12th September video game roundup: Nintendo mixes Switch 2 upgrades and new games in latest Direct
Update: The day is done. The Direct is done, and it's given us plenty to think about. Have a lovely weekend.
It's Nintendo Direct time. At 2pm UK time (9am ET, 6am PT, 3pm CEST), Nintendo will give us an hour-long look at what it's been cooking up.
We've been promised updates and releases for both Switch consoles, old and new, and the pressing question for this Direct broadcast is will it feature Mario? Remember, it's the 40th anniversary of Super Mario Bros. this weekend, so now would be a great time to unveil something new. But what?
The Mario Galaxy team was behind Donkey Kong Bananza, so perhaps it's a follow up to the 2D Mario Wonder from 2023. Or perhaps it's something else altogether. Besides Mario, we're hoping for a release date for Metroid Prime 4. And a lovely basket of surprises besides.
Tom and I will be delivering the blow-by-blow report, and after the show ends, we'll continue the day's liveblogging here.
Nintendo Direct – 12/09/2025 Watch on YouTubeOur live coverage of this event has finished.
Key points- 15:05 pm September 12 2025 The Virtual Boy Switch accessory costs £66.99
- 14:38 pm September 12 2025 The big show roundup
- 14:06 pm September 12 2025 Show's over - thoughts?
- 14:05 pm September 12 2025 Fire Emblem: Fortune's Weave announced for 2026
- 14:03 pm September 12 2025 Resident Evil Requiem & Village & 7 announced for Switch
- 13:58 pm September 12 2025 Monster Hunter Stories 2 out in March next year
- 13:56 pm September 12 2025 Daganronpa 2 is making a comeback
- 13:52 pm September 12 2025 Pokémon Pokopia is sort of Pokémoncraft and it's coming in 2026
- 13:48 pm September 12 2025 Paid DK Bananza DLC out today - and a demo for the main game
- 13:46 pm September 12 2025 Metroid Prime 4 is out this year - 4th December
- 13:45 pm September 12 2025 Samus gets a motorbike!
- 13:42 pm September 12 2025 Powerwash Simulator coming to Switch 2 this autumn
- 13:40 pm September 12 2025 Fatal Frame 2 remake coming early next year
- 13:39 pm September 12 2025 New Virtual Boy device announced for Switch 1/2
- 13:37 pm September 12 2025 Dragon Quest 7 Reimagined in February
- 13:35 pm September 12 2025 Zelda Hyrule Warriors: Age of Imprisonment launches 6th November
- 13:31 pm September 12 2025 Hades 2 is a Switch 1/2 console exclusive and launches 25th September
- 13:28 pm September 12 2025 Final Fantasy 7 Remake Integrade coming to Switch 2
- 13:26 pm September 12 2025 New Tomodachi Life brings Mii avatars back but has horrid AI robo voices
- 13:19 pm September 12 2025 Yoshi and the Mysterious Book looks lovely
- 13:18 pm September 12 2025 Nintendo is making an actual Talking Flower toy
- 13:15 pm September 12 2025 Super Mario Bros Wonder Switch 2 Edition announced
- 13:14 pm September 12 2025 Mario Tennis Fever launches February 2026
- 13:08 pm September 12 2025 Mario Galaxy 1 & 2 double-pack for Switch 2 announced
- 13:03 pm September 12 2025 Nintendo announces Super Mario Galaxy film coming April 2026
- 13:00 pm September 12 2025 And we're off!
- 12:59 pm September 12 2025 One minute to go...
- 12:40 pm September 12 2025 It's Nintendo time!
It's Nintendo time!
Here we are with a full-fat showcase on the way. What are you hoping to see?
Robert Purchese 12:48 pm UTCchesterBox says: Afternoon! What I'm hoping to see is not realistically possible but...new Zelda only for Switch 2 would be extremely cool. (i know, i know it's many years away).
Aside from that bunch of dedicated Switch 2 titles, new Mario Odyssey?
Don't limit those dreams, Chester! I'd take an exclusive new Zelda too.
Robert Purchese 12:51 pm UTCCreeping Death says: A Prime 4 release date is a pretty safe bet, I think. My money is on November.
