Ludovsky

@TheUltimateFaker Plus while it's this year, the actual anniversary day isn't until Sunday(February 21).

Honestly, there's enough anniversaries lined up this year I get the feeling any big announcements involving their respective franchises will be specifically kept for those days rather than general Directs so as to not overshadow the Directs' stuff.

For example I'm not expecting Metroid anything until it's actual anniversary on the 6th of August(so, quite a way to go... and more room for other stuff in the meanwhile).

Big ones(that I know of) this year are:
Zelda(February 21)
Pokemon(February 27. They already got a digital concert lined up too)
Dragon Quest(May 26)
Metroid(August 6, as previously said)

@BabyYoda71 It's like people forgot that this is just the Direct for the "early" 2021 and then some, and that already has a LOT of stuff with 3D World/Persona 5 Striker/Bravely Default/Monster Hunter Rise.

Early 2021 doesn't have a lot to cry for tbh imo.

Plus there's a lot of anniversaries this year so I fully expect announcements involved with related franchises to be specifically held off for those anniversaries so as to not overshadow everything elses in the general Direct.

In many ways it was a very traditional Direct(not all directs were groundbreaking announcements after groundbreaking announcements) and Splatoon 3 was perhaps the more powerful but also downright subtle announcement: A sequel to your favorite franchise is coming next year, and it's the one that can guarantee you there'll be more support for years to follow.
If anything, Splatoon 3 is why I feel a Switch Pro is still a way off. Or else they'd already have announced one in the same breath.

A very subtle way of going "You're just hitting the midpoint of this little console's lifespan. Buckle up, we're in for a long haul".

@sleepinglion I'm keeping my expectations low but then again who knows. The big hints we're having right now(from the same guy who told us about 3D All-Stars seasons ahead of it's reveal) seem to be Twillight Princess and Wind Waker at least.

I mean, those would be easy move to make too, considering the ports already existed on the WiiU to grab and convert to Switch. And still are pretty loved releases.

There's also been a flurry of copyright renewals specifically this month ahead of the anniversary(specifically the other wind waker timeline games: Phantom Hourglass and Spirit Tracks iirc) but regarding that I'm putting myself in a "wait and see" mindset since that could be nothing(copyrights gotta be renewed once in a while after all).

@GrailUK honestly big same XD
With 3D World/Persona 5 Striker/MH Rise already lined up for me, it was a relief most of the Direct's stuff is not coming until April and later.

@Crockin Yeah. This said, it would fit a pattern established last year: waiting until the official date of the anniversary before the, well, big Mario 35th anniversary reveals.

So I get the feeling a lot of franchises that are having announcements this year will be purposefully kept away from general directs(where they would overshadow anything else that'd be announced in those) and specifically kept instead for the official days of those anniversaries(so I wouldn't expect anything Metroid until Metroid's 35th anniversary on the 6th of August for example).

@ModdedInkling That's the bit I'm curious about myself. Well, still a bit to find out.

But I do find interesting the room that badlands, terrains normally known for their wide "open" spaces, seem to be taking in term of setting for this one. Not making any prediction... but I'll be eager to find out what THAT might have in store for us.

@Hurblyburbly There's a lot of anniversaries this year.

Last year, we got hints early from sources that 3D All-Stars was coming, but Nintendo kept silent until the actual official anniversary on September 3rd... well after a lot of people had finally thought it was just another fake rumor.

Same source's now saying to keep an eye out for Twillight Princess/Wind Waker this year now... and it's indeed a shame they were not announced in this direct.

But the Zelda 35th anniversary doesn't officially "start" until February 21st.

And there's enough anniversaries this year, I have the feeling the big announcements will this be scheduled for these days rather than any "general" Direct.

February 21: Zelda's 35th anniversary. Also a Sunday so I'm keeping an eye out for the week that follows.
February 27: Pokemon's 25th
May 26th: Dragon Quest's 35th(Yuji Hori already gave hints he's got announcement planned this year, too)
August 6th: Metroid's 35th(so I wouldn't expect Metroid anything to be revealed until that day.... kind of like how Nintendo kept silent about Mario 3D All-StarséMario 3D World until the official start of Mario's 35th)

Those are all days with potential for major announcements... the kind that could overshadow a lot of other content in a general direct. So it's probably normal that if anything is planned, it'd be kept out of the general Direct and instead relegated to appropriate days of their respective anniversaries.

