the US branch of the company, and I do not see eye to eye. I honestly think they are one of, if not the, worst localization companies that exist in the West. They are bad enough I have long since refused to give them my money.
If this game gets a physical release in Japan with an English Language option so I can bypass NISA entirely, I will import this game the moment I get the chance. As it stands, despite loving this series getting another go I just won't be touching this until I feel NISA starts to improve as a company.
The Legend of Zelda: Echoes of Wisdom
I liked the art style used for the Links Awakening remake, so I'm happy to see it get used again here. The big thing is I like how now that Zelda is the protagonist, it isn't just trying to make her do what Link does. She's not the wielder of the Triforce of Courage but of Wisdom. And this seems to be a major focus in the mechanics of the game, and I love they seem to be committing to it.
I'm always going to be a fan of Nintendo doing some slightly different things like this with Zelda, A Link Between Worlds is another really fun example of them just having fun with a unique mechanic, so I'm looking forward to seeing what happens here.
The Hundred Line: Last Defense Academy
I'm always looking into new Strategy RPGs, and while I'm not familiar with Daganropa beyond reputation, I like they are stretching out beyond what they normally do. The 100 Day limit intrigues me, I've always had a thing for some kind of time restraint in games be it Majora's Mask or Persona 4, so this game has a lot of elements that have my attention.
Metroid Prime 4
Look, I've never been big on any Metroid Game, Dread being the exception. But that comes down more to personal taste than anything else, I do get it and the fact we finally have something a bit more solid about Metroid Prime 4 is going to get a lot of people pumped.
This was an absolutely killer showcase from Nintendo. With the Switch winding down in a way and an announcement for its successor theorized by many for next year at some point, it would have been easy for Nintendo to take it pretty relaxed moving forward. But this almost feels like them wanting this console to go out on a high note. And if this final year of the Switch (if it is indeed the case) is going to go like this, it's going to be one hell of a Swan Song for the console.