Japanese video games giant Nintendo has enjoyed one of the best years in its corporate history, largely buoyed on the back of ebullient demand of its brand new Switch home console and ever-strong 3DS portable.
As is the Big N’s history with consumers, this year’s Nintendo Direct presentation held more than enough clues as to the future direction of the Nintendo Switch and what games we can expect from the publisher over the course of the year.
And this year is going to be epic, indeed.
Here are the five top takeaways from the March 2018 Nintendo Direct presentation:
Super Smash Bros. for Nintendo Switch – Arriving 2018
Perhaps the single biggest piece of news delivered yesterday during the Nintendo Direct livestream was the revelation of a brand new entry in the beloved Smash Bros. fighting games series starring iconic Nintendo and other video game characters in a fighting game that is easily accessible, intensely competitive, and tough to master.
Honestly this news was probably enough for everyone involved, which is why it appeared at the tailend of the presentation. Details are scant as of press but you can be assured that Nintendo has something amazing up its sleeve where this property is concerned.
Splatoon 2: Story DLC
Nintendo’s popular shooter Splatoon won audiences over with its combination of colorful, cartoon-style graphics and dynamic, deep gameplay and the publisher continued the tradition in the Switch followup, Splatoon 2, which will receive a story-focused DLC priced at $19.99 later this year. Premiered in a somewhat bizarre music video, the new Splatoon DLC tells the story of a special agent Octoling who is exploring the hidden mysteries of Inkopolis. The game is known for its multiplayer mode so this single-player DLC should help even out the experience a little bit as well as offering players insight into the lore of Splatoon.
Classic Ports Coming to Nintendo Switch
While this news may not be entirely fresh given the Dark Souls announcement earlier this year, it appears that the Nintendo Switch will be the home of many, many classic ports. Crash Bandicoot will be making his debut appearance on a Nintendo system with his much-praised N’Sane Trilogy that combines remastered version of his PlayStation-era classics all on one chip. Another awesome announcement was the Okami HD release coming to Switch from Capcom and indie smash hit Undertale will also be making its way to the portable/home console hybrid.
Dark Souls Amiibo
Speaking of Dark Souls, Nintendo also included the launch of a Dark Souls-themed Amiibo to tie-in with the launch of the re-released game later this year. Some people are absolutely wild about Amiibos and this one will probably be in particularly high demand given the cult status Dark Souls enjoys among gamers. The statuette is in the sun salutation pose that the in-game character can perform and looks every bit of awesome.
The Return of WarioWare
If you don’t remember Warioware, you’re missing out. A fun collection of minigames, WarioWare first appeared on the Game Boy Advance and was an immediate, if unexpected, blockbuster for Nintendo. That approach is heading to the Switch in what should be one of the more interesting releases to come out in 2018. WarioWare Gold promises more of everything and should help gamers more than scratch that minigame itch.
Watch the Nintendo Direct March 2018 Presentation:
