Nintendo Leaves More Questions Than Answers With Their Latest ‘Direct: Partner Showcase’
by Sage Ashford
Between the launch of Nintendo’s latest console, the Nintendo Switch 2, and the release of Donkey Kong Bananza, Nintendo’s had a pretty great run lately. Yet, their most recent Nintendo Direct leaned more in the lane of awful rather than great.
It started off fantastic, announcing Capcom’s Monster Hunter Stories 3, the next entry in the Monster Hunter Stories franchise. Certainly, with the main Monster Hunter franchise dealing with a bit of backlash, perhaps a brief break is necessary.
After that, however, the Direct veered into boring territory, showing off ports that have existed on other consoles for quite some time. An announcement of Madden and EA FC 26 was a perfect metaphor for the show itself: largely interested in presenting the Switch 2 as a gamer’s one-stop shop, even if that means just confirming it’s got the same titles everyone else does.
Square-Enix did most of Nintendo’s heavy lifting, finally confirming the release date of Dragon Quest I & II HD-2D Remake, then announcing two brand-new games from Team Asano.
First, there was The Adventures of Elliot: The Millennium Tale, which uses Team Asano’s usual HD-2D art style, but this time in an action setting. Players take on the role of Elliot and work alongside the fairy Faie to go on a journey through a wild and untamed continent.
Next, there was Octopath Traveler 0, the latest in the Octopath Traveler universe. This time, players themselves become the protagonist, getting to create their own character to explore the world. After the protagonist’s hometown is destroyed, it falls to them to decide whether to get revenge or rebuild their town and seek peace.
Impressive as these titles were, even in a Partner Direct, there were more questions than answers. Why make it a Partner Direct in the first place? Where’s Kirby Air Riders and Metroid Prime 4? Both are scheduled to release this year and have no release dates. Kirby Air Riders doesn’t even have any gameplay footage, which feels weird for a game that theoretically is coming out sometime between September and December. There’s no guess on when the next Super Mario might release, and we have no clue on what they have planned for 2026.
It all lends credence to the fact that we’re probably due for another Nintendo Direct, and presumably fairly soon. One that clues us all in on the plans for the remainder of the year, and what’s coming in the start of 2026 could be one of the biggest shows of the year.