Completely out of the box, I'd love to see a new Fatal Frame or some re-release of 1 - 3 announced.
Honestly, I just want to see some games for the rest of the year that I actually want to buy.
Fatal Frame! That's a great shout.
Robert Purchese 12:52 pm UTC2much says: My number one desire is for a new Fire Emblem announcement, ideally by the same team as Three Houses. I'm not expecting us to see a new Animal Crossing, Smash Bros, or 3D Zelda, but obviously those would be nice. I'd like a new 3D Mario game but my suspicion is that we'll be seeing a new 2D Mario game. What I really want is to see something really out there that's really high effort and shows to me that Nintendo are excited about the Switch 2. MKW and DKB were great but I want to see something whose development didn't start on the Switch.
I'd take a new Fire Emblem!
Robert Purchese 12:52 pm UTCSBandy says: New Star Fox, New Wave Race, New F-Zero, Eternal Darkness anything.
N64 remaster collection from Nightdive Studios.
Ability to turn off the godawful borders on the online Nintendo Classic games.
DIDDY.KONG.RACING.
I wish patch notes read like: "Ability to turn off the godawful borders on the online Nintendo Classic games."
Robert Purchese 12:53 pm UTCAfternoon everyone. Morning, if you're in the US. The resident Nintendo hater has logged on! I say that because I've been called it in the past. It's not true. I simply didn't enjoy Disaster: Day of Crisis on the Wii, so someone sent me a death threat.
Happy Nintendo Direct everyone!
Tom Orry 12:54 pm UTCIncidentally, there sort-of is a new Star Fox in development from one of the people who made the original. It's called Wild Blue.
Wild Blue | Gameplay Trailer | PC & Xbox Series X|S Watch on YouTube Robert Purchese 12:55 pm UTCmcmahonman says: I'm hoping for a re-release/sequel of Super Mario Bros 35(40 in this case.) The original was incredibly good fun and I'm sure there is more you can do with that idea.
Goodness me I must have missed dozens of those Mario games. I don't remember us getting to 35!
Dad jokes are a given gratis here, by the way.
Robert Purchese 12:56 pm UTCI love Mario Galaxy 2. As much as Mario 64 was "my" Mario game as a kid, Galaxy 2 is incredible.
Tom Orry 12:56 pm UTCAbout Doubt says: Silksong release date!
Haha - well played!
Robert Purchese 12:57 pm UTCAbout Doubt says: Silksong release date!
What if they un-release it! Would be a big shock announcement as the "final thing".
Tom Orry 12:59 pm UTCOne minute to go...
Tick tick tick. We're getting there. Buckle up!
Robert Purchese 12:59 pm UTCWithLove&Squalor says: BLOODBORNE 2 WHEN
Preach! Preach!
Robert Purchese 13:00 pm UTCStarted spontaneously whistling a Galaxy 2 tune. Anyone guess what it is?
Tom Orry 13:00 pm UTCAnd we're off!
Here we go. The show starts. Some jaunty shapes act all jauntily on screen. They are Nintendo shapes, a special breed. They work together like ants to make a Nintendo Direct logo. What poetic coverage!
Mario starts us! We see sketches from various Mario games...
Robert Purchese 13:02 pm UTCThere's Shigeru Miyamoto. Apparently he used to smoke like a chimney. He's talking about the 40th anniversary tomorrow.
He's talking about how Mario games have been supported by evolutions in technology. Is Nintendo making a VR headset as well?
From now until next September, tickets to the Nintendo Museum design show will be free, he says. You just need a plane ticket to Japan first.
Robert Purchese 13:03 pm UTCNintendo opened a theme park in America, too, he's telling us. And now he's jumped back to Japan to tell us about a marathon in Kyoto. You can print a special Nintendo bib for the race apparently. But again, you'll need to actually get there.
Right. Enough of that. Coming next spring...
Robert Purchese 13:03 pm UTCNintendo announces Super Mario Galaxy film coming April 2026
This must be a look at the new Super Mario Bros. film!
Robert Purchese 13:04 pm UTCMario's asleep by a tree in a lush green field. Then the camera flies through a verdant land.
