Nintendo Switch 2 Direct

[Moonface]

The Nintendo Switch 2 Direct will begin today in roughly 25 minutes at 7am PT / 9am ET / 12pm GMT. A summary will be made in this thread during/after the presentation, but in the meantime feel free to share your thoughts either before/during/after the Direct in this thread.

For me I'm expecting a new 3D Mario game to show up, and probably a new Splatoon.

[ShiraNoMai]

Nintendo Switch 2: April 2nd 2025 Presentation

[UK Feed] | [Japanese Feed] | [Australian Feed]

Mario Kart World - 00:29:00
In Mario Kart World, you can go off the racetrack and drive virtually everywhere! More details about the game will be shared in an upcoming Mario Kart World Direct on April 17 at 6am PT.

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Nintendo Switch 2: Overview, plus GameChat & GameShare - 00:34:04
Witness the system’s powerful processing speeds delivering visuals never seen before on a Nintendo system via a bigger screen showcasing vibrant color and clarity.
Plus, chat, share your game screen, and hang out with friends using GameChat, a new online feature for Nintendo Switch 2! Players can start a chat with friends anytime by pressing the C Button on the right Joy-Con 2 controller.
With GameShare, another new Nintendo Switch 2 feature, players can share and play the same game with others who do not have the game. If one person has a Nintendo Switch 2 system and a game compatible with GameShare, that person can invite others to temporarily play the same game together via local play with their Nintendo Switch 2 or Nintendo Switch system.

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Nintendo Switch 2 Welcome Tour - 00:46:20
Gain insights into what makes Nintendo Switch 2 such a unique gaming experience. Through tech demos, minigames and other interactions, players will get to know the new system inside and out in ways they may never have known about otherwise. This will be a paid eShop launch-day title for Nintendo Switch 2.

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Nintendo Switch 2 Edition games  00:50:15
Players who already own any of the following games on Nintendo Switch can upgrade to the Nintendo Switch 2 Edition + Jamboree TV by purchasing an upgrade pack. Price undisclosed at this time.

• Super Mario Party Jamboree + Jamboree TV!
  New modes, new minigames and new ways to play!
  
• The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild & Tears of the Kingdom
  Upgrade your adventures in Hyrule on the Nintendo Switch 2 system! Jump back into the Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild and The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom games, now with enhanced resolution, increased frame rates, HDR support, and faster load times. Also on the way is an update to the Nintendo Switch App, called ZELDA NOTES. This game-specific service is exclusive to the Nintendo Switch 2 Editions of the games and helps players navigate to various locations, and will even feature commentary from Princess Zelda herself that was not part of the original games.
  
• Kirby and the Forgotten Land + Star-Crossed World Expansion
  In Star-Crossed World, a new story included in the upgrade pack, Kirby must use his abilities, including the all-new Mouthful Modes, to clear a trail through uncharted territory. The upgrade pack will include this new content which can be played in single-player and local co-op, as well as improved performance for the entire game.
  
• Metroid Prime 4: Beyond
  The Nintendo Switch 2 version allows for both standard controls and Joy-Con 2 mouse controls, as players wield Samus's arm cannon with more precision. Plus, choose between Quality Mode and Performance Mode, both of which support HDR, based on your preference and playstyle.
  
• Pokémon Legends: Z-A
  Enjoy your adventure in Lumiose City on Nintendo Switch 2 with enhanced resolution and frame rates when the game launches later this year!
  

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Drag x Drive  00:57:25
A new online 3v3 game experience, Drag x Drive (pronounced “Drag and Drive”) challenges players to use the mouse controls with both Joy-Con 2 at the same time to intuitively steer, speed up, perform tricks and make plays such as dunks.

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Third Party and Development Partner Showcases  00:59:23
From fan favorites like SPLIT FICTION and ELDEN RING, to highly anticipated games like Hades II, and sports phenoms like Madden NFL, take a peek at some upcoming Nintendo Switch 2 games from our publishing and developing partners shown during the Nintendo Direct! Text in BOLD highlighting either newly announced or new editions announced.

