Famichatting: E3 2021 Nintendo Direct - Danny

Danny | @dannybiv

I opted to watch the Japanese E3 2021 Nintendo Direct as opposed to the Western ones just in case there were any differences in the games that were shown off. I don’t know if I’ll go as far to say that I made the “right call” there, but it was really quite different. If you want to read more about those differences, you should definitely check out our handy article all about that here. 

With that out of the way, by and large, the big announcements were all pretty much the same regardless of which version you were watching. There are a lot of things to be hyped about, but here’s what have me the most excited:

The Legend of Zelda Game & Watch

Who says that Nintendo isn’t releasing new hardware in 2021? It’s obviously no Switch Pro, but a close second. Jokes aside, I’m a sucker for collectibles and things like this. I was pretty satisfied with last years Super Mario Bros. Game & Watch, and ended up playing it a lot more than I thought I would. I was mainly playing “Ball,” the actual Game & Watch title included in the package. For something like this with a more involved set of beefy games from the Zelda series, I can see myself putting even more time in this iteration of the device. Of course, I have access to ALL of these games between my Switch, 3DS and a variety of other versions of the game. At the same time, they’re not all put together in this cool, super portable handheld. I already have mine pre-ordred and can’t wait for November 12! 

Metroid Dread

It’s great to see a new Metroid game. And not just ANY Metroid game, either. Many of you old school Nintendo fans probably remember the name from yesteryear and I think it’s cool that Nintendo is finally giving this game the green light. The new E.M.M.I. enemy is terrifying and really adds a serious sense of dread (no pun intended) to the game. The feeling of isolation combined with these maniacs chasing you around the stages makes me nervous just thinking about it. 

Gameplay looks like a bit of an evolution of what we saw in 2017’s Samus Returns on the Nintendo 3DS. The HD coat of paint and the fact that we have a new 2D Metroid on the Switch makes this all the more appealing. Oh, and the special edition of the game and amiibo look super sharp and just really well done. I’ve got them pre-ordered and am ready for a busy month of gaming in October. 

Random Surprise - Marvel’s Guardians of the Galaxy

The thing that surprised me the most during the show was something that not a lot of people noticed/cared about. That would be Marvel’s Guardians of the Galaxy coming to the Switch. Even as I was watching and screen capping the Japanese version of the Direct, the title CLEARLY said “Cloud Version” in the title, but I missed it. Chalk that up to it being after 1 a.m. here in Japan. I was wondering how in the hell they were going to pull off a game with that kind of visual fidelity on Nintendo’s platform. Well, we’ve got our answer. 

At any rate, I’ve had relatively good experiences with cloud based gaming in Japan on Nintendo platforms with Assassin’s Creed Odyssey on Switch and Dragon Quest X Online on the 3DS. They haven’t outright said it, but I imagine that same team, the company Ubitus, are the ones working on this version of the game. It’s not ideal, obviously, but I think the gameplay here and the story/dialogue elements look like fun. I’m also a sucker for the Guardians to some extent. I’m seriously thinking about throwing down when this game releases in late October. 

Honorable Mentions

Breath of the Wild 2

There’s not a whole lot to go by, and we still have a long wait. I like the new “shaggy haired” version of Link and am curious what exactly that arm power-up can do. We saw our hero liquifying himself through solid stone through the power of…something. Seems cool. 

Super Monkey Ball: Banana Mania

I love the original Monkey Ball on the GCN. I did NOT like the sequel for a variety of reasons that I just can’t remember. This one is on my radar. It’s just a matter of time and money at this point, though. 

Dragon Ball Z: Kakarot

I loved DBZ back in the day and the thought of playing through some of the most iconic stories in the history of the anime seems cool. It looks great visually from what we’ve seen, but I just hope it can hold on up on the Switch. Again as with Monkey Ball, me picking up this game depends on how much time and/or money I have when it releases in September.