Nintendo Direct: Partner Showcase July 31, 2025: Information and Reactions

EDIT, 1:24 PM EST: rewrote a section about Age of Calamity to more accurately describe the Construct-like character, as the Spirit Temple Construct was already shown off as playable.

Okay, so maybe a Partner Direct wasn’t what the people wanted. Nintendo’s overall marketing strategy for this calendar year has been remarkably strange, especially from a company that A) codified the idea of the digital-only games trailer show and B) released a gigantic new video game console two months ago. Let’s look back at their strategy for a sec: releasing a reasonably big Nintendo Direct less than a week before the presentation for Nintendo Switch 2, that presentation being full of details but no real roadmap for the console after the first few months, two fifteen minute shows for specific games (one great, one so small we didn’t bother covering it), a terrible Pokémon Presents that was admittedly not under their supervision, and still little substantial info on first party titles like Pokémon Legends ZA, Metroid Prime 4, and Kirby Air Riders. Much of their announcements have come from the Nintendo Today! app, a fun but limited alternative to their Twitter account that’s only for NSO subscribers. Mario Kart World and Donkey Kong Bananza are tremendous titles, and the Switch 2’s initial sales are very promising, but this has felt deeply strange since the console was first unveiled. And that only increased with the announcement of the latest Partner Showcase, a Direct solely focused on releases from third party publishers.

Nintendo fans are always looking for a new Direct, but it does feel just slightly pressing now. And it gives this new presentation an air of extra tension. For Nintendo themselves, it’s important to put out a show before their quarterly earnings report (conveniently, that’s tomorrow). For us as consumers, we do deserve an idea of what the fall and winter look like for this console. And for the partners themselves, I think they need to see a show that’s actually big. In want of big Nintendo announcements, the various third party shows in the history of Nintendo Direct have historically done worse, but Switch 2 is selling itself partially on its ability to get modern Triple-A releases like Cyberpunk, Yakuza 0, and Street Fighter 6—the kind that were almost never on Switch 1. Could the prospect of Claire Obscura, Diablo IV, or release dates for the already announced Elden Ring and Hades II be enough for the notoriously persnickety Nintendo fandom?

Of course, the show also had a challenge Nintendo hasn’t had to deal with since 2018: giving attention to two consoles. Ignoring that every Switch game will be theoretically perfect on Switch 2, it still has to communicate what’s going to what. Fortunately, that turned out to be pretty simple, and we’ll try to replicate that clarity going forward (along with what’s getting a physical edition, though no word on whether they’re actual physical releases or Game Key-Cards. It’s probably the latter in most cases). So for now, read on to see what was in the very first Nintendo Direct for Switch 2.

News from the show:

Monster Hunter Stories 3: Twisted Reflection, four years after the previous Monster Hunter Stories, was announced. The premise involves the heirs to two warring kingdoms exploring a “forbidden ground,” presumably hunting all sorts of monsters. Releasing for Switch 2 in “2026.”
Once Upon A KATAMARI is the first new Katamari game released for home consoles in sixteen years. Its main features include a time-traveling premise that takes you from the Edo Era to dinosaur times, the use of items while rolling up garbage, a multiplayer mode, some kinda cute customization for the Prince of All Cosmos, and a soundtrack produced by composers from the series’ history. Releases October 24 for both consoles, with pre-orders now live.
Just Dance 2026 Edition announced. Releases October 14 for both consoles.
Previously released in 2024, gonzo arena battler Dragon Ball: Sparking! ZERO was announced. Features “over 180 fighters” and adaptations of classic Dragon Ball Z stories from the perspective of eight characters, “including Goku.” A character who occupies 27 slots on that “180 fighters” roster. One has to wonder which non-Goku characters could merit stories in such a gleefully monomaniacal TV show. Perhaps that comes from the ability to experience alternate versions that veer off the canon, along with a very cool-sounding custom mode that allows you to essentially write fan-fiction in battle form. Alongside those and other modes, it features motion Joy-Con and Joy-Con 2 controls. Releases November 14, 2025 for both consoles, with pre-orders now live.
After years of ugly sequels, both in terms of microtransactions and an upsetting art style, Plants vs. Zombies appears to be getting back to basics with the HD remaster Plants vs Zombies Replanted. Features cooperative and competitive multiplayer, alongside a number of other modes and bonus levels. Releases October 23 on both consoles, with pre-orders now available.

Image: Nintendo. My god. Look at that art. No horrible redesigns or nothing.