The Super Mario Galaxy Movie!
Nintendo is working with Illumination on the movie. It's coming in April 2026.
Robert Purchese 13:06 pm UTCWhy does it feel like this guy is talking to young children?
Tom Orry 13:07 pm UTCWe're hearing from Illumination person, um, something or other, who's talking very slowly to the camera.
Chris Pratt is Mario again. Anya Taylor-Joy is Peach. Charlie Day is Luigi. Jack Black is Bowser. Keegan-Michael Key is Toad. And Kevn Michael Richards is Kamek.
Robert Purchese 13:08 pm UTCMario Galaxy 1 & 2 double-pack for Switch 2 announced
A Super Mario Galaxy and Galaxy 2 double-pack is coming to Switch 2. They don't look to have been changed very much. I wonder if we'll hear more about technical improvements, if there are any.
They're coming 2nd October.
I imagine they'll cost a pretty penny.
Robert Purchese 13:10 pm UTCKoizumi-san is here now to tell us more about the two Galaxy games. He's recapping the concept. You can read Rosalina's book in both games, he's telling us. And it's going to be available as a real-life product.
Oh and that's it - more details to come.
Robert Purchese 13:11 pm UTCNew storybook pages?!
Tom Orry 13:13 pm UTCNow Nintendo is going to introduce some other Mario games coming to Switch 2.
Mario Tennis Fever. There are new defensive manouevres in it and Fever rackets, which are like super-charged tennis rackets. You can freeze a court with an ice racket. There's a mini-mushroom racket, a shadow racket. There are 30 Fever rackets each with their own abilities.
"A talking flower provides riveting commentary in Tournament mode." The trailer narrator really just said that.
Robert Purchese 13:14 pm UTCMario Tennis Fever launches February 2026
And it's got an Adventure mode where you can play as Mario babies, which is a weird sentence to write. Mario Tenns Fever launches 12th February 2026.
Robert Purchese 13:14 pm UTCI think from now on I'm going to say "and" like "Annnnnnnd" after hearing this Tennis man say it. Might make it my whole identity.
Tom Orry 13:15 pm UTCSuper Mario Bros Wonder Switch 2 Edition announced
Super Mario Bros Wonder now. But it's just a Switch 2 edition, sigh.
It's got an attached meet-up in Bellabel Park mode, which looks like it comes with some more multiplayer party-game modes.
Robert Purchese 13:16 pm UTC2much says: We're gonna see so many Switch 1 games resold to use as Switch 2 editions aren't we? This is gonna be the thing that makes me mad during every Direct, isn't it?
It's got that feel to it!
Robert Purchese 13:16 pm UTCSo yes, Bellabel park is all about packing various versions of multiplayer content. As to the other new stuff in Super Mario Bros. Wonder Switch 2 Edition, we'll have to wait and see.
The game is out in spring 2026.
Robert Purchese 13:17 pm UTCMaybe I'm missing something, but I don't understand why these Switch 2 add-ons for Switch games are only for Switch 2. Nothing here seems like it wouldn't be fine on the OG Switch, which still has a big audience.
Tom Orry 13:18 pm UTCNintendo is making an actual Talking Flower toy
You know that talking flower Nintendo has been talking about during this broadcast? They're making an actual toy of it. It looks like a minuature gramaphone. It's coming out in the spring.
It's Alarmo all over again isn't it.
Robert Purchese 13:19 pm UTCYoshi and the Mysterious Book looks lovely
We're onto a Yoshi game now, which seems to involve Yoshi reading a flower-themed book at the moment. Yoshi then teleports into the book to explore, and then eats the flower and plops it out as an egg to find out more.
As you adventure through the book, it'll fill out, just like books do in the real world.
It's very cute looking, whatever this game is - papery, slightly slower frames per second to look stop animated.
"A page-turning adventure awaits."
It's Yoshi and the Mysterious Book. Spring 2026.
Robert Purchese 13:20 pm UTCYoshi and the Mysterious Book looks brilliant.
Tom Orry 13:20 pm UTCRogueywon says: We're certainly all-in on the talking flower here.
I like that they haven't even bothered to think up a name for it. It's just "talking flower.