@Octorok385 I'd say : "wait until February 21st, and later"

That's the day Zelda's 35th anniversary actually starts. It's a Sunday though so I'd leave the possibility of announcements only being later during the actual week.

We were told by sources that Mario 3D All-Stars would be only coming as early as March 2020***, but only got the official reveal on the day of the actual anniversary.... September 3rd.

((***the same guy who told us that was coming is also now telling us to keep an eye out for Twillight Princes/Wind Waker most likely being re-released this year. And I'd possibly add a "perhaps more" but for now I'm focusing on these two and Sunday/next week for possible "surprise" mini-Directs).

@Bocking87- I don't think there's a Switch Pro coming.

If anything, Splatoon 3 might well be a way to say THIS console still has years ahead of itself, with the multiple years of post-release support and splatfest events the franchise is now known for. Or else they'd have already announced the Switch Pro in the same breath.

I'm more thinking they're holding back announcements for the same reason they held back announcing Mario 3D All-Stars until September 3rd: franchise anniversaries. Because Mario's 35th anniversary only officially started on that day

As it turns out, here's a couple of them coming this year:

February 21st: Zelda's 35th anniversary (though as it's a Sunday, I'll be keeping an eye out for the week that follow as well just in case)
February 27th: Pokemon's 25th anniversary
May 26th: Dragon Quest's 35th anniversary
August 6th: Metroid's 35th anniversary.

This last one is probably the biggest one not because of what they'll announce but the when. In the sense that much like it took until we finally hit september to finally get a confirmation of Mario 3D All-Stars being a thing rather than unsubtantied rumors.... I'm not expecting Metroid anything until August 6th has rolled in.

@TheFox Honestly I'm not surprised. It's been 500 days since the last "true" Direct?

But on the other hand people forgot the main reason we likely didn't get any in so long was the difficulties to schedule sound recording and filming crew in the first place.

So people thought that the first Direct in 500 days would have MAJOR announcement but for me it was always "cool, they finally got through the difficulties of hosting a direct in the pandemic".

Like, the biggest announcement there was probably Splatoon 3 in more ways than one.
They didn't just reveal the sequel to a loved franchise.

They revealed the sequel to a franchise known for it's multi-years post release support and events.

Couldn't be a nicer way to go "you're barely into this tiny consoles' lifespan, buckle up folks".

A Zelda reveal would have been nice, but that's a single player story; it might be an evergreen but in term of actual update it's maybe only 1 or 2 years of updates.

Splatoon? Now you're in for the long haul(fishing pun non-intended... but perhaps fitting).

@the_beaver Ehh.... I recall plenty of "dud"(to the opinions of fans hyped for more) Directs in 2019 and before.

People thinking that Directs always equal "supermassive announcements" forgot all the lowkeys "major" Directs that we actually did have before our COVID-shaped drought in 2020.

If anything the big announcement is the way Splatoon 3 might hint in the ways the Switch is indeed here to stay in the years beyond 2022, if Splatoon's traditional post-release content updates and post-release events of the last two titles(2 having had another splatfest just last month. Which... not bad for a 2017 release) is anything to go by.

I feel like the really big announcements will be handled just like last year's biggest announcements: on anniversary dates(September 3rd, Mario's anniversary, was the day the 3D All-Stars & 3D World titles were finally revealed despite the fact we knew as far back as March 2020 from sources that such might be coming).

As it is the big ones I'm eyeing:

-February 21st: Zelda's 35th anniversary(though as it lands on a Sunday, I'll also be eyeing the week that follow just in case)
February 27th: Pokemon's 25th anniversary
May 26th: Dragon Quest's 35th anniversary
August 6th: Metroid's 35th anniversary(the fact it's not until this summer is why I'm not holding my breath for Metroid announcements until then)

There's probably others I'm forgetting, but they're the ones I'm keeping an eye out for. I mean... we're also STILL in Mario's 35th anniversary until next September so I wouldn't be surprised if future mini-directs/etc for stuff like Mario Golf made mention of that.

