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Nintendo Direct 2.13.2019 (2PM PST/ 5PM EST / 10PM GMT) - 35 mins with news on Fire Emblem Three Houses

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Christo750

Christo750

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May 10, 2018
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I really enjoyed that Direct but as far as third parties go, I need to know what exactly qualifies a game to get a headlining slot.

The montage towards the end was appropriate, although I think Mortal Kombat 11 could have used a little more time, but showing off release dates for the Final Fantasies were really appropriately paced. Tetris 99 was a cool announcement that deserved time. But why spend so much time on those Rune Factory games? Or Dead By Daylight? Surely nobody at Nintendo looked at that and thought that was good looking footage. Maybe it was just the way the video was encoded (see: Assassin's Creed 3 Switch footage) but that was terrible.

Otherwise, the first party stuff was really great, and we didn't even get to everything yet. Still lots of details to find out on Animal Crossing and Luigi's Mansion 3, in addition to Pokemon likely being announced soon, so I think we'll get more details on all of those in an April direct. I don't think it's out of the question necessarily.

But between:

Mario Maker 2
Yoshi's Crafted World
Animal Crossing
Luigi's Mansion 3
Pokemon Gen 8
Fire Emblem Three Houses
Astral Chain
The Legend of Zelda: Link's Awakening
Marvel Ultimate Alliance 3
even Dragon Quest XI S

This is one killer year...but, the wait for all these games feels really long. Aside from Mario Maker 2 and Yoshi, all of these games are hitting in Summer or beyond, which feels weird. First party 2019 releases feel very backloaded.

And a note about Star Fox GP, it's tough to say whether or not it's real, considering we saw something strangely similar to it in that update, but I don't think this footage is what lead people to believe it existed. Plus, apparently, people saw a logo, and knew of Retro Studios' involvement? I don't think a dedicated Star Fox game would've been canceled for a spare mode in a Ubisoft game featuring Star Fox characters, but at this point, I'm not sure what to make of it.
 
ShinobiBk

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I thought the Direct was great. It was bookended with 3 amazing new games. Astral Chain looks incredible, I was having Nier vibes the entire time watching the trailer even before I knew it was Platinum.
Link's Awakening with that new art style kind of threw me for a loop at first but I really love it. It looks like stop motion animation almost. Actually reminds me a lot of the animated Rudolf movie from the 60's.
Mario Maker 2 is what I've been asking for for 2 years now. Can't wait.

That being said, Nintendo seemingly only publishing only 3 retail first party games from January-June with one of those being a fairly straightforward port is not good. It's worse than last year actually.
Thankfully, June-December looks as stacked as any 6 month stretch I can remember for any Nintendo console.

Also I'm definitely gonna have to give Tetris 99 once I get my joycons repaired. Looks amazing.
 
Kevin360

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I think we see another Direct in the next month or two. April and May are still desolate of any notable, momentum for sales, Nintendo releases.

That's where I suspect we will see Pikmin 3 port and/or MPT.

Please.
 
Celine.D.Sykes

Celine.D.Sykes

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steviejd1 said:
The first half of 2018 wasn't bad either imo.

The first half of 2019 will not be empty as there are games coming out. It's completely subjective if they are games for you but there are still there and not invisible. Also let me stress, there are more games coming for H1, but yet again they may not be games that enthusiasts will be too hyped up about.
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I'm mostly speaking about Nintendo own output for the first half of 2019. And yeah, I think the first half of 2018 was better in comparison. It was meh, but still better. Bayonnetta, Tropical Freeze, Labo, Mario Tennis Aces and Kirby, while meh is a more solid line up than a remaster, Yoshi and Mario Maker 2.
 
AerialAir

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Oct 25, 2017
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I enjoyed what I saw of Mario Maker 2 but, is there any info on whether it'll require a switch online subscription to download other players' levels?
 
nocdaes

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Kevin360 said:
I think we see another Direct in the next month or two. April and May are still desolate of any notable, momentum for sales, Nintendo releases.

That's where I suspect we will see Pikmin 3 port and/or MPT.

Please.
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Revised Hardware with Animal Crossing makes so much sense in that very conspicuous April/May empty gap they've left in their schedule...
 