Haha - quite!
Robert Purchese 13:21 pm UTCWe're getting an update on games coming to Switch now. This is a side-scrolling roguelike called, um, Cryptoka. Crypto-something or other. I'm good at this aren't I? There's co-op. It's not called Crypto-something at all!
It's called Storm Lancers and it's out today.
Robert Purchese 13:22 pm UTCI'm Australian so I can definitively say that this is exactly what being in Australia is like.
Tom Orry 13:22 pm UTCA charming Australian-themed survival sim now, which has Animal Crossing vibes x Minecraft. Dinkum, it's called, which is very Australian. It's coming 6th November. A demo is out later today.
Robert Purchese 13:23 pm UTCAnother co-op game here, a third-person action game but also a puzzle game, based around shooting coloured-bullets at coloured sections of enemies. There's a party mode for more players too.
Popucom. Coming this winter.
Robert Purchese 13:24 pm UTCI'm not the only one who thought that name was a bit... rude, right?
Robert Purchese 13:26 pm UTCThe voices of the Miis are real right? I'm not hallucinating?
Tom Orry 13:26 pm UTCNew Tomodachi Life brings Mii avatars back but has horrid AI robo voices
A Mii-using island adventure now. Oh god AI voices. Then they live on an Animal Crossing-like island somewhere.
It's a bit Simsy. You pick up other characters to make them talk to each other. They've got a garbled language, too.
Oh, you can tickle them? That's weird.
It's Tomocachi Life: Living the Dream, coming next spring
Robert Purchese 13:27 pm UTCDigital Eclipse's Mortal Kombat Legacy Collection is coming to Switch. It is excellent. It's coming 30th November.
Robert Purchese 13:28 pm UTCFinal Fantasy 7 Remake Integrade coming to Switch 2
The Final Fantasy 7 Remake is coming to Switch 2 in 22nd January 2026.
Robert Purchese 13:29 pm UTCRogueywon says: Ok, it's official: InZoi is no longer the creepiest Sims-clone around.
I think we'll all be checking under the bed for creepy-voiced Miis before going to sleep tonight.
Tom Orry 13:30 pm UTCIt's Hades 2!
A glitzy cinematic trailer for Hades 2 to announce that...
(Please launch today...)
Oh they're padding the announcement out!
Robert Purchese 13:31 pm UTCHades 2 is a Switch 1/2 console exclusive and launches 25th September
We're getting an overview of Hades 2. Cut to the good stuff, Nintendo!
Hades 2 is a console-exclusive on Switch 2 and launches 25 September.
It's also getting a 120 FPS mode while played in TV mode, apparently.
Robert Purchese 13:33 pm UTCRogueywon says: I have a transatlantic flight on September 26th. I think Supergiant just sorted out my entertainment for that.
Perfect!
Robert Purchese 13:33 pm UTCNintendo copying Ubisoft's underrated Starlink with these Kirby amiibo.
Tom Orry 13:35 pm UTCZelda Hyrule Warriors: Age of Imprisonment launches 6th November
This is the Zelda musou game Hyrule Warriors: Age of Imprisonment now, in which you play as Zelda.
This one's got split-screen co-op!
It launches 6th November.
Robert Purchese 13:35 pm UTCCarl Sheen says: "Hades 2 is a Switch 2 console exclusive"
Also on Switch 1
D'oh - thanks!
Robert Purchese 13:37 pm UTCWhy does the guy in red in Dragon Quest 7 have the most annoying face I've ever seen?
Tom Orry 13:37 pm UTCDragon Quest 7 Reimagined in February
I am glossing over this perfectly lovely Dragon Quest CGI now. What a moustache that character has!
Dragon Quest 7 Reimagined is coming 5th February. We're seeing some footage of it and it looks greatly visually improved.
Robert Purchese 13:39 pm UTCNew Virtual Boy device announced for Switch 1/2
Nintendo has made a new Virtual Boy device compatible with Switch 1/2! It's coming 17th February and there are a host of games being released for it.
There's going to be a cardboard model of the accessory released as well, presumably to play the games without shelling out a considerable amount of money for some plastic tat.
