The September 2022 Nintendo Direct contained lots of big announcements, including the reveal that Breath of the Wild's sequel is titled The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom and will be released on May 12, 2023. Although that, and some of the other big first-party announcements, are what people will remember most about the show, quite a few cool announcements at the show may have gone under the radar.
While you can check out Digital Trends' show recap for a full list of everything announced, we also want to highlight some announcements you might have missed while watching live. From surprising rereleases to cool DLC and Switc- exclusive features, don't ignore these five September 13 Nintendo Direct announcements.
GoldenEye 007's Online Mode is Nintendo Switch exclusive
GoldenEye 007 – Xbox Game Pass Reveal Trailer
You probably noticed the announcement that Nintendo 64 classic GoldenEye 007 is coming to Nintendo Switch Online. But did you know that it's also coming to Xbox One and Xbox Series X via Xbox Game Pass and Rare Replay? That alone is surprising, although it's understandable when one considers that GoldenEye 007 developer Rare is owned by Microsoft. But more importantly, it's shocking that the Xbox version of the game won't feature online multiplayer.
"Xbox is excited to bring GoldenEye 007 to Xbox Game Pass for the very first time - a faithful recreation of a much-loved and iconic title. While there are no plans to include online multiplayer as part of GoldenEye 007 on Xbox Game Pass, Xbox is focused on bringing this title to players in the way they fondly remember, including local multiplayer mode, allowing up to four players to take to the couch in a battle of wits and skill," an Xbox representative told Digital Trends.
Despite the fact that Xbox is typically more multiplayer-minded than Nintendo and owns the developer of the game, the Xbox One and Xbox Series X/S versions of the game will only have local multiplayer. So, whenever Goldeneye 007 comes to Nintendo Switch Online, give its online multiplayer a shot because that's somethingonly players on Nintendo Switch can do.
Goldeneye 007 is "coming soon" to Nintendo Switch, Xbox One, and Xbox Series X/S.
Fatal Frame: Mask of the Lunar Eclipse finally comes west
FATAL FRAME: Mask of the Lunar Eclipse - Announcement Trailer
While the eyes of people who don't like horror games might have glossed over when Fatal Frame: Mask of the Lunar Eclipse popped up as the show's third announcement, it's actually very notable that this game is finally getting released in North America and Europe. Late in the first decade of this century, Nintendo saved the Fatal Frame series like it did with Bayonetta and published Mask of the Lunar Eclipse as a Wii exclusive. While the game came out in Japan, it never saw a release in North America or Europe.
While a fan translation emerged in the years following its release, this remaster is the first time the game will officially be available in North America and Europe. The horror game follows three girls who were kidnapped on Rōgetsu Isle when they were younger, but return to the island when they're older after two girls who were also kidnapped die. Ultimately, the girls end up having to use an object called the Camera Obscura to seal away vengeful ghosts. This remaster polishes up graphical textures, lighting, and character models, but players can also expect new costumes and a photo mode.
Fatal Frame: Mask of the Lunar Eclipse will be released for PC, PS4, PS5, Xbox One, Xbox Series X/S, and Nintendo Switch in early 2023.
Mario Party 1, 2, and 3 are getting rereleased
Nintendo Switch Online + Expansion Pack – Nintendo Direct 9.13.22 – Nintendo Switch
In addition to Goldeneye 007, Nintendo Switch Online's Nintendo 64 lineup also impressed when it was revealed that the first three Mario Party games would all come to the service. The first two games will come to the service before the end of the year, while Mario Party 3 will be added in 2023. While Mario Party Superstars was enjoyable, the addition of these three games is cathartic for the fans who have been clamoring for the series to go back to its roots.
The announcement becomes even more exciting when you notice that Mario Party and Mario Party 3 have actually never been re-eleased by Nintendo; they have only had content repurposed for games like Mario Party: The Top 100 and Mario Party Superstars. Clearly, Nintendo isn't worried about players injuring their hands on certain minigames anymore or cleared up other issues preventing a re-elease. Now, we just have to cross our fingers and hope they have online play too.