DecoReturns

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Puddington said:
Whoever teased Pikmin or Mario Strikers for this direct should be banned.
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No one teased Mario Strikers. It was a prediction that some people on era read too much about. The person who mentioned it said he was hoping for a Mario Strikers, but because people think he has insider knowledge. Took it as a tease, which was unfair to them.
 
Kevin360

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nocdaes said:
Revised Hardware with Animal Crossing makes so much sense in that very conspicuous April/May empty gap they've left in their schedule...
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Yeah. With as much we know is coming and as much we prettymuchkindasortaknow is coming, it feels weird how empty this first half of the year still feels.
 

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nocdaes said:
Revised Hardware with Animal Crossing makes so much sense in that very conspicuous April/May empty gap they've left in their schedule...
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It's highly unlikely AC is releasing April or May, that's not enough time for preorders + we haven't seen a thing about the game yet. The only thing I could see happening is that they release a bundle with a preorder code like what happened with Smash and even that's a stretch.
 
Celine.D.Sykes

Celine.D.Sykes

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steviejd1 said:
NSMBUDX, Yoshi, Mario Maker 2, Boxboy, Tetris 99, Labo, Pokemon spin-off (not 100% but usually happens with a Pokemon direct) + dlc for already released games. Please show me a better 1st party H1 output this year.
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When you have to list potential games that have yet to be announced or even officially confirmed to make the first half of the year looks good, you know you're scratching trees.

I don't do comparison between publishers or manufacturers by the way, I'm not into console/publisher-warring myself. Good for you if it's more your thing, but you'll play this game alone, as I don't considerate it to be a good argument. The current positions of the three big ones (Sony, Microsoft and Nintendo) are vastly differents.
 
nocdaes

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steviejd1 said:
It's highly unlikely AC is releasing April or May, that's not enough time for preorders + we haven't seen a thing about the game yet. The only thing I could see happening is that they release a bundle with a preorder code like what happened with Smash and even that's a stretch.
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It's a fair argument, and on a different game title I'd likely agree with you, but not with Animal Crossing.

1. Launching Animal Crossing alongside a new Hardware model is a huge marketing activation for the game. Far bigger than a few months of pre-orders off the back of a trailer with a future release date.
2. Pre-orders are borderline irrelevant in the day and age of digital download making up the majority of sales, but for a casual mass market game that has evergreen appeal on a relatively new system... it's simply not a factor. Animal Crossing will sell far more copies post its 8 week new release window.
3. I believe we will see a Animal Crossing Direct in March, and that will give us 30 isn minutes of everything you could possibly want to know (and probably plenty we don't care about, if the Smash Directs are anything to go by...) to set the game up perfectly.
 

Deleted member 32018

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Celine.D.Sykes said:
When you have to list potential games that have yet to be announced or even officially confirmed to make the first half of the year looks good, you know you're scratching trees.

I don't do comparison between publishers or manufacturers by the way, I'm not into console/publisher-warring myself. Good for you if it's more your thing, but you'll play this childish game alone, as I don't considerate it to be a good argument. The current positions of the three big ones (Sony, Microsoft and Nintendo) are vastly differents.
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All I'm saying is that you are expecting a lot out of a company, especially when game development is difficult, something which you don't seem to grasp. And there are still plenty of games coming in H1 whether you like them or not. Also we are not in July yet so, fully commenting on H1 is pointless. Thanks for the insults though.

nocdaes said:
It's a fair argument, and on a different game title I'd likely agree with you, but not with Animal Crossing.

1. Launching Animal Crossing alongside a new Hardware model is a huge marketing activation for the game. Far bigger than a few months of pre-orders off the back of a trailer with a future release date.
2. Pre-orders are borderline irrelevant in the day and age of digital download making up the majority of sales, but for a casual mass market game that has evergreen appeal on a relatively new system... it's simply not a factor. Animal Crossing will sell far more copies post its 8 week new release window.
3. I believe we will see a Animal Crossing Direct in March, and that will give us 30 isn minutes of everything you could possibly want to know (and probably plenty we don't care about, if the Smash Directs are anything to go by...) to set the game up perfectly.
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Why have they not shown any gameplay if the game is almost finished? Do you really expect gameplay/release date reveals and the actual release to be 1-2 months apart? That just doesn't happen.
 