@Crockin I'm curious about the Famicom detective games myself as well.

What I find curious is they announced Skyward Sword but made no mention of Zelda's 35th anniversary.
But I checked and the anniversary doesn't officially start until February 21th, so I'm really curious if they have anything in store for us in term of "surprise" reveals this Sunday or Monday(after all, Sunday's on the weekend).

After all, the guy who told us in March 2020 that Mario 3D All-Stars Collection would be coming later in 2020(it got revealed finally on September 3rd, right on the start of Mario's 35th anniversary) is already telling us to expected Twillight Princess and Wind Waker this year.

@Sirloto Mario 3D All-Stars wasn't revealed until September 3rd, the day Mario's 35th anniversary officially began.

I'd say give Metroids until August 6th and the months that follow before expecting any news. Metroid's 35th anniversary isn't until August 6th and if anything is planned they'll likely do the same than Mario 3D All-Stars: not reveal it, let alone say anything about it, until the actual day of the anniversary.

Same reason I'm not seeing Skyward Sword's reveal as indication of anything because Zelda's 35th anniversary doesn't start until February 21th next Sunday. So if anything is planned for Zelda's 35th(and though I could recall wrong, I don't think they ever mentioned the 35th when talking about Skyward Sword), we won't learn about it until at least this Sunday or Monday.

@Menardi Yeah, the guy who told us Mario 3D All-Stars was coming last year is already telling us Twillight Princess and Wind Waker are coming this year.

I'm of the line of thought that I don't expect major Zelda announcements until this upcoming Sunday, the actual day the Zelda 35th anniversary start.

Kind of like we knew in advance that Mario 3D All-Stars was coming thanks to re: that journalist but it took until the actual anniversary on September 3rd before the games were revealed at all.

@kingbk Metroid I'd say isn't ready yet. At least Prime 4. That could well be a 2022 release or late. If anything, the Splatoon 3 reveal is a good way to hint we're barely halfway into the Switch's lifespan(Splatoon 2 released in 2021. Just last month it still got a new splatfest, years later).

But Metroid announcements? I'd say have no expectations of anything until August 6th. That's the date of the franchise's actual 35th anniversary.

Recall, beyond Paper Mario, Nintendo was VERY quite about Mario anything last year and it wasn't until September 3rd(the actual day of the 35th Mario anniversary) that they finally revealed Mario 3D All-Stars Collection / Mario 3D World+Bowser's Fury.

@GrailUK Well I'd say to look toward to these dates myself:

February 21th: the actual Zelda's 35th anniversary
February 27th: pokemon's 25th anniversary
May 26th: Dragon Quest's 35th anniversary
August 6th: Metroid's 35th anniversary.

Like recall this one other thing: we knew VERY EARLY in 2020 that a Mario 3D All-Stars Collection might happen. But for most of the year people began to think it was fake because there wasn't any announcement.

And guess when we finally got the reveal announcement?
September 3rd, which was the actual day of Mario's 35th. Revealing 3D All-Stars releasing on September 18th and 3D World+Bowser's Fury releasing on February 15th of 2021.

And now? The same who'd told us all the way back in March 2020 that this stuff was coming is hinting we're getting Twillight Princess and Wind Waker again.

@Clyde_Radcliffe I'm surprised because they released Skyward Sword but made no mention of Zelda's 35th anniversary.

Which led me to check and... the anniversary is not until Sunday, on the 21th of February.

Which reminded me of a thing about last year. We take Mario 3D All-Stars for granted now because it's finally been released...

.... but it was as early as March 2020 that we had people telling us a collection was coming "for Mario's 35th anniversary in 2020".

But months passed without any announcement and I still recall people who eventually went and claimed "that 3D All-Stars Collections was just more fake rumors!".

But the actual anniversary wasn't until the 3rd of September. And guess what?
On September 3rd we got Mario All-Stars on the online service, Mario 3D All-Stars revealed to launch September 18th and Mario 3D World+Bowser's Fury revealed to release February 15th of 2021.

