It’s the news Zelda fans have been hoping for: at last night’s Nintendo Direct showcase, a new trailer for the hotly anticipated game Tears of the Kingdom was revealed.
The trailer, which was released at the end of the showcase, gives us our best look yet at the upcoming game. It teased new monsters, more of the game’s aerial theme, and the return of Link’s antagonist Calamity Ganon, who seems to have been resurrected after his defeat at the end of Breath of the Wild.
It also hinted that Link might be getting a robotic arm – and, in a new steampunk twist to the franchise, he’s shown riding a car, hot-air balloon, and flying machine around Hyrule.
The original Breath of the Wild has become one of the best-received video games in history since it was released in 2017. In addition to several Game of the Year Awards, it has also sold more than 30 million copies – something Nintendo will no doubt be attempting to replicate with its sequel.
The Zelda franchise also seems to be continuing the gaming industry’s trend of hiring noted actors to voice its characters: in a surprising twist, Matthew Mercer, of the Critical Role franchise, will be voicing Ganon this time around (famously, Link has no voice in the games).
Anticipation has been high for the game since it was announced in 2019 with a surprise teaser trailer. However, almost nothing has been revealed about it since then, except that Link and Zelda would be taking to the skies of Hyrule, and that a time-travel element would be involved.
Tears of the Kingdom has also been confirmed as a Switch-exclusive game – and, after being pushed back from its original release date of 2022, it will now be releasing on May 12, 2023.
In another bit of news, Nintendo also confirmed that the game would remain priced at £59.99, the same price as Breath of the Wild.
What else did we learn from the Nintendo showcase?
Game Boy is coming to Switch
At last, the time has come to live out your nineties nostalgia. Nintendo confirmed at last night’s showcase that a selection of classic Game Boy and Game Boy Advance games were being added to its Switch subscription service.
The news was one of the biggest surprises of the night, but a very welcome one: from now, games including Kirby’s Dream Land, Alone in the Dark, Wario Land 3, and Gargoyle’s Quest will be available with the basic subscription package. Access to Advance games requires the Expansion Pass, but good news: more games have been promised for the future.
Here’s the full list of games coming to Switch:
Game Boy
Alone in the Dark: The New Nightmare
Game & Watch: Gallery 3
Gargoyle’s Quest
Kirby’s Dream Land
Zelda Link’s Awakening DX
Metroid 2: Return of Samus
Super Mario Land 2: 6 Golden Coins
Tetris
Wario Land 3
Game Boy Advance
Super Mario Advance 4: Super Mario Bros. 3
WarioWare, Inc.: Mega Microgames
Kuru Kuru Kururin
Mario Kart: Super Circuit
Mario & Luigi: Superstar Saga
The Legend of Zelda: The Minish Cap
Trailers galore
The best part of any showcase is sitting back and enjoying the trailers, and Nintendo delivered the goods. Some of the highlights included Pikmin 4, which finally got a trailer and a release date of July 21, 2023, and teased the introduction of Ice Pikmins.
Alongside this, we were treated to trailers for the new Samba de Amigo game, the hotly anticipated new Bayonetta Game, Bayonetta Origins: Cereza and the Lost Demon, and a new game from the creators of Life is Strange.
Called Harmony: The Fall of Reverie, it’s out this June and is another twist on the time-travel game. This time around, you’ll play Polly, who returns home to look for her missing mother and discovers that she has clairvoyant powers that connect her to Reverie, where the Aspirations of Humanity dwell.
Metroid Prime
And finally, a nice little surprise to get excited for: the iconic Metroid Prime (which was originally released on the GameCube) has finally been remastered and released on the Nintendo Switch eShop. It’s not just a reskin, either: the game will also include dual-stick controls for the first time.
Hailed as one of GameCube’s best games, it’s the fifth game in the Metroid series and follows bounty hunter Samus Aran as he explores the universe and fights the worm Chozo.
Want to watch the showcase?
Catch it in full here:
