#1: Inkling (Splatoon)

#2: Porky Minch (EarthBound)

Now for a not so obvious one. Ever since Porky's inclusion as a Subspace Emissary boss in Brawl, it got me thinking on why he wasn't included as a playable character. I get that he would be rather large in that spider mech he rides in Mother 3, but what about the "Heavily Armed" one in EarthBound? It's a fair bit smaller, 'bout the size of Bowser in terms of relative size, and would provide a much needed villain to represent the EarthBound series. Just give him his attacks and devices from EarthBound and Giygas's "Inexplicable Attack" as a final smash and he'd be set.

#3: Takamura (The Mysterious Murasame Castle)

#4: Krystal (Star Fox Adventures)

Probably one of the best characters to be added to the Star Fox series, and it probably helps matters that fans have wanted her in the game since Brawl. We need more varied Star Fox characters in the games. Fox and Falco are far too similar, and Wolf adds to the pile because of him having the same final smash and special moves as the other two. Krystal would bring some much needed originality through her staff skills and the help of her cloudrunner mount. Plus I don't think anyone could handle another Fox clone...

#5: Paper Mario

Think there are too many Mario characters as is? Nonsense! Besides, Paper Mario is different enough that he could be a rather unique character. Compared to regular Mario who is known for jumping, Paper Mario primarily uses a hammer when fighting. Just make Paper Mario's attacks mostly hammer based and make his specials based around the badge attacks and "curses" from The Thousand Year Door and he would be a perfect inclusion to the roster.

#6: Abraham Lincoln (Code Name S.T.E.A.M.)

#7: Captain Syrup (Wario Land)

#8: King K. Rool (Donkey Kong Country)

#9: Vaati (The Legend of Zelda: The Minish Cap)

#10: Isaac (Golden Sun)

#11: Black Shadow (F-Zero X)

#12: Ridley (Metroid)

This is the last villain, I promise. Now I know the memes that has spawned from Ridley not being in Smash 4, but there IS a way to incorporate him into the roster and still make him big, but not "too big." The way I see it, Ridley wasn't notable because of his size, but because of his ferocity and primal fighting instincts. Give his movement some girth to it and he could feel big while still being around Bowser's size. I've seen hacks and mods of Brawl that have Ridley being playable and they all make him into a beast because of his heavy claw swipes and footsteps. Sakurai could do the same if he had thought of that as well.

#13: Saki (Sin & Punishment)

#14: Zoroark (Pokemon Black/White)

#15: Simon Belmont (Castlevania)

Well I would like to say that that's the end of my list, but I've had some issues with how some pre-existing characters play and I believe that a few of them could benefit from some minor modifications. So here is an additional 5 characters that are already playable in the games, but I think could use a little bit of tweaking.

#1: Lucina

She is a clone of Marth in the purest sense and to me, that is EXTREMELY lazy game design. Either get rid of her in the next game, or turn her into an alternate costume for Marth. Either or, this is unacceptable in her current form.

#2: Dark Pit

Yet another clone character, but of Pit this time. A slightly slower and slightly stronger variant of an existing character does not a good fighter make. He had so much potential to be good as he had his own exclusive arsenal in Kid Icarus: Uprising with even a weapon named after him. This needs to be fixed in the next game.

#3: Ganondorf

Now even though Ganondorf is technically a clone of Captain Falcon, he's a special case as he's actually a pretty good clone. But given this fact, he's still a clone. Now with the newest games, I don't understand why he doesn't have his sword now, or why his special moves aren't more like his dark magic from Ocarina of Time or any of the games where he's Ganon. It would make him so much more interesting.

#4: Jigglypuff

To be completely honest with you, I am not a fan of this character in the slightest. She plays weird, her final smash is garbage, and Smash 4 doesn't take her new Fairy-type in to account for new attacks at all. She needs a new moveset that takes advantage of her new type; her final smash especially.

#5: Wario

There isn't much wrong with Wario as of right now, but I do have a few issues with a couple of his special moves. His upward special doesn't gain enough air to be a viable recovery move, so why not move his down special to his up one and make it so you can manually charge it? And to replace his old down special, make it is quake punch from Wario Land: Shake It! While we're at it, bring back his side smash from Brawl as well. It's starting to feel like Sakurai is trying to make people forget that Wario was in a series other than Wario Ware.