And the same person who told us 3D All-Stars would happen is now telling to wait and see because Wind Waker and Twillight Princess are likely coming this year,

@jockmahon Would have taken the steam out of anything else imo.

I'm more curious about February 21st myself. THAT is the day of Zelda's actual 35th anniversary.

If you recall: we knew at the start of 2020(March 2020, when I searched for article) that a 3D All-Stars collection might happen because "2020 is Mario's 35th anniversary". But nothing was announced for most of the year so people began to think it was just "more false rumor".

But they forgot the anniversary was on September 3rd.

Come September 3rd: Mario All-Stars added to the online service, Mario 3D All-Stars would be coming September 18th, Mario 3D World+Bowser's Fury would be coming February 12th. Which also add another fact: we're still in Mario's 35th anniversary until next September, and just got a Mario Golf reveal too.

So I'd say wait until Sunday and later.

@sleepinglion Zelda's 35th doesn't start until the 21th on Sunday ;3

I could recall wrong, but you could note that though they revealed Skyward, they made no mention of the 35th... and why would they, it doesn't start until the next week start.

Recall: we had hints that a 3D All-Stars collection would happen in 2020 as early as March 2020. But it didn't announced in any official manner(to the point people thought the "rumor" was ultimately false when we entered the summer without announcements yet) until the 3rd of September.... Mario's -actual- anniversary.

Nintendo hadn't forgotten the anniversary. They just recalled it didn't start until September.

So dates(and months that will follow afterward) to look forward to imo:

February 21: Zelda's 35th anniversary
February 27: Pokemon's 25th anniversary
May 26th: Dragon Quest's 35th anniversary
August 6th: Metroid anniversary.

And that last one is the kicker imo: People complained at "still nothing metroid", but honestly this one is indeed far into the year I'd indeed go: don't expect Metroid anything until August.

Just like last year waited until Mario's anniversary on September 3rd to actually reveal 3D World+Bowser's Fury and 3D All-Stars.

@Zach777 Kinda the same. I knew the way to go into this was to go into it with no expectation. It was still a nice Direct.

The way I see it, the lack of Direct always kind of had to do with the fact that "COVID-19 has been a thing making a mess of scheduling/organizing anything", especially stuff that would need to involve film/sound recording crews and the like. To not mention the impacts on traditional games development studio.

So for me that Direct was always more "they finally overcame the difficulties of hosting a Direct at all" and always much less "they must have something major to announce".

If anything, the really major announcement was Splatoon 3 in more ways than one: not only did it announce the sequel to an awesome loved franchise.... it also, much more subtly, sent another message: "We're here for a LONG haul".

Perhaps it wasn't intended but if there's a reason(beyond it's aesthetics and gameplay) Splatoon titles are loved, it's also one in particular: post-release content updates and events happened not just months but YEARS after release.

Splatoon 2 got released in 2017, the first year of the Switch. IT STILL HAS SPLATFESTS AS OF THIS YEAR.

Revealing Splatoon 3 couldn't be a nicer way of going "we're barely into half of this tiny console's lifespan. Buckle up, you folks".

@ModdedInkling I could be wrong, but if those badlands Splatlands are any indication, I get a strong vibe this might be the case.

Really curious about that tiny salmonid "buddy", especially considering you can configure it's crest/hairdo as well. That definitely sound like something that'll play more of an hand in single player story modes.

@smithpa01 Honestly... this.

And what a good way to subtly proclaim the Switch still has years ahead of itself than reveal, for the next year, a title from a franchise now well-known for it's multiple years of post-release content and events updates support.

In a way it's probably the best subtle power move nintendo could do.

@Desrever Honestly same.

But also: of all the franchise reveals they could make, none can speak "you have no ideas how much life is left in this tiny console" than the kind of "post release support, for years!" that a Splatoon title has.

@Why_Do_I_Exist Maybe... but honestly, I think that of all the announcements Nintendo could make, it's one of the most brilliant they could make in a very subtle way.

It's not just a "hey, that thing is coming".

In many ways, Splatoon 3 might as well be "Hey, you have NO ideas how much life this console still has in it.

