Nintendo's Direct Was Certainly Fascinating

The September 12th Nintendo Direct seemed aimed at subverting expectations. Still in the first year of Nintendo's follow-up, the Switch 2, one can only wait with bated breath for what will be revealed. We will go over some of the key announcements and surprises from the hour-long presentation.

SUPER MARIO GALAXY + SUPER MARIO GALAXY 2

The Super Mario Galaxy games make their way to the Nintendo Switch. These former Wii exclusives were widely considered the best Mario games of their time. With improved UI, sharper visuals, extra storybook chapters, and a new Assist mode, utilize joypad and motion controls to guide Mario across the stars. They make the cut to the Nintendo Switch over Super Mario Sunshine, which was a pretty divisive Mario game for the GameCube. Release Date: October 2nd 2025

FIRE EMBLEM: FORTUNE'S WEAVE

The first new original Fire Emblem game following 2023's Fire Emblem Engage, the tactical turn-based RPG returns with new characters and a brand new story, developed by Intelligent Systems. Interesting, towards the end of the trailer, Sothis, a prominent character from Fire Emblem: Three Houses, returns. She is speaking to an unknown individual, could this indicate that Byleth, the Three Houses player character, could make a return in some capacity? Release Date: 2026

THE VIRTUAL BOY LIBRARY WILL BE ADDED TO THE NINTENDO SWITCH EXPANSION PACK

Wanna talk about surprises? In a presentation that made some fairly decent announcements and reveals, perhaps what caught most people off guard was the company adding the Virtual Boy to the Nintendo Switch's Expansion Pack digital catalog. Originally released in 1994, the Virtual Boy went on to become the worst selling console they've ever released, but it did have a library of fascinating games that fans will be able to experience. 14 games from the platform will be accessible:

• Wario Land

• Galactic Pinball

• Red Alarm

• Telero Boxer

• Mario Tennis

• Jack Bros

• Vertical Force

• Mario Clash

• Golf

• Virtual Bowling

• Space Invaders

• Innsmouth no Yakata

• V-Tetris

• 3D Tetris

Along with the library, you can also enjoy the Virtual Boy games with a replica of the portable console itself! It will be retail priced at $99.99USD. If that is a little too out of range, there is a cardboard model variant for $24.99USD. This is a very interesting decision, and I love it for how out of the box it is, one of the reasons I appreciate Nintendo. Does not seem like Waterworld, the only movie licensed game on the platform, will make the cut. Release Date: February 17th 2026.

THE NEXT SUPER MARIO BROS. FILM GETS A TITLE; THE SUPER MARIO GALAXY MOVIE

Speaking of the Galaxy theme, it looks like the second Super Mario Bros. feature film will hit the stars. Directed by Aaron Horvath and Michael Jelenic (head writers and showrunners for Teen Titans GO!), the first movie broke box office records for video game-based flicks, raking in $1.3 billion dollars globally. It's scheduled to hit theaters April 3rd, 2026.

MORE GAMEPLAY FOOTAGE FROM METROID PRIME 4: BEYOND

After spending years in deep development, Metroid Prime 4 (developed by Retro Studios) is showcasing a lot of its capabilities. Samus Aran commandeers a new motorcycle, the Vi-0-La, as well as new psychic abilities to solve puzzles, operate mechanisms, and guide shots. With the Switch 2, you will be able to use the Joycon mouse to aim. In 2019, Nintendo was unhappy with the progress of the original build of the game, which was initially handled by Bandai Namco Studios. Retro Studios, who previously worked on the Prime series, was pinned to return to lead development. Suffice to say, the wait may have paid off.

POKEMON LEGENDS Z-A

Announced in February of 2024, Pokemon Legends A-Z is nearing its launch date, serving as a sequel to the sixth generation games X and Y. The Kalos region starters now have Mega Evolutions, and new to this game, you can now achieve preemptive strikes on trainers that now wander in Lumiose City. Link up in Battle Club, where up to four players can compete to defeat the most Pokemon within the time limit.

Mega Dimension DLC has also been announced, a decision that is viewed as controversial among the fans. It seems a little uncommon for Game Freak to reveal pre-order DLC without showcasing any gameplay footage, and the dislikes on the video are quite paramount. Probably not the wisest idea to paywall material that was seemingly cut from the base game for monetary purposes.

The Direct was packed with more content, and can be viewed here, if you wished to catch up with all the details. What are your thoughts on the Nintendo Direct? Divisive? Excited about anything? You can use our home page section to leave your reactions, we would love to read them.