Topic: Next Nintendo Direct?

@Novamii True! Yeah I think they definitely will try to do some games that they are using as backups. This is especially true if next gen really was going to come out this year

Kirby and Zelda are both 'almost every year' games so we could easily get both or maybe just one. Every time we spiral back to the 'what could Nintendo possibly do in late Switch 1 year' part of this channel's loop we seem to think of 6-8 very plausible games, so I doubt Nintendo will have trouble filling in most of the calendar.

It's worth keeping in mind that the codename of Fire Emblem: Three Houses was Iron17, while the codename of Fire Emblem Engage was Iron19. So unless "Iron18" was cancelled, then there might well be a finished Fire Emblem game - possibly the rumored remake of 4 - ready to go for this year.

Regarding ports, remasters, backwards compatibility. I think the perception would be that a remaster could well outlast a console transition as the title would already have the "smell of old" about it. They're also generally less taxing titles. Both good reasons to have the tail end of the Switch being remaster heavy

But with entirely new titles it's a bit different. The console transition is a mental barrier. Once that launch happens any title that was already on Switch is suddenly supported via backwards compatibility. It's not a new title that happens to run on the old hardware. It will gain the "smell of old"

Even if that's all purely marketing it's still a thing. So brand new titles in the second half of this year I think really risk being lost

@PikminMarioKirby We don't know for sure, but it's a pretty safe assumption that Prime 4 will have some of the highest quality graphics on the Switch. The Prime series in general tends to be one of the most graphically intensive IPs Nintendo has because of how realistic and ambient it is.

As for the Switch 2 lineup, Prime 4 likely won't be alone. Nintendo seems intent on repeating what they did in 2017 on the Switch and having multiple heavy hitting IPs in its first year. 3D Mario seems like it's going to be the big killer app for the Switch 2 launch. Mario Kart also has a reasonable shot of being launch year as well (perhaps a bit later though, maybe 3D Mario in March and Mario Kart in November). DK and 2D Zelda are possibilities as well. Prime 4 will certainly not be carrying the Switch 2 itself, but I do think it might be part of that initial push.

@Bolt_Strike I forget if I've already said this, but I think one thing that makes Metroid Prime 4 releasing in 2025 as a Switch 2 game or cross-generation title less likely is that Metroid 6 is potentially going to release that year. Dread absolutely sold well-enough to warrant a sequel, there was a 4-year gap between Samus Returns and Dread, and it's unlikely Nintendo handed off another IP to them. Unless they're focusing more on Project Iron at this time, or if the development cycle ends up being longer because that's how it often goes with more powerful hardware, then there's a very real chance we'll already have a Metroid game to pull in the hardcore audience in the successor's launch year. I mean, in August of last year, it was confirmed they have a second project in the works alongside Project Iron, so odds are it's Metroid 6. So while MercurySteam's next Metroid game might not release next year, there's a fair chance it does. Nintendo could space out their releases - maybe Metroid 6 could be finished in 2025, but saved for 2026 - but it's not at all impossible that Metroid Prime 4 hits Switch this year, with a big marketing push on account of it being a likely holiday release/swan song game, sells even better than Dread (3D tends to sell better - just look at how Kirby and the Forgotten Land has hit nearly 7 million copies, while the Return to Dream Land remaster that followed sold under 2 million), and thus makes Metroid 6 a higher-profile release.

I think another sticking point is that with both Twilight Princess and Breath of the Wild, there wasn't any significant jump in hardware power between the systems. The decision to bring the latter to Switch was only made in the spring of 2016, and even then, Tose was brought on to handle the port. With Metroid Prime 4, they'd be dealing with a more powerful console. The decision would need to have been made quite a bit earlier than prior to a year before the console launch for them to port it over and make it look like a showcase for the hardware, and that'd likely complicate things quite a bit. There's no real reason to believe that happened, as of right now. It's not impossible, I guess, but Nintendo's been savvier with their release schedules in the Switch era. 2023 was a fairly stacked year, unlike any other late-generation year we've ever really seen on one of their consoles, and they've filled up the first half of this year with smaller releases as well. Honestly, barring TOTK, you can say that about 2023's first half too - and that was with Fire Emblem and Metroid Prime seemingly being finished in 2021 based on ratings, and Advance Wars also being delayed from that year! What I'm trying to get at is that I sincerely doubt that we're about to see releases fall off a cliff because we've already seen Nintendo hold off on releases in order to plug gaps in their schedule down the line. Prime 4 could absolutely be touted as their big game for the year. Maybe when we get Nintendo's next earnings report, which will likely need to allude to the new hardware in some form, they'll suggest that Prime 4 is cross-gen or even imply it's only coming to said system, but I really doubt that'll be the case. Even if they did begin to develop it as a cross-generation game, odds are they got it running well on Switch to begin with, and they'll be able to release that version just fine and tout the next-gen version as an upgrade.