Splatoon 2 released in 2017. It got content and event updates for YEARS. Like, even after content updates "officially" ended, it was still getting splatfest well into late 2019 with the official "final" splatfest in July 2019.
Then, almost as if "just kidding, we still have MORE splatfests" they began to throw at us "returning" splatfests as far as not only 2020, but literally even into 2021 just last month in january.

So announcing Splatoon 3 is a way to go "not only are we still going to be around next year, we're going to be around next year and BEYOND".

This I think is probably the bit that's probably the most overlooked about Splatoon: "You have no ideas how much life this tiny console still has in her".

@BenAV All of this said, since Mario 3D All-Stars wasn't revealed until Mario's actual anniversary that wasn't until September 3rd 2020(despite the fact we had hint as early as March 2020 something like that was coming), I'd say the big dates to look toward to(and beyond) are:

February 21: Zelda's 35th anniversary starts(and they could literally start that with "more about Skyward Sword" before suddenly revealing other re-releases/etc.... and if anything, it's the "start" of the anniversary, so there's plenty of time for later announcements still)
February 27: "Pokemon Day", as Pokemon's 25th anniversary begins
May 27th: Dragon Quest's 35th anniversary begins(and devs already hinted there's announcements coming this year)
August 6th: Metroid's 35th anniversary begins.

And I'm forgetting some others, but these are some of the "essentials". Note that Metroid isn't until well into the summer. So like Mario, we might get hints early of something coming that wouldn't be announced until much later this year.

And technically, there's also the fact that we technically are STILL within Mario's 35th anniversary since it technically only end come next september. And we did get a Mario Golf revealed just yesterday. So who knows if more mario-themed titles are awaiting for the rest of the year?

@BenAV Honestly, yeah. I mean just February/March is pretty massive if you think about it.
Mario 3D World+Bowser's Fury?
Persona 5 Strikers?
Bravely Default 2?
-Monster Hunter Rise-?

I could imagine Nintendo being very careful with announcement and pacing of releases. They wouldn't want to take the wind out of that especially when they're trusted with an exclusive for something like Monster Hunter of all things.

Like... really. 2021 is actually not off for a bad start. And Splatoon 3 is a good way for Nintendo to not only go "we'll still be around in 2022" but also "and beyond" because you know that Splatoon 3 is gonna continue the tradition of post-release content updates over months and year.

@Mamabear Honestly, let's also not forget that like 3D All-Stars(which we knew of from sources as early as March 2020 but wasn't revealed until the ACTUAL anniversary on September 3rd, much much later)... it's kind of pointless to announce "anniversary" announcements until, well, the actual Anniversary.

Sure this month Zelda celebrates it's 35th anniversary... but not until next week on the 21rst of the month. And since that's the start of the anniversary, that means they technically have the biggest part of the year for announcements for that matter.
I mean, if you think about it Mario Golf is nicely timed because Mario's own anniversary won't be over until next September so it could technically be considered a "Mario 35th" release itself.

We've got from February 21rst this year until February 21st in 2022 before we can truly claim whether or not Nintendo truly failed to release anything for Zelda's own 35th.

@TheUltimateFaker I'd say be patient. Apparently this is the guy who also uncovered that Nintendo would release a Mario 3D All-Stars collection in 2020... which he said all the way back in March: https://www.nintendolife.com/news/2020/03/nintendo_to_remaster_most_of_super_mariors_35-year_catalogue_for_switch_in_2020_new_report_says

And then, because there were no announcements for most of the year, people kept claiming it'd never happened but forgot one crucial part: 2020 was indeed the year of the anniversary, but the DAY of the anniversary wasn't until... the 3rd of September.

And guess what? Come September, on the 3rd of the month, we got the reveal of Mario 3D All-Stars(released on the 18th of September) and Mario 3D World+Bowser's Fury(released this month): https://www.theverge.com/2020/9/3/21418988/super-mario-3d-world-all-stars-nintendo-switch

So it was normal that the year 2020 saw little 35th mario anniversary announcements... the actual anniversary didn't actually start until September(and thus is technically still ongoing until next September)!

So I suspect it'll be the same with Zelda.
Because though Zelda's 35th anniversary is indeed this year, it doesn't actually start until.... next week(21rst of February).

