Topic: Next Nintendo Direct?

@Giancarlothomaz
Nintendo hasn't really participated at the TGAs in any meaningful way in quite a while. Basically just Smash Bros DLC character announcements (which is now over) + some smaller 3rd party exclusives like MUA3 and Bravely Default 2.

Right now they are going into 2023 with a whopping one title, BOTW2, which is admittedly a massive game but hardly enough to carry an entire year (or even just the first half of the year).

They have to say something about BotW2 or announce another delay soon. They can't just cut it close to release telling us nothing about what the game is like. They're going to need to give it a strong marketing push over 6+ months if they really want it to sell. Regardless of whether or not there's going to be a full Direct, we at the very least need a Zelda Direct to give us an E3 2016-esque blowout on the game.

I get the feeling that the marketing machine will be 'full-steam-Pokemon' until Scarlet/Violet release in November. (Maybe also some Bayonetta push in this timeframe)

I don't think Switch has any high-profile releases in December? So maybe they fill the year-end gap with some BOTW2 hype? Once Pokemon drops, I imagine they might need another area of focus

@Bolt_Strike I agree that it should get a strong marketing push, but it's Zelda and Breath of the Wild. They could release it tomorrow and it would still sell millions and millions of copies. It's just one of those games that doesn't need any marketing, but like I said, it still should get one. There's still several months before it's even supposed to come out though.

It'll get it's time, but they have other games coming out in the meantime. Again, it doesn't need a massive push, but it will still likely get one once Pokemon and Bayonetta 3 are out like @CJD87 said.

Usually the push for 1st half of the year titles:

• Release in January/February: Reveal/re-reveal in September and then big push appears after the last holiday game releases
• Release in March: Reveal/re-reveal in September and then big push appears from February onwards
• Release in April - June: Reveal/re-reveal in February and then big push appears from the end of March onwards

@Bolt_Strike As for BotW and E3 2016, it's important to remember context. E3 2015 was very negatively received meanwhile most of Wii U and 3DS' known upcoming lineup had controversy among the Nintendo community attached like Federation Force wasn't a normal Metroid or Metroid Prime game, Color Splash wasn't like 64/TTYD, Mario Party Star Rush didn't have normal Mario Party boards, etc. Which left Pokemon Sun/Moon and BotW so Nintendo focused on those.

We don't have that kind of situation this time.

Can we agree that our next Nintendo presentation will be an Indie World? There's a full 6 weeks between Splatoon 3 and Sparks of Hope for Nintendo make announcements.

Is the rumored GBA addition to the Switch Online Expansion Pak likely to be revealed and launched this Fall?

@Grumblevolcano
I hope this doesn’t mean as long as the war is going on Advance Wars and Goldeneye will never be released. I don’t think the war in Ukraine will end for at least another year.

@KilloWertz In theory they could, but it wouldn't sell very well if they did that. They need 3-6 months of marketing to get the word out to casuals, more details on the game for people that might be on the fence about the game (what separates this game from the first BotW?). They really shouldn't be waiting until after the holidays to spill the beans on this game unless it's releasing in Summer 2023 or later.

@Grumblevolcano It's not really like that, we don't usually wait until after the holidays to learn key information about a game coming early in the year. The kind of information we're waiting on for BotW2 (such as the name, release date, and details on some key selling points on the game) usually happens in September for games releasing early in the year.

Also, while this year's lineup doesn't quite have the controversy that 2015/2016's had, it doesn't really have a positive reception either. Most of the games they're focusing on are niche sellers that probably won't crack 2-3 million and the vast majority of Nintendo fans don't care about them. So in the eyes of the average Nintendo fan, Nintendo has basically nothing, which is why everyone's been foaming at the mouth for a Nintendo Direct this summer. We should start to see a shift towards BoTW2 and SV in the same way that they focused on BotW and SM in 2016, those are basically the only two titles we know about with broad mainstream appeal.

