Nintendo Shadow-Drops Another Nintendo Direct Mini, Watch It Here

WOAH! GTA 5 on Switch...;p

I'm sorry HITMAN 3? That came right out of nowhere

No this does not mean Agent 47 for Smash, as much as that would be incredible

EDIT: I'M SORRY WHAT CONTROL TOO? SOME ACTUAL SERIOUS THIRD PARTY SUPPORT ON THE CALIBUR OF SONY AND MICROSOFT?

oh ***** never mind they're cloud versions LMAO

Finally, news on BD2

it does say cloud version though so im guessing streaming

Very interested by these cloud versions of games, if the Switch can do games like this via the cloud could open up a lot of possibilities.

@TheFrenchiestFry "Agent 47, one of our clients from Epic Games is eagerly awaiting their invitation into Smash. Problem is, they're backed as a runner up to a certain Demon Slayer and Hell Marine. We need you too "relieve" them of their Smash invitation"

Part Time UFO! I love these whimsical little games.

@patbacknitro18 sneaks onboard Sakurai's multimillion dollar yacht dressed as a security guard

And in other news no more heroes 1 and 2 is out now on the eshop 😲

WHAAAAAT?! I thought maybe it's been quiet lately.
I'll have to wait till lunch to check it out.
More Hyrule Warriors AOC news?
Perhaps some bone-throwing for Metroid or Bayonetta fans? Mario Kart 9??
We shall see...
EDIT: Oh, oops, it's just a partner direct... Ok, hype suppressed.

Remember Hitman is the next fighter for smash

Was expecting this because we hadn't had one this month yet and there hadn't been a trailer for Age of Calamity (plus the demo leaks).

Interesting to see Part-Time UFO make it to Switch from mobile devices

I think there goes the chance of DOOM Eternal releasing this year on Switch.

I'm excited about it and but someone needs to talk to whomever made that trailer for Bravely Default because the cringe factor was way to high.

Blimey, that DLC for Animal Crossing takes it down a dark path

@TheFrenchiestFry Just noticed your comment xD Did you see me joke comment yet

Not a fan of all this cloud gaming malarkey. Only real thing which sort of had me interested was No More Heroes 1 + 2 (although based on the appearance, I am assuming no physical copy; that makes me sad). I kinda figured that Bravely Default II wasn't happening until next year.

Bring back the proper directs Nintendo. Nintendo's lack of new games is really grating.

@GrandScribe It was 👍

No More Heroes 1 and 2. Release date for BD 1 & 2. The rest there seems quite interesting too on the whole.

I think we'll see more cloud games on the Switch if there is enough uotake.

lol that Phoenyx Rising ....even the inventory looks like the one in BOTW

@GrandScribe Yeah, that was pretty terrible.

Bravely Default II, No More Heroes 1+2, Hyrule Warriors... I think that was it for me. It was a decent direct, but I'm not going with those "cloud version" games at all.

Wonder why they couldn't have brought over older Hitman games? Hitman (2016)? Absolution? Those are pretty solid. I didn't play 2 and not too interested in 3 at the moment.

Also just re-listened to the end of the presentation. This was the last Partner Showcase of the year. So unless Nintendo finally decides to do a proper direct with new first party games, we now know all of the plans for this year from Nintendo...

@BlackenedHalo The Switch footage doesn't look that good though. I'll be getting it on XBOX Series X for sure.

@MS7000 They could still drop a first party title a few weeks before release. It's been their way of pushing out first party titles for this year.

I'm mighty curious about that cloud version of Control. I already played it on my PC and it's a brilliant game.

Also, excited about the two No More Heroes games, since I never played any of them. Probably the highlight of the Mini Direct for me.

@MS7000 COVID-19 really messed up workflow for Japanese companies. From articles I've read, many companies in Japan didn't adapt very well to working from home at all. I'm not surprised Nintendo Co has been largely quiet.

Before you fire off with "no excuse", please understand that Japanese culture and custom is centered around being at the workplace. Working from home jobs are EXTREMELY rare in that country compared to Europe and North America. Also, Sony isn't a Japanese company any longer since they're headquartered in Los Angeles now, they relocated a few years ago.

So digital versions wasn't bad enough, now streaming counts as an actual release too?

I am so close to being done with gaming.

Part Time UFO looks lovely! And very happy with the No More Heroes trilogy coming to Switch. Good stuff!

