Best games shown at the Nintendo Direct

Some seriously heavy hitters — both expected and unexpected — have been unveiled at the latest Nintendo Direct. Here’s a roundup of the best.

Another holiday season approaches, and with it comes another Nintendo Direct. There were some seriously heavy hitters shown off at the Direct yesterday, both expected and unexpected, including The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild sequel, a new Fire Emblem game, some remasters for fan-favourites like Tales of Symphonia and Crisis Core: Final Fantasy VII, and even a new Pikmin game.

We’ve got the breakdown of the best games shown off during the Direct, but if you want to see all of the 50+ games shown off, you can view a replay of the Direct here.

Fire Emblem Engage

Engage features new character designs, including a main character that looks like a personified tube of toothpaste. Picture: Nintendo

With the incredible success of Fire Emblem as a franchise, it was inevitable that we’d see another game, especially since it’s been a few years since Three Houses launched. Engage features a bright colour palette, the return of the weapon triangle, and more to keep Fire Emblem fans engaged. Fire Emblem Engage launches January 20, 2023.

Theatrhythm Final Bar Line

Theatrhythm features couch co-op, so you can slay monsters with your buddies. Picture: Square Enix

Final Fantasy fans, Nier fans, and everyone in-between — Theatrhythm returns, this time with over 500 songs from across the entire Final Fantasy series. For those that haven’t played it yet, Theatrhythm is an excellent rhythm game that uses songs from Final Fantasy and adjacent games from Square Enix, like Nier and Romancing SaGa. Final Bar Line will have online play and couch co-op as well. Final Bar Line releases February 26, 2023.

Harvestella

Strike your foes with lightning before you go harvest corn. In the name of defeating the Quietus, of course. Picture: Square Enix

A new game from Square Enix, Harvestella features a combination of JRPG action mechanics, a farming simulator, and that special type of storytelling that Square Enix is generally pretty good at. The world is falling into shadow, so you have to farm crops about it and hopefully solve the problem. That is a gross oversimplification, of course, but the real draw is the art design, which features some beautiful aesthetics. A demo is available now, and save data will transfer to the full release on November 4, 2022.

Mario + Rabbids: Sparks of Hope

Why yes, that is a Peach Rabbid summoning a meteorstorm onto a battlefield. Picture: Ubisoft

The sequel to the original Mario + Rabbids game, Sparks of Hope expands on the wildly successful strategy/platformer crossover by adding new Rabbids, a new storyline, and new ways to take control of the battlefield. Sparks of Hope is releasing real soon, and pre-orders are available now until its launch on October 20, 2022.

Master Detective Archive: RainCode

Your ammunition is evidence, as you force criminals to confess. Picture: Spike Chunsoft

Something a little lesser well known, RainCode is a murder mystery adventure game from the developers of Danganronpa. A lot of striking and moody visuals were showcased, while still featuring the unique courtroom and argumentative aspects that Spike Chunsoft has become known for. RainCode won’t launch until Spring of 2023, however.

Fatal Frame: Mask of the Lunar Eclipse

Explore decrepit Japanese shrines and environments while you seek the truth. Picture: Koei Tecmo

Collectively known as Fatal Frame 4, this game has never been released in the West prior to now, having been locked to Japan on the Wii. This remastered version will hopefully remove some of the Wii “waggle”, and the story is widely regarded as some of the best in the franchise. Mask of the Lunar Eclipse launches sometime early in 2023.

The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom

Tears of the Kingdom will feature expansive landscapes for you to get lost in. Picture: Nintendo

This is what most of you are here for. The sequel to the wildly successful Breath of the Wild finally has a name, but more importantly, a release date.

Tears of the Kingdom will launch May 12, 2023, so we have a while to wait still. The new trailer, however, showcased some more of the landscapes we’ll be exploring, including a giant soaring machine that we can ride around.

Written by Junior Miyai on behalf of GLHF.