A Nintendo Direct is rumored to happen soon and speculation still abounds about what will be revealed. Many of the titles announced in previous Directs like Fall Guys, Fire Emblem: Three Hopes, and Mario Strikers: Battle League have already been released, so Nintendo has an open slate to fill with the new Nintendo Direct. However, there are some reveals that are almost definitely beyond the realm of possibility that players shouldn’t get their hopes up for.
The Nintendo Direct will most likely have information on the most popular titles players already know are coming to the Switch. Of all the titles that will get updates, Breath of the Wild 2 and possibilities for Mario Kart 8 Deluxe DLC are likely the most high-profile, but Nintendo Directs tend to be stuffed to the brim with smaller reveals as well. From Switch Online exclusives to indie titles to film reveals, there’s no doubt that Nintendo will announce games that nobody expects, but there’s some announcements that logically can’t or won’t happen.
There are plenty of forgotten topics that Nintendo has hinted at over the Switch’s lifespan that are unlikely to happen in 2022. Some might seem less impactful than others, but all of these unlikely scenarios point towards problems Nintendo could fix or features it could make available. Here’s some surprising announcements that Nintendo could make during the Direct, but likely won’t.
June Direct Predictions - Mario Maker 2 Adds The Extra Game Styles
One of the strangest aspects about the content-robust and creative building game Super Mario Maker 2 is that there’s one game listed under the “Extra Game Styles” tab - Super Mario 3D World. The usage of a plural word made it seem like multiple different options would be added, but no other styles were added to the game. Super Mario Bros. 2, Super Mario 64, and Yoshi’s Island were all possibilities for alternative gameplay styles, but these missed opportunities ended up being representative of a lack of DLC and substantial free content support for Nintendo Switch games in general.
The likelihood of the game getting extra game styles this late in its lifetime is nearly zero, especially with no other free updates being confirmed. Expanding upon this notion, there most likely won’t be a Super Mario Maker 3 until a new Nintendo console comes out, possibly in 2023. Nintendo most likely does not want to dilute the online community for the series by splitting its audience between two separate titles, but it also likely won’t put in the work to improve and finish the now three-year-old game.
GameCube Games Will Come To Nintendo Switch Online
It’s a tragedy that more than two decades after the GameCube came out players are still unable to find copies of expensive games in that collection. Super Mario 64 has been re-released more than enough times and twice on Nintendo Switch, but Super Mario Sunshine has only been re-released once in a shorter timeframe. Despite a large demand for rereleases of Super Smash Bros. Melee, Pikmin, Paper Mario: The Thousand Year Door, and Mario Kart: Double Dash!!, Nintendo doesn’t seem to have GameCube legacy content on its radar, much less including them in Nintendo Switch Online.
If rumors are anything to go off of, Nintendo seems to be aiming to have GBA and Game Gear games available on Switch soon, which would add a healthy amount of titles to the online service. While GameCube games could run on the Nintendo Switch, Nintendo doesn’t seem interested in including these titles on Nintendo Switch Online. Super Monkey Ball: Banana Mania, Resident Evil 4, Ty the Tasmanian Tiger, and more were all fairly well-received third-party ports so there’s undoubtedly a market for GameCube nostalgia, but first-party titles most likely won’t come to the Expansion Pack due to Nintendo likely keeping them for full rereleases.
Centipede 99 is Announced as a Free Game for Nintendo Switch Online
The series of games like Tetris 99 currently includes a short list with Super Mario Bros. 35 and Pac-Man 99, but that list could be made larger at any moment with the inclusion of Centipede 99. Pac-Man 99 suffered from a lack of replayability and Super Mario Bros. 35 was stealth-released without announcement and only available for a year, but neither of the games’ short lifespans meant that the genre doesn’t have promise. Nintendo Switch needs more of these types of titles, but what's holding these styles of games back is finding the best arcade game to apply the battle royale filter to.
Other arcade games might try this, but it definitely won’t be Centipede, as there are other, more viable candidates. Other possibilities for this type of game include Ice Climbers 99, Balloon Fight 99, and Mario Bros. 99, but none of these titles fit the spirit of online play that Nintendo seems to be looking for with its GBA games for Switch Online plan in 2022. Tetris 99 worked because the game already had a solid battle system which translated well to massive multiplayer matches. Something like Puzzle League 99 or another game with a battle mode already worked in might be a great supplement to Nintendo’s online services.
The Mario Movie Will Premiere Its First Trailer
Out of all the predictions listed here, this one is the most likely to happen. Previous Nintendo Directs have had information regarding the upcoming Mario movie and generated hype for a holiday release date. However, with the recent rescheduling of the release date of the Mario movie, it doesn’t seem like it’s ready for the public’s eyes yet.
It’s possible that the release date was pushed back to coincide with the opening of Super Nintendo World at Universal Studios, but even in that case it’s too early for a trailer. The new release date is April 7, 2023 and Nintendo should probably wait for a fall Direct rather than the likely June Nintendo Direct to keep excitement for the movie up. It’s not easy to forget about the Chris Pratt or Jack Black reveal, and hopefully that hype will continue until the first trailer does release.
The most far-fetched announcements sometimes can’t live up to the real announcements Nintendo makes, like the reveal of Nintendo Switch Sports and a new Mario Strikers game. Still, it’s fun to speculate on what Nintendo won’t reveal. Hopefully the new Nintendo Direct isn’t just a rumor and will provide some surprises not listed here. The Switch could use an injection of quirky and surprising games in the coming seasons.