First revealed at the Switch 2 presentation, EA Sports 2026 got shown off. EA recommitted to a previously announced September 26 release date for both consoles, with preorders available now.
PAC-MAN WORLD 2 Re-Pac, a remake of 2002’s Pac-Man World 2, was announced. Includes local co-op. Releases September 26 for both consoles, with pre-orders for both physical and digital editions now available.
Previously announced at Sony’s June State of Play, FINAL FANTASY TACTICS – The Ivalice Chronicles was shown off. Features voice acting along with extra dialogue between characters, new difficulty options, and a review for previous story events. As revealed at the Sony show, it releases September 30 for both consoles, with pre-orders for, physical, digital, and even the upgrade pack now live.
Persona 3 Reload is coming to Switch 2! This excellent remake was a big hit for me in my “Passing the Buck” series this year. Releases October 23, with pre-orders for physical—unfortunately, Key-Card only—and digital versions now available, and DLC as a separate purchase.
Though light on details, Hyrule Warriors: Age of Imprisonment got a trailer for the first time since the game’s announcement at the Switch 2 Presentation. Its main news—alongside a reaffirmation that yes, the game is part of the Zelda canon—includes a tease for EDIT: a human-sized Construct backed by Fi’s theme from The Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword as a playable character. Releases “this winter.”
Fellow Switch 2 Presentation alumnus EA SPORTS Madden NFL 26 was shown off. As announced in April, releases August 14 for Switch 2. Pre-orders now live.
Cozy “fire building sim” Chillin’ by the Fire announced by tabletop maker Oink Games. The game’s about providing a very realistic take on making and maintaining an outdoor fire. It also supports USB cameras for its multiplayer mode. Releases on Switch 2 today!
Apex Legends is coming to Nintendo Switch 2! Releases August 5, along with the new “Showdown” season.
Announced at 2025’s Future Games Show for Steam, Hela is an exploration game about a mouse with a “froggy backpack” exploring a fast forest and backyard. Features online co-op. Releases on Switch 2 in “2026” both physically and digitally.
Previously announced at the Switch 2 Presentation, the underperforming 2025 Ubisoft “open worlds” action-adventure Star Wars Outlaws got shown off. Releases for Switch 2 September 4, with pre-orders now live.
Chronos: The New Dawn, the upcoming survival horror game by Silent Hill 2 remake developer Bloober Team (and the game responsible for so many terrible audio-enabled ads on Polygon), is coming to Switch 2. Features time travel between an apocalyptic future and 1980s Polan, crafting and resource management, Eternal Darkness-esque audiovisual illusions, and the ability for monsters to consume and grow off the corpses of other monsters. Releases September 5—day and date with the Steam, Xbox, and PlayStation versions.
The next Like a Dragon game to come to Switch 2 is 2017’s mildly contentious Yakuza 2 remake Yakuza Kiwami 2. Releases November 13.
- In addition, Yakuza Kiwami is getting an upgrade for Switch 2 the same day, with “enhanced graphics, improved frame rates, and additional language support.” It’s paid and a bit unclear whether you can purchase the upgrade for your Switch 1 copy or have to buy a separate game, as has been the case with some of SEGA’s Switch 2 Editions. Nintendo’s press release is as follows: “anyone who has the original Yakuza Kiwami on Nintendo Switch can purchase the Nintendo Switch 2 upgrade at a discounted price!”
Sizzle reel: Goodnight Universe (both consoles, November 11), NBA Bounce (Switch, September 26), Hello Kitty Island Adventure – Wheatflour Wonderland ( Switch, “Fall 2025”), Romancing SaGa 2: Revenge of the Seven (Switch 2, today!), SHINOBI: Art of Vengeance (Switch, August 29), Borderlands 4 (Switch 2, October 3).
After a number of turn-based strategy games that use the art style, Square Enix’s latest HD-2D project is the action RPG The Adventures of Elliot: The Millennium Tales. It’s about an adventurer who leaves his kingdom and becomes embroiled in time travel. Releases on Switch 2 “next year,” but in the grand tradition of previous HD-2D games Octopath Traveler and Triangle Strategy, a demo for the game will be available later today.
On that note, Octopath Traveler 0 announced; it’s a prequel? It has character customization (a first for the series), Releases for both Switch and Switch 2 December 4.

The Direct itself:

Wolfman’s Soapbox: I formally declare this Partner Showcase, this first Switch 2 Direct, a success! It wasn’t perfect; the back half felt more limp than the front, at least for my tastes, and it remains strange that several of those big releases remain out in the wind. We’re already well into the second half of the year, so unless Elden Ring, Metaphor, and Final Fantasy VII are planned to be shadowdropped (or announced outside of Directs, which isn’t implausible), there’s less and less time for them. If you wanted more concrete news on stuff we already know is coming, then this was probably a bit disappointing.

But perhaps that’s tied to what I liked about it, which is that it wasn’t so geared to known Switch 2 quantities. I came in expecting that and came out with a lot of sudden reveals. There are the ports of big deal games, like Apex Legends and Persona 3 Reload, that were inevitable barring some sort of full institutional collapse of their IP owner. There were the fully new releases like Octopath 0 and Katamari. There were the things that kind of existed in an in-between state, like the rumored port of Plants vs. Zombies that was easily my favorite part of the show. And there were the ports of upcoming games; Chronos is launching the same day as the other versions. That’s really cool! Given the runtime—twenty-seven minutes, far shorter than the full fat Directs fans prefer—the number of things, and big things, was quite high.

Image: Nintendo. Who needs those 27 Gokus when you’ve got six Friezas?

I’m not sure how well this Direct has been received in terms of viewership or interest (though it’s accrued over a million views in under three hours, which is good). It’s possible that the idea of a Partner Showcase is fundamentally limited by the interests of Nintendo’s own base. However, I think this one shows the concept’s viability in a way previous Partner Showcases never really did. Those could be fun, but they always felt inessential. Not so here. I don’t know how much of this stems from Switch 2 allowing more notable ports and how much stems from the evolution of Nintendo’s marketing, but this felt stronger, healthier, just overall better than the third party-focused shows of years past. Makes me feel just a bit more confident in this rather wild era of Nintendo.