Welp, it’s that time again folks. Another Nintendo Direct is almost upon us, with the latest showcase broadcasting on June 21st, 2023 at 3pm BST / 4pm CEST / 7am PT / 10am ET / Wednesday 12am AET.
The Direct is said to be “roughly 40 minutes” in length and will focus mostly on games releasing this year, including Pikmin 4. We’ll get into a bit more detail shortly, but we’re also expecting to see the likes of Everybody 1-2-Switch and Master Detective Archives: Rain Code.
So let’s just get right into it then, shall we? Here at Nintendo Life, we’ve laid out our predictions and hopes for the upcoming Direct, and we’d love to hear from you too. Reckon we’ll see some Zelda DLC? How about a new 2D Mario game? And dare we say… a tease for new hardware (yes we know no new hardware is due this fiscal year, so don’t go off in the comments saying “well, actually…” thank you very much!)?
Alana Hagues, Deputy Editor
I’m confident we’ll get some DLC news during this Direct. Splatoon 3’s ‘Side Order’ is due out this summer, and we only know bits about it so far. We might also get a tease for Pokémon Scarlet & Violet’s DLC, The Teal Mask, with a Pokémon Presents date set for a week later. And Tears of the Kingdom DLC is surely on the horizon.
Going slightly bigger, those 2D Mario rumours are certainly tantalising, and if it really doesn’t carry the ‘New’ moniker, then this could be a real shake-up. New costumes, power-ups? Perhaps some Mario Movie inspirations? Who can say! I’m trying to stay realistic about those SNES remake rumours, too – you know I’d kill for Chrono Trigger HD-2D, but I really don’t want to get my hopes up.
Nintendo could also just throw us a bone and give us Wind Waker, Twilight Princess, and/or Metroid Prime 2/3 on Switch now, couldn’t it? That’d be nice.
Ollie Reynolds, Staff Writer
Persona 3 Reload.
Yeah, that’s my safe bet for this Nintendo Direct. I think a version for the Switch being so conspiciously absent from the marketing so far is very bizarre. Atlus made such a big deal about Persona 3 Portable, Persona 4 Golden, and Persona 5 Tactica coming to Switch, I just refuse to believe that the company would exclude what is arguably the community’s most requested title yet. I’ll eat my shorts if it’s not announced.
Going into more iffy territory, I do think it’s about time a new 2D Mario title is revealed. Heck, I’d take a 3D one, too. I’d love for Nintendo to make a new 2D Mario game that’s just completely off the wall; give me pixel art visuals or something along the lines of Cuphead; just something that’s not related to the ‘New Super Mario Bros’ branding.
Finally, I can’t possibly acknowledge a new Direct presentation without mentioning Metroid Prime 4. I know nothing about this game and yet it remains one of my most anticipated of all time. It’s time. Come on now, Nintendo… It’s time.
Jim Norman, Staff Writer
Well, well, well. I was sitting quite comfortably with the thought that we wouldn’t see a proper Direct Showcase in June, but here we are. Guess I better start thinking about what I’d actually like to see…
Aside from many of the titles mentioned above (could this really be the “Zelda blowout” that we all had our fingers crossed for last year?) I would really like to hear a little more about the Level-5 announcements that we know are coming to Switch at some point, but we’re not quite sure when. Inazuma Eleven: Victory Road has been on the radar for years and after the announcement that it would be getting a worldwide release, it would be nice to hear something more concrete. And then there’s Professor Layton and the New World of Steam which also should be coming this year or next. Come on Nintendo, gimme some room for even more Layton lore…
Of course, I would love to see some more big hitters pad out the rest of the year — why not throw another Metroid title into the mix and give us a Samus Returns Switch port already? — but I wouldn’t be surprised to see the showcase be made of smaller announcements to keep us going instead. Come on, all we really want to hear about is [checks notes] another wave of Mario Kart 8 Deluxe DLC… right?
Gavin Lane, Editor
“Oh no, there ain’t gonna be a full-fat Direct in June. Nintendo will be eking out TOTK until September…” So much for that prediction.
Well, this is a welcome summer surprise, isn’t it? Honestly, I’m still knee-deep in Hyrule right now, so the only real news I’m desperate for is info on where that Outer Wilds port has gotten to. I’ve been waiting to play it on Switch, so a date for that would be nice. Otherwise, I’ll just be happy if it’s not 20 minutes of Pikmin 4. That’s not to disparage Olimar and co. – I’m looking forward to it – but the game is relatively close already and I’m good for details, personally. What I’d really like is to see some late-gen Switch releases along the lines of 3DS’ Rhythm Heaven Megamix and WarioWare Gold. Beloved, smaller series given their due on the back of Switch’s enormous success as it enters its swansong period. A few lower-tier fan-pleasers, please.
Oh, and without wanting to stir, Silksong is definitely full-fat Direct material. When we see that one trending tomorrow (who am I kidding, it’s probably going already), it’s more likely to appear this time than any of the previous Indie and Partner Directs.
Anything here that catches your fancy? Do you have some predictions or hopes of your own? Let it be known in the comments section below.
