Nintendo @ E3 2021: Information and Reactions

E3 has come and gone – well, at least its main press conferences. A couple smaller shows and whatever virtual counterparts game publishers are substituting for the Electronic Entertainment Expo’s show floor may be continuing into the next couple days. This is E3 under COVID, and one of the world’s biggest industries is still coping with a terrifying pandemic for which virtually no one was fully equipped. We at Source Gaming focus on Nintendo, and for them this was an E3 worth… quite a bit, just in terms of quantity. Before it even began, the Japanese giant’s show was well under the shadow of the long rumored and likely heavily in production “super Switch.” And, as per their standard of the past few years, no hardware was shown; it’ll presumably come soon, assuming the rumors of a fall release are any indication.

But the absence of their hardware was not matched by an absence of software; the apparently now standard kickoff with Smash Bros. DLC started a show that spent thirty-plus minutes throwing quite a few curveballs. Here’s what got shown:

Upate [June 16, 10:38 AM EST]: Corrected the Life is Strange: True Colors release date, added information about Mario Golf: Super Rush DLC

• Super Smash Bros. Ultimate Fighter #81 is Kazuya Mishima from Tekken. He uses his Devil Gene Kazuya form for some attacks, as well as a smorgasbord of Tekken moves like Demon God Kick, Tombstone Crusher, and a variety of multi-hit attacks that all posit Kazuya as a combo-heavy fighter
  • The airdate for his corresponding “Mr. Sakurai Presents” video is scheduled for June 28
• Life is Strange Remastered Collection and Life is Strange True Colors, rumored for Nintendo’s console, have official Switch releases. True Colors releases September 10, while Remastered is planned for release “later this year”
• Guardians of the Galaxy, previously shown at the Square Enix conference and a fairly shocking choice for a Switch port given its size, releases as a cloud-only game October 26
• Worms Rumble, first released in 2020, releases on Switch with a new stage and “free” (as in, “free for the first few weeks”) costumes. Releases June 23
• Astria Ascending, a hand drawn JRPG made by Final Fantasy veterans, releases September 30
• Two Point Campus, a sequel to 2018’s Two Point Hospital, releases on Switch in 2022. First announced at Summer Game Fest
• Super Monkey Ball: Banana Mania, a 20th anniversary title leaked days before, releases on Switch October 5
• Mario Party Superstars, a new and online enabled collection that focuses on old Mario Party levels (a bit like 2017’s Mario Party: The Top 100, I suppose), releases October 29
• Metroid Dread, a 2D Metroid rumored for well over a decade (and, as Nintendo has made exhaustively clear, the sequel to the nineteen-year-old Metroid Fusion), has a greater emphasis on horror and a seemingly invincible foe, E.M.M.I., that chases her. Made by Mercury Steam, it also incorporates the Aeion powers they developed in Metroid: Samus Returns. Releases October 8, along with amiibo for Samus’s new suit and E.M.M.I.
  • In an interview after the show, Metroid producer Koyshi Sakamoto stated that the game’s story will mark an “end” to the “unhealthy relationship” between Samus and the Metroids, though whether it’s planned as a full ending for the series is unclear. He also explained that the game, which had been identified by journalists in 2005 but which was never publicly acknowledged, had existed but was ultimately shelved for years before being revived
  • In an inverse of the Metroid formula, Samus starts underground and has to get to her ship on the planet’s surface
• Just Dance 2022, revealed first at the Ubisoft conference, releases November 24
• Cruis’n Blast is a Switch exclusive and releases “this fall”
• Dragon Ball Z Kakarot is coming to Switch, along with the A New Power Awakens Set from 2020. Releases September 24
• Mario Golf: Super Rush will get some form of downloadable content
• Previously announced at the Capcom show, Monster Hunter Stories 2: Wings of Ruin will be getting a free demo June 25
• WarioWare: Get it Together! features co-op as well as a new system; you play each microgame as one of several series characters, each of which have different gameplay mechanics. Releases on Switch September 10
• Shin Megami Tensei V, first announced in 2017 but little heard of since, features a system that involves increasing your number of turns in battle mid-battle and is set in a large, post-apocalyptic sandbox. Releases November 12
• Danganronpa Decadence, a collection of the first three Danganronpa games (and Danganronpa S: Ultimate Summer Camp, a full game expanded from a mini-game in Danganronpa V3: Killing Harmony), releases on Switch (as a “physical Switch exclusive”) both on its own and with all four games sold individually “later this year”
• Fatal Frame: Maiden of the Black Water, a Wii U exclusive, releases on Switch (and other consoles) “this year”
• DOOM Eternal’s expansion, The Ancient Gods Part 1, releases on Switch today!
• Tony Hawk’s Pro Skater 1 + 2, the 2020 remaster compilation,  releases on Switch June 25
• Strange Brigade, a 2018 online shooter, releases on Switch today!
• Mario + Rabbids Sparks of Hope, first shown at the Ubisoft conference (albeit after being leaked online three hours prior), features Rabbid Rosalina, Luma-Rabbid hybrids, and some weird edgy Rabbid antihero. Releases 2022
• Advance Wars and Advance Wars 2: Black Hole Rising, beloved early-Aughts tactical RPGs, are getting a compilation remake titled Advance Wars 1+2 Re-Boot Camp. Game is being made by WayForward and releases December 3
• Hyrule Warriors: Age of Calamity’s first DLC “Wave,” Pulse of the Ancients, features ripped-off Guardian arms as nunchucks and the return of the Master Cycle. Releases June 18
• The Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword HD was shown off with no additional news
• In commemoration of the 35th anniversary of The Legend of Zelda, Nintendo will be releasing a commemorative Game & Watch featuring The Legend of Zelda, The Adventure of Link, Link’s Awakening, an edited copy of Vermin starring Link, and some extra mini-games
• The untitled sequel to The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild was shown off further. Features Skyward Sword-esque environments and free falling, weaponized Taluses, new abilities (including spewing fire, moving through solid objects, and apparently reversing time) that seem to stem from Link’s new hand, and other assorted details that lead the mind to wide speculation of potential mechanics or plot devices. Release intended for 2022