Theatrhythm Final Bar Line will get a lot of great Square Enix DLC
THEATRHYTHM FINAL BAR LINE - Announce Trailer
Square Enix celebrated Final Fantasy's 35th anniversary by announcing Theatrhythm Final Bar Line during the Direct. This announcement alone is a bit underrated, especially when one considers that the two 3DS games in this series were fantastic and that the base game alone will feature tons of iconic music from the Final Fantasy franchise. While the base game will have 385 sonsg, Square Enix also quickly highlighted some of the DLC it will get post-launch during its segment of the Nintendo Direct.
During that rush, Square Enix highlighted that 90 additional songs are coming to Theatrhythm Final Bar Line, and they'll all be pulled from other Square Enix franchises like SaGa, Nier, Octopath Traveler, The World Ends with You, Chrono, Mana, Xenogears, and Live A Live. Considering that all of those games have fantastic music, fans of rhythm games are in for a treat once all of this DLC is out. If that somehow isn't enough music for you, Digital Deluxe Editions featuring even more Final Fantasy music are also up for pre-order.
Theatrhythm Final Bar Line will be released for Nintendo Switch and PS4 on February 16, 2023.
Don't miss the full trailer for Bayonetta 3
Bayonetta 3 - Ways of the Witch - Nintendo Switch
Bayonetta 3 got a brief shout-out during the Nintendo Direct as characters like Bayonetta, Luka, Jeanne, and Viola were given the spotlight. At the end of its segment, Nintendo said a gameplay trailer would be released on YouTube soon thereafter and wouldn't be a part of the Nintendo Direct. While you might have logged off and not given this trailer a second thought after the end of the presentation, I recommend that you go back and check the video out.
It's a lengthy gameplay overview trailer that's nearly eight minutes long and gives much-needed details on several features. We learn more about how Bayonetta can summon Infernal Demons to get a powerful edge in battle and even traverse the environments in unique ways. We also see how the new playable character Viola activates Witch Time by blocking and can also summon a giant Cheshire cat for help in a fight. We also see how players can equip an item to make combos simpler. If you weren't already excited for Bayonetta 3, this video will probably whet your appetite.
Bayonetta 3 will be released exclusively for Nintendo Switch on October 28.
Nintendo has introduced a whole slew of games for its Wii console at E3, with Wii Fit asthe flagship title. By the end of 2007, Nintendo expects to add around 200 titles to its more than 150 games, many from outside publishers, and will include titles that can be downloaded forits virtual console. But the company hopes for great things from its Wii Fit game, in which players get to exercise the whole body, using the Wii Balance Board, or WBB, which transmitsinformation to the console. It will offer a variety of different exercise activities from yoga to push-ups, virtual hula hoops and stretching, all conducted by virtual instructors. It’sexactly the kind of thing to appeal to casual gamers, especially older ones, although Nintendo didn’t announce a release date for the game. Although expected to be the big one,it’s just one of a number of upcoming titles for the Wii. There will be four Mario Bros. titles, including “Mario Kart Wii” and “Super Mario Galaxy.” “Metroid Prime 3” will be added to the Metroid Prime series, and there are plenty of third-party titles from EA, Sega,Activision and Disney Interactive. One of the more interesting Wii additions will be the WiiZapper, due later this year. It fixes onto the Remote and Nunchuk to resemble a gun, to be used with several games including “Resident Evil: Umbrella Chronicles” and “GhostSquad.” “In less than eight months, Wii has proved itself the video game system for everyone, and we’re not letting up,2 said Nintendo of America president Reggie Fils-Aime.“We’re producing hit after hit after hit, supported by a long line of third-party publishers who have shifted their resources to help make Wii the most distinctive video game system inhistory.”