Robert Purchese 13:39 pm UTCOMG, they are selling a Virtual Boy accessory to play the games on switch. Pure Nintendo.
Thankfully there's also a cardboard version!
Tom Orry 13:40 pm UTCFTJT says: They're not going to sell a single one of those. Not one.
It'll sell out in five seconds!
Tom Orry 13:40 pm UTCFatal Frame 2 remake coming early next year
Your Fatal Frame dream has come true! Sort of. There's a remake coming for Fatal Frame: Crimson Butterly. We see some footage of it and it looks nicely improved.
It's coming early next year.
Robert Purchese 13:40 pm UTCDid one of the Fatal Frame characters just start singing part of the Gaga song from Top Gun Maverick?
Tom Orry 13:41 pm UTCWho's buying one of those Virtual Boys then?
Robert Purchese 13:42 pm UTCPowerwash Simulator coming to Switch 2 this autumn
Ooh. There's a Switch 2 version of Stardew Valley coming with four-player co-op. And there's a Switch 2 version of Human Fall Flat. "You can enjoy a new way to wobble."
Powerwash Simulator is coming to Switch 2 in the Autumn. It's got "enhanced soap". It's got local split-screen co-op.
Robert Purchese 13:45 pm UTCSamus gets a motorbike!
We're getting nearer the end now so we're moving onto some bigger things. This looks like Samus. This must be Metroid Prime 4: Beyond.
Samus is on a Tron-like motorbike. She's blasting across sand dunes as electric guitars blare in the background.
She's power sliding into enemies to defeat them, which is cool.
Now she's off the bike and blasting.
Robert Purchese 13:45 pm UTCDid someone accidentally drop their uni project into this Direct? That Metroid bike stuff looks... well.. bad?
Tom Orry 13:46 pm UTCMetroid Prime 4 is out this year - 4th December
The trailer is still blaring electric guitars. Oh and that was it? Release date!
4th December 2025!
Robert Purchese 13:47 pm UTCBanana!
Tom Orry 13:48 pm UTCPaid DK Bananza DLC out today - and a demo for the main game
We're seeing some new Donkey Kong Bananza content here. It's all about collecting emeralds. Oh nice and we get random power-ups as we play. it's a roguelike mode, it looks like. You see how far you can get in each run and unlock various treats as you go.
DK Island and Emerald Rush paid DLC launches today. A demo of the main game will be out today too.
Robert Purchese 13:52 pm UTCPokémon Pokopia is sort of Pokémoncraft and it's coming in 2026
10 minutes to go. Here's a Pokéball. Here's Ditto. Here's a new Pokémon game?
It's a Minecraft-like world where we play as Ditto, it seems. Ditto learns a move from Bulbasaur to grow plants. Then Squirtle teaches Ditto how to water the plants. As the island folourishes, so do the Pokémon.
We can build. We can build homes for the Pokémon. And we can have gardens. The Pokémon all mill around and hang out with you.
Pokémoncraft?
Robert Purchese 13:52 pm UTCEveryone: We like casual farming sims.
Nintendo: Ditto
Tom Orry 13:52 pm UTCRogueywon says: It looks more Fantasy Life than Minecraft. The crafting looks pretty limited.
It does!
Robert Purchese 13:53 pm UTCPokémon Legends Z-A now, which is coming to Switch 2 on 16th Oct with three new mega evolutions.
Robert Purchese 13:54 pm UTCWe're still in Pokémon land. Pokémon Legelds Z-A: Mega Dimension DLC is coming to the game too. It's got two new mega evolutions for Raichu.
Robert Purchese 13:56 pm UTCDaganronpa 2 is making a comeback
Danganronpa 2 is making a comeback. And along with the main game, there's an additional story being included.
Danganronpa 2x2 is coming to Switch 1/2 next year.
Robert Purchese 13:57 pm UTCDynasty Warriors Origins is coming to Switch 2 in January 22nd.
Robert Purchese 13:58 pm UTCMonster Hunter Stories 2 out in March next year
Monster Hunter Stories 2: Twisted Reflections now. A turn-based role-playing game where you raise monsters and battle with them. 13th March 2026.