Alongside Nintendo’s presentation, I’ll have a collection of some of the Nintendo-related news from the various presentations, press releases, or other forms of publicity that I found worth highlighting. And, of course, my thoughts below, as well as those of our staff.

• Beasts of Maravilla, a photography game announced in April, released on June 12 during the Wholesome Direct
• Bloodrayne Betrayal, the 2011 WayForward title, is getting a re-release as BloodRayne Betrayal: Fresh Bites. Will release on Switch this “summer;” it will also feature 4K resolution on (non-Switch, other than presumably the rumored new Switch model) compatible systems. Announced at the Limited Run Games show
• Button City, a narrative adventure game with a pastel diorama aesthetic, releases on Switch “Q3 2021”
• Demon Throttle, a Switch-exclusive action game by Doinksoft, will be getting a physical only release courtesy of Devolver Digital. Both the game and the nature of the release announced ahead of (and shown within) the Devolver show
• KeyWe, a cooperative wiki postal game, releases on Switch August 31. Announced at the Wholesome Direct
• Last Stop, the latest game published by Annapurna Interactive, releases on Switch July 22. Switch release and date announced at Day of the Devs
• Letters – A Written Adventure, a puzzle game whose story and puzzles revolve around the written word, releases on Switch in “late 2021.” Switch release announced at the Wholesome Direct
• Monark, a JRPG made by former Shin Megami Tensei and Persona developers, releases on Switch on October 14 in Japan (there’s no confirmation yet of a Western release). Announced by NIS America
• Moo Lander, a puzzle / platformer about fighting alien cows in a spaceship previously planned for a Steam release this year, releases on Switch in “early 2022.” New date and Switch release announced at the Indie Showcase
• A Musical Story, a rhythm game inspired by 1970’s music, releases on Switch in October. Release month announced at the Day of the Devs showcase
• Mythic Ocean, an underwater exploration game released on Steam in January, releases on Switch July 2. A demo is now available on the eShop
• The Outbound Ghost, a Paper Mario-inspired adventure title, is coming to Switch in 2022. Switch release announced at the Wholesome Direct
• Please Be Happy, a yuri visual novel set in New Zealand that was originally slated for 2020, is planned for a Switch release in 2021. Announced at the Wholesome Direct
• Plumbers Don’t Wear Ties, the 1993 “adult-oriented” “comedy” and one of the most maligned video games of all time, will release on Switch courtesy of Limited Run games. For some reason. Announced on Limited Run Games’ Twitter
• Netflix’s upcoming Resident Evil series has cast one of my all-time favorite actors, Lance Reddick from The Wire and John Wick, as Albert Wesker. Announced on Reddick’s Twitter account
• Skatebird, the self-explanatory skateboarding bird game initially scheduled for 2020, releases on Switch August 12. Announced at the Wholesome Direct
• Sky: Children of the Light, a 2019 free-to-play adventure game by Journey developer thatgamecompany, releases on Switch June 22. Next month, all versions of the game will get a promotional tie-in with The Little Prince. Release date announced at Summer Game Fest
• Super Rare Games, the publisher behind many physical releases of indie games, announced Super Rare Shorts, a series that would get physical only releases, at least some on Switch. After reader outcry due to the absurd and commercially problematic nature of such an idea, they have now amended this to say that these games will be sold exclusively physically for six months before going on the eShop storefront
• We Are OFK, an episode game about the history of a band, releases on Switch in 2021. Switch release announced at the Wholesome Direct
• Wizard with a Gun, an online co-op survival dealio, releases on Switch in 2022. Announced at the Devolver Digital show
• Woodo, a puzzle game inspired by wooden toys, releases on Switch in 2022. Switch release announced at the Wholesome Direct
• In addition, several indie games will be getting physical releases courtesy of Limited Run Games, as announced in their show

The Direct itself:

