Today’s Nintendo Direct was fantastic.
It contained an immense level of hype worthy of the Nintendo name.
Fans everywhere gathered around for the 40-minute video presentation, where they would immediately be blown away…
Mario & Luigi
Nintendo wasted absolutely no time, when they began their presentation with a brand new entry in the Mario & Luigi franchise.
Originally thought to be a dead series left on the Nintendo 3DS, the Direct opens with a scene with Mario and his brother Luigi.
I was at work at the time, but I took the risk to peep the presentation as it opened up.
I stopped what I was doing to audibly gasp.
I don’t think anyone understands how important this is, if they weren’t already fans of this series.
It’s been nearly 9 years since the last entry in the Mario & Luigi turn-based JRPG series.
Ever since the closure of AlphaDream, us fans were worried we would never see another entry from our two favorite plumbers ever again.
It seems after the revival of Super Mario RPG, the success of Live A Live, and the return of Paper Mario, Nintendo is finally starting to realize there’s still love for these games.
Hopefully we’ll see more love from other franchises some day, too.
Dragon Quest III 2D-HD
Everyone knows I’m a Dragon Quest fan.
When I learned there was a Dragon Quest III remake, my hype skyrocketed through the roof.
Now we have an official date, and I couldn’t be more excited.
Not only do we Dragon Quest fanatics get to play a remake of Dragon Quest III, the team over at Square Enix is going the extra mile and giving us full 2D-HD remakes of both Dragon Quest and Dragon Quest II.
I was bummed that I couldn’t afford the collector’s edition for Dragon Quest III 2D-HD remake.
My plan was to buy it Friday when I got paid, but I figured it would be scalped by then…
However, my beautiful wife came in clutch for me with a surprise!
Thanks to her, I’ll be joining all of you in the fray as Vohris the HERO this November!
Fantasian
I knew my sheer willpower to never play mobile games and pay for bullshit subscription services would eventually pay off!
🗿
Thankfully, JRPG fans everywhere who didn’t fall for Apple’s schemes will get to experience the formerly-exclusive Apple Arcade RPG Fantasian.
Fantasian is a turn-based RPG game created by the legendary Hironobu Sakaguchi, the creator of Final Fantasy.
Thankfully, Nintendo’s got his back, and his new endeavors don’t have to suffer behind a touchscreen any longer!
I’m looking forward to giving Fantasian the 30+ hours it rightfully deserves and experiencing those much-needed quality-of-life improvements.
Oh, and hopefully a physical copy, of course.
The Legend of Zelda: Echoes of Wisdom
It finally happened!
Princess Zelda is getting her own game where she is the protagonist.
Fans have been begging for this very thing for many years, and Nintendo finally listened.
My wife and I believe it was most-likely due to fan pressure, but more than likely due to how popular Princess Peach was in the Super Mario Bros. Movie. After Princess Peach Showtime released back in March, you could assume Nintendo wanted to do more!
What better way to keep up the hype than with their other star princess, Princess Zelda.
I gotta say, this new Zelda game looks fantastic.
As we were watching it together, Abby immediately goes, “awww, it looks like Link’s Awakening”!
That’s right!
It has the same art direction as Link’s Awakening HD!
I think this is a brilliant way to ease fans into letting Princess Zelda take the spotlight.
The game also features nods to A Link to the Past, and even an opening shot taken directly from Breath of the Wild — depicting Zelda looking over her kingdom from a clifftop.
I’m excited to play as Zelda herself. This was a much needed project that was long overdue.
Typically, I’m a sword man. But with our hero Link taking a backseat, I think it’s really cool that Zelda uses her magical prowess to summon enemies to fight for her.
This is definitely like when she summons the Phantoms in Super Smash Bros. Ultimate to do battle for her!
I think it will be a cute game that will definitely bring me and my nieces closer together.