@PikaPhantom
Power gap aside, Switch 2 will likely be closer to Switch than Wii U was to Switch. Not just architecturally but also from a controller perspective given Wii U had the GamePad. Obviously if they want to really stretch Switch 2 titles will need significant work but "same thing but higher settings" tier making it work on Switch 2.... I suspect that'll be less effort than getting BotW on Switch was

Although admittedly GC/Wii was probably closer than this transition will be. Wii was, basically, GameCube Pro. So I'll give you that

Very similar experience here. For whatever reason (possibly largely because I had half an eye on the NL chat and just felt in the mood for posting inane live chat nonsense, whereas normally in the Switch era I ignore the chat and focus on the presentation) but I too was initially underwhelmed during the Indie World and was wondering if it was the least impressive ever.

But then, last night I was knackered and just felt like a YouTube binge, and I ended up watching the 'Kit & Krysta react' version of it, and came away feeling much more positive. Probably both because I was just in a different mood (having recently found a new eshop gem for pennies - there's something dangerously alluring about adding worthy eshop games when there's so many available for £0-3 in the sale) and because Kit & Krysta were decidedly warmer towards the various titles presented than much of the NL crowd, which no doubt rubbed off on me a bit too.

I would Kevin-Keegan-Luv-it if the next Direct arrives with still no Switch 2 news, and the Direct ends with a big Metroid blow-out, where Prime 4 is revealed, before we get 'time for one more thing...' and a box bathed in shadow is shown, everyone on the Stream starts yelling 'Switch 2! Switch 2!' and as the shadow slowly departs, what's revealed is a kick-ass Metroid Prime 4 special edition OLED Switch. And then we don't get any Switch 2 news for another year.

@gcunit Yeah, the first time I watched it I was on my phone at work so was pretty distracted and just adding the stuff to my wish list that looked vaguely interesting. Watched it again on TV when I got home and took a couple off the wish list and ended up buying stitch. which was one I wasn't really interested in first time around. I don't think any of the stuff I wish-listed is particularly high priority on the list to be fair - some might stay on there until eternity, be removed later or wait for a sale, but the beauty of the indie game is that they are usually pretty cheap and are not too lengthy, so more chance I pick something up on impulse.

Splatoon 3 is the main thing to look at. Given the way Nintendo has promoted Splatoon 3 over the past few years, if there's a general Direct within the next few months it'll for certain have a Splatoon 3 segment. If we take the 2 years of support comment as still accurate, the stuff left to announce are:

• Sizzle Season 2024 content (would usually happen mid/late May)
• Maximum of 5 Splatfests (May, June, July, August, September), I think it'll be 4 (May, June, July, August) with FinalFest being in late August
• There is the possibility of more amiibo. Splatoon 2 Octo Expansion released in June and the associated amiibo released in November. Considering Nintendo announces amiibo closer to launch nowadays, Side Order amiibo could be announced within the next few months and release over the summer

Taking all this into account, considering SpringFest is ongoing right now, it's unlikely there'll be a general Direct before Sizzle Season 2024 content is announced.

I do think June is most likely for general Direct with amiibo + FinalFest announcement but think there's a small chance for the 2nd half of May announcing the Sizzle Season 2024 content.

@Grumblevolcano two amiibo were leaked too…so almost confirmed.

@OctolingKing13 Which two? I'm assuming they were from Side Order?

That reminds me I need to play more Splatoon 3.

I doubt they'd decide when to have a Direct based off of just one game, especially when it's just smaller DLC (well, smaller than Side Order anyway). If anything, Splatoon DLC's release schedule will be somewhat determined by when the next Direct is. Also, it could just be a stealth announcement instead of just being in a Direct.

Honestly we have no idea about Nintendo's schedule at this point. If the Direct isn't this upcoming week then we can assume we're not getting one until June. And yeah they've had an empty-looking H2 before and then went and announced a bunch of stuff in one Direct in June (Like last year, where the only big game we knew about was Pikmin 4, and then a Direct happened and showed a bunch of games), so that is possible for this year as well.

And we should also keep a close eye on the investor meeting. That could be huge as it's talking about this fiscal year (April 2024-March 2025) and could potentially give us information on the timeframe of the Switch successor.

I'll wait until the red bird says more, if we don't hear anything by Monday, it may indicate that we'll have to wait until around early June.

@PikminMarioKirby Splatoon 3's content timing is rigid as a result of its seasonal structure and it's this rigidity that makes it a useful tool for Direct speculation. I think Sizzle Season 2024 will be your usual standalone trailer in mid/late May but if they wanted to showcase it in a general Direct as a result of being the last season of the game, that would mean that the general Direct is in mid/late May considering we know for certain that Sizzle Season begins June 1st.

Like I mentioned in my comment earlier, I think the Splatoon 3 segment of general Direct would be amiibo + FinalFest of which June would work perfectly.

@PikminMarioKirby Actually, Splatoon 3 gets content ever 3 months, so it is not based around Directs; rather, if anything, the Direct would be timed to coincide with Sizzle Season 24.

EDIT: This is why you read everything; @GrumbleVolcano already covered all of that. Sorry!

@PikminMarioKirby This. They're not going to do a full Direct unless they have MULTIPLE first party announcements to make, they're not just going to have a Direct because of Splatoon, then they'd just make it a Splatoon Direct. Really Splatoon seasonal content is probably just going to be a Twitter drop if they have nothing else.

I think their criteria for deciding on a Direct is along the lines of "Do we have announcements to make for multiple first party games (like, at least 3 or 4) and at least 1 new first party game to announce?". And I would say the answer to that question is going to be "No" until Fall.

@Bolt_Strike Exactly, Splatoon doesn’t have enough right now to get it’s own Direct. They have TTYD remake, Luigi’s Mansion 2 HD, and Endless Ocean already. They could also announce possibly Luigi’s mansion 1 stealth drop, a Kirby game, something metroid prime, fire emblem, Splatoon DLC, possibly DLC for Pikmin 4 or Mario Wonder, zelda ports, Mario sports, etc.
If we have a Direct, though, is the question. I think we’re getting one in June at the latest, and maybe a Direct Mini or TTYD Direct possibly next week. They could technically have a full general next week, but that is seeming less likely, and it’s more likely we’ll see one of the other 2.

There’s a rumour saying that Paper Mario TTYD previews release next week, specifically Thursday. It would make a lot of sense if a trailer for the game came out a little while before it (Maybe Tuesday or Wednesday) so more information is revealed before the previews are out. Specifically, the previews will likely want to talk about the new QoL features added to the game, but Nintendo may want to reveal that themselves first, along with plausible big new features/modes/content.
If there is a trailer for it, could there be a Direct? Be it a mini, general, or even TTYD-focused Direct. I know a TTYD focused Direct sounds unlikely since it’s a remake, but they could fill it in with several sections like

1. explain the plot/what the game is like
   2. basic features/battle engine
   3. character introductions (introduce some partners and other NPCs)
   4. explaining Rogueport/a few of the first areas
   5. Go over how to Peach/Bowser missions work
   6. QoL changes
   7. New side or post game content
   8. conclusion of the Direct (could be amiibo, OLED, or somewhat of a short overview like they do with most games last big trailers)

Yeah this is complete speculation and maybe nonsense, but just saying they could hypothetically have a Direct of some sort.

Direct or no Direct, they need to talk about what they're releasing in the second half of the year soon, especially whatever they have planned for July.