Nintendo’s Feb 2021 Direct: These aren’t the games you’re looking for
So Nintendo finally had their first full fat Direct since… crikey, 2019? Has it really been that long? In fairness, they don’t really market their games in the same way that Sony or Microsoft do. No pomp and circumstance here. Big releases tend to get dropped out of nowhere, while their presentations tend to focus on smaller games. Yet the hype machine was in overdrive for this one, given how long it’s been, and how little we’ve heard about some huge upcoming titles. And well, I hope you curbed your enthusiasm before going in.
To start off, the two biggest announcements were, as expected, completely unexpected.
First off was Splatoon 3. Nintendo’s hugely popular paintball-esque multiplayer title slash squid simulator is getting another sequel. The trailer mostly focuses on character customization. It looks like you also get an animal buddy to tag along with you. While they didn’t show much in terms of gameplay, it doesn’t really look all that different from Splatoon 2. I can’t really comment on this since I’ve never played the first two games. It just seems like more of the same though, which isn’t necessarily a bad thing. Hopefully we’ll get more info in the near future. The game is scheduled to release sometime next year.
Next up we have an HD remake of Skyward Sword. Being this is the only mainline Zelda game that I haven’t played, so I’m pretty excited about this one. The main problem with this title is the focus on motion controls. Now, the Switch version does still support them using the detached Joycons, if you’d prefer to play that way. However, there’s also an option to use traditional buttons. I’m not sure how I feel about mapping sword swings to the right analogue stick though. That might be a bit weird. However, I still plan to pick this one up.
The other games announced are kind of a mixed bag. We have Fall Guys, which was popular for about five minutes last, ahem, Fall. I’ve got nothing against this game. It looks like it’d be a lot of fun with friends. But it strikes me as being very much a fad. I’m not sure how much staying power it’ll have.
Next up is Project Triangle Strategy. Which is most definitely a working title, as the trailer points out, even though that’s probably what the final game will be called. It’s a tactical RPG by Square Enix, which appears to be a sequel to Octopath Traveler. Or is at very least based on the same art style. Not much gameplay footage was shown. Will probably be a fairly solid title though for those who like classic console JRPGs.
Monster Hunter Rise. We already knew about this one. It’s Monster Hunter, it looks great on the Switch. Not much more really needs to be said at this point.
Mario Golf makes its triumphant return to the fairways since last appearing on the Game Cube way back in 2003. I’m really surprised this game never made it to the Wii. Well, this one actually does support motion controls if you want to live your nunchuck dreams. There’s also a couple new modes. Speed Golf has everyone teeing off at the same time, making you race your opponents to finish the course first. There’s also a Story Mode will Mii characters.
Speaking of Miis, we have Miitopia. I’m not really sure what this game is. It looks like part turn-based RPG, part social life simulator. It’s weird. Though probably not as weird as Tomodachi Life was. It looks absolutely adorable, but I’m not in any rush to pick this one up.
Famicom Detective Club is a remake of a pair of visual novels from the NES. It’s two murder mystery games actually, which have been localized for Western audiences for the first time ever. The game has also been given a modern anime look to it. Not much to say about this one. Might be worth it if you like visual novels. It’s due out on May 14th.
DC Super Hero Girls: Teen Power is a game that has you playing as DC’s girl heroes, obviously. This is clearly targeted at pre-teen girls. And it actually seems to understand its audience. It’s cute, it’s girly, it’s not I Am Not Starfire level cringe. Seems like it could be a pretty solid kids’ game.
No More Heroes III marks the return of Travis Touchdown, everyone’s favourite wannabe assassin. This time he’s fighting aliens, while doing odd jobs on the side. It’s completely bizarre, batshit crazy, and looks absolutely awesome. Yeah, this is definitely up there on my list.
Star Wars: Hunters is a squad based, free to play, arena combat game. No gameplay was shown in the trailer. At this point, I’ve thrown in the towel with Star Wars. It’s a dying franchise. And the fact that their only new Switch release is F2P mobile trash developed by Zynga (remember them) really says everything you need to know. How has Kathleen Kennedy not been fired yet?
Wrapping things up, we have a Season Pass for Hyrule Warriors: Age of Calamity, and a Mario themed DLC for Animal Crossing: New Horizons. Nothing really worth mentioning here.
Perhaps more interesting was the stuff that wasn’t announced. A lot of people expected something about Breath of the Wild 2. Especially for such a long presentation. Yet we’re still getting radio silence from Nintendo on that front. I expect we will see future Direct Minis for Zelda’s 35th anniversary, which may have more details. Sonic also has his 30th birthday coming up. So I’m sure Sega is working with Nintendo on that as well. Which still feels weird to say.
There’s also been no news on other big releases like Metroid and Bayonetta 3. It’s looking more and more like these games have become trapped in development hell.
Overall, this wasn’t a terrible Direct. There’s nothing particularly bad here. However, I don’t think it really gave Nintendo fans anywhere close to what they wanted. In fairness, a lot of development is still being hampered by the CCPVirus, so we’ll just have to be patient.
