Topic: Next Nintendo Direct?

@Qwertyninty feels crazy to say but I somewhat share the same sentiment. Wouldn't go as far as to say it's at an all time low for me, but at least on the N front, the only game that I'm excited for this year is TTYD. I'll probably buy and replay LM2 as well, but I'm certainly not over the moon for it. Definitely the slowest year for me since launch and I'm just not as excited.

I think that Metroid Prime 4 and a Mario 3D game are almost certain with the release of Switch 2, it makes all the sense in the world. Mario 3D is one of the biggest guns in the arsenal of Nintendo, while Metroid 4 also sounds as a great tittle to advertise the new console, and a tittle that has been promised to Nintendo fans since ages ago.

Oh, and the new Pokemon legends game, which will hopefully take advantage of the new hardware to be the first ever 3D Pokemon game that is not disappointing from a technical viewpoint.

So, between a Pokemon, Mario, and Metroid game, I think that Switch 2 will have an absolute banger of a release year, covering multiple genres with popular first party tittles.

And I am sure that many big 3rd party tittles are being developed for Switch 2 and are waiting to be announced after Switch 2 is announced.

I’m not sure if and when we’ll see the next direct beyond hopes for June. The only thing that will make Nintendo hold a direct is deals struck ahead of time to promote other company’s games (which is why Partner Showcases exist), and promote and announce their own product. Obviously, there in a bit of an awkward position with plans changing internally and probably don’t have as much of their own product to promote or announce currently. They’ll have something for the holidays and they have to announce next console eventually before 2025, but it’s just an awkward few months until plans are “back on track” for lack of a better word.

@skywake
If the next system launches with the next 3D Mario OR Mario Kart, it doesn’t need something like Prime 4 as a tech demonstration. That would be waaaay overkill and a waste of timing, in my opinion.

Let Prime 4 be the swan song for the massive original Switch audience. Or release it on both, most likely.

Wouldn't Prime 4 simply be 4K on Switch 2? Is that a showcase? Not one that I reckon captures people's imagination much. Nah, release it on Switch og. I get folk want to cite Breath of the Wild as a cross gen release, but the Wii U was dead. It (and I mean this seriously, albeit with no offence) it didn't count lol.

@rallydefault
You're trying to convince people to spend hundreds of dollars to upgrade to a platform that, almost by definition, will have a tiny library of games. Overkill is good. When the Switch launched they slapped us over the head with release after release. I see no reason why they shouldn't do it again. Just enough isn't good enough

@GrailUK
Would it be "just" 4K and HDR? Probably. But so will the Switch 2 probably. And honestly I'm expecting it to still be "just" a Switch game running at a higher resolution. But perception is reality. Rightly or wrongly "space" is shorthand for "spectacle", can probably blame Star Wars for that. So it makes sense to use their big space game to help push new hardware where the biggest selling point will be "higher resolution portable gaming"

Again, Metroid Prime 4 isn't going to move 10s of millions of units. It's a high cost, low return release. A vanity project. It has little value as late Switch game because it can't really take advantage of the huge Switch install base. Worse than that, if they release before Switch 2 people will see it as a Switch game. It's far more valuable as a marketing vehicle for Switch 2, so it should definitely launch after Switch 2

I don't know if Game Freak will actually do it, but I would love if the next Legends game came out cross-gen where it was specifically made to look and run better on Switch 2.

@skywake
I just disagree. As a launch title alongside a big Mario game, it would be a waste. If I worked on Prime 4 for years and found out they were gonna do that, frankly I’d be ticked off because that’s a one-way ticket to being overlooked and not breaking any sort of sales record for the franchise.

The thing with Metroid games that is the double whammy is that they don’t have legs. Not only is Metroid C-tier when it comes to overall sales, but those sales historically haven’t been spread out like the B and A-tier franchises.

Launch it on the original Switch this holiday. If the Switch 2 is what we think it is, the “tech” is gonna be more power and its portability, as always, and consumers don’t really need a demonstration of that. Also, Nintendo fans aren’t generally known for demanding Crysis-level realism in their graphics. BotW is essentially cel-shaded, and we love it.

If Prime 4 is a launch title, it’s gonna sell a million copies and then maaaaaybe get lucky enough to sell another million or two over the life of the system. If it’s a holiday title for the original Switch, though, it can sell multiple millions no problem due to the hype and existing install base. I think it would surpass Dread easily, even if that “only” means 4 million, but it would be a huge achievement for the franchise and bode well for the future.

@rallydefault
The way I see it the Switch 2 launch could mirror Switch. I agree that 3D Mario and Prime would clash but I don't think that's how it plays out. I think Prime 4 could take the role, somewhat, of BotW and be the showpiece to launch the console. Maybe Mario Kart 9 launches alongside it to bring some of the mass appeal Prime lacks. Then the big 3D Mario is the holiday 2025 title. Or put 3D Mario at launch and have Prime for holiday 2025

With stuff along the lines of Arms and whatever in the meantime. Third party titles that skipped Switch, upgrades to Switch titles, remasters taking advantage of the Switch 2 hardware. Doesn't really matter what the lineup is. The point is that it should be broad and diverse so that people are given licence to justify buying the hardware

But as a Switch swansong game? It's almost dead on arrival. It won't drive Switch sales because there's market saturation and by that point people will know Switch 2 is coming. So it'll be selling to the existing audience. Which just means you're giving those people one less reason to upgrade

And for the people who wait for Switch 2? People generally don't buy back catalogues. I wouldn't bet on people buying "Switch" games once they get a Switch 2. And if Metroid Prime 4 comes before launch that's how it'll be perceived

There is absolutely no way that Metroid 4 will be released before Switch 2. Probably it will be a cross gen tittle for both consoles, but it will be a great marketing tool for the new console, and you can't have enough of those when launching a new console.