So the truly major Zelda announcements won't start until that day and beyond if you asks me. And Skyward Sword's reveal doesn't neccessarily invalidate that. Recall there was Paper Mario: Origami King announced and later released in the summer well before the 35th anniversary of Mario was even mentioned at all until much later in re: 3rd of September.

@Lony85 honestly with how the anniversary technically start only on the 21 of February I always felt more Zelda ports/announcements could be coming but were unlikely to be announced before the 21.

If anything, revealing. Skyward Sword early with no mention of the anniversary could be a good way to let our guard down and in no way prevent synergy with later announcements. I.e. "1-2 weeks ago Zelda fans learned that Skyward Sword will be coming to Switch. But did you know that this year is also the franchise's 35th anniversary? If you did... you guessed right: more Zelda games are coming!"

Also recall that though Mario's anniversary is September 3, 3d All-Stars didn't release until September 18 iirc.

So there's still room for more announcements. And honestly... keeping something as massive than "zelda anniversary collection might be a thing" off the Direct is a good way to leave more time for other announcements in the Direct and more time later for the large amount of content something like anniversary re-release might involve.

So in a way it was confusing there were no mentions of the anniversary but on the other hand there's some logic in not mentioning an anniversary that technically hasn't started yet.

@BenAV honestly another trend of late with Nintendo has been trying to also stagger announcements and careful selection of format as well for said announcements. This Direct was a nice opening for the year with lots of expectables but also nice surprises.

But I couldn't help but find that oddly missing is mentions of Zelda's 35th anniversary next week on the 21. So while I keep my expectations low, I've come to muse that a main Direct before an "anniversary" direct could be a way to partition announcements. Anniversary content could still be coming on the 21(being revealed as a "surprise", especially after we already had a full fiat Direct) and in that way would have more time that could be dedicated to the content of these new announcements rather than fighting for time with more general announcements of the main Direct.

In fact, bar MH Rise, most of the Direct's releases are distant so if there's anything coming "soon"(February/March/April) that's planned, it's likely to be revealed as a surprise I get the feeling.

Otoh the early year already has somewhat solid content: Mario 3D World, Persona 6 Strikers, Monster Hunter... all within the two months of February and March so I wonder if Nintendo might be pacing some planned releases either ways to avoid hurting these titles(especially a third party exclusive like MH Rise after spending the entirety of World without new MH titles on Nintendo).

@teo_o well the stamina wheel felt less "we invented this" and more "that was the title we introduced this into the franchise"?

@BMOC kind of not holding my breath but for the anniversaries I wouldn't expect any announcement until at least(if not after) the -day- of the anniversary.

Like we got a Skyward Sword reveal but no mention at all(unless I missed a bit in the video) that this year is the Zelda 35th anniversary.

But the actual day of that anniversary isn't today but next week on the 21rst. So if anything is meant to truly celebrate that anniversary(and it wasn't mentioned during the Skyward reveal, that I recall), I get the feeling it won't be mentioned until that day or later.

I expect something similar with Metroids if anything is planned at all, it won't be announced until later. And it's case the day of that anniversary isn't until August 6th.

@teo_o it's not as crazy as it seems. Iirc there is amounts of indications they originally planned Skyward Sword to be a much larger game but had to drastically cut back their plans as they hit the upper limitations of the Wii.

In many ways(and thanks to further adjustments reactions to other aspects of Skyward Sword led to), there's hints that BOTW is the game that Skyward was supposed to be.

@BenAV this.
This said what i'm more curious about is the lack not of announcements but even just mention that this year is the Zelda 35th anniversary.
But that anniversary isn't until the 21rst next week so now I can't help but wonder if this stream was just a mean to get a lot of announcements(including the odd bird out that Skyward was for the franchise) out of the way before another, more focused, Direct next week.

Probably won't be anything(2020 was hell on game development so anything that was planned this year is probably delayed by multiple months), but i'm definitely curious about the 21rst next week.

@Christofu yeah. I mean I completed it and I loved that the MAP itself at least featured plenty elements of exploration(and realizing that definitely helped my enjoyment) despite initially seeming to be just a case of node-based movement. Or that it even had light puzzles if I recall well.