Wolfman’s Soapbox: I liked this one a lot. As much as I’d have liked to see the Pokémon games (which’ll assuredly get their own dedicated Direct soon, anyway) or some of the odder rumored Nintendo projects that weren’t there, what we got was rather cool. I’m still somewhat floored that Nintendo stuck to the… god, I don’t even know how long “Metroid Dread” has been in the wind. I honestly gasped. It’s really nice having projects like Mario + Rabids and WarioWare, and yet they were outshined by just the weirdness of Dread, not to mention a remake of two Advance Wars games. We’ve got another Smash character I didn’t care much for but who looks really fun and who’ll introduce me to a massive gaming franchise I’ve previously not really known. There was just a general speed and efficiency and energy of all of it that was really satisfying, along with a wonderfully surreal atmosphere of those crazy additions. Perhaps that energetic and wild Zelda trailer typified their show.

Outside of Nintendo’s world, this first-time digital-only E3 went by as well as ever – just without the terrible audiences. We got the requisite embarrassing missteps (Stranger of Paradise Final Fantasy Origin, which I’d be happy to kick much more were this not long enough), kinda frustrating cinematic-only trailers (Starfield), and genuinely exciting announcements (Dread). My customary boos and hisses to men like Randy Pitchford and Yves Guillemot still went said; my enjoyment of some of the indies still was felt. In fact, many of the presentations – notably the Xbox and Bethesda mutual show – were clearly structured and shot and presented as though the change had never happened (part of this is just due to these companies likely viewing the shows as extensions of their brands, but it contributed to a general sensation). Even in this climate, E3 remains E3, warts and all – with the biggest wart being Gearbox’s grotesquery of an embarrassment of wet fart of a joke of a presentation. What a nauseating, pointless experience.

The Great Beast Gearbox was also one of several new companies joining the E3 stage in the wake of Sony’s (presumably permanent) absence. Some wanted a bigger share of the E3 pie (Warner Bros.), some aren’t explicitly part of the gaming industry (Verizon), some used their platform to discuss pressing issues within the culture (Take-Two), and some probably just needed a substitute for a show floor that can’t happen (Capcom). And all were operating in a COVID world, with all the problems that entails. Depending on how the next few years go, perhaps they’ll be signs of E3 changing. Some of those changes are good, like having panels on diversity or emphasizing indie games more. Some are bad, like giving air time to Die Harter star Kevin Hart or having a boring-ass looking hero repeatedly threatening to kill what most viewers assumed was the philosophical concept of chaos. But many of them are close to the kinds of thing E3 has had for most of its history, with loud and often kinda empty bombast. The ESA should be happy: E3 is back – with all the good and bad that entails.

That was a long spiel from me, but I’m not the only member of the Source Gaming team. Here are thoughts from some of our other staff!

EDIT (10:31 PM Eastern): added a reaction from Hamada.

AShadowLink: Shin Megami Tensei V. Shin. Megami. Tensei. Five. The game looks incredible. Combining the tone of III Nocturne and expanding upon the more exploratory traversal from IV, it looks to be the finest game in the series. The demons you can fight on the field are represented by the actual real deal instead of digital abstractions. 

My favorite character designer, Masayuki Doi, is finally able to take center stage on an SMT game, and he absolutely delivered with all the fantastic designs we’ve seen so far. And the soundtrack. Oh the soundtrack! I hope Ryota Kozuka of IV has returned for this game; that’s still one of my favorite OSTs.

I am beyond excited for this game. I feel like a kid in a candy store. The me of 8 years ago could only have dreamed of this game one day being a reality. 

NantenJex: Was that the best Direct ever? I thought it would be hard to beat the February one with Famicom Detective Club, but I think an Advance Wars remake will do it. I don’t need anything else, but the fact there was so much more just made this incredible. There really was something for everyone. Gg Nintendo.

Liquid: Most of the E3 conferences were pretty dreadful. Nintendo’s E3 conference was also dreadful. Or rather, Metroid Dreadful. You’ll have to excuse the blatantly inappropriate wordage when I say that one announcement was probably the selling point of this entire thing. Tekken in Smash is great and all, but that’s small beans by comparison.

Too bad I was at work and unable to catch this live. Such is adulthood.

Hamada: Going into this Direct, I anticipated being satisfied with the (seemingly) inevitable 3D Kirby title, information on Pokémon Legends: Arceus, and new Smash fighter. Surprisingly, all but the latter made an appearance. Even more surprisingly, what we ended up getting was even more exciting than I ever could’ve expected: new entries in the WarioWare and Mario Party series, a celebrated Advance Wars revival, concise but enticing looks at third-party projects like Shin Megami Tensei V, a satisfying look at Zelda’s upcoming plans, and especially the long-awaited Metroid Dread cemented this Direct as my favorite thus far. Having just recently played and loved all four 2D Metroid entries, Dread is an easy highlight for me. Furthermore, Tekken’s Kazuya is a fantastic addition to the Smash roster, a sentiment I’m confident in given Ryu, Ken, and Terry’s undeniable quality. Overall, today was a landmark for Switch-era Nintendo.

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