@Bolt_Strike Here's some examples:

• Kirby and the Forgotten Land - Reveal in September 2021 Direct, next info in February 2022 Direct, then lots of promo up to release in March 2022
• Switch Sports - Reveal in February 2022 Direct, next info was in late March 2022, then lots of promo up to release in April 2022
• 3D World - Reveal in September 2020 Mario Direct, next info was an ad at the Game Awards (which aired after the final holiday 2020 release), then lots of promo in January/February 2021
• TMS#FE Encore - Revealed in September 2019 Direct, next info was a trailer in late December 2019 (which was after the final holiday 2019 release), then lots of promo up to launch in January 2020
• Animal Crossing New Horizons - Proper reveal at E3 2019, recap of E3 info at September 2019 Direct followed by lots of info from February 2020 onwards

Sure there are exceptions like Pokemon Legends Arceus had info monthly from August 2021 onwards and Yoshi's Crafted World had a Treehouse Live segment in November 2018. But in general it does follow the pattern that after the final holiday release has been released (this year that's currently Scarlet/Violet on November 18th but they could announce something else for this year), they start massively promoting the January and February releases for the rest of the year alongside their holiday lineup. Then the March release gets massive promo in February alongside the rest of the Spring lineup.

@Grumblevolcano Again though, we knew more about those games at reveal then we currently know about BotW2. Where we are with BotW2 is more comparable to where we were with ACNH before its proper reveal at E3 2019 or Yoshi's Crafted World in 2017/2018. We're still waiting for the proper reveal of BotW2 and we need it relatively soon for the marketing to really work well, that's what's probably going to market the game most effectively, knowing WTF the game is actually like.

@KilloWertz Legend of Zelda Breath of the Wild 2 don't need a huge marketing push behind the game, is a Legend of Zelda for Hylia sake, everyone know how a Legend of Zelda game play, i don't expect significant changes from Legend of Zelda Breath of the Wild to it sequel.

Some of you have it all wrong: the bigger and more high-profile the game, the more marketing build-up it will receive, not less.

Breath of the Wild will very likely be Nintendo's biggest game ever in scope and scale - expect it to have a huge marketing cycle.

@westman98 Exactly. It's a huge investment in scope and scale, the IP itself is popular, and it's a sequel to a game that was an utter phenomenon. They want the game to sell extremely well (like, if they don't get at least 10-15 million in sales that would probably be a disappointment to Nintendo), and for them to do that, they're going to need to invest more in marketing than the average game. This is the main reason why I think we need to hear something soon, if it's still on track for early 2023, that push has to start soon. They're not going to get huge sales numbers by being quiet until the last few months before release, this is a game they need to start talking about 6 months out.

@Bolt_Strike
Even 10-15 million sales for BOTW2 would be seen as a big disappointment given that the first game is approaching 30 million copies sold.

If a Direct is planned for September, either BOTW2 is getting shown off or the game is getting delayed again.

100% agree. Just look at BOTW1 and how much marketing that got. Their E3 booth was themed after it, and the budget was clearly enormous.

@westman98 Maybe. But BotW also caught fire at the right time and sequels on the same hardware always tend to sell less. I'm being a bit conservative, yeah, but the point is to even get into that range they'll need a big marketing push.

They pretty much have to say something by September either way, either give us the goods on the game or announce another delay.

@westman98 That is what the debate is all about, whether there will be a general Direct in September or will Nintendo pull a repeat of this summer and just do twitter drops + Partner Showcase + Bayonetta 3 Direct for the rest of the year.

I fully expect we're getting a Direct in September because we know next to nothing about next year's releases.

Here are my predictions:

• Breath of the Wild 2 title and release date reveal
• Xenoblade 3 Wave 2 DLC hero reveal
• Super Mario or Donkey Kong platformer
• Fire Emblem (might be a remake)
• Metroid Prime HD

As for my wild card: Nintendogs.

What I don't think we'll see, contrary to popular belief: Wind Waker & Twilight Princess HD ports. I think we'll get these games on Switch eventually but only after BotW2.