I have a good feeling for something next week! (Based on nothing but happy thoughts!)

I'm REALLY hoping for the rumored Ocarina of Time remake, since you mentioned a quality remake early on switch 2.

If we are talking remakes... Zelda II remake please! I don't care what oyu say, I would LOVE that to happen!

@skywake @rallydefault I think they’ll pick whatever option that’ll benefit Prime 4 the most rather than what’ll benefit the new hardware the most. If the game needs more time in the oven, they’ll release it later but if it’s ready to go they’ll treat it as a major Fall/Holiday 2024 release.

I’d guess given Dread’s success that Metroid 6 would release around 2026 so it’s not as if Switch 2 would be without a Metroid game.

@CaleBoi25 same. Don't get me wrong I'd gobble up an OoT remake, but I wouldn't mind a smaller title like zelda II being remade by a team like sabotage, inti creates, or yacht club games. It's the one game that could use an upgrade in the series. Better controls, combat, maps icons, clues, all of it. I actually like the game.

@Sigran102 If they're really bringing back OoT again I hope it's either a FFVII or ALBW style reimagining instead of another copy/paste job with almost nothing but graphical improvements. OoT has kind of been done to death and is even on NSO, there's little point in having yet another version that plays almost identically to the last 5 versions of OoT we've played. As for how else they could improve it besides graphics, I think the biggest changes it really needs boils down to two things: a bigger, more engaging Hyrule Field, and better design/writing for the transition from the Child timeline to the Adult timeline (I'm putting most of the story stuff in spoilers even though most people already know the story, just on the off chance that someone, probably a younger gamer, hasn't yet experienced this game. Trust me, you'll thank me later because this story is too good not to experience blind).

As far as Hyrule Field, it was impressive for its time but by modern standards it's pretty cramped and barren. Making it bigger and vaguely more BotW/TotK feeling (making the WHOLE game like that would be a bit much, but I think some elements of it could fit in this game pretty well) would go a long way towards making the game feel more modern. Make the overworld about 2-4 times as big as the original, add more NPCs and sidequests to Hyrule Field, add puzzles and shrine/shrine-like micro-dungeons, and things like that would make Hyrule Field feel less like a place you just pass through to get to your next destination and more like the vibrant, expansive hub area it's supposed to be.

As far as the story, I feel like the transition to the Adult timeline, particularly Link getting the Ocarina and awakening Rauru as a sage, felt really rushed and they could really stand to space these events out a bit better and add more dungeons/game content at that point. We know that the Temple of Time was meant to be a full dungeon but got cut, so restoring that would certainly help, but beyond that there's some other things I would add to improve this section of the game. For one, I didn't like how when you returned from Jabu-Jabu's Belly Zelda just threw the Ocarina of Time in the moat. That was so anti-climactic and unceremonious. It would've been better if there was some kind of quest to get the Ocarina, and maybe Zelda leaves a clue for you to get it instead of the Ocarina itself. Maybe there's a hidden mini-Dungeon in Hyrule Castle that holds the Ocarina and Zelda leaves you a message telling you how to get there, which would give the Ocarina a more appropriate means of acquiring it and build up more tension in that part of the game, as you need to quickly navigate it and find the Ocarina to stop Ganondorf's evil scheme. Then maybe before you unlock the Temple of Time, you fight against Ganondorf (maybe the Phantom Ganon battle could be moved here and the Forest Temple could have a new boss). This would better sell the illusion that the Temple of Time is the game's climax to new player's, only to make the plot twist that Ganondorf manipulated you into opening it all the more impactful. Finally, when you first arrive in the future you don't just automatically awaken Rauru, you have to navigate the Temple of Time as your first adult dungeon and fight a boss before Rauru awakens. Again, kind of rushed and underwhelming that they present you with the Sage Quest but one of the Sages is already found. They could also move the Hookshot here instead of having to race Dampe, that was a nice worldbuilding quest but not one that feels necessary to the story, so moving the Hookshot to an actual dungeon and maybe racing Dampe for another Heart Piece would feel more appropriate.

There's some other, smaller changes I think they should do too, but that would be the bulk of what I think needs to be changed. I discussed more ideas in an OoT thread here:

https://www.nintendolife.com/forums/nintendo-switch/modern_re...

@Bolt_Strike Wow, you put a lot of thought into that! I like your ideas... Maybe not twice as big of a Hyrule Field, though, unless we add a better fast travel as Child Link.

@Bolt_Strike I wonder if they could make a more living breathing Hyrule with the BotW map that would translate to the story of OoT. Not only would it have all the dungeons etc, but the world could also be populated with shrines that feature puzzles with the more traditional Zelda tools (this is probably much easier said than done, as those ideas have probably been exhausted by now.)

@alexwolf As far as MP4 goes, it was announced for the Switch, the Switch 2 does not actually exist yet. So, I'm happy hoping it gets the most out of the Switch possible and sends it off with a bang. Once Switch 2 gets announced, then yeah, anything is up for debate.

@GrailUK I don't think so. BotW Hyrule has a completely different layout from OoT Hyrule, they'd have to make too many changes for it to be worth it. They'll need to use the original OoT as a base and expand on it instead of using BotW.