@Zuljaras Fallout? There hasn't been one in decades. Elder Scrolls: Wasteland edition, now those they make.

Part time ufo looks interesting..... hoping for a Nintendo life review on it.

That was probably the best content filled Partner Showcase that we've had yet.

That BDII video was weird, though...

@TheFullAndy I'm speculating here, but I wouldn't be surprised if Eternal on Switch launches alongside that rumored Switch upgrade. Might be enhanced for that hardware, and that's why it hasn't come out yet.

Best will probably be the cyberpunk-port

Gotta say, this was a good Partner Showcase. If that's Immortals running on Switch, I'm more inclined to buy it since that looked decent.

@jump Yeah thanks for the April fools joke, not funny either.

@Pj1 you're welcome

@progx Understandable, and I sympathise with that, but the problem I am having is that I cannot see Covid-19 being under control for quite a long-time. I know that vaccines and other measures are being developed/looked at, but it still wouldn't surprise me if we were in for another year of this. I am hoping I am wrong of course, but assuming that is the case, will Nintendo eventually adapt, or are we going to do 2020 Deluxe?

Whatever happens though, I do hope anyone and everyone whether Nintendo or elsewhere stays safe during this pandemic, however long it continues.

whoa control on switch? ok!!

Y’all gotta clarify in the headline if it’s a general direct mini or a partner showcase, cuz I got a mini heart attack thinking we were getting new first party stuff 😅

Three things....
1) The switch is REALLY REALLY REALLY starting to show it's age. This leads me into they next point.
2) Cloud versions of games...I wonder what the performance is like since WiFi connection is butt on switch.
3) HELL YEAH, No More Heroes 1 and 2 are out for the switch.

Update:
Tried the Control (cloud) over a ethernet connection and it's surprisingly playable. $40 for a cloud version of a game. I don't know about that. I only played like 5-10 mins so I was just walking around. Backing out to the home screen requires the game to connect to the game. You get two choices to choose from a "high performance mode" and a "high graphics" mode. I just tried the performance mode. Either way I'm not paying $40 for a cloud version but who knows I might.

Woah cloud versions on the switch, that's exciting! Wonder what big games they'll do next!

Guess having a normal longer Nintendo Direct doesn't work anymore. Though I like these mini direct, they feel very rush at times but the announcements are still nice. Still no word on Doom Eternal's release date. At this point that game may as well been cancelled, the hype is already over.

I'm not a big fan of the cloud streaming thing, mainly because I've tried Stadia and it runs like crap, but I've just gone through the Control demo using the streaming service and it's really really smooth. I mean, am I going to pay £35 for it? I've not answered that myself yet to be honest.

So, I got to the eShop, without knowing about the Direct. I saw all that stuff, and I went like
"What the hell!!!???

I really really really do not like how they stealth stop these. Means I'll be checking NintendoLife on my phone on the bus after work and I'll see all the articles before the Mini Direct headline and I'll have everything spoiled to me already. Can they please go back to announcing when they'll drop these??? Kills a lot of the hype this way. I don't even feel like watching the direct anymore when I get home.

@Giygas_95

Good point. It might be the only real option as Eternal made my PS4 Pro struggle at times and even with a scalable engine and 30fps target I don't see how the og Switch would cope.

I wonder when Okami second is coming out..

@TheFullAndy I remember someone I think from Bethesda saying the Switch port was coming along really great. I hope it's just enhanced on a potential new hardware version and not exclusive to that revision.

No more heroes 1 and 2 were immediate purchases. I never played the second one, loved the first one. But more important..they made them a sensible bloody price. None of Nintendo ***** of "Heres $80cdn for a 6 year olf game we did nothing to"

It seems like Control is not available in the Russian eShop. Is it a NA exclusive? Do other European eshops have it?

Control, excellent news.

Nintendo: PARTNERS showcase

Also Nintendo: Zelda Age Of Calamity

Not into cloud gaming, only Immortals and Age Of Calamity has me interested. Possibly No More Heroes 3 as well but I'm not 100% sold on that yet.

Unfortunately still no Doom Eternal

@BabyYoshi12 it's developed by a 3rd party, do yes it belongs in the partners presentation.

Meh all I want is Okami 2..

@Giygas_95

Here's hoping. If the game runs at a consistent 30fps on Switch it will be a great achievement by Panic Button.

Where is Dungeon Defenders?

