Today, August 27, Nintendo treated fans to a double whammy of news during the joint Nintendo Direct and Indie World presentations. If you didn’t catch the showcases live as they happened or you just can’t be bothered to sit through the whole thing yourself, then don’t worry, we’ve got you covered. But to save you some heartbreak, no, Hollow Knight: Silksong did not make an appearance.
Here is everything announced during the August 27 Nintendo Direct and Indie World showcases.
The poker-inspired roguelite that has taken gamers by storm this year is getting a whole lot of crossovers. The Friends of Jimbo update releases today and will add new cards themed after The Witcher 3, Vampire Survivors, Dave The Diver, and Among Us. The cards are sure to make the unpredictable game that is Balatro even wilder.
The next game from the developers of Gris finally has a release date. The side-scrolling action platformer Neva, which will likely leave you an emotional wreck if my preview was anything to go by, will release on October 15, 2024. The new trailer showed off the game’s gorgeous art design and fast-paced combat.
This cute bug-centric RPG puts you in the shoes of the titular Moth Kubit and tasks you with uncovering the secret of the mysterious insect mega-corp that you work for. The trailer shows off a slew of mechanics like word-based combat, painting, and more to get lost in when the game releases in Spring 2025.
The third entry in the barista-sim series is switching things up with a change of setting. Coffee Talk Tokyo will take the drink making and visual novel elements of the fist two Coffee Talk games and transplant them to Japan where you’ll meet an all-new cast of mythical creatures with caffeine cravings to satisfy. Coffee Talk Tokyo is set to release sometime next year.
2024’s nostalgia-filled RPG Sea of Stars is getting DLC. Throes of the Watchmaker releases for free in Spring 2025 and takes players into a mysterious miniature clockwork world. The DLC’s trailer introduces a new party member and a whimsical setting filled with mechanical wonders and a terrifying carnival that is up to no good.
PowerWash Simulator is getting yet another strange crossover to clean your way through. This time it’s Shrek. The paid Shrek Special Pack releases this fall and includes five themed maps as well as a new character model that dresses you up in a full suit of armor.
The reveal trailer for Morsels showed off the offball roguelike’s top-down shooting action in which you take control of a mouse attempting to combat evil cats. The game includes some card-based mechanics as well as allies to gather throughout the world. Like this year’s Animal Well, Morsels has a CRTV filter over it that gives it a nostalgic look.
The name says it all. In this dating simulator you’ll be able to romance 100 different characters that personify household objects like cabinets and shelves, or concepts like your overwhelming sense of dread. Each object and concept is rendered to look as sexy as possible and you’ll choose if you want to foster love, hate, or friendship with each of them. Find the object of your desires when Date Everything! releases on October 24, 2024.
This adorable indie combines the charms of puzzle game Peggle with the roguelite genre. As you work your way through dungeons and fight off enemies, you’ inflict damage by completing puzzle challenges in which you launch a ball to destroy pegs. Each ball you use can have different skills which will help you defeat enemies even faster. Peglin is a timed console exclusive on Switch and is available starting today.
This open-world physics sandbox game has been in Early Access on Steam for a while and has seen a lot of love from players, and now it’s coming to Switch this December. In Wobbly Life you can play with friends as you customize your character, complete minigames, farm, go on story quests, and more. There really does seem to be no limit of options in Wobbly Life.
A sequel to the amazing multiplayer puzzle platformer Pico Park, Pico Park 2 brings more fun with friends. In it, you and up to seven friends will find yourselves completing over sixty levels that test your ability to work together to solve platforming puzzles. Pico Park 2 looks like more of the same fun its predecessor delivered, and that’s enough for me. The game is available today.
Near the Indie World showcase’s end, a quick montage ran through a number of games coming to Switch in the near future. They included Shovel Knight: Shovel of Hope DX, beautiful RPG Europa, mystery game On Your Tail, and more.
2023’s most outrageous platformer is available on Nintendo Switch as of today. The loving homage to the Wario Land series is all about zany platforming challenges and lots of pizza.
Kicking off the Partner Showcase segment of the show was the next playable documentary from Digital Eclipse, the folks behind The Making of Karateka. This one brings an amazing Tetris collection to Switch this winter to celebrate the series’ 40th anniversary. Tetris Forever will include over 15 classic entries in the Tetris franchise from across the years, as well as a new Tetris Time Warp game that will shift across different play styles as you play, and new documentary videos illuminating the series’ history. That wasn’t all the Tetris news, as Nintendo Switch Online will be getting the NES version of Tetris this winter.
New RPG Star Overdrive is bringing style in spades thanks to its central hoverboard mechanic. The protagonist zips around the wide world on a cool-as-hell hoverboard straight out of Treasure Planet, and you can also use it as a sort of jetpack strapped to your back in traversal or in combat. And don’t worry, you can do sick tricks the whole time. Star Overdrive releases sometime in 2025.
Goat Simulator 3, the latest entry in the absurd animal-centric open-world mayhem series, releases on Nintendo Switch today. You’ll be able to cause havoc in the world alone or with friends. What else is there to say? It’s Goat Simulator.
The first of two quick montages during the Direct dropped a bombshell with no fanfare at all. Legend of Heroes: Trails in the Sky the 1st, a remake of the first game in the lengthy Trails RPG series, was announced. Other highlights from the montage include Star Wars Hunters, an update to Disney Dreamlight Valley, and Worms Armageddon: Anniversary Edition.
Launching on October 4, The Patrick Star Game is a silly sandbox playground starring Spongebob’s best friend. You’ll rub shoulders with other characters from the cartoon and roam around iconic locations while causing mayhem.
Launching on December 5, 2024, the newest Fitness Boxing game includes six voiced instructors to choose from that will guide you through an assortment of workouts. The trailer showed off short Quick Workouts, as well as new additions like Mitt Drills to practice combos and Sit Fit Boxing when you want to workout without leaving your seat.
The second of Capcom’s Fighting Collection releases brings eight more classic games to modern audiences. The games are: Capcom vs. SNK: Millennium Fight 2000 Pro, Capcom vs. SNK 2: Mark of the Millennium 2001, Capcom Fighting Evolution, Street Fighter Alpha 3 UPPER, Project Justice, Power Stone, Power Stone 2 and Plasma Sword: Nightmare of Bilstein. The collection will be released in 2025.
Finally Marvel vs Capcom fans are getting something to sink their teeth into. The new fighting game collection brings seven titles into the hands of players. They include X-Men vs. Street Fighter and Marvel vs. Capcom 2 New Age of Heroes, as well as The Punisher beat ‘em up. The collection adds online play to all games as well as a wealth of artwork and other development documents. The collection launches on September 12 with a physical edition set for November 22.
Atelier Yumia, the next entry in the Atelier series, was announced during the Nintendo Direct. Based on the short reveal trailer, the game’s big theme seems to be memory as we see the titular Yumia monologue about the importance of memory while getting some montages of combat and the game world. If you’re a fan of the series, or just like the trailer, you can look forward to Atelier Yumia in early 2025.
The remasters of Suikoden 1 and 2 are back and have a release date. The gorgeous reimagining of the RPG classics will be released on March 6, 2025. Over the course of both games you’ll be able to gather over 100 allies as you build up your own army to combat your enemies. The remasters add a couple of quality-of-life improvements like the ability to speed up battles and an auto battle feature.
The highly anticipated remake of Dragon Quest III launches November 14. The gorgeous HD-2D graphics were shown off in the latest trailer while also revealing the new ability to customize your party’s appearance. The new Monster Wrangler vocation was also shown off and it looks to be a lot like Final Fantasy’s Blue Mages in that you will use monster abilities against them in combat.
Three Castlevania games are being bundled together in the Dominus Collection. They are the DS games Dawn of Sorrow, Portrait of Ruin, and Order of Ecclesia. Weirdly enough, Haunted Castle, an arcade game that is generally considered pretty bad, is getting a remake in the collection as well.
Civ 7, the next entry in Sid Meier’s 4X strategy series, will be coming to Switch. The game will be released on February 11, 2025 for Switch as well as all other current platforms. The Nintendo Direct trailer showed off some footage of returning hero Himiko.
To celebrate the upcoming 20th anniversary of the Tales of series, Tales of Graces f is getting a remaster. The 2010 PS3 game (itself a port of a 2009 Wii title) is a beloved entry in the series that, while having a bit of a formulaic story, has some exceptional combat and a beautiful world. The remaster releases on January 17, 2025.
Two Sims games are finally coming to Switch, sort of. The spinoff games MySims and MySims Kingdom will release on November 19 as part of the MySims Cozy Bundle on Switch. Both games let you control a large number of chibi-like Sims in an effort to re-develop a town. While not as in depth as the mainline Sims franchise, the MySims games have their fans and the bundle is a welcome addition to Switch.
Help Wanted 2 lets players tackle a series of fun minigames inside the Five Nights at Freddy’s universe. While you’ll still have to deal with the evil animatronics trying to kill you, you’ll also be able to have some fun with less stressful activities. Help Wanted 2 launches this holiday season. 2021’s Security Breach is also getting a free DLC titled Ruin at the same time that you can download if you want more spooky fun.
The second montage during today’s Nintendo Direct glossed over short looks at Disney Epic Mickey Rebrushed—which releases on September 24—Tales of the Shire, Just Dance 2025 Edition, Funko Fusion, Lego Horizon Adventures, and EA Sports FC 25.
Guardians of Azuma looks to reimagine the long-running Rune Factory series. The game looks to be part RPG and part farming sim, as you’ll roam the world building up a village and making money by growing crops while also going out on missions to take down monsters. There will also be some hot NPCs to romance along the way. Rune Factory: Guardians of Azuma launches on Switch next Spring.
The Nintendo Direct closed with the announcement that Yakuza Kiwami, the remake of the first game in the series, is coming to Switch on October 24. If for some reason you’ve been waiting for this game to release on Switch to get in on the Yakuza franchise, then I guess now is your time.
