Nintendo Direct 2022 – live: Earthbound, Mario Kart 8 and all the best announcements from last night
We’re expecting a lot of announcements in the brand’s first event of 2022
Update: The Nintendo Direct has now finished. Read below to find out what the biggest announcements were.
Since the events started in 2011, Nintendo Direct live-streams have become the gaming giant’s favourite way to announce new titles and show off gameplay. Previous Directs have focused on upcoming indie titles and there have even been some celebrating one game in particular, such as Breath of the Wild when it was first revealed.
We’re particularly fond of the format as it gives us a much better idea of what Nintendo is willing to share more publicly and narrows down what we can expect in future announcements. Chances are if a Nintendo title is already known to be in the works, you can at least expect an update on its development.
Now another Nintendo Direct has been scheduled for tonight at 10pm GMT and it looks to be one of its longer ones, focusing on games that are coming out in the first half of 2022 for a good 40 minutes.
There have already been plenty of announcements, such as Kirby and the Forgotten Land and Triangle Strategy, but chances are high that we’ll also get a glimpse at some other upcoming titles which are yet to have a confirmed release date. Nintendo also makes a habit of releasing some games and demos on the e-shop immediately after the event has ended.
We’ll be following the announcements live to cover all the big reveals. Keep scrolling to get updates as they happen.
Read more:
‘Mario Strikers: Battle League’ announced
Fans of the original Mario Strikers should get excited about this one. The next “battle football” game featuring Mario, Bowser, Peach and more will be making its way onto the Nintendo Switch on 10 June.
‘Splatoon 3’ co-operative mode announced.
A co-operative mode for Splatoon 3 called “Salmon Run: Next Wave” has been announced, confirming there’s more emphasis on Splatoon’s story over the competitive multiplayer aspects of the first two titles.
We also have a firmer release window of “Summer 2022”.
‘Kirby and the Forgotten Lands’ new gameplay
Kirby can eat a car. That is all.
‘Nintendo Switch Sports’ announced
Remember Wii Sports, the game that was single-handedly responsible for countless broken TVs? Well it looks like there is an official follow-up with Nintendo Switch Sports.
Sports like tennis and bowling make a return with new additions such as volleyball. The joy-con and leg strap accessory can be used to compete in some of the games such as football as well.
An online play test will be available between 18-20 February.
‘Earthbound’ makes its way onto Nintendo Switch Online
It finally happened. Nintendo fans screamed loud enough that the highly acclaimed Earthbound is finally available on Nintendo Switch Online as well as the original Mother from the NES.
We can go home now.
New courses for ‘Mario Kart 8 Deluxe'
A booster course pass for Mario Kart 8 Deluxe promises 48 additional new courses by the end of 2023, featuring favourites from the original Super Nintendo all the way up to the 3DS.
The first wave of courses will launch on March 18 2022. The booster pass can be bought separately or is also included into the Nintendo Switch Online expansion pass.
‘Xenoblade Chronicles 3’ confirmed for a September release
The next installment in the massive JRPG series Xenoblade Chronicles closes out the show with a surprisingly close release date of “September 2022”.
Nintendo Direct summary: All the biggest announcements.
Well that concludes the first Nintendo Direct event of 2022! There were a couple of big surprises that we weren’t expecting but we’re certainly excited to see them coming out this year!
If you missed the original announcements, these are the ones that were worth mentioning in no particular order:
- Mario Strikers: Battle League, releasing 10 June
- Advance Wars 1+2: Re-boot, releasing 8 April
- Fire Emblem: Three Hopes, releasing 24 June
- LIVE A LIVE, releasing 22 July
- Nintendo Switch Sports, releasing 29 April
- Earthbound + Earthbound Beginnings arriving on Nintendo Switch Online
- Mario Kart 8 Deluxe Booster Course Pass
- Xenoblade Chronicles 3, coming “September 2022”
That’s all from us but we hope you found some new titles to get excited about in 2022!
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