@MS7000 That's the problem with many Nintendo fans like you, a direct isn't "proper" unless it's mainly 1st party stuff.

A little thing called covid is currently happening. Cut these developers some slack. It's beyond irritating at this point.

Time to download a demo

Well, no more partner showcases this year, but this was quite a sendoff. While my excitement for Control is curbed by the cloud version ("persistent high-speed internet connection required"? Is this some kind of Far Eastern joke I'm too Belarusian to understand?), scoring BOTH prior No More Heroes entries is a win. Bravely Default II and Immortals look promising as usual, SoS Pioneers and Part-time UFO look charming and Age of Calamity looks even more epic with its apparently playable Divine Beasts. And Tropico 6? Like Civilization 6, one of those cases where I'm seriously tempted to get AND play the lat(er/est) franchise entry way ahead of the others.

The tirelessly expected cream of my #portbegging topics, like FFXIII, Dishonored or Tales of Xillia, will be likely hibernating until January, but these have already been sufficient additions to my gargantuan Switch wishlist and eventually to my comparatively much smaller but still arguably ridiculous Switch library. And some of them are already contributing to making the console's fifth year awesome as well.

@WillQuan Switch can perfectly do this kind of games. A lot of people's mobile (and sometimes even optical fiber) internet can't. The persistent problem of cloud gaming is reliance on the third party infrastructure whose availability and quality is entirely out of a gaming platform owner's hands. But in the select few countries where this infrastructure is up to snuff, Switch has also been offering RE7 and AC Odyssey on the go for years.

Age of Calamity actually looks amazing... I don't have time to play games like that, but I will be watching some of it while I work.

Part Time UFO appears to have full couch co-op... I will be getting that for sure.

The cloud streaming games are very interesting... mostly to hear if it works... I won't be playing those games, but the tech could allow the Switch to get some of the next-gen AAA titles.

Y'all need to stop bashing cloud gaming.. This is going to be the future of gaming. Better get used to it. Besides, it means ultra pc mode graphics on Switch! I tried control. It's awesome and runs very well even on my hotel internet

@EVIL-C I am aware that Covid-19 is happening. I even said in my reply to another comment that hopefully everyone, Nintendo or otherwise, continues to be safe during this pandemic.

That said, Covid-19 could go on for another year for all we know. Is Nintendo going to be the only company to have this issue going forward?

And yes, shock, horror, I brought a Switch because I want to play Nintendo games, and hence, only really care about directs when Nintendo actually have something meaningful to announce, rather than promoting third-parties. If you think the partner showcase was meaningful, good for you, I am very happy for you.

"You are finished, hero of light." "I am a hero of light no longer." Eye roll

@FantasiaWHT Good grief it got worse. I want to put each one of those characters in a sack and drown them to put them out of their misery.

Good to finally get information and a delay confirmation for Bravely Default 2.

Pretty decent direct. Hitman, control, NMH all caught my eye

A lot of cool stuff in this one! And Hall shadow dropping games left and right, I love it!! (The last time they did a puzzle thing it was box boy, and that was amazing. So the little ufo thing is downloading tonight!! )

@MS7000 I don't want another repeat of the Wii U. It's good that they promote 3rd party releases, cause otherwise they get buried. Then the whiners will cry about "where are the third party games?!" Some Nintendo fans never learn.

@progx Hitman 2 was a bop, awesome game

@TheFullAndy i agree, I canceled my pre-order and I assume I’ll just play it on the Xbox I’m going to get out of frustration, even though Switch will still be my bae

Well, I gasp that I thought BOTW 2 was going to be at the end somewhat, but it was Hyrule Warriors...

2021 better not ruin the year for me. 2020 already f'ed that up (sorry, I'm just really tired of this year already, hence why it's probably going so slow)

That Immortals game... I can see the low framerate from the trailer already and the game hasn't come out.
Wanna bet that's not gonna change until NL's review?

@MS7000 Yeah, it's not like they released 5 new games this year. And for sure they are going to read your random comment and change their business.

@EVIL-C From my perspective, Switch already is a repeat of the Wii U. Certainly when it comes to most of the first party line-up. Yes, it is good that Nintendo promotes third-party. But it feels like they are only doing so because they have nothing else to announce. If they did, we would have directs as we knew them.

See this is why I love Nintendo.

No more news about Rune Factory 5, but we got Bravely Default 2 and a new Story of Seasons POG

@Nemesis666 "Yeah, it's not like they released 5 new games this year."