• Elden Ring: Tarnished Edition
  
• Greg Kasavin presents: Hades II
  
• Capcom presents: Street Fighter 6
  
• DAEMON X MACHINA: Titanic Scion
  
• Josef Fares presents: SPLIT FICTION
  
• EA Sports games
  
• Hogwarts Legacy
  
• Tony Hawk's Pro Skater 3 + 4 - Spongebob Collaboration teased
  
• HITMAN World of Assassination – Signature Edition
  
• Project 007
  
• BRAVELY DEFAULT FLYING FAIRY HD Remaster
  
• Yakuza 0 Director's Cut
  
• Hyrule Warriors: Age of Imprisonment
  

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Nintendo GameCube – Nintendo Classics  01:09:10
Nintendo Switch Online + Expansion Pack will be getting a new service exclusive to Nintendo Switch 2 users: Nintendo GameCube - Nintendo Classics. Enjoy clearer image quality, with higher screen resolution than the original GameCube releases. Up to 4 players can play together in supported titles, either locally or online with friends.

The service launches on June 5, 2025 with The Legend of Zelda: The Wind Waker, SOULCALIBUR II and F-Zero GX. Additional titles will be added to the service later.

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More Third Party/Development Partner Showcases 01:12:20
We’re not done yet! There’s more to play from exciting sports titles like WWE 2K, to epic and gritty adventures like Borderlands 4, Cyberpunk 2077: Ultimate Edition, and more. Take a closer look at some of the games coming to Nintendo Switch 2 from our publishing and developing partners! Text in BOLD highlighting either newly announced or new editions announced.

• TobyFox presents: DELTARUNE (Chapters 1-4)
  
• Randy Pitchford presents: Borderlands 4
  
• Dennis Shirk presents: Sid Meier’s Civilization VII – Nintendo Switch 2 Edition (with Mouse JoyCon support)
  
• Lynell Jinks and Ben Bishop present: WWE 2K and NBA 2K
  
• Survival Kids (GBC remake)
  
• Enter the Gungeon 2
  
• Starseeker: Astroneer Expeditions
  
• Adam Badowski presents: Cyberpunk 2077: Ultimate Edition
  
• FINAL FANTASY VII REMAKE INTERGRADE
  

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More Nintendo Switch 2 games are on the way! 01:17:59
Get ready to press start when these games arrive on Nintendo Switch 2 from our publishing and development partners, in quick sizzle reel fashion!

• Kunitsu-Gami: Path of the Goddess
  
• Hollow Knight: Silksong (yes, it was here!)
  
• STORY OF SEASONS: Grand Bazaar
  
• Goodnight Universe
  
• Two Point Museum
  
• WILD HEARTS
  
• Witchbrook
  
• Puyo Puyo Tetris 2S
  
• Rune Factory: Guardians of Azuma
  
• MARVEL Cosmic Invasion
  
• Star Wars Outlaws
  
• NOBUNAGA'S AMBITION: Awakening Complete Edition
  
• Fast Fusion
  
• Shadow Labyrinth
  
• RAIDOU Remastered: The Mystery of the Soulless Army
  
• No Sleep For Kaname Date - From AI: THE SOMNIUM FILES
  
• REANIMAL
  
• Fortnite
  
• Arcade Archives 2 RIDGE RACER
  
• Professor Layton and The New World of Steam
  
• Tamagotchi Plaza
  
• Human Fall Flat 2
  

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The Duskbloods  01:20:16
The moontears will flow for one and one alone in The Duskbloods, a brand-new EXCLUSIVE multiplayer title from the creators of DARK SOULS and ELDEN RING, FromSoftware, launching next year. An upcoming developer diary series called Creator's Voice will feature a more in-depth look into the new title with the game’s director Hidetaka Miyazaki, coming on April 4th.