Well, that's my list folks, if you disagree with my choices, tell me why in the comments and what you would have chosen instead. But until then, I'll be seeing you.

But as always, if you're pressed for time, I'm here to condense all of that information into bite-sized chunks for easy digestion. Here's what they showed off.

• They started with 3DS games first and showed off Hey! Pikmin which will launch on July 28 along with a band new Pikmin amiibo.
• More light was shown on Ever Oasis. It will launch June 23.
• Monster Hunter Stories was confirmed to be coming stateside this autumn.
• A definitive version of Yo-Kai Watch 2 was announced with the subtitle Psychic Specters. It will also launch this autumn.
• Culdcept Revolt was announced for the series 20th anniversary. It will be released August 29.
• RPG Maker Fes was shown off and will be released June 27.
• Miitopia, an unusual Mii-based RPG, was shown to be getting a localization this year.
• Fire Emblem Echoes was revealed to be getting DLC with some of it being free and some of it being paid. A season pass was also shown as an option.
• Kirby was shown to be getting a lot of love this year to celebrate the series 25 anniversary with the games Team Kirby Clash Deluxe (out now), Kirby's Blowout Blast (summer), and a currently unnamed multiplayer action game (holiday season).
• The final installment of the Boxboy series called Bye-Bye Boxboy! and is out now.
• 3 new 30th anniversary Zelda series amiibo (Majora's Mask Link, Twilight Princess Link, Skyward Sword Link) were revealed for a June 23 release.
• The Smash Bros amiibo series finally revealed amiibo for Cloud, Corrin, and Bayonetta and each character will have a retailer exclusive variant. They will launch July 21.
• A ton of info was revealed for Nintendo's new IP ARMS for the Switch. Character customization is a big feature of the game's main combat mode. A new character, Min Min, was revealed who's left arm is a powerful dragon. Character specific abilities were shown like Spring Man's ability to stay permacharged when his health drops below 25%. ARMS will launch June 16.
• A new Joy-Con color was revealed to launch alongside ARMS; Neon Yellow. Joy-Con battery extenders were also revealed.
• Nintendo showed off some of the online features for Mario Kart 8 Deluxe which will launch April 28.
• Ultra Street Fighter II was shown off and will have both classic and HD graphics and two new characters: Evil Ryu and Violent Ken; along with a brand new game mode where you throw Hadokens with the Joy-Cons. It will launch May 26.
• Minecraft will becoming to the Nintendo Switch on May 11 and will include the Mario Mashup texture pack.
• More Neo Geo arcade classics are on the way to the Switch's eShop with Samurai Showdown IV being release on April 13.
• Sonic Forces showed off some of Classic Sonic's gameplay and teased a potential third character to play as. The game will launch this holiday season.
• In addition, Sonic Mania will launch this summer.
• A new competitive action party game tentatively called Project Mekuru was revealed where you stomp on tiles to claim them for your color. This eShop exclusive will launch this summer.
• Fate/Extella: The Umbral Star was shown off a bit and will launch on July 25.
• The definitive version of Disgaea 5 will launch on the Switch May 23.
• Puyo Puyo Tetris's release date inches closer and to prepare fans for the release in the coming weeks released a demo of the game on the eShop.
• The famous board game Monopoly was shown to be coming to the Switch this fall.
• A definitive edition version of Rayman Legends was announced for the Switch and will launch later this year.
• A shooter game called Sine Mora EX, which is being developed by Grasshopper Manufacture, was shown off and will be released this summer.
• A Battlechasers game based on the comics of the same name was announced for the Switch and will launch later summer.
• PayDay 2 is being ported to the Switch later this year.
• Namco Museum will be coming to the Switch's eShop this summer.
• You will be able to purchase additional Nintendo Switch docks starting on May 19.
• A Nintendo sponsored tournament for Splatoon was announced for the original Splatoon on the Wii U for a limited time.
• New Splatoon 2 info was revealed such as a new game mode called Salmon Run, a co-op survival mode where you and a team of three other individuals go to a run down island and fight a hoard of hostile salmon-like monsters to collect power-eggs en mass. Three new Splatoon amiibo were also announced which can be used to save outfit data and can be summoned in Inkopolis Square to have a companion for your character. Both the game and the amiibo will launch on July 21.

