Donkey Kong Country Returns HD Is On The Way To Switch
Written by Matt Miller
Today’s Nintendo Direct brought news of the welcome return of Donkey Kong to Switch. Donkey Kong Country Returns HD is headed for release on January 16, 2025.
The new version looked great in its reveal trailer today, which showed off DK and his little buddy, Diddy Kong, making their way through a slew of jungle-themed environments, collecting bananas, popping barrels, and even riding Rambi the Rhinoceros.
The new remaster is set to include 80 levels, which means it will also have all the extra levels that appeared in the 2013 3DS port. The trailer also reveals plans for two-player local cooperative play.
Check our the new trailer for yourself below.
Dragon Quest I & II HD-2D Remake Is Coming In 2025
Written by Kyle Hilliard
Square Enix snuck in an additional announcement at the end of the latest trailer for Dragon Quest III HD-2D Remake. Dragon Quest I & II HD-2D remakes are coming in 2025. It seems that the first two games will be delivered in one package.
Series creator Yuji Horii appeared on the Direct stream to thank everyone for getting excited about the games and reminded everyone that the Erdrick trilogy is technically ordered III, I, and then II, so the games will be releasing in timeline order.
Hello Kitty Island Adventure Coming To Consoles And PC In 2025
Written by Brian Shea
For the uninitiated, Hello Kitty Island Adventure may not sound like a game that would garner a lot of attention outside of the Sanrio fandom, but the Apple Arcade exclusive has attracted extremely positive fan reception, even taking home the Apple Arcade Game of the Year award in 2023. During today's Nintendo Direct, we learned that Sunblink is bringing the island-building experience to consoles and PC.
In Hello Kitty Island Adventure, My Melody is invited to open a gift shop at Big Adventures Park, and she invites Hello Kitty and her friends to the island. You create your own Sanrio-style character and join the getaway, but when you arrive, you learn that the park is abandoned. You must work with Hello Kitty to restore the island and theme park back to its bustling former glory.
Sunblink claims to provide more than 100 hours of gameplay spread across several different biomes and gameplay conventions. You can also decorate your spaces and even allow friends to visit your island and decorate their Friendship Cabins. On top of that, you can collect critters, go fishing, and give gifts to island dwellers. Multiplayer allows you to solve puzzles and build homes together.
Sunblink promises new characters, areas, clothing, items, visitors, minigames, and more will join the game post-launch, and it will all be free. Like its Apple Arcade release, there is no premium currency to earn or purchase, and you unlock everything by playing the game. Hello Kitty Island Adventure arrives on Switch in 2025, followed by releases on PlayStation 5, PlayStation 4, and PC in the same calendar year.
Metroid Prime 4 Reemerges With New Gameplay Trailer And Beyond Subtitle
Written by Kyle Hilliard
We finally have a look at Metroid Prime 4 outside of just a logo. The game is releasing in 2025 and is officially titled Metroid Prime 4: Beyond. The game has had its various tribulations since its announcement in 2017. It was originally being developed by Bandai Namco, but was later restarted and moved over to Retro Studios, the developer behind the the first three Metroid Prime games.
Finally seeing the game is action is exciting, but in a way, not surprising. The action is reminiscent of Retro's other Metroid games (which is a good thing). We see Samus land on a planet clearly in the middle of a battle in a new ship, she moves around, scans elements of the environment, attacks monsters, and turns into a Morph Ball. We all see a tease of a new enemy who has a pair of Metroids floating over their shoulder.
For our review of the recent Metroid Prime remaster, head here.
Nintendo Direct Reveals The Legend of Zelda: Echoes of Wisdom, Out September
Written by Charles Harte
For years, fans of the Legend of Zelda have clamored for the titular princess to star in her own game, but even as she's become a more prominent character in recent entries, the Zelda-led Zelda game has yet to appear on store shelves. In today's Nintendo Direct, that wish was finally granted; in The Legend of Zelda: Echoes of Wisdom, it's up to Princess Zelda to save Hyrule when Link is captured.
While the game takes its art style from 2019's Link's Awakening remake, this title is not a remake of any kind, and there's no clear indication that it is connected to Link's Awakening. In this adventure, Zelda uses a new magic item called the Tri Rod to journey across Hyrule. The Tri Rod can create "echoes" of items, like tables, beds, or boxes, to climb and explore the overworld and its dungeons, but it doesn't stop there. Echoes of water blocks can be used to swim up and over certain obstacles, while trampolines allow players to easily leap across gaps.
