What We Learned From Nintendo Direct E3 2021

Another Nintendo Direct has come and gone, but everyone came into Tuesday’s E3 2021 direct with big expectations. E3 time is when all the heavyweights show their best stuff and there were plenty of titles that everyone wanted to see some news for. While not everyone got their wish, Nintendo definitely didn’t disappoint in what they had to offer. There were some obvious announcements, like a Super Smash Bros. Ultimate update, but there were also a couple of major surprises. One thing that we can always expect with Nintendo is, even when it’s being predictable, it will never stick to the status quo — it’s part of what makes that company so fascinating. With all of that said, here’s what we learned from Nintendo Direct E3 2021.

The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild 2

Everyone has been eagerly anticipating Breath of the Wild 2 game ever since it was first announced back in 2019. While we’re still waiting for more information on it, this trailer gave us just the tease we needed to be excited about a 2022 release date. More than likely it’s going to fall into the holiday side of the 2022 release window, but as long as there’s no delay we’re going to be exploring Hyrule again in 2022. That’s enough to hold us over.

Metroid Dread

This was easily the biggest surprise of the entire Direct. If there was going to be Metroid news, the expectation was that it was going to be related to Metroid Prime 4. Instead, Nintendo showed us a brand new 2D Metroid expected to release in October. Even more surprising, it looks like it’s going to be a direct sequel to Metroid Fusion which came out all the way back in 2002. Most of us assumed a proper 2D Metroid game was never going to come out again so to say this caught a lot of us off guard would be the understatement of the year.

Shin Megami Tensei V

The Shin Megami Tensei series may be some of the most aggressively anime-style JRPG’s out there, but there’s a reason people were really excited to see a new trailer alongside a release date. They’re some of the best JRPG’s out there and being an exclusive on the Switch is a big win for Nintendo. This is a trailer that is either going to create excitement for the people who want to play it or confusion for anyone that doesn’t know what it is. For anyone that was intrigued by it, but never played a Shin Megami Tensei game before, give the Persona series a try. They’re a great entry point into this franchise.

WarioWare: Get It Together

The WarioWare games are an absolute blast. They’re some of the best minigame collections ever made and the chaotic nature of them leaves fans exhausted after playthroughs. It’s always excellent to see we’re getting a new one of these, but the $50 price tag going around right now is a little much for a minigame collection. These games are fun but maybe wait for a price drop.

Mario Party Superstars

Everyone falls into one of two camps with Mario Party. You either love them or hate their very existence. For everyone that falls into the former, this announcement is really exciting. All the best mini-games, and best boards, combined into one game with online play. Get your friend group together all across the country and yell at each other on the best boards the series has to offer. Just like the old days. There’s even random matchmaking to play with people online for those feeling truly sadistic.

Kazuya Joins The Fight

Fans of Tekken were excited to find out that Kazuya is joining Super Smash Bros. Ultimate as the next DLC character. Since Tekken is well known for having one of the most absurd storylines of any video game series, it will be funny to see if they can find a way to squeeze Kazuya joining Smash into the canon story. Either way, this is just more proof that Smash Bros. is the greatest assembly of video game characters ever made. There isn’t a single video game character off the table to join Smash Bros. at this rate and that’s kind of cool. Who’s going to join next?

Where Is Bayonetta 3?

The major missing announcement from this entire Nintendo Direct was Bayonetta 3. The wacky, heel gun, angel slaying Demon had her third title announced for the Nintendo Switch all the way back in 2017. It was nothing more than information that it was in development, but it’s almost four years later and we’ve heard nothing about it since. Nintendo was kind enough to give us an update on Metroid Prime 4 at least existing, but the only proof we have that Bayonetta 3 is still in production is the Platinum Games website tells us it is. Where is Bayonetta, Nintendo?