Nintendo Direct June 2023

There is no E3 anymore, but the big three gaming companies still put out a showcase showing what we can expect this year and maybe next year.

Nintendo switched to online-only presentations a long time ago and only used the E3 theme to show a direct in June. However, it is now clear that Nintendo simply likes to show each quarter or 3-5 months what they have in store for the next few months and sometimes give a glimpse for the next year. That’s why there is usually a general Nintendo Direct in January/February, then in June and one in September.

This June direct was packed with great games and a few surprises. Have a look if you missed it.

In my opinion, this direct was good. There wasn’t much for me except for a few games, but these games were super surprising and I can’t wait to play them.

The games I am interested in are:

• Pikmin 4

• Pikmin 1+2

• Super Mario RPG

• Super Mario Bros. Wonder

All of these games are, unsurprisingly, Nintendo games. The other games were still interesting, like the Metal Gear Solid collection or the Batman games, however, I would rather or even have played these games on my PS4 or my PS5.

Pikmin

Pikmin 4, I already pre-ordered through the great “buy 2 games for 100€” Coupon that Nintendo offers. I preordered Tears of the Kingdom and Pikmin 4 for 100€, which is a steal in my opinion.

Anyhow, Pikmin 4 looks great and what they showed in the direct made me more excited for the final game than I already was. Can’t wait to play it soon

Right after the Pikmin 4 presentation came a big surprise. Pikmin 1 and 2 are coming to Switch and not only that, they shadow dropped both games as a pack available the same day. Seriously, did not expect to see the games on Switch and then also have them available that day. I purchased both games immediately after and am planning on playing the games, right after when I’m done with Tears of the Kingdom

With the release of Pikmin 4, the whole collection of Pikmin games are available on a single platforms, one of the biggest gaming platform ever. A very smart move by Nintendo. Fans are happy and this gives Nintendo the chance to measure the popularity of Pikmin in general. If Pikmin doesn’t succeed on Switch, it’s game over basically, but I believe it has a high chance of selling well and getting even more Fans in the future.

Super Mario RPG

I only heard good things about this game and this Remake looks really great regarding graphics. I will probably get this game, but not on launch. The Fall and Winter is full of games I want to play and I only have a limited amount of time per week for games. Especially when a game called Super Mario Bros. Wonder is releasing a few weeks prior.

Super Mario Bros. Wonder

This game was a shock moment for me. I did not expect a 2D Mario at the end of the life cycle of the original Nintendo Switch, but here we are. The game looks amazing and it finally a new art style then what we had previously with the “new” series before that.

I have so many thoughts about that game, which I will cover in a different blog post soon.

It’s basically just about this scene in the trailer:

Elephant Mario

This image means so many things at once. Mario is unsafe again and I will explain that soon. Makes me really happy.

Closing Thoughts

Now that Nintendo showed what they have in store for this year, it’s really interesting to think about what’s next. In the coming weeks I will post about the Switch 2, what it could offer and when it could release. Nintendo has to be careful, because coming from a super popular system was always a struggle for them and now they have the chance to break that.