Throughout the gameplay demonstration, Series producer Eiji Aonuma explains that players can also make echoes of enemies, and that these enemies can be used in combat on your side. Zelda captures a moblin to fight some slimes, then uses meat to lure in some bird enemies and summons a deku baba to snap them up. Aonuma goes on to say that there are so many echoes in the game and that he hasn't even counted them all – we'll have to learn what the limits of echoes are, if any, some other time.
As the trailer continues we get more glimpses into who Zelda will be interacting with throughout the game, and it includes two kinds of Zoras, some Deku shrubs, a Sheikah person (potentially Impa) and the Great Deku Tree. It also features some 2D platforming and underwater sections, as well as Zelda using birds and plants with helicopter-like leaves to glide.
The game launches alongside a golden Hyrule-themed Switch lite, which you can view in the gallery of images above. Luckily, you won't have to wait long for either of them: the handheld and The Legend of Zelda: Echoes of Wisdom will be available later this year, on September 26.
Nintendo has announced the latest installment of the Mario Party series. Super Mario Party Jamboree is a brand-new entry in the franchise, but it’s looking as if the general thrust of play remains mostly intact, with a few notable additions.
The reveal trailer shows Mario and friends descending on a small archipelago of islands that make up a massive resort. Across the many boards, players can encounter 110 different minigames.
Jamboree includes five new boards – Mega Wiggler’s Tree Party, King Bowser’s Keep, Roll ‘em Raceway, Goomba Lagoon, and Rainbow Galleria – plus returning boards from earlier games, including Mario’s Rainbow Castle (From Mario Party) and Western Land (from Mario Party 2). We got to see a bit of how the board games play out in a couple of these locales. Roll ‘em Raceway includes a turbo dice item that allows player Karts to zip forward up to 40 spaces with a good roll. In Goomba Lagoon, a changing tide adjusts the path across the board.
The most surprising addition is the new Koopathlon game mode, which allows up to 20 players to jump in together online. The early gameplay on offer here calls to mind other online party titles like Fall Guys.
Nintendo is touting Jamboree as the largest game in the series. We’ll see how true that is when the game launches for Switch on October 17.
Marvel Vs. Capcom Collection Wants To Take Us For A Ride Later This Year
Written by Brian Shea
In addition to the critically acclaimed Street Fighter 6, which arrived last year, Capcom has been mining its fighting game history with various collections. While collections focusing on series like Street Fighter and Darkstalkers have proven popular, today's announcement might be the most anticipated collection Capcom can put out, as it is bringing back seven of its beloved Marvel-focused games in one package.
Marvel vs. Capcom Fighting Collection: Arcade Classics is a bundle headlined by the iconic Marvel vs. Capcom 2: New Age of Heroes, but six other titles join the collection, dating back to 1994's X-Men: Children of the Atom. The full collection includes X-Men: Children of the Atom, Marvel Super Heroes, Marvel vs. Capcom: Clash of Super Heroes, Marvel vs. Capcom 2: New Age of Heroes, Marvel Super Heroes vs. Street Fighter, X-Men vs. Street Fighter, and side-scrolling beat-'em-up The Punisher.
Every fighting game in the collection features online play, including ranked, casual, and lobby matches with rollback netcode plus global high-score leaderboards, plus a training mode and spectator mode. The collection also includes a music jukebox, in-game museum, display filters, and more.
Marvel vs. Capcom Fighting Collection: Arcade Classics arrives physically and digitally on PlayStation 4, Switch, and PC later this year.
The Hundred Line: Last Defense Academy Is A New Strategy Game From The Makers Of Danganronpa
Written by Kyle Hilliard
In The Hundred Line you are Takumi Sumino, a student who is suddenly enrolled at the The Last Defense Academy when an outbreak of monsters threatens his life and the lives of his fellow students. Takumi is part of a group of students at the school who must defend it against monsters in grid-based strategy encounters for 100 days. The academy is apparently very secretive and you will lose classmates over the course of the game, which is not surprising considering this game is from the creators of the Danganronpa series. In the Danganronpa games, the mortality of nearly every character is always on the line.
The Hundred Line: Last Defense Academy is coming to Nintendo Switch in 2025.