Well that's it for today. Needless to say, my wallet is going to be bled dry this year. I'm particularly excited for the new Smash Bros series amiibo. Getting cheap Bayonetta figurines have not been easy for me. So until then, I'll be seeing you.

But as always, I will condense as much as I can so you can read it during your busy schedule.

• First of all, all of the gear will be making a return in the same three categories: Hats, Shoes, and Shirts.
• New weapon variations were shown off like the Clash Blaster, the Flingza Roller, the Goo Tuber, and the Dapple Duelies.
• New sub weapons were also shown off like the Autobombs and Toxic Mist.
• Then the new special weapons were given a proper demonstration.
• You can now skip through Sheldon's long weapon descriptions.
• Turf Wars and all three of the ranked battle modes will be making a comeback, but all of the ranked battle modes will now keep track of separate ranks instead of all sharing the same one.
• A bunch of new arenas were shown off with some updated ones returning from the previous game such as Port Mackerel and Moray Towers.
• All battle maps and ranked modes will now rotate out ever 2 hours instead of every 4 like in the previous game.
• The tower in the Tower Control game will now stop at designated checkpoints throughout the match.
• It is now possible to raise your rank by more than one letter grade if you played exceptionally well in a match.
• Squad battles will be making a return.
• Customizing your gear's ability slots is now much easier and new abilities were shown off.
• The new Salmon Run horde mode of was shown to only be playable during predetermined times.
• New Salmonids were shown off like the Steel Eel and Fly Fish.
• There are some pieces of equipment that can only be won from Salmon Run.
• A new version of Splatnet will be coming to smart devices through Nintendo Switch's online service.
• The new amiibo will be used like memory cards to save your gear and weapon loadouts which can then be used to summon a "friend" you can take pictures with at the in-game Plaza.
• Splatoon 1's graffiti mode will be coming back without the need for Miiverse.
• Lan play is possible for more intense battles with minimal lag.
• A rhythm-based arcade game will be available to play using the music from the game.
• Some info about the Single-Player mode was shown off, but nothing new to report other than the fact that Marie refers to you as Agent 4.
• New content like maps, gear and weapons will be coming to the game over the course of around a year through free updates. One of these updates will include a brand new weapon type called the Splat Brella which is a close range scattershot that doubles as a shield, and another one called the Bubble Blower which makes large floating ink mines.
• With Callie and Marie being designated to the single player mode, two new pop idols named Pearl and Marina will be giving the player the news and will host the new Splat Fests.
• Splat Fests can now be played with players on your friend list.
• And finally, the game's first Splat Fest will go live on July 15 between the hours of 3pm - 7pm PT through a special demo from the Switch eShop. The theme will be cake VS Ice Cream.

So that's all I have to report today. I definitely can't wait for this game as I loved the original Splatoon quite a bit. I just hope I have time to play more Splat Fests this time around, but until then, I'll be seeing you.

• Shooters: Continually sprays ink as long as the fire button is held down. Comes in several different varieties that have different firing patterns and effects.
• Chargers: Long range weapon that fires further the longer the gun is charged from holding the fire button. Some of these also come with scopes for more accurate aiming.
• Rollers: Paints the ground with ink as you run as long as the fire button is held down. Can also throw ink a short distance in front of you so you can get higher platforms.
• Sloshers: Hurls large quantities of ink in an arcing pattering an average distance in front of you. Can be used like a mortar to aim over barriers that an opponent is hiding behind.
  
• Splatling: A gatling gun type weapon that rapidly fires ink an incredible distance in front of you after a short wind-up period. Not all that effective at spreading ink, but very useful for crowd control.
  

• Splat Bombs: Tetrahedron-shaped ink grenades that explode shortly after landing.
• Burst Bombs: Ink filled water