Indie World March 3, 2026: Information and Reactions

Indie World is here! In the grand panoply of Nintendo Directs, Indie World is a curious beast: bite-sized, less grand, and in its own way the form of online streaming presentation that most reflects what the format used to be. And as of 2025, it’s also got a fun new intro animation. But, look, you’re here for the games, we’re here to write about them; let’s start.

News:

Denshattack, the super cool-looking, anime-inspired train skateboarding game (no, that’s the best way to describe it) announced at GamesCom 2025, is coming to Switch 2 and finally got its release date across all platforms: June 17. A demo is available today! Features an in-game skin exclusive to Switch 2.
My Little Puppy, a 2025 cozy game about a dog in Heaven, announced for Switch. The dog explores an afterlife “that may hold unexpected dangers” to find their recently deceased master. Releases May 29.
Heave Ho 2, the sequel to 2019’s Heave Ho, was announced. Like its predecessor, it’s a strange co-op platformer where players form chains to get around dangerous areas. It features online multiplayer, something the previous game only had in the form of Steam Remote Play. GameShare is also supported. Releases on Switch and Switch 2 “this summer.”
Moonlighter 2: The Endless Vault, the sequel to the 2018 Moonlighter that was initially released last November, was announced for Switch 2. Like the previous game, it’s a combination of dungeon-crawling combat and shop management where you sell whatever you found in each run. Releases “sometime” in 2026.
Woodo, first announced at Summer of Games 2024, is coming to Switch and Switch 2. It’s a unique kind of puzzle game where you position wooden objects in a diorama, which causes the objects to come to life. Each diorama tells a story of a fox and frog’s adventure. Switch 2 offers mouse controls. Releases “this summer.”
Minishoot’ Adventures, a retro-styled twin stick shooter from 2024, is coming to Switch and Switch 2. Releases today!
The Midnight Walk, a 2025 horror game made by expatriates from Zoink (the Fe and Lost in Random developer), announced for Switch 2. The game’s main gimmick is that every character and enemy was sculpted in clay and animated in stop motion before being scanned in the game. Releases March 26.
Rotwood, an expressive 3D brawler by Mark of the Ninja and Don’t Starve developer Klei Entertainment, announced for Switch 2 after an early access release in 2024. Releases as a timed console exclusive today!
Mixtape, the latest game by the studio behind The Artful Escape (a game that got high marks but sounded to me like a “complain about Bob Dylan simulator”), announced for Switch 2 after its 2024 reveal. It’s a “coming of age story” about “the teenage experience,” built around interactive vignettes. Not referenced in the Direct is its massive backlog of licensed Eighties music from the likes of The Cure, Smashing Pumpkins, Iggy Pop, and Joy Division. Releasing on Switch 2 and all other platforms May 7.
Blighted, from Guacamelee! and Nobody Saves the World developer Drinkbox Studios that had been revealed in 2025, is coming to Switch. It’s a bit like Hades and Absolum, with isometric levels. One of the main gimmicks is how enemies become tougher as you get more power. Features local and online co-op. Releases “this fall.”
Deadzone: Rogue, a science fiction co-op roguelike FPS, announced. Features mouse controls. Releases March 17.
Sizzle reel: Grave Seasons (“summer 2026’ for Switch), Unrailed 2: Back on Track (“May 2026” for Switch and Switch 2, with a demo available today), Toem 2 (“this summer” for Switch), inKobini: One Store. Many Stories (April 30 for Switch and Switch 2), Outbound (April 23 for Switch and Switch 2, with a demo available today), Ratatan (July 16 for Switch 2)
The “one more thing” was Blue Prince, 2025 critical darling, ruiner of notebooks, and untranslatable roguelike puzzler. I felt like this should’ve been on Switch 1 from the start, though it’s coming to Switch 2 today!

Video:

Wolfman’s Soapbox: So ignoring the “you should maybe get Blue Prince” advice—though you should maybe get Blue Prince—I thought this was one of the stronger Indie Worlds. There were several full announcements, not just news of ports, and a number of the release dates were news. Like, Mixtape has been a known quantity for two years, but it’s only now that we have a date for it. Denshattack got a lot of press initially, and now it’s got a date, too. We have multiple sequels to notable games alongside new projects by name developers. I’d say that this fulfills the Direct rule of having at least one thing that should appeal to you. For me, that’s probably Woodo, Midnight Walk, and Rotwood. And, of course, my appreciation that Blue Prince is on a system for which it’s perfect.

Historically, I’ve always tried to cover the big Directs. They have the most enticing news, the biggest announcements, and a general level of pageantry that appeals to me. However, when it comes to Partner Showcases and Indie Worlds, I’ve often ignored them. 2025’s Indie World I just let be, for instance. Part of that is that this is a lot of work when you’re doing research on every announcement to find preexisting information on every game shown off (it’s important for me to give you the context about these games, especially when they have already come out on other platforms). Really, there’s also the fact that these are simply shorter and less immediately enticing. They’re not about big announcements by design. But over the past couple years, I’ve become increasingly interested in writing up the lesser shows precisely because of that. Fans give the non-Nintendo versions of Nintendo Directs a bit of a short shrift, which makes them worth highlighting. Granted, the big finisher, Blue Prince, hardly needs that, but I completely missed or forgot about stuff like Midnight Walk and Minishoot’ Adventures. There’s a decent chance one of these becomes a future favorite of mine.

Image: Nintendo. Midnight Walk got a lost of positive reception when it came out, but it completely passed me by.

It’s also nice as a way of catching up on games I saw at Summer Games Fest and other shows of that nature. Woodo and Mixtape were in much larger venues years ago, and getting… well, only one came with a release date, but getting updates on them is nice. I feel like I’m going to end up loving at least a couple of these, and if I come back to reread this months from now, I’ll be happy to see them there. I’m still itching for the next big, classic Nintendo Direct, but this was a fun eighteen minutes with a nice variety of games.