But that the fights themselves were just basically glorified "event mode" matches felt a bit disappointing except for the couple of traditional boss fights.

@MysteryCupofJoe I don't think 3d plane will ever happen because it'd become an entirely different game.

And "more fighting game, but with a radical change that could push off the entire community" isn't really how you'd create something "fresh" for Smash.

Honestly they'd probably get much more mileage out of something like "keep Smash as-is but bring an expansion or brand new game focusing on the crossover beat-em-up SP/coop hijinks of Subspace Emissary to a new public".

The old game would remain to enjoy as they already enjoyed it meanwhile the beat-em-up/coop-focused expansion or such could draw from different crowds by doing something different than what the current game does(focusing on other experiences than "2-4 characters fighting in a mostly static arena") without having to radically change the original experience.

@Christofu honestly I miss subspace Emissary and the way it played like a single player / coop brawler. World of Light is nice but basically the Event Battles mode of previous games with just a shinier coat of paint.

Meanwhile the outright "1-2 players battling horses and bosses in ever changing locales"(and all the cinematics' crossover interaction hijinks) of Subspace Emissary is definitely something I feel the franchise is missing.

But on the other hand even with that weird feeling that Smash is due for "more" than yet another fighter... I don't see how something Subspace Emissary-grade could happen shorts of a new game(to not say short of making -it- the new game).

@Yosher it still feels odd though because they used NOT to tell in advance that smash fighters would be included in the Direct so that it ultimately always revealed as a "surprise"(but one predictable enough we'd asks ourselves WHEN they'd appear in the Direct).

So I can't help but wonder. Plus with almost three years after release I can't help but shake the feeling Smash it's due for -something- more than just "another fighter"?

Like, game modes or specifically "new" stuff that can be played in single player or coop.

Trying to keep expectations low however but the game does feel due for more than just a DLC and something like a true "expansion"(kind of like Splatoon 2 did) before they call a close to this one.

@IronMan30 "and games coming to Nintendo Switch in the first half of 2021." I think you left out that part. I.e.: stuff that's to come and sooner than later.

@Snatcher tbh i wonder if there is an age factor there since all the characters that left are younger but the actors aren't getting any younger themselves but Eggman was... well, an older character to start with.

@kkslider5552000 admittedly it could be that charging for NSO is what separately allowed them to not only afford to finally replace their 20 years old tech... but also see there was demand for it.

Nintendo after all only got where they are by avoiding "unnecessary" expenses and overhauling online tech only to find no demand could very much has been this. After all, unlike other console manufacturers, almost none of Nintendo's console were ever sold at a loss with the WiiU being almost the only exception

@Nintendan64 "Interestingly, though, Centro Pokémon earlier this month said these rumoured remakes wouldn't be all that similar to the 2018 releases and closer in style to the DS titles."
Considering that statement I feel it's actually pretty unlikely forme to include let's go style.

I mean, Let's Go worked because it existed -apart- from traditional releases AND remakes. And currently gen4 is the one that's due for a proper remake so it wouldn't make sense to make it into a Let's Go game, unlike Pokemon Eevee/Pikachu whose Kanto could still be played in traditional fashion in both the GBA remakes and 3DS eshop virtual console rerelease.

Short of giving Sinnoh(which currently can still be only played through the original DS release that is no longer sold) the same rerelease treatment in parallel(through a collection/etc)... a Let's Go release wouldn't make sense and only splinter the community.

After all the choice of Kanto worked in Let's Go due to the strong connection with the anime/Pikachu (and with Pokemon Yellow that had lain the ground for such) but there's none of that in Sinnoh which at best was just one season against many others... and don't even have the equivalent of a Pokemon Yellow to strengthen that connection.

@YessMasster and iirc it t really didn't do super well nor did its exclusive games because of how siloed of they were from the larger pre-existing user base still clinging to the "older" console. That's the big reason we haven't seen a Switch Pro yet and why I believe one might still underwhelm the currently overhyped(imo) expectations for one. There just isn't enough profit to be made in shutting out an already sizable base of 68mil players.

There's a reason "New" 3DS exclusives were so few. And I don't see the Switch Pro risking any of it's future games' potential success by developing them fpor a still unproven hypothetical "Pro" version.

