Nintendo Switch 2 Direct: 7 Biggest Surprises

New video crippled hardware announcements tin go somewhat predictable. With each caller procreation of consoles you tin expect to spot near-certain staples similar amended graphics, faster load times, and caller takes connected beloved, plumber-and-turtle-oriented franchises.

Even Nintendo, which has done this consistently crossed respective generations, from the N64 analog controller, tiny GameCube discs, wacky Wii question controls and Virtual Console, the Wii U tablet screen, and the Switch’s built-in portability, has delivered these improvements with the Switch 2.

But being Nintendo, the institution again unveiled a fewer genuine shockers during the Switch 2 Direct.

It's 2025 and we yet get online play.

When I was 4 years aged successful 1983, my babysitter utilized to rotation footballs astatine maine similar Donkey Kong rolling barrels astatine Mario. I would leap implicit them, making a Donkey Kong dependable effect successful the air, past drawback a artifact hammer and smash them similar Mario. That’s however agelong I’ve been a Nintendo fan. So I accidental this from a spot of long-suffering experience: it’s going to beryllium intolerable to speech astir this awesome uncover without revealing a small loving bitterness.

Nintendo, arsenic we each know, does not truly play online well. Satellaview and Metroid Prime: Hunters aside, Nintendo has hardly scraped the aboveground of what’s imaginable with a unified multiplayer level similar those created by Sony and Xbox. It’s ne'er arsenic casual to find and speech with friends connected a Nintendo platform. Even the Switch required a abstracted app for dependable chat.

Shockingly, alteration appears to beryllium present now. During the Direct, Nintendo unveiled GameChat, and it looks... truly neat?! It's a four-player chat that supports sound suppression, video cameras for showing friends’ faces, and surface sharing crossed consoles, allowing you to support an oculus connected up to 4 antithetic displays wrong a azygous screen. We cognize from the caller Switch 2 accessibility features leafage that GameChat besides supports text-to-voice and voice-to-text, allowing players to pass aggregate ways.

Now we haven’t seen what, if any, unified matchmaking interface mightiness necktie into this conscionable yet. But it’s already a large step, and I’m hoping it means the past nail successful the coffin for the abominable person codification forever.

Miyazaki is bringing caller humor exclusively to Nintendo

When I saw the archetypal frames of this trailer, I thought I was seeing Bloodborne 2. The ambiance, the quality design, and the environments each screamed the FROM Software location style. Thanks to Eric Van Allen astatine IGN, I present cognize that I was watching footage from The Duskbloods, a multiplayer PvPvE crippled designed by the softly-smiling monarch of video crippled masochism, Hidetaka Miyazaki.

I bash not cognize wherever this antheral recovered clip to nonstop a Nintendo-exclusive game. I’m starting to deliberation that helium whitethorn ne'er permission his bureau nor sleep, overmuch similar 1 of his ain confused, hollowed characters wasting distant successful the precocious operation of immoderate gothic prison. But I’m grateful. FROM doesn’t truly miss anymore, truthful I’m anticipating a tasty treat.

A astonishment to beryllium sure, but a invited one

Speaking of radical who request a vacation, seemingly Super Smash Bros. manager Masuhiro Sakurai has moved connected from Smash to a caller Kirby game? Did not spot that coming. Get that antheral a nap!

The archetypal Kirby's Air Ride was, to enactment it bluntly, a pleasant-looking but aggressively unfun Kirby racer for GameCube. But Sakurai has made nary concealed of his heavy affinity for Nintendo’s round, pinkish elder god, and it’s practically a certainty that a Sakurai-helmed instrumentality connected the franchise volition beryllium a acold much refined and enjoyable experience.

Control issues

It was astir a throwaway moment, but the Pro Controller 2 sounds genuinely Pro this clip astir erstwhile Nintendo announced the Pro Controller 2 has an audio jack now, which is different diagnostic that’s invited astir a decennary later. More importantly, they’ve added 2 mappable other buttons. I LOVE customizable buttons, truthful this tiny astonishment really tickled maine pink.

No Mario?!

This 1 genuinely shocked me. Near arsenic I tin tell, a batch of Nintendo’s Mario makers person been locked up successful a concealed bunker for years moving connected his adjacent 3D adventure, which I assumed would beryllium the large summertime crippled for Switch. I was precise wrong. Turns retired the Odyssey squad is the unit down Donkey Kong Bananza, the captivating caller 3D platformer with a absorption connected destructible environments. Nintendo is erstwhile again playing against expectations arsenic it truthful often does, trusting hardcore fans to flock to Donkey Kong’s biggest crippled successful generations and redeeming Mario for different day.

Switch volition besides motorboat with extended 3rd enactment enactment and Mario Kart World. While World looks similar a system-seller, I figured it would beryllium timed arsenic a Christmas-window household game. Nintendo usually leans connected Mario, Zelda, oregon some to merchantability to their biggest fans during a console’s archetypal year. But Nintendo is looking astatine Mario Kart 8’s grounds income with confidence, betting their astir fashionable enactment game, alongside Bananza, volition assistance determination capable Switch 2 units to marque motorboat a success.

Forza Horizon x Nintendo was not connected my bingo card

Open-world Mario Kart is here, whether it beryllium for bully oregon for ill. I’m betting connected good, arsenic the zany physics, weird vehicles, and combat mechanics of Mario Kart should lend themselves good to navigating betwixt and crossed tracks battling friends and sewing chaos. The abbreviated look we got seems to bespeak a continuous satellite a la Bowser’s Fury, but overmuch larger and supporting myriad drivers.

It’s precise expensive

The Switch 2 costs excessively much. I get that everything is costly close now, arsenic tariffs spell up, the yen goes down, and American ostentation reignites. But $449.99 USD is simply a hefty terms by immoderate standard, and Switch 2 is the astir costly motorboat successful Nintendo’s 40-plus US income history. In fact, Switch 2 costs $150 dollars much than its predecessor’s motorboat price, and is $100 dollars much than the next-most-expensive Wii U. Successful Nintendo consoles and handhelds person often relied connected little prices arsenic a differentiator, but Switch 2 volition beryllium looking to win without a terms advantage.

Jared Petty is simply a erstwhile IGN exertion who likes penning astir however fantastic and silly video games are. You tin find him astatine Bluesky arsenic pettycommajared.