e3 2021 – TUESDAY JUNE 15TH – 5PM – NINTENDO
Rumours of a Nintendo Switch Pro announcement were rife on social before the presentation, but there were no hardware updates at E3 2021. My gosh though, Nintendo know how to make gamers happy. Things from Metroid news (FINALLY), to a first look at Breath of the Wild 2 gameplay, there was something for everyone. Straight after the Direct, I watched the Nintendo Treehouse Live event, which gave us around three hours of gameplay from the games announced at E3 2021.
Don’t fancy sitting through the 40 minute presentation? I’ve got you covered.
TEKKEN IS COMING TO SUPER SMASH BROS. ULTIMATE
Tekken’s Kazuya Mishima dropped Ganondorf off a cliff, what a way to open the Nintendo’s E3 2021 Direct!
He’s the 5th character added in Fighter Pass 2, which includes 6 overall. He’s the 81st character in Smash Ultimate – Echo Fighters not included, of course.
He seems to play similarly to other fighting game characters like Ryu and Terry Bogard, with a focus on performing multiple inputs for special moves in a way that’s reminiscent of traditional fighting games. But that’s all speculation, there’ll be a stream with more information on June 28th!
METROID DREAD IS ALIEN ISOLATION MEETS METROID
After being rumoured since 2005, Metroid fans hit the jackpot with the reveal of Metroid 5!
It’s a direct sequel to the Gameboy Advance’s Metroid Fusion which was released in 2002. It’s been in on and off development since 2005, where it was originally planned as a DS title. It’ll see Samus face nigh-unbeatable robots called EMMIs, who hunt her relentlessly. Kinda explains the subtitle, doesn’t it. Metroid Dread will be released on August 10th 2021, so not long to wait!
SUPER MONKEY BALL: BANANA MANIA ANNOUNCED
Super Monkey Ball: Banana Mania is described as the “ultimate experience” and I’d be bananas to disagree.
This remastered collection has the original Nintendo GameCube classics and the handheld releases, as well as 12 remade minigames. It’s set to roll onto the Switch worldwide on October 5th 2021.
NEW WARIOWARE COMING TO SWITCH
Take on over 200 quick and quirky microgames solo or with a friend in WarioWare: Get It Together!
FATAL FRAME IS BACK
Project Zero: Maiden of Black Water is returning this year for PC and consoles.
Promising “remastered Visuals, new costumes and additional photo features”, fans of the horror ghost photography simulator will be able to enjoy the most recent game in the franchise on modern hardware, including the Nintendo Switch.
So far there’s no word on whether the Samus and Zelda outfits will be making a return though. There’s no set release yet, but fans can expect to pick up their cameras at some point in 2021!
MARIO PARTY SUPERSTARS
Mario Party Superstars is a trip down memory lane for fans of the franchise. The game is somewhere between a remake and a “best-of” album, which sees 5 boards from Mario Party’s N64 era remastered for the Nintendo Switch.
Superstars seems to be improving on certain aspects of the fairly disappointing Super Mario Party, including support for online multiplayer in all modes and minigames. Something that, might I add, Super Mario Party still can’t fully support even after its April 2021 update which allowed boards to be playable online.
Superstars also boasts 100 minigames, up from Super Mario Party’s 80 (70 online), promising a spread of fan favourites that have been optimised for the Nintendo Switch.
SHIN MEGAMI TENSEI V
The last game from Nintendo’s original Switch showcase finally has a release date.
Shin Megami Tensei, the 5th numbered title in the massive JRPG franchise, will release worldwide on November 21st 2021, exclusively on Nintendo Switch.
It’s the first mainline SMT since Shin Megami Tensei 4: Apocalypse released on 3DS in 2016 and the first on home consoles since Shin Megami Tensei 3 in 2005. It follows a high school student that wanders into another world and finds himself caught in the midst of a war between gods and demons. Sign me UP.
LIFE IS STRANGE REMASTER AND TRUE COLOURS ON SWITCH
STAY CALM. IT’S HAPPENING. This little tidbit of news might have flown under your radar, but, for me, it was the highlight of the whole E3 2021.
Life is Strange: True Colors is coming to Switch! That’s not all – Life is Strange Remastered will also be making its way onto Switch. That’s right, Max and Chloe on the go! There’s no set date just yet, but my gosh, it’s got me excited.
True Colors, which had more detailed discussion at Square Enix’s presentation, revolves around Alex Chen, a young Asian-American woman who reunites with her brother Gabe shortly before he is killed and discovers she has the power to read and manipulate emotions. Unlike previous games in the franchise, True Colors is releasing all at once on September 10th, including on Switch.
FIRST LOOK AT BREATH OF THE WILD 2 GAMEPLAY
The ‘one last thing’ of the E3 2021 Nintendo Direct certainly didn’t disappoint. Rounding off the show, we got a look at The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild 2. The game is expanding on the original’s world vertically, adding islands that seem to float in the sky that players will be able to travel between.
There’s not a huge amount more shown from the trailer, and the game seems to still be somewhat early in development, given Nintendo and Aonuma’s reluctance to show anything. However, it’s fair to say that the story seems to be taking a dark turn, with Zelda shown falling and Link getting a free arm replacement.
Aonuma said he hoped it would release for Nintendo Switch in 2022, but no definitive release date was given.
MONSTER HUNTER STORIES 2: WINGS OF RUIN IS GETTING A TRIAL
The RPG sequel to the Monster Hunter series will be getting a free trial on June 25th!
The game is a sequel to the original Monster Hunter Stories, which was released on 3DS and mobiles across 2017 and 18. The game’s plot focuses on Monster Riders, rather than hunters, and as such has a drastically different focus on gameplay.
Like its predecessor, the game is focused on hatching and raising monsters to turn into valuable allies that can fight alongside you in turn-based battles. If you were expecting the traditional real-time action combat of the series, sorry.
It’s not all bad news for Monster Hunter purists though. The game works alongside Monster Hunter: Rise and we’ll see some cross compatibility between the two.
There’s also a set of Amiibos that fans of the game can pick up. If they can beat the resellers, that is. They’ll be releasing alongside the game worldwide on July 9th 2021.