The announcement of new video game hardware can be somewhat predictable. With each new generation of consoles you can expect to see almost certain staples like better graphics, faster load times and new takes on beloved plumber-and-turtle-oriented franchises.
Even Nintendo, which has done this consistently across multiple generations, improving on the N64 analog controller, the tiny GameCube discs, the awkward Wii motion controls and the Virtual Console, the Wii U tablet screen and the Switch's built-in portability, has made these improvements with the Nintendo Switch 2.
But this being Nintendo, the company unveiled some genuine surprises again during the Switch 2 Direct.
It's 2025 and we'll finally be able to play online.
When I was four years old in 1983, my babysitter would roll a football at me like Donkey Kong does a barrel roll at Mario. I would jump on them, make Donkey Kong sound effects in the air, then grab a toy hammer and smash them like Mario. I've been a Nintendo fan for so long. So I say this from experience for so long: it's impossible to talk about this amazing reveal without expressing a little bit of loving bitterness.
As we all know, Nintendo doesn't really play well online. With the exception of Satellaview and Metroid Prime: Hunters, Nintendo has barely scratched the surface of what's possible with the integrated multiplayer platform that Sony and Xbox have built. Finding and talking to friends on Nintendo platforms has never been easier. Even the Nintendo Switch its required a separate app for a voice chat.
And now, shockingly, that change is here. During the Direct, Nintendo unveiled GameChat, and it looks... really cool?! It's a four-player chat that features noise cancelling, a video camera to show friends' faces, and it even supports screen sharing across the console, allowing you to keep track of up to four different displays within a single screen. We know from the new Switch 2 accessibility features page that GameChat also supports text-to-voice and voice-to-text, so these players can communicate in a variety of ways.
So far we haven't seen what the integrated matchmaking interface might add to this. But this is already a big step forward, and I hope it means the final nail in the coffin of the forever-hated friend code.
This is Miyazaki bringing new blood to Nintendo specifically
So when I saw the first frames of this trailer, it dawned on me that I was watching Bloodborne 2. The settings, character design, and atmosphere all had that FROM Software house style. Thanks to IGN's Eric Van Allen, I now know that I was watching footage of The Duskbloods, a multiplayer PvPvE game designed by the smooth-smiling emperor of video game masochism, Hidetaka Miyazaki.
I have no idea where this guy found the time to direct a Nintendo-exclusive game. I'm starting to think he probably never leaves his office or sleeps, just like one of his own confused, hollow characters wasting away in the tall tower of a gothic prison. But I'm grateful. FROM doesn't really remember anymore, so I'm expecting a tasty treat.
It's certainly a surprise, but a welcome one
Speaking of people needing a vacation, apparently Super Smash Bros. director Masuhiro Sakurai has move on from Smash to the new Kirby Game? And that was not expected to happen. Take a nap, man!
The original Kirby's Air Ride was, to put it simply, a pleasant-looking but aggressively unfun Kirby racer for the GameCube. But Sakurai has made no secret of his deep affection for Nintendo's round, pink Elder God, and it's practically certain that Sakurai's directed take on the franchise will be an even more refined and entertaining experience.
Control issue
It was almost a silly moment, but Nintendo announced that the Pro Controller 2 now has an audio jack, and the Pro Controller 2 actually feels pro this time around, which is another feature that's very welcome after nearly a decade. More importantly, they added two mappable extra buttons. I love customizable buttons, so this little surprise really tickles me.
Not Mario?
This one actually surprised me a lot. As far as I can tell, many of Nintendo's Mario creators have been locked in a secret bunker for years working on their next 3D adventure, which I thought would be the big summer game for the Switch. I was so wrong. Turns out the Odyssey team is the force behind Donkey Kong Bananza, a charming new 3D platformer focused on destructible environments. Nintendo is once again playing against expectations as it often does, counting on diehard fans to see the biggest Donkey Kong game in generations and save Mario for another day.
The Switch will also launch with extensive third-party support and Mario Kart World. While World looks like a system-seller, I was under the impression it would be timed as a Christmas-window family game. Nintendo typically relies on Mario, Zelda, or both to sell to its biggest fans during the console's first year. But here Nintendo is looking at Mario Kart 8's record sales with confidence, betting that their most popular party game, along with Bananza, will help sell enough Switch 2 units to make the launch a success.
This Forza Horizon x Nintendo was not on my bingo card at all
Open-world Mario Kart is here, for better or for worse. I'm betting on the better, because Mario Kart's weird physics, quirky vehicles, and combat mechanics lend themselves well to navigating between tracks while battling friends and stitching up chaos. The brief look we've got points to a persistent world, like Bowser's Fury, but much bigger and supporting a myriad of drivers.
That's pretty expensive
The Switch 2 costs a lot. more. So I know everything is expensive right now, it's because tariffs are rising, the yen is falling, and US inflation is on the rise again. But $449.99 USD is a hefty price by any standard, and the Switch 2 is the most expensive launch in Nintendo's more than 40 years of US sales history. And in fact, the Switch 2 costs $150 dollars more than the launch price of its predecessor, and $100 dollars more than the next most expensive Wii U. Successful Nintendo consoles and these handhelds often rely on low prices as a differentiator as well, but the Switch 2 will try to succeed without a price advantage.
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