2020 hasn’t been the best year for Nintendo; the company started off quite strong with the release of Animal Crossing New Horizons in March, but the year slowed to a crawl. There was no Super Mario Odyssey or Pokemon: Sword and Shield equivalent, with many fans being left feeling rather empty without a big title to be excited for. This all changed a bit when Nintendo held the Super Mario 35th Anniversary Direct, which announced quite a few new and exciting titles coming to the platform.
Things got even better after the company more recently unveiled the brand new Hyrule Warriors: Age of Calamity. With the new announcements, Nintendo fans now had three major releases to look forward to within the end of the year: Super Mario 3D All-Stars in September, Pikmin 3 Deluxe Edition in October, and Hyrule Warriors: Age of Calamity in November, effectively closing the gap for the rest of the year and making 2020 feel far less of a disappointment for many. But that then begs the question of what fans can maybe expect out of Nintendo’s 2021, now that the year is starting to head to a close. Surprisingly, the year is looking to be quite packed.
So far, Nintendo only has one single title with a confirmed release date for next year: that game is, of course, Super Mario 3D World. The title was announced during last week’s Mario Direct, confirming that the title was coming, and with plenty of additional features, such as the new Bowser’s Fury mode and full online play. The game will be coming to the Switch on February 12, 2021. It was one of the biggest announcements of the year, and its release within the first quarter of 2021 will surely help kickstart the year for Switch owners.
Aside from 3D World, there really isn’t anything else with a definitive release date for the Switch; however, there are plenty of titles with a confirmed 2021 release year. Back in July, it was confirmed that both Shin Megami Tensai 5 and Shin Megami Tensai 3: Nocturne HD were both coming to the Switch in 2021, with Nocturne given a Spring 2021 launch window, and 5 a broader 2021 launch. Shin Megami Tensai 5 has been confirmed to be coming to the Switch since the console’s initial 2017 reveal event, so it should make for an exciting release. Nocturne 3 HD will make for another great addition to the console’s 2021 lineup, with it likely fitting somewhere into the first half of the year and act as somewhat as an appetizer for Shin Megami Tensai fans awaiting the new sequel.
Square’s Bravely Default 2 is another title with a confirmed 2021 launch, though its unknown exactly when fans might expect it. The series originally originated on the 3DS, so it should be nice to see it in full HD.
Plenty of other titles have been announced for Nintendo Switch, but with no clear release date. Some seem more likely than others to be coming next year, but all of them will be arriving at some point. No More Heroes 3 always seemed like it would take a little longer than expected to release, with the game’s initial reveal trailer in 2019 jokingly stating that a 2020 release date is unlikely. And in fact, it was just recently confirmed that it was getting delayed. The game has been a very long time coming, and a 2021 release now seems much more likely.
Bayonetta 3 was first announced for the Nintendo Switch ages ago, during the 2017 Game Awards. After Bayonetta 1 and 2 were ported to the Switch in early 2018, fans haven’t heard much from Platinum Games, other than simple confirmation that the game’s development is still continuing. The title has been in development for ages, so it doesn’t seem unrealistic to expect it by sometime next year. It has to release at some point, after all.
The Legend of Zelda: Breathe of the Wild 2 seems most likely to be coming next year, for many reasons. Firstly, next year will be the franchise’s 35th Anniversary, and it would only feel natural for the series to receive a big, new entry into the series in order to celebrate. Secondly, the title was revealed way back in June 2019, which means that developers have been working on it for quite some time. The title, if slated for a holiday 2021 launch, would be more than enough development time for the time and would make perfect sense.
Last but certainly not least, Metroid Prime 4 is confirmed to be coming to the console. The game was first unveiled at E3 2017, with the game’s development restarting in January 2019. It may have been over a year and a half since the game’s restarted development, but that still doesn’t bode well for Prime 4‘s release anytime soon. Game development takes time, and Nintendo obviously wants this game to be as best as possible. While it’s not out of the question, fans shouldn’t expect to see Metroid Prime 4 in 2021.
There have certainly been plenty of rumored games to be coming to the Switch, with one of the biggest being a potential HD Remaster collection of Zelda games, in order to coincide with The Legend of Zelda’s 35th anniversary. There is no merit to this rumor, but it doesn’t seem terribly unlikely given that Mario is getting the same treatment this year for his anniversary. A Metroid Prime Trilogy HD port has also been rumored, launching to help build hype for Metroid Prime 4. Additionally, fans have been awaiting the release of either Nintendo 64 or Gameboy games for Switch Online service, given that the Switch has received both NES and SNES games each year of its life.
Aside from all of the aforementioned games, it has also been heavily rumored that the Nintendo Switch may be receiving somewhat of a major hardware upgrade in the form of a Switch Pro. The rumored console upgrade is said to be able to support full-4K textures, and will likely be released in order to compete with the upcoming PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X consoles. It has not yet been confirmed by Nintendo, but this rumor has been floating around for quite some time now, and it–if confirmed true– would help bring Nintendo into a very good position if it does end up releasing next year.
Overall, Nintendo appears to have quite a large assortment of titles launching for its hybrid console in 2021. Though it’s not guaranteed that every title discussed will release next year, it’s certainly shaping up to be a good year for Nintendo. And there are likely still many more announcements yet to come for the Switch, with future Nintendo Directs on the way.
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