I also like that Zelda has to use her Triforce of Wisdom to solve puzzles and fend off foes…
I’m okay with the creative direction they are going with this game and I’m excited to experience The Legend of Zelda as Princess Zelda.
With this being another mainline series title, I’m curious to see what direction it will take the lore.
Time will only tell this September!
METROID PRIME 4
It’s… it’s real.
Metroid Prime 4: Beyond is a real game and it has finally been revealed for a 2025 release.
Metroid fans have been waiting several years for an update on this game.
Many believed, like Elden Ring, that the game ceased to exist and it wasn’t coming.
Surely enough… it is!
After getting the Metriod Prime Remaster in 2023, we became eager for more updates on the 4th installment originally announced all the way back in 2017.
I’m so glad this game is coming out.
Samus looks so good, and the combat looks really damn fun.
2025 can’t get here fast enough.
It would be cool if we could get remasters of Metroid Prime 2 and 3 before then, though!
Abby’s Corner
A few of you were asking for Abby’s thoughts and point-of-view of the Nintendo Direct.
She sat through the presentation and typed out her thoughts…
First, I just wanted to say thanks to anyone who included her in this with me and wanted to hear her opinions.
It means a lot to me!
Hey guys, it’s Abby 🖤
Today I watched the Nintendo Direct with Jeremy, and a few people were interested in my thoughts …so here we go!
Firstly, it’s probably obvious that I’m not as much of an avid gamer as my husband.
(I read…a lot 😅)
However, I am a HUGE fan of a good storyline and always love to spot my favorite animation/art styles in games and media, so maybe my thoughts might resonate with some of you.
Here are the games that stuck out the most and actually got me excited:
Legend of Zelda: Echoes of Wisdom
I am SO excited that Zelda is the playable character in this game.
Ever since I was first introduced to the LoZ franchise, I often found myself thinking,
“How many times is she going to have to be saved”?
Now, it is FINALLY time for her to do the saving for once!
(#strongfemalelead)
Anyway, I love the animation style because it is so vivid and bright — just like the style from Link’s Awakening. It just looks like a fun game to play after work or on your day off.
I also think it is so cool that the fighting style is different from previous games . Although a small part of me wishes she could be the one with the sword this time… I am more excited that it requires more thought and strategy to use the echoes in the middle of a fight.
Wisdom IS the key after all…
Metroid Prime 4: Beyond
There is nothing more exciting to me than a strong female protagonist, and that’s probably why I have always been a huge fan of Samus.
I loved the small amount of gameplay. that I saw from Metroid Prime 4: Beyond,
because it gives me that nostalgic feeling of playing Doom with my family when I was younger, while also combining that with a character I have grown to love 🖤
What I saw looked beautiful and exciting — and it’s definitely a game that I might be enticed to pick up! 👀
Tales of the Shire
This looked like a comfort game if I have ever seen one.
I know there are a lot of us who can appreciate and enjoy a game that is simply meant to be relaxing and entertaining all at the same time- and I think this might be one of those games for me.
As a LOTR fan, I really love the opportunity to get to design my own characters and home within the Shire.
It’s both cute and whimsical, and I might also add this to the list of games I’ll try in the future.
Anyway, thank you for reading what I had to say!
Have a great day and Happy Gaming 🖤
All-in-all, it really seemed like Nintendo actually listened to their fans.
Not only that, but it seemed like they want to capitalize hard on the success of the Nintendo Switch console before moving on to their next project.
I can only hope that the next Nintendo console system is backwards compatible with the Nintendo Switch, but I think they have more than made up for the failure of the Wii U.
If they’re going for the best-selling video game console of all time, then they are easily close to doing it.
I hope they continue this momentum of listening to fans, reviving old games, porting games fans want, and being innovative with their best-sellers.
The Nintendo Switch is going on its 8th year, and yet Nintendo is still releasing banger after banger.
I hope they can keep it going!
Thanks for a 10/10 banger of a Direct!
Time to withdraw from my savings.