Robert Purchese 13:59 pm UTCWhat's the show-closer? That's the question.
Robert Purchese 13:59 pm UTCJust throwing this out there. Ignore if bad...
Bike version of Ridley in Metroid Prime 4: Ridely.
That's it.
Tom Orry 14:00 pm UTC A dark room. A phone rings. Resident Evil vibes. A dark corridor, a battered old door. A lady's voice. It is Resident Evil. Resi Requiem. Robert Purchese 14:02 pm UTCResi trailer would have been scarier had it used the Mii voices.
Tom Orry 14:03 pm UTCResident Evil Requiem & Village & 7 announced for Switch
We're seeing a shorter version of the Resident Evil Requiem trailer we saw in the summer. It doesn't look quite as glossy as on other platforms but it doesn't look too bad.
Resident Evil 9 Requiem is coming to Switch 2 on 29th February.
Oh and there's one more thing?
Resi Village and Resi 7 are also coming to Switch on the same day.
Robert Purchese 14:03 pm UTCWhy on earth are they launching three Resi games on the same day?
Tom Orry 14:03 pm UTCBut there is one more thing and it looks like Fire Emblem?
Robert Purchese 14:05 pm UTCFire Emblem: Fortune's Weave announced for 2026
It really looks like Fire Emblem! But set around Roman arena-style games?
We're getting a good overview of the game here and it's ticking all the right boxes.
Fire Emblem: Fortune's Weave. 2026.
Robert Purchese 14:06 pm UTCShow's over - thoughts?
And that's it. It dipped, it worried us, but Nintendo pulled it back at the end?
Robert Purchese 14:08 pm UTCAs someone who finds the Fire Emblem games complete snoozefests (sorry, seemingly everyone in chat), that Direct wasn't the best. I was most looking forward to Metroid Prime 4, but the bike sections look awful.
Tom Orry 14:09 pm UTCI got very into a Fire Emblem on 3DS. I can't remember what it was called. I missed Three Houses. So I'm preparing myself for the plunge into this one. But how long will we have to wait? Still, it's exciting.
Robert Purchese 14:10 pm UTCI think a lot of how people view Switch 2 depends on what consoles/PC you own. If I'm purely a Switch 2 player, Resi news is great. As someone who will play it PS5 Pro, it's not a huge bit of news personally.
Tom Orry 14:13 pm UTC2much says: Bertie it was probably Awakening you played, or maybe Fates. I've only played Three Houses and Engage to completion but they're both great, especially the former. I've played about half of The Sacred Stones on NSO too and that's also fantastic
Awakening sounds right! Yes - Chrom! It was definitely that one. Gosh, 2012?! That was a long time ago.
Robert Purchese 14:15 pm UTCI'm torn on the simplistic re-releases of the Mario Galaxy games. Both of them still look great due to the art design, but part of me wants to see what could have been done with a visual overhaul.
Tom Orry 14:33 pm UTCAntendo says: Glad i'm not the only one who would unashamedly buy that Virtual Boy... it has a golf game for god's sakes!
(also hoping Mario Tennis Fever is better than Aces)
That's two people at least who've said they'll buy it. That's two sales you've got there, Nintendo!
Robert Purchese 14:38 pm UTCThe big show roundup
Image credit: Eurogamer/NintendoWe've gathered all of the trailers from the show, and all of the announcements, and put them into one handy list.
- Here's everything announced in Nintendo's latest Direct
The Virtual Boy Switch accessory costs £66.99
The Virtual Boy Switch 1/2 add-on costs £66.99, it seems.
Image credit: Nintendo Robert Purchese 15:07 pm UTC Image credit: NintendoWhich reminds me of Alex's very timely review of Nintendo's Virtual Boy, which we published when Switch 2 launched. It was a bit of a cheeky fake-out from us. But who doesn't want a hardware review decades later?
- A completely timely review of Nintendo's controversial, expensive handheld
Zathtrec says: Virtua boy? This isn't Sega!
/quits
Robert Purchese 15:44 pm UTCOrdered 100 Virtual Boy add-ons for Switch 2 as an investment. No one tell my wife. This is my make it or break it moment!
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