And they have released just as many ports. Even with Covid, was this all Nintendo had planned for this year?

"And for sure they are going to read your random comment and change their business."

Ah yes, Nintendo aren't going to see it, so why comment? You sure told me. Guess there is no point on ever having an opinion. Not like people can discuss a "partner showcase" on an article about the "partner showcase" right?

I think most people realise Nintendo aren't going to see or care about comments here. But this is a comments section. I left a comment. My bad.

@GannonBanned I’ll give it a shot. It’s been on my Xbox for a while

Not excited from that direct partner showcase.........but could lead the way to getting resident evil 7 cloud service in the west and maybe phantasy star online 2 cloud edition.

I’m really happy that No More Heroes 1 and 2 are coming to Switch. I was really hoping they’d do that since I haven’t yet played them, so I’m glad they did. It was a pretty good direct mini, although I really hope a general direct comes soon.

I'm already humming that music from the Part Time U.F.O. reveal. Help.

The last partner showcase of the year was also the strangest, not one, but TWO cloud games were announced to finally release, and this used to be japan-only.
I don't know what this means for these rumoured "Switch Pro" plans, but my safest guess is that Nintendo doesn't want the standard Switch owners to miss out. I mean, Control was released last year, but Hitman 3? It's not even out yet!
Since they're still called "Cloud Version", I hope they run natively on a handheld one day...
Another definite guess I have is, since this goes against the portability of the Switch, Nintendo won't completely rely on these cloud versions. Instead, they're going to be in development simultaneously with what I predict, will be "Switch Pro native" exclusives like the case with Xenoblade Chronicles on New 3DS.

The other games are fortunately running natively on the Switch, and some interesting announcements were made. But the ones I got excited where Bravely Default II (delayed, but there are some reasons behind) and No More Heroes I & II finally releasing on Switch!

And... that was the last Partner Showcase of the year. What an interesting year by the way. The first two presentations left many things to be desired, but the last two? These were the top-notch ones!
Now, it's time to wonder what they could be planning for the last two months. Remember that "First Look at the Nintendo Switch" trailer? Good month

Now, gotta play that Age of Calamity demo.

I haven’t touched my switch in like a year. November 12th please get here

@thiz outer worlds on switch 😂😂😂

@WillQuan yeah ***** possibilities. Streaming will be the death of gaming.

@StevenG same. Streaming will totally devalue gaming just like it's done to music. TV is the only format it works for.

@Brummieendo90 why will it ruin gaming? Just because some people have an attachment to physical media doesn't mean it ruins it for everyone. Like anything it has its pros and cons. I mean people said digital purchases would be the death of gaming, look how that turned out.

Fact of the matter is you have Microsoft, Amazon, Google, Sony and now even Nintendo testing the waters with the technology, its only going to get bigger.

In the end all of the practical criticisms I've seen against game streaming like visual quality, input lag, reliability etc aren't an issue for me when I've streamed games and ownership isn't massively important to me either. I mean I had a PS4 with loads of games I bought downloaded but wasn't really that bothered when I sold my PS4. Physical media is a tiny part of the industry in music, TV and film at this point, similar is going to happen with gaming.

Interested in Immortals but the Cloud stuff go suck off in my opinion. Bad for the industry and the players.

How will Nintendo compete with PS5 and new Xbox? Oh here is a Hitman 3 game. Its coming to every other platform as well though

tried the cloud demo of control and its janky and stuttering. he ho got it on ps4 anyways. Good direct though but must try harder for cloud atm.

Yeah in my opinion it was mostly “bleh”, but I’m not a huge fan of ultra-Japanese type games. If you’re someone that is, then happy for you! I’ll wait for a real Nintendo Direct and I do plan on buying Bravely Default II and Hyrule Warriors though.

made private?

Still waiting for a new Wario Land.

@Razer Wait... Age Of Calamity isn”t Nintendo? I thought Zelda was Nintendo!!!

@BabyYoshi12 Zelda is a Nintendo IP but they leased that particular game to a 3rd party developer to develop for the (in this instance, Team Ninja).

Also you might be interested to know that Bandai Namco actually helped develop Smash Bro's Ultimate too.

Also I'm sure you know that Nintendo allowed Square to use Mario for Mario and Rabbids.

So yeah this does happen a lot actually.

@Razer Huh, I knew it happened quite often but not in this specific game.