Similarly development wise, having to take into account making games compatible with an older consoles means that a lot of the effort that would go into making "advanced" graphics modes for a Pro console might as well be better spent into optimizing for the existing 68mil playerbase(and one that still growing, the lack of a Pro version didn't lessen the Switch's popularity even with new gen consoles arriving a few months ago) and try to make a game that still look good and run well even on that baseline.

@Snatcher and this and updates delays are relatively small it feels because the Switch gets this operation barely one month after it started on PC and just as it ends on that other platform.

And performances are pretty surprising when I play. Regular missions I will see generally good performances both in single and multiplayer and it's really just in multiplayer open world missions that i really noticed weird performances(and in starting to consider getting a LAN adapter because some of the stuff I wonder sometimes if they're just my internet connection being over wifi).

@kobashi100 Honestly playing as many games as I have now and seeing, especially on Switch, the games which end up being described as good looking... I'm starting to think resolution isn't anymore as much important than it once used to be.

@ChaosBadger777 honestly it look much closer to World than GU in mechanics. Some things remind me if GU's aerial style and hunter arts but theye seem to be only the one style(I.e. that wire bug using aerial-like style) instead of trying to come up with half a dozen out of thin air.

Which reminds me that in GU, Hunting Styles were meant to be regional styles despite none of it's villages (ported from older games as they were) featuring these styles in their original games.

Which make me wonder if they aren't trying to resurrect the idea of separate hunter styles again but by introducing them in -individual- games where their presence can be more immersive and fit with the setting introducing them. I even suspect this started not with Rise but World itself. When World first release the slinger and clutch claws were just accessories but when Iceborne came they introduced so many moves focusing on these two it might actually have become akin to a new hunting style.

If future games are similar to Iceborne and Rise, I half expect a new "Generation" in a few year... albeit one simply featuring the hunters styles of the games that preceded it(like those of Iceborne and Rise) in a crossover title rather than bringing them or if thin air.

@rushiosan unlikely they would. If you checked at the timing they release SaGa games like these instead of Final Fantasy ones... simply because 2020 is the 30th anniversary of the SaGa franchise. There's it.

Meanwhile 2021 is set to be Dragon Quest's 35th anniversary so I expect Square-Enix 'classics' re-release to mostly focus on that franchise instead.

It's less about releasing them because they expected it to sell than a nod to the fans of those specific franchises for their anniversary.

Apparently 2021 is getting a remaster of SaGa Frontier but I wouldn't be surprised if it was originally meant to release this year in 2020(because of that 30th anniversary) and is releasing in 2021 only because of COVID delays.

Meanwhile the first Final Fantasy only released in 1987 so 2021 would only be it's 34th anniversary so I wouldn't expect any major Final Fantasy collections re-releases until 2022 which is when the franchise will actually hit a more proper milestone 35th anniversary.

@SeantheDon29 tbh it's less about "which franchise can we port" and more "which SaGa game can we port next". If you've been paying attention, it's the whole of the franchise SaGa that they have been re-releasing since a bit now. What with SNES's Romancing SaGa 2-3, PS Vita' SaGa Scarlet Grace, now these gameboy titles and finally next year the PS1 SaGa Frontier title of I recall well.

Like I could recall wrong but wasn't it an anniversary of the franchise recently?

Meanwhile 2021 will be Dragon Quest's 35th anniversary so I wouldn't be surprised if it finally receive a similar treatment. SaGa is even more niche than Dragon Quest in the west yet a lot of these releases were the first times these titles actually made it here. So I can expect at least a few DQ titles being rereleased in 2021-22 give or take(though i'm not making bets on which they will be however)

Edit: just checked. The first SaGa game released in 1990 so 2020 would have marked the franchise's 30th anniversary.

@HotGoomba___Rebrand tbh MP4 is still hiring more devs so I feel it's still a way off

@gloom you just got the luck of the draw.

... seriously there are STORIES about the whack family of spells and their too common results of "But it failed!" in the Dragon Quest franchise so take the victory

(Seriously they even made a meme of it in Kyril's coup de grace in the Dragon Quest Heroes spinoffs)