September 13th saw a new Nintendo Direct with plenty of great trailers for fans to enjoy. The Direct, as always, had a solid mix of release trailers, first-time game reveals, and even a few trailers of DLC updates to current major titles.
The Switch has many exciting options coming soon, and it's hard to choose from all the great titles on the platform. However, some trailers brought more excitement than others. Titles were even given out for the upcoming continuations of two Nintendo's most storied franchises. With a Direct as successful as September's, it's hard to not look forward to the future of the Switch.
Theatrhythm Final Bar Line
From MMORPGs to fun casual rhythm games, Final Fantasy really is the gift that keeps on giving. The newest entry into the franchise is a sequel to the Theatrhythm games, which explore the music of the previous Final Fantasy games.
Theatrhythm games are some of the best rhythm games for beginners, and even regular Final Fantasy fans who have never played a rhythm game before can pick up a Theatrhythym game and enjoy it. Veterans of other rhythm games like Osu! and Project Diva are also likely to enjoy Theatrhythym Final Bar Line. With over 400 Final Fantasy songs to choose from, the newest entry may be the best in the series.
Ib
Ib is a horror game that follows the titular protagonist who has been sucked into an evil art museum. The game is an old RPG Maker classic with lots to offer for fans of the horror genre.
Some fans may be off-put by the graphics of the older title, but the love and effort put into Ib make it one of the best horror games out there. Graphics can only take a game so far, after all, and Ib has the most important parts of a game in spades: character and story. Ib will be ready for the Switch in spring 2023, so fans should keep an eye out for a title that will likely be at a low price for a lot of fun.
Fae Farm
Animal Crossing and Stardew Valley fans can rejoice: there's a fun new life sim coming to the Nintendo Switch. Fae Farm is a fun new farming simulator set to hit stores and the eShop in spring of 2023.
The multiplayer compatibility will be fun inclusion to Fae Farm, and it seems to be the perfect casual game for a group of friends to play together. Another thing that separates Fae Farm is the inclusion of "fae magic" in the game. The magical farming simulator has the potential to be among the best in the life simulator genre, and the Switch has been overdue for another game like Animal Crossing.
Bayonetta 3
Nintendo has finally released what is likely the final trailer for the long-anticipated Bayonetta 3. The adventure games are part of the "hack and slash" genre of games and follow the adventure of a powerful umbra witch named Bayonetta.
Whether Bayonetta 3 will improve on its predecessors is yet to be seen, but the game has certainly had the longest buildup of any announcement from the Direct. In fact, fans have been waiting on the release of Bayonetta 3 for five years. All fans can hope for is that the game delivers on the wait, and with pre-orders live and the release date set for late October 2022, the wait is nearly over.
Various Daylife
Featuring one of the stranger names among the Direct was the release trailer for Various Daylife, currently out in the Nintendo eShop. The game is in some ways the spiritual successor to the Bravely Default series, which arguably included the best RPG of 2021.
While the game so far hasn't been as critically well-received as the three Bravely Default games, Octopath Traveler, or the other Square Enix masterpiece in Final Fantasy, it's still a solid entry in a long line of successful games. Triangle Strategy fans may also enjoy the game, as both were by the same production team and have similarly bizarre titles in the same spirit as Bravely Default.
Nintendo Switch Online+ Expansion Pack
Having an active Nintendo Switch Online membership comes with plenty of benefits already. For example, online play will be important for Scarlet & Violet and the Kingdom Hearts games can only be played via cloud. However, the new expansion pack offers fans even more reason to have a membership.
Among the biggest titles coming to the expansion pass are the Pokémon Stadium games, but many fans will be even more excited to see Mario Party 1-3 playable on the Switch. For fans of sports games, Excitebike 64 is another excellent inclusion. However, arguably the biggest reveal of all was the Goldeneye inclusion. Fans of the classic game should prepare themselves to go back on an adventure with 007, this time on the Switch.
Octopath Traveler II
Octopath Traveler, another game by the Bravely Default production team, follows the adventures of eight different heroes as they help one another out with their individual journeys throughout the realm.
The game features a brand-new cast of eight, with new stories for fans to explore and returning classes from the original games. Many fans would like more overlap in the main stories themselves the second time around, while others like getting to focus on their favorite character's route and keeping it separate aside from the side quests along the way. Whichever direction the team takes it, Octopath Traveler 2 will hopefully be as great as the original.
Pikmin 4
While many fans first heard of Olimar as the meme-worthy Super Smash Bros. fighter, the Pikmin series has grown over time. Soon, it will receive its fourth entry into the fun and odd franchise.
The real-time strategy/puzzle simulation game will feature the same basic premise. However, this time with a huge graphics upgrade, new villains, and even a fun new camera perspective option. Time will tell if the decade-long gap between Pikmin 3 and Pikmin 4 will have been worth it, but fans of the franchise everywhere were in high spirits after the long-awaited announcement.
Fire Emblem Engage
While some franchises have had to wait over a decade for their games, Fire Emblem fans will still be finishing their Three Houses and Three Hopes routes by the time the newest entry hits the shelves.
The newest entry into the Fire Emblem franchise, Engage, is already getting comparisons to the mobile game Fire Emblem Heroes due to the inclusion of older characters from previous games. The protagonist's hairstyles have also earned the game plenty of memes on Twitter, referring to them as "Colgate" and "Toothpaste." Regardless, the game has made a huge buzz and is certainly an interesting idea.
The Legend Of Zelda: Tears Of The Kingdom
The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild is one of the only Switch games that many fans think of as a contender for "best video game of all time." With such a monumental game with such worldwide critical praise and sales, it's only natural that the sequel would be highly anticipated.
In many ways, the long wait for Tears Of The Kingdom is something for fans to be excited about. Unlike other huge franchises like Pokémon, which seem to churn out a game every year, the team has taken half a decade on a project that may even have the potential to surpass the original. One thing is for sure: the title announcement and relatively sparse trailer alone drew tons of hype from fans everywhere.