Japanese giant brought us the best Nintendo Direct presentation in quite some time. Here are our top picks for the games announced this June.
Nintendo Switch is slowly getting ready to wrap it up and make space for the new Nintendo console. And while we have not hear a lot about new Nintendo titles and did not expect anything huge to happen before the new console, Nintendo decided to surprise us with a lot of new releases. Let’s dive into what will be a beautiful gaming goodbye to one of the most popular consoles ever made.
Mario & Luigi: Brothership
Release date: 11.7.24
Nintendo rolled out big guns at the very beginning of the presentation, giving us a new game in the Mario & Luigi series in years. The game looks beautiful. I’ve always been a fan of cell shading graphics because they age very well. Gameplay wise it seems to be a lot of fun. Platforming and battles look great. And the most important thing for me, it’s a couch co-op game. We are really lacking them these days. Simply can’t wait.
MIO: Memories in Orbit
Release date: 2025
A good Metroidvania is always welcome. Especially since we are still waiting for Silksong (don’t even get me started, lol). MIO looks fantastic. I love the art style. It seems like the game will have a bit similar mechanics to Ori games. The trailer looks great, hopefully, the game will be as good too.
Looney Tunes: Wacky World of Sports
Release date: Fall 2024
A sports game from Looney Tunes was a surprise to be sure, but a welcomed one. These characters work great in cartoons and games. It seems like the devs have a good idea of what makes Bugs Bunny and the gang so much fan. Personally, I’m not a fan of, let’s say, regular sports games, so I very much welcome a wacky, silly game in that area.
Donkey Kong Country Returns HD
Release date: 1.16.25
Ok, this one hardly makes a space in this article. It’s always cool to see DK in action, but we need a new game in the series. Come on Nintendo. You guys gotta be cooking something new in the Donkey Kong world. Meanwhile, we can enjoy a great game in the series on the Nintendo Switch. Not gonna complain about that. But seriously Nintendo, give us a new DK game on the next console.
Dragon Quest III HD-2D Remake
Release date: 11.14.24
As silly as the name HD-2D Remake sounds, I am very excited about this remake. Not only do we get DQIII, but we also get a whole Erdrick trilogy remade. The games are getting somewhat of an Octopath Traveler treatment, with the 2D character sprites being thrown into the 2,5D environment. I love this art style and can’t wait to play this classic trilogy.
Nintendo Switch Online – new games
Release date: already available
NSO is getting four huge classics with The Legend of Zelda: A Link To The Past – Four Swords, Metroid: Zero Mission, Turok, and Perfect Dark. I know it is not huge news, but it is exciting to get these awesome games added to Nintendo’s online service. I know many fans wanted to see Virtual Console back, but in my opinion, NSO has grown exponentially since its release and is very much worth getting these days.
The Legend of Zelda: Echoes of Wisdom
Release date: 9.26.24
Now for the big guns. Zelda fans have always joked, that they want to play a Legend of Zelda game as the title character. Now it has become a reality. We get a new Zelda game, we will play as Zelda, we get a new crazy mechanic, its sporting the Link’s Awakening art style. It will be awesome. The damsel in distress will be a hero, like, finally. Not everybody is a fan of the silly and childlike Zelda titles, but I hope fans will be happy. Plus it might get us a more dark and serious LOZ game with Zelda as a playable character.
Metroid Prime 4: Beyond
Release date: 2025
As Michael Scott in The Office would put it: It’s happening! Stay calm! Stay f*cking calm! After years of waiting, we finally got a trailer for the new Metroid Prime game. Let me tell you, I was 100% sure it would be released on the next Nintendo console. I lost any hope of getting this game on the Switch. And then the impossible happened. Nevertheless, I’m sure it will be rereleased on the new hardware. The new Metroid game looks alright in the trailer, meaning the graphics. I don’t think Rare could squeeze any more power from the, aging handheld. Gameplay-wise it seems to be the good old Metroid. Not more to say here before we can get our hands on some actual serious gameplay. For now I have my hopes quite up. If it is at least as good as its predecessors we’re golden. Hopefully we will se some more footage as soon as possible.
Summary
If there is a good way to say goodbye to a console, Nintendo chose it. Great lineup of games is coming at the last months of Switch’s lifecycle. We should have lots of fun with new games in Super Mario, The Legend of Zelda, Donkey Kong and Metroid series. It’s like a beautiful love letter to the fans, especially after a long wait with nothing on the horizon. I’ll have plenty of fun with every title from this post and eagerly await a new Nintendo console.
