Topic: Next Nintendo Direct?

Am I the only one that needs a Direct, not because of new announcements but just for the vibes? I mean I wouldn't care if everything there was already announced or something.

@Budda I'm with you there. I always just love watching a Direct and discussing it with people.

@Budda Oh absolutely not, I adore the general excitement that happens all over the internet whenever a Direct is happening, especially the live chat here on NLife. My first ever time being a part of one was the February 2022 Direct and I'll tell you: being there to see the return of Mario Strikers AND Wii Sports in addition to witnessing the chat break in real time with the Mario Kart 8 Deluxe DLC was a magical experience that I can't wait to relive the next time a Direct rolls round.

But why? I could understand that reasoning if Nintendo were severely supply constrained and unable to fulfil demand. In that case it would, in a way, be a waste of money to generate even more interest. But they are not. Everything is widely available, systems and games.
And the sales performance YOY was down quite a bit, which should normally be alarming and spur stronger efforts.

Nintendo is unusually quiet though, that is true. So A) either they are already focussing on the next system (which would need to be announced soon then!), or B) a big Direct with another wave of Switch software is coming right up. They can't just let this year fizzle out like it does as of now. It feels weird, the Switch was on track to break all records, and then Nintendo decides to turn silent.

Regardless if it's A) or B), I can't see Nintendo giving Switch a whole 'nother round of AAA games. The next Mario is probably almost done, but it's not coming to Switch. MK too. Zelda... that's a tough one. The notorious delays are getting worse, it is now becoming the rule that by the time a new Zelda is finally done, they regret announcing it for the then outgoing system. TP was the first of those, SS they couldn't move to Wii U because it was tailored to the Wii control system, and sales suffered badly. BOTW was moved to the next system, now BOTW2 is shaping up to be the same story.

I'm calling it now.
Wed- XC3 Direct.
Sometime in next month - Direct which briefly features Splatoon 3 and announces dedicated Direct (around 2 weeks after).

I'm still doubling down on my guess of June Xeno -> August Splatoon -> September General

I do think they want to monopolize the conversation, and that's why we aren't getting anything now. Nintendo would rather wait til talk of all the June announcement dies down and formulate a direct specifically to hit back as hard as they can to try and dominate the conversation during the holiday season. So I'm quite looking forward to September.

I'm still of the view that Splatoon 2 will get its own Direct in late July/early August, even if a general Direct had happened this month I still think that would've been the case.

The 3rd party support after June (it's very limited) does make it seem like something featuring 3rd party games will happen within a few weeks of the XC3 Direct. Seems to be 3 main possibilities:
1. General Direct and that's where Nintendo announces new hardware
2. Partner Showcase and that's where we find out the release date for Bayonetta 3 (Age of Calamity featured in the October 2020 Partner Showcase and Bayonetta 3 technically fits in the same category)
3. Mini and that's where we find out what the new MK8 Deluxe DLC tracks are

In any of the 3 cases, I think the Persona situation will be resolved and the next batch of NSO Expansion Pack titles will be revealed (I think it's going to be a Rare focus and Rare is a 3rd party, DK64/DKR would be similar to Age of Calamity if they appeared).

As for which I think is most likely, the 2nd point because Nintendo's gotten back into the flow of announcing a load of stuff on twitter like in 2020. Whatever happens I think the next general Direct will reveal new hardware (if it's in the next few weeks then new hardware revealed in the next few weeks, if it's in September then new hardware revealed in September).

@korosanbo
The thing is after July as of now there is no other major releases confirmed. Yes we know games are coming but no idea when. Bayonetta 3 is sometime this year but when? Advance Wars was delayed so what’s the new date? Persona 3,4 and 5 have been ported to everything except Switch but the announcements for those ports were not all at once so is it coming or not? How about news on Prime 4 or a remastered Trilogy? After Xenoblade the releases just seem to stop. We need information.

@Grumblevolcano I think it's still a bit early for new hardware given Switch is still outselling PS5/Series X/S and Nintendo will struggle to even produce enough consoles to meet demand. It'll likely place Nintendo in dead last right from the start of the generation.

@TowaHerschel7 too early for a Switch sucessor? Switch is nearing 5/6 years, the typical lifecycle of a Nintendo console, Switch sucessor is about to be anounced, @NintendoWire i think Nintendo is already preparing for the launch of Switch sucessor, 2022 might be Switch final year, early 2023 launch of Switch sucessor with Legend of Zelda Breath of the Wild 2?

@GameOtaku, Splatoon 3 is confirmed for September, & Scarlet/Violet for November so they have post July games with solid release dates.

If they do hold off until September until the next general direct that means August would likely be the only month without a 1st party (or otherwise exclusive) game, which isn't all that unthinkable.

So was the XB direct meant to be the leaked one? Because don’t get me wrong that’s great for Xeno fans, but it’s still just one direct focused on one thing.

Hahhaha - I don't think I would be checking this thread so regularly if I knew the answer. I cannot make sense of their decisions, but they seem to be taking firm shape for this year, anyway.

I don't agree that a replacement for the Switch is on its way for the reasons I outlined above - if they are being patient and resting on their laurels (in a relative sense) for a few months, they wouldn't be feeling any kind of rush to release new hardware. Furukawa clearly said that the Switch has years left in its prime lifetime, and I try to listen when they speak so clearly. But this is probably a discussion for another thread...

@Budda Your speaking my language!

@Snatcher problaby is, Alanah Pearche never specified if the Nintendo Direct she mentioned was a game specific one or a general Nintendo Direct, and also with E3 canceled, Nintendo felt they have no obligation to do a E3 Direct.

@RR529
Both of those are the big holiday titles. Summer releases on Switch seem fairly barren and I’m sure I’m not alone in saying I’ve no interest in Xenoblade. The major releases I need to know are Metroid, Zelda, Advance Wars Bayonetta and Persona. Especially Persona .

...that's normal. It's been a running gag since I got into gaming forums in the early 2000s that Summer is usually a wasteland of major titles.

I actually agree (or used to), there’s no need to kill off the Switch while it’s doing so well. It would be wasteful even, because some bestselling evergreens would see a steep drop in sales once the upcoming system was unveiled. But the current drought or silence + Zelda delay made me uncertain. Normally if they really meant it they’d have to give an outlook, including some big mainline games for the next 2 years or so.

@kkslider5552000
It’s barren of releases but not announcements, usually.

@GameOtaku, there are two exclusives a month in both June (Mario Strikers & FE:TH) & July (Live A Live & XC3). Even if they don't have anything in August, their output seems about normal for this time a year. As for big 3rd party releases, I can't think of anything particularly notable coming out on any of the systems in the next couple months.

Prime 4 is next year at the earliest, so nothing they could show off now that couldn't wait until September. Same for BotW 2 at this point, as well as the Persona games (given the earliest one is releasing in October), and likely even Bayo 3 (unless it releases in August, a September Direct would still precede it's release date). Really only Advance Wars is the only wild card in this scenario, and given how they've treated it this far, it wouldn't surprise me if they quietly release it with a standalone Twitter announcement.

Don't get me wrong, I'd love a June Direct, but based on what we know so far of their lineup, there's nothing they could reveal now that couldn't wait until September (unless they have a surprise August game).