In a 40-minute presentation, there’s plenty of time for games galore, but it’s worth mentioning that fans shouldn’t hold their breath for Zelda: Breath of the Wild 2. Nintendo said it would “mostly” focus on games releasing in early 2022, and while Nintendo recently reaffirmed Breath of the Wild 2’s 2022 release window, an early 2022 release doesn’t seem feasible.
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The Nintendo Direct: 40 Minutes of Not-Breath of the Wild
Given how major Nintendo Directs have gone in the past, it’s likely that Nintendo shows off a couple of its announced games, makes reveals for minor games, and blows through a bunch quickly. It’s only likely to spend time and focus on a few major Nintendo releases, those coming early this year.
This includes Kirby and The Forgotten Land, Advance Wars 1+2 Re-boot Camp, Triangle Strategy, and combine this with small games and new reveals—like the rumored Mario Kart 9—that’s easily 40 minutes alone. There’s also a strong chance that there will be a trailer for the upcoming Mario movie.
So, it stands to reason these will be the main showcases at the Nintendo Direct. A mixture of news on upcoming games, a slew of minor, new reveals and announcements for the early year, and that’s about it. Expecting more may be a bit too much out of this Nintendo Direct, even if fans are salivating for Breath of the Wild 2.
The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild 2 News – It Would Be Great to Be Wrong
Of course, there’s one little catch—Nintendo said “mostly.” That’s a very loaded word, as Nintendo may open up and discuss a couple of games not launching early this year, but fans shouldn’t expect more than one or two. This is where Mario Kart 9 would likely fit, but Bayonetta 3 and Splatoon 3 are also strong contenders for this “mostly” qualifier. Breath of the Wild 2 fits here too, but in the grand scheme of things, it seems unlikely. And, there’s still plenty of time in the year for Nintendo to properly market and reveal the game ahead of a late-year release.
It would be great to be wrong—even if it were a short cinematic snippet that revealed an official title and a “Holiday 2022” window for Zelda: Breath of the Wild 2. That would be enough, but it’s best to go in not expecting it and be surprised than it is to highly anticipate it just to be disappointed by one’s own expectations.
Zelda: Breath of the Wild 2 is in development.
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