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Kirby Air Riders  01:24:40
A brand-new title originated from the Nintendo GameCube classic racing-action game Kirby Air Ride, and Masahiro Sakurai, the director of the Super Smash Bros. series, was announced for release this year.

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Donkey Kong Bananza  01:26:33
A brand-new 3D platforming action adventure – available exclusively on Nintendo Switch 2 on July 17. Crash, bash, and climb through nearly everything in DK’s path and tear off chunks of terrain to swing around and throw in groundbreaking exploration.

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Topic in progress, but what did y'all think?

[Moonface]

A solid Direct although it had less first-party announcements in it than I was expecting.

June being the release date for the Switch 2 didn't shock me; the Treehouse Presents happening for the next two days gave it away the console was releasing around the summer otherwise they could just save that for Summer Game Fest. The price tag doesn't surprise me either; I expected at least $400 so $450 isn't far off. I'm more surprised by Nintendo taking an approach to game pricing where big hitters like Mario Kart World get an $80 price tag while something like Donkey Kong gets the $70 price tag I was expecting every NS2 game to get.

Switch 2 Welcome Tour is an utter joke putting a price tag on that thing. It's a poor mans Astro's Playroom and they want to charge money for that? Get the fuck outta here Nintendo.

Silksong getting mentioned for 3 seconds might be the only bigger joke of the whole Direct. All this time with radio silence and that's what we get? I won't be surprised if that 2025 release window on it turns out to be more bullshit too.

BotW and TotK getting NS2 upgrades is nice because I've always wanted to experience those games in 60fps, and the fact those two games are having their upgrades included with NSO+ subscriptions is very nice. Also, there are more games beyond those mentioned in the Direct getting NS2 upgrades, many of which will be free including Mario Odyssey and Scarlet/Violet.

GameCube games coming to NS2 didn't surprise me given the patent leak I posted about recently, but I don't like that Wind Waker is being put in there instead of Nintendo just porting Wind Waker HD to the Switch 2 instead.

I was interested in The Duskbloods until I found out it's PvPvE. I don't care to play a FromSoft game online for PvP as an option so I have no interest for a game that is exclusively that from them. It's funny how much the game resembles Bloodborne though; it's like FromSoft and Nintendo saw how much people want more of that and just decided they'll team up and make their own since Sony doesn't want to do anything with the Bloodborne IP.

Donkey Kong looks neat, and I'd highly recommend checking out the official website for that game because it's a thing of beauty. Whenever I get that game I'm totally going to see just how much of a level can be destroyed at once even if it takes over an hour to do it.

Mario Kart World was the absolute highlight for me though and I fell in love with that game so hard that nothing after it had much chance of holding a candle to it for me. Not that what followed was bad, it was just that I loved MKW's reveal so much the Direct could've had no other games and I'd have been happy.

[Mr EliteL]

Opening with MKW even though everyone knew it was going to be in there, they blasted that out of the park, and we're getting even more for that in a following Direct later. I wasn't interested in anything else really.

They should bundle the Welcome Tour with Switch 2 as standard kinda like what was done for Wii with Wii Sports, being separate is just wrong and highly doubt it's going to get any attention.

Good they're doing a second release for the brand new and relatively new Switch games for Switch 2, was expected really but if there wasn't it would've been a significant hit to them.

GameCube being next for Switch Online is fine, I did get my hopes up with Path of Radiance but then know there's little chance I'll even get that membership with the Expansion still. I know a certain community will be anticipating to see a certain game turn up in the GameCube Classics, that being Melee and to try out the new GameCube controller but something tells me there's a possibility it won't happen with their attitude to the competitive side to Smash Bros as a whole. Then again the community has had their ups and downs unfortunately both with themselves and Nintendo, but of course there's money right there as an option.
The new GameCube controller being locked behind Switch Online is crazy, though I guess one reason it's to stop scalpers in a way.