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Chitown B

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I forgot about the direct. Got on this morning and saw Link's Awakening remake!!! That's my favorite Zelda and I'm pumped. also FFIX out now, which I've been waiting for. Nice.
 

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Christo750 said:
The montage towards the end was appropriate, although I think Mortal Kombat 11 could have used a little more time, but showing off release dates for the Final Fantasies were really appropriately paced. Tetris 99 was a cool announcement that deserved time. But why spend so much time on those Rune Factory games? Or Dead By Daylight? Surely nobody at Nintendo looked at that and thought that was good looking footage. Maybe it was just the way the video was encoded (see: Assassin's Creed 3 Switch footage) but that was terrible.
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For variety I guess.

Rune Factory is a nice surprise to me and Mortal Kombat 11 is the most boring thing ever that they already had highlighted before and will get a lot of marketing anyway. I agree that Dead by Daylight and AC3 were awful due to how horrible the games are running, but guess they just wanted to try to impress western hardcore gamers with "we have the big boy stuff too, see!".
 
nocdaes

nocdaes

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Kevin360 said:
Yeah. With as much we know is coming and as much we prettymuchkindasortaknow is coming, it feels weird how empty this first half of the year still feels.
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Yep, and add to that the fact Nintendo's FY ends on 31st March, and they submitted an incredibly conservative Hardware target... They're clearly running the tank down for something.

The only thing I can think of is a Hardware revision, and if it is that, and it's going after a casual audience, then Animal Crossing is a very good title to utilise. I'd argue only Pokemon would be better at converting a 3DS and Mass Audience into a Switch owner.
 

SuperL

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Nov 27, 2017
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Looking forward to E3, where Animal Crossing is the marquee game and gets the majority of focus, and we're told to wait for the next direct.

It's becoming clear that 2017 was a glorious fluke.
 
nocdaes

nocdaes

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steviejd1 said:
All I'm saying is that you are expecting a lot out of a company, especially when game development is difficult, something which you don't seem to grasp. And there are still plenty of games coming in H1 whether you like them or not. Also we are not in July yet so, fully commenting on H1 is pointless. Thanks for the insults though.



Why have they not shown any gameplay if the game is almost finished? Do you really expect gameplay/release date reveals and the actual release to be 1-2 months apart? That just doesn't happen.
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Simply because they don't need to show anything yet.

Core Nintendo audience know the game is coming, it's been announced already, it'll arrive in 2019.

If a Hardware revision is coming, and it's a LITE version aimed squarely at bringing DS/3DS/Casual/Mass/Wii audiences across to the Switch family of systems, then why can't they launch the second perfect game (after Pokemon) for that audience at the same time?

They'll announce the Hardware revision at the last possible moment. Everyone, everywhere, media, press, influencers, you, me, will talk about that Hardware. Launch Animal Crossing at the exact same moment, and everyone is talking about both of them.

That's a stronger marketing plan for Animal Crossing than the series has ever had.

Animal Crossing will get a dedicated Direct in March. Hardware revision will be announced at the same time. Both available April/May (depending on when in March they do the announcement).

Oh, and just before the launch? That's when you drop your Pokemon Direct on the world...
 
Rand a. Thor

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This was a fun direct. Nothing earth shattering like the September Direct, but solid nonetheless. Fire Emblem is shaping up to be an amazing concept, and its great that Bayo 3 was mentioned. All 3 Nintendo Games unveiled are amazing, Astral Chain especially seems like a fun new concept. Meanwhile we got Battle Royale Tetris, and Rune Factory 5. Seriously, that last one was such a huge and satisfying reveal, Rune Factory 4 always seemed like the last one. 7/10 direct for me, just short of an 8 with no Luigi's Mansion or Animal Crossing.
 
Agent Unknown

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One of the best Directs they've ever done. Super Mario Maker 2, Dragon Quest XI S with orchestral tracks and 16-bit mode, Link's Awakening remake, Yoshi demo and new Platinum game, it was just on fire. Only things that would have made it even better would have been MP Trilogy and SNES online, hopefully those aren't far off.
 
Chitown B

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SuperL said:
Looking forward to E3, where Animal Crossing is the marquee game and gets the majority of focus, and we're told to wait for the next direct.

It's becoming clear that 2017 was a glorious fluke.
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in what way? I see this criticism all the time, but Nintendo is just now catching up to current with many series. I fully give them a pass for that, after the Wii U fiasco. If 2018/19 is a time to create portable ports of all the better games from the past couple years and then add new sequels to current games, I'm good with that. There's plenty of time for future games - and now that they're healthy again, there will be more dev.
 

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nocdaes said:
Simply because they don't need to show anything yet.

Core Nintendo audience know the game is coming, it's been announced already, it'll arrive in 2019.

If a Hardware revision is coming, and it's a LITE version aimed squarely at bringing DS/3DS/Casual/Mass/Wii audiences across to the Switch family of systems, then why can't they launch the second perfect game (after Pokemon) for that audience at the same time?

They'll announce the Hardware revision at the last possible moment. Everyone, everywhere, media, press, influencers, you, me, will talk about that Hardware. Launch Animal Crossing at the exact same moment, and everyone is talking about both of them.

That's a stronger marketing plan for Animal Crossing than the series has ever had.

Animal Crossing will get a dedicated Direct in March. Hardware revision will be announced at the same time. Both available April/May (depending on when in March they do the announcement).

Oh, and just before the launch? That's when you drop your Pokemon Direct on the world...
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If that's what you think will happen then that's fine, I just don't want you to get your hopes up about either a hardware revision or AC coming out in April/May and it doesn't happen, that's all.
 
Futureman

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Seems like a good Direct for most people but I really wanted a new 2D Mario and new 2D Zelda. Not that interested in ports/remakes and building levels in Maker doesn't appeal to me. Is there at least a single player campaign with Nintendo created levels in Maker 2?
 
nocdaes

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steviejd1 said:
If that's what you think will happen then that's fine, I just don't want you to get your hopes up about either a hardware revision or AC coming out in April/May and it doesn't happen, that's all.
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I don't play Animal Crossing games, and I am very happy with my Switch as it is.

This theory is from a removed position (well, I'm still a Nintendo fan, so not entirely removed). It's what I would do if it were for me to decide.

Of course, that's not to say all the parts required are ready... AC may not be ready... Hardware revision may not be ready... But this is as good a window as any for this year, IF they are indeed both ready.
 
BringBackSonics

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Has there been any reason why they didn't have Hollow Knight reveal? Since the Switch would have been Console first.

Also, surprised we have not had a Nindies Direct?
 

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nocdaes said:
I don't play Animal Crossing games, and I am very happy with my Switch as it is.

This theory is from a removed position (well, I'm still a Nintendo fan, so not entirely removed). It's what I would do if it were for me to decide.

Of course, that's not to say all the parts required are ready... AC may not be ready... Hardware revision may not be ready... But this is as good a window as any for this year.
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Ok that's fair, I thought you were talking as a hardcore AC fan and I was just keeping your expectations in check lol.

Keep in mind that with release dates, just because it makes sense doesn't mean it will happen. Everyone thought that Marvel Ultimate Alliance 3 would be an April game because of Endgame but instead it's a summer game. A late spring/summer release for AC would make sense because of the type of game it is and the fact that it could kinda have 2 launches, one when it actually launches and then a big bump in the holidays. This seems unlikely now imo based on how Nintendo reveal and market their games. Of course that pattern could be broken but I would be extremely surprised.
 
nocdaes

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steviejd1 said:
Ok that's fair, I thought you were talking as a hardcore AC fan and I was just keeping your expectations in check lol.

Keep in mind that with release dates, just because it makes sense doesn't mean it will happen. Everyone thought that Marvel Ultimate Alliance 3 would be an April game because of Endgame but instead it's a summer game. A late spring/summer release for AC would make sense because of the type of game it is and the fact that it could kinda have 2 launches, one when it actually launches and then a big bump in the holidays. This seems unlikely now imo based on how Nintendo reveal and market their games. Of course that pattern could be broken but I would be extremely surprised.
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Oh I know, and all of this is hypothetical.

MUA3 I had down as April or August by the way. August will be the Blu Ray and DVD release of Endgame, so an opportunity for a BestBuy/Tesco etc. to put the game and the film on their promotional units at the same time. (And they can stick a trailer in the cinema still, to pre-promote the game) so they still get the best of both.
 
Fantastical

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Mirev said:
Yeah I mean, this is so close to the rumor. If insiders were wrong about Zelda 2D (cause it's a remake of an old 2d game, but in 3D) they could be also wrong on Star Fox GP, and it's only Starlink with this mode.
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That's a hell of a leap to make. If Star Fox GP doesn't exist, some insider just purely made some shit up. Some of the initial rumors were fairly detailed and specifically mentioned Retro Studios.
 
cdm00

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I feel like this Direct is a solid start to 2019. This Direct did prove to me, however, that Nintendo is ready to release these smaller titles in the summer. I'm not dissing things like Fire Emblem here, but it most likely wouldn't sell as well in the west if it were to launch in October or November.
These are my highlights of the Direct:
Super Mario Maker 2 looked great, and I guess Nintendo just wanted to get sales out of NSMBUDX from people who haven't played it.
Endgame made me excited for Marvel Ultimate Alliance 3, so I'm ready for that to release. Right before Far From Home releases could give it an MCU boost.
Dragon Quest Builders 2 is finally revealed beyond just the financial list of upcoming games with a solid release date in July. (Although I wish it was earlier, like the tail end of May).
Dragon Quest XI S Definitive Edition kinda makes me pissed off. I bought the Collector's Edition of the SE store and dealt with their bullshit. Now it gets a good soundtrack? SE knows they can get out every damn penny from western Dragon Quest fans. And they're right, because I know I'll buy this to support DQ in the west.
Link's Awakening finally getting a remake after 26 years is the push for me to actually beat the game. I've restarted LA DX on the 3DS VC multiple times but can never finish it. The equipment process is a huge turn off to me, having to open up the menu every couple of minutes. I think the art style looks absolutely gorgeous.
And this remake being revealed, along with Warioware Gold, that 4chan rumor may end up being true. I hate giving credit to 4chan since it's mostly right-wing bullshit and anyone can post on there. Maybe a potential Wario Land Virtual Boy remake is in the cards.
Based on this Direct, we still have a few unknowns too, like Pikmin 3 Deluxe and Joker gameplay, along with Character Pack 2. It wouldn't surprise me to see a Direct Mini around the time of Yoshi's launch with one last push for Yoshi, Pikmin 3, Joker, more ports announced. This Direct satisfied me for the summer, and I have plenty to play on my Switch and PS4 anyway until June.
 
Instro

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Oregano said:
Ehh people still listen to Liam Robertson when he said Mario Kart 8 Deluxe and Splatoon 2 were fake/incorrect.
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I think there's a large gap in track record between Liam and Vergeben. The latter seems to mostly be more miss than hit, and may be a big miss again if Star Fox isn't legit. Liam has been a pretty accurate leaker for the most part, although I believe he also had said that SFGP was legit.
 
nocdaes

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Uncle Squingis said:
Okay, but consider why they put Yoshi at the VERY end of March. It's to fill the gap of Jan-June. There will be Labo and BoxBoy for April/May and that's it.
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Well, there's no denying that Yoshi's release date is intriguing.

It could just as easily be there to form part of the marketing plan for the Hardware revision though. Yoshi is also a pretty good title for this rumoured LITE model. I played the demo this morning... it's definitely going after that audience.
 
ArchedThunder

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So after this Direct I'm thinking the rest of the year looks like this, in terms of retail first and second party releases.

* = confirmed
March - Yoshi's Crafted World*
April - Nothing
May - Nothing
June - Super Mario Maker 2*
July - Fire Emblem Three Houses*, Marvel Ult. Alliance 3
August - Astral Chain*, Metroid Prime Trilogy HD
September - Zelda Link's Awakening, Daemon X Machina
October - Luigi's Mansion 3, Pikmin 3 port
November - Pokemon
December - Animal Crossing

First few months are pretty bare but they make up for it with a shit ton of games from June on.
Thoughts?
 
Beje

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yuoke said:
No it isn't. You think they are going to shadow drop animal crossing?
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Those 2 empty months are the elephant in the room though. Since they didn't even fill them with a physical release of Captain Toad + Season Pass or some other quick Wii U direct port in a "not the same game, not the same content" full-priced fashion to pretend they have something "new" in physical stores it means it's either the worst case scenario (literally 2 empty months where they're just going to ride on a small eShop game, Smash DLC and ports of old to ancient 3rd party games) or best case scenario (game not mentioned or not dated in the Direct getting a surprise shadow drop).
 
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