Nintendo held its first Direct of 2019, announcing a whole range of new and refurbished games coming to the Switch in 2019, including the long-awaited debut of Super Mario Maker, Fire Emblem: Three Houses, Boxboy with new co-op feature, a new battle royale version of Tetris, and more.
Many Nintendo fans expected Super Mario Maker to come to the Switch this year, it turns out it won’t, but its sequel will.
Super Mario Maker 2 will include some new unannounced features and will launch on the Switch in June 2019.
Nintendo also hinted at an update to Super Smash Bros. Ultimate, but no details were provided.
The cute 3DS Boxboy puzzle series is also coming to the Switch with over 200 stages and now introducing co-op play. It’s slated to launch on April 26.
Nintendo released a five-minute long announcement trailer for its long-awaited strategy anime game, Fire Emblem: Three Houses, which is set to launch on July 26th.
A 3D remake of beloved Zelda adventure Link’s Awakening was also announced in the lineup, coming to the Switch sometime this year, no concrete date provided.
The critically-acclaimed and popular RPG Dragon Quest XI S: Echoes of an Elusive Age – Definitive Edition is officially coming to the Switch with new character-specific stories and the option to switch to classic 16-bit visuals.
Battle Royale style gameplay is everywhere in the gaming landscape, and apparently, Nintendo is leaning into this trend with its classic puzzle game, Tetris.
The new game, dubbed Tetris 99, pits 99 players against each other, with only one emerging victorious.
Tetris 99 is available now, but exclusively to Nintendo Switch Online subscribers.
The iconic puzzle game #Tetris arrives, but with an online experience like no other–99 players enter, but only one reigns supreme! #Tetris99 is available to download now, exclusively for #NintendoSwitchOnline Members. pic.twitter.com/iLWG08pmIi
— Nintendo of America (@NintendoAmerica) February 13, 2019
The push into online gaming is expected for Nintendo, as 2018 saw Nintendo investors smashed by lower-than-expected sales of the Nintendo Switch and a steep share decline.
This new and refurbished nostalgic games will no doubt to a pull for gamers who miss their GameBoy and could help bring more gamers to Nintendo Switch Online service.
For more information on all of Nintendo Direct announcements and to watch the full live stream, click here.
