Nintendo Direct Micro Recap: Small Video, Huge News

Today, Nintendo released a very special Nintendo Direct. Even though it’s a short video (and Nintendo is calling it a Nintendo Direct Micro), it announced a lot of really awesome things that Nintendo fans are sure to be excited about. You can watch the Nintendo Direct Micro below.

So let’s recap and expand on what Nintendo has announced. First, a brand new Chibi-Robo! game has been announced: Chibi-Robo! Zip Lash.

Chibi-Robo! has always been a weird little series. In 2005, Chibi-Robo! Plug into Adventure! was released in Japan (other regions saw the game in 2006). As a 10cm-tall robot, your job was to collect Happy Points, which were obtained by doing chores and solving problems for the family whose house you live in. Players and critics enjoyed the game, and it became something of a cult classic. Chibi-Robo! Park Patrol was released for Nintendo DS in 2007, and this game took the little robot outdoors to bring a special park back to life. Japan got an exclusive Chibi-Robo game in 2009, but the robot returned to the global stage last year with Chibi-Robo! Photo Finder for Nintendo 3DS (Japan 2013, NA/EU 2014), though the game was received far less warmly than its predecessors.

Now, Chibi-Robo! is returning with a side-scrolling platformer as well as a Chibi Robo! Amiibo figure (shown above). The game will focus on 2D platforming elements, which, like Photo Finder, is a departure from the core gameplay of the series. However, Zip Lash shouldn’t be written off right away – with a deluxe Amiibo package planned for the game, it’s safe to say that Nintendo probably put a lot more effort into Zip Lash than they did with Photo Finder. Only time will tell if the game lives up to the Chibi Robo! name, but the return of the itty bitty robot is something to look forward to.

Dr. Mario Miracle Cure was also announced. The game is a 3DS exclusive and is now available for pre-purchase on the Nintendo eShop for $8.99. Miracle Cure will feature classic Dr. Mario gameplay as well as elements from the Wii U exclusive Dr. Luigi. A new element, the miracle cure, will also make its debut. When you fill up a special gauge, you’ll be given a miracle cure. These power-ups have several different abilities, including the ability to erase all capsules and viruses of a given color, wipe out an entire column of capsules and viruses, and a bomb-like function that erases capsules and viruses in the immediate surrounding area. Fans of classic gameplay can turn the miracle cures off for a more pure Dr. Mario experience. Local, online, and download-play multiplayer will also be supported. The game will launch next week on June 11, 2015.

We already covered the upcoming Pokémon Super Mystery Dungeon, but Nintendo announced a few new details during today’s Nintendo Direct. Players will be able to choose one of twenty Pokémon as their main playable character, as well as an additional Pokémon to be their partner. In addition to these Pokémon, all 720 known Pokémon will be present in the game. This vast amount of Pokémon is sure to bring a ton of content to the game, and Pokémon Super Mystery Dungeon might just be the definitive Pokémon Mystery Dungeon experience when it hits Nintendo 3DS this winter.

The Mario & Sonic series is also set to make a comeback with Mario & Sonic at the Rio 2016 Olympic Games for Nintendo 3DS and Wii U. Since the majority of the Mario & Sonic games have been received quite negatively, the expectations for the 2016 title are admittedly pretty low. However, there are a few elements that might make this title better than the previous entries. The 100m dash, rhythmic gymnastics, volleyball, and table tennis will all appear in the game, as well as soccer. Soccer is particularly exciting, as Mario Strikers Charged for Nintendo Wii was a lot of fun. If the game can channel the soccer energy that Strikers Charged brought, it’ll at least be worth playing. Rugby will be exclusive to the Wii U version of the game, and golf will be exclusive to the 3DS version of the game. This is an interesting decision, especially with Mario Golf: World Tour already being a 3DS exclusive. More information on the game will be announced in the future.

Splatoon will be seeing an update in the form of a new map and a new weapon. The map, called Port Mackerel, is set in what looks like a shipyard of sorts. There are a lot of obstacles, and it’ll be interesting to see how tactics can be changed for the new map. The new weapon is the N-Zap 85, based on the original NES Zapper peripheral (which was released in 1985). Though it’s a weak rapid-fire weapon, it is said to be great for charging up the echo locator special weapon. The N-Zap 85 will also include special “splat” bombs, which allow players to claim a good amount of territory from a distance. The weapon and the map will be available for free starting today, June 1. Ranked battles will also be starting today.

Art Academy: Home Studio will be coming to Wii U on June 25, and it is currently available for pre-purchase. It will provide new lessons as well as a new and improved sharing system that will allow players to create time-lapse videos that show off their creations. Those who already own Art Academy: Sketchpad will receive a $4 discount on the new game.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=33YZXx9qKxU

A gameplay trailer has been released for Project Treasure. Four-player co-op, a wide variety of weapons, sophisticated enemies, traps, and more will be coming to Wii U with this Bandai-Namco game. More details will be announced later this summer.

As was previously announced, the Nintendo World Championships are returning to E3 this year. During the Nintendo Direct, it was announced that the championships will begin at 3:00pm PST on June 14. In addition to watching the tournament, you can take a look behind the scenes by following @NintendoAmerica on Snapchat and Periscope.

A trailer was released for a Nintendo 3DS game based on the LBX anime. LBX: Little Battlers eXperience will let players customize their fighters with over 130 models and more than 4,000 in-game parts. The game will be released on August 21.

We recently reviewed Puzzle & Dragons Z + Puzzle & Dragons: Super Mario Bros. Edition. If you haven’t already picked the game up, Nintendo leaked a few spoilers to encourage you to start playing: in addition to the eight main worlds of PAZ:SMB, eight extra worlds are unlocked after beating the main story. You’ll also unlock new playable characters, including Rosalina and Bowser. Likewise, PADZ has its fair share of extra levels. Starting today, Nintendo will be releasing weekly relics for PADZ that will unlock exclusive dungeons. The first one is available now.

Finally, Nintendo announced that Bravely Second will be getting a western release in the form of Bravely Second: End Layer. The sequel to Square Enix’s Bravely Default will be accessible to newcomers while still including content that those who played the first game will particularly enjoy. The hardcore JRPG will launch exclusively on Nintendo 3DS in 2016.

So that’s it! Today’s Nintendo Direct was short, but it brought a ton of announcements from Nintendo. What are you most excited about? Let us know in the comments, and keep checking back with Load The Game for more details on the newest Nintendo titles.