As is tradition for the month of February, Nintendo kicked off the year with a Direct, the Japanese company’s own live-streamed event. This time, we got a taste of what Nintendo shills (hey, that’s us) could expect in the first half of the year. Fortunately, it alL went rather smoothly, something that we don’t often get to say after a Direct.
Why? Because Nintendo knew why most of the watchers its stream had garnered were there. The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom. And it did not disappoint. Oh, and we guess that Twitter failing right before the show kicked off might’ve had something to do with it.
The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom
Saved for the end of the event, Nintendo finally showed off a brand-nEw trailer for Breath of the Wild’s successor. And yes, Nintendo is (for the moment) sticking to the 12 May 2023 release date. We’re less than 100 days away from release. It would be very wrong indeed to tease us with a new trailer and subsequently hit us with a delay. We’re still not holding our breath.
In a dramatic fashion, the trailer sets the scene of a desolate Hyrule accompanied by a sorely alone Link, barring the few scenes he shares with the titular character. You know things are grim when Zelda doesn’t sound confident in the Hero of Time’s ability to save Hyrule and surrounding lands.
Pikmin 4
The long-awaited sequel to Pikmin 3 is headinG our way, now with a release date attached. Finally. We also got our best look at Pikmin 4 yet, and the introduction of a new “dog-like creature” to follow Pikmin as you direct him around.
Better yet is the official release date, slated to reach the eShop on 21 July 2023.
Metroid Prime Remastered
This one was a bit of a surprise. Well, not for anyone that’s been frothing at the mouth for a Metroid Prime remaster. You’ll probably have seEn the leaks that have been festering in the dark corners of the Internet for a while now.
What you definitely weren’t expecting is for Nintendo to drop the digital version onto the eShop right after the event ended. Yup, you can buy it right now. A physical copy is releasing on 22 February if digital isn’t your thing. The digital version costs R730 though it’ll cost you more in time to navigate the abhorrent piece of software that Nintendo calls an eShop.
Game Boy and Game Boy Advance Resurrection
Readers of Stuff (specifically today) will already know that Nintendo has released emulators for the Game Boy and Game Boy Advance, available to subscribers of Switch Online. These are already out and playable, so get going if you’ve got nothing bEtter to do.
Some of the confirmed games making a return are The Legend of Zelda: Mimish Cap, Tetris, Metroid 2, and plenty of others.
Disney Illusion Land
Finally, we get a look at something that isn’t either a sequel or remaster. It is something new, but it already feels like something we saw 12 years ago when Rayman: Legends was released. A platformer with four playable characters – Mickey Mouse, Minnie Mouse, Donald Duck, and Goofy – all in the search of “three magical books and save the mysterious island of Monoth”.
This one hits stores on 28 July 2023.
Splatoon 3 Expansion Pass
Splatoon 3, arguably one of Nintendo’s best multi-player games, is getting a paid-for expansion pass that could turn it into one of the company’s best single-player games too. The pass is split into two waves, a formula that Nintendo has grown fond of, as is evidenced by the Mario Kart 8 Deluxe Booster Pass.
Wave 1 reintroduces Inkopolis, a location that hasn’t been seen since the first game came out. The second wave is bringing a single-player campaign known as “Side Order”. No specific release dates were mentioned, though we know that wave 1 is launching sometime between March and June. Wave 2 didn’t even get the courtesy of a release window, so we’re keeping our fingers crossed for a 2023 date.
Advance Wars has a release date
After suffering the worst fate to befall a game (an indefinite delay), the remaster for Advance Wars 1 + 2: Re-Boot Camp has settled on a date of 21 April. The set of strategy games also got a short trailer to accompany the announcement.