Operation Backlog Completion 2025

Exciting Surprises from the Nintendo Direct

 Video games  5 Responses »  Tagged with: , , ,
Sep 122025
 

Today’s hour-long Nintendo Direct is over! Did it have an amazing announcement that made me lose my mind? Not quite.

Did it still have some exciting surprises I can’t believe were announced? Actually, yes.

I’ll be covering the highlights for me, so be sure to check out the full Nintendo Direct if you want to see everything.

The Nintendo Direct began with a heavy focus on Mario for the 40th anniversary. I was hoping for a new 3D Mario game, but we didn’t get that. We did get a Super Mario Galaxy 1 & 2 bundle, however, with each game also available separate digitally. It’ll be out on October 2, so that’s pretty soon.

I enjoyed Super Mario Galaxy, if not quite as much as 64/Sunshine/Odyssey, but I never got around to playing the sequel. I’m tempted to pick it up for the Switch and finally play it there.

They’re also releasing Rosalina’s Storybook as a physical item, which is neat.

The new Yoshi game also got my attention. Yoshi and the Mysterious Book is a Switch 2 game announced for Spring 2026. It looks cute, like the sort of game I might play someday.

Speaking of Spring 2026, that’s also the release window for Tomodachi Life: Living the Dream, which got a new trailer at this Direct. I need it.

I love the new feature where you can grab a Mii and put them next to another one. That’s going to be great. (Of course, I hope they still randomly interact with each other on their own, too. That’s half the fun.)

It’s too bad it doesn’t have a release date, but you know what did get a release date? Hades II! Hades II will be out digitally on September 25, with the physical release to follow on November 20.

That’s really close. I might wait for the physical, not only because I want a physical copy, but also because I’m drowning in my backlog.

Meanwhile, I don’t know what Dragon Quest IV, V, and VI did, but Square Enix is jumping ahead to make Dragon Quest VII the next remake. Dragon Quest VII Reimagined will be out on February 5, 2026.

I have the 3DS version, but depending on how they compare, I might be tempted to get this one.

(Are we ever going to hear about Dragon Quest XII again??)

Soon after that came the news no one expected… Virtual Boy being added to Nintendo Switch Online, complete with a physical add-on accessory. I never saw that one coming.

Then came a welcome surprise for me… a new remake of Fatal Frame II: Crimson Butterfly announced for 2026!

I had hoped to see Fatal Frame, but I was still surprised.

I never got around to playing Fatal Frame II on the PS2, and I was always disappointed that the Wii remake wasn’t available in North America, so I am definitely excited for this. Maybe we’ll see a Fatal Frame VI one of these days after all…

Metroid Prime 4 got a release date of December 4, Donkey Kong Bananza is getting DLC, and then it was Pokémon time.

Okay, it’s not a new Pokémon Mystery Dungeon like I predicted/hoped. It’s… Pokémon Pokopia, where you play a Ditto transformed into a human and shape the land into a home for other Pokémon. It sort of has Animal Crossing vibes, so I’m intrigued.

I thought they were announcing another game, too, but it turned out to be a DLC announcement for Z-A. Getting DLC announced before the game is even out was a little disappointing…

…but then the next announcement happened, and…

……

You can’t imagine my shock when I saw Nagito.

Danganropna 2 is getting a full remake in 2026, but not only will it include the original game, it also features an alternate scenario with different victims and culprits. It sounds like it’s going to be just as long as the original game, too, so we’re essentially getting two Danganronpa games in one.

They’re calling it Danganronpa 2×2. Danganronpa 4…..?

So that was absolutely wild.

Monster Hunter Stories 3 got a new trailer and a March 13, 2026 release date. I’ll definitely have played the second game by then, of course.

Finally, the last big announcement for me was the one they ended on: a brand-new Fire Emblem game. Fire Emblem: Fortune’s Weave looks beautiful, it’s due out in 2026, and it… seems to be set in the same universe as Three Houses?

I’m intrigued.

All right, those were the major highlights for me from the Nintendo Direct. It doesn’t have me running out to get a Switch 2 just yet, but there were some nice surprises in there. What were your favorite announcements?

Let’s Talk About the New Pokémon Legends: Z-A Trailers

 Video games  2 Responses »  Tagged with: , ,
Jul 232025
 

Well, none of my Pokémon Presents predictions came true except for the obvious – a new look at Pokémon Legends: Z-A.

They did announce a new spin-off, a puzzle game for Switch and mobile that’s free-to-start on mobile and $9.99 on Switch, both with additional DLC packs for more puzzles.

It looks cute, but I don’t think I’ll get it.

So let’s focus on the real highlight of the presentation, Pokémon Legends: Z-A. Two new trailers have come out of the presentation. They introduce Team MZ (the group you’ll be working with), show how Lumiose City is different at day or night, and reveal the Rust Syndicate, which seems to be this game’s villain team. They also show off the customization options, which look better than ever.

And remember how I was excited to see Looker’s office after the previous Pokémon Presents? I don’t know if he’ll be back, but Emma is returning as a detective who gives you quests, so that’s great! Mable from Team Flare is back, as well.

The story involves Pokémon Mega Evolving on their own and going rogue, so that could be interesting.

I still don’t have as much excitement for this one as I did when it was first announced. I loved the exploration in Pokémon Legends: Arceus, and the city-based focus of Z-A just isn’t quite grabbing me in the same way. I wish it had stuck with turn-based combat, too.

On the other hand, the story seems interesting, and it’s nice to see some returning characters. Arceus was a pleasant surprise for me, so maybe this one will be too.

What do you think about the newest trailers for Pokémon Legends: Z-A?

Predictions for Next Week’s Pokémon Presents

 Video games  3 Responses »  Tagged with: ,
Jul 162025
 

The next Pokémon Presents is set for July 22 at 6 AM PT / 9 AM ET, which means we’re less than a week away.

The last Pokémon Presents back in February showed pretty much nothing of interest to me besides Pokémon Legends: Z-A, which left me with mixed feelings.

What will be shown at this one?

Another look at Legends feels like a safe bet. It’s coming out on October 16, so they’ll want to feature it.

And they always have a section devoted to mobile games and things like that, so I expect to see those as well. But what about some new announcements?

Gen 10 is probably the biggest question.

A lot of fans think they won’t announce the next generation ahead of Z-A, but I’m not so sure. A tiny teaser trailer might not be enough to overshadow it.

But how about a new Pokémon Mystery Dungeon game? The last one released was Rescue Team DX in 2020, and that was a remake. The last entirely new entry was Super Mystery Dungeon all the way back in 2015. It sounds to me like we’re more than due for a new game. And it would provide me with good incentive to finally start one of them, too!

What are you hoping or expecting to see announced in next week’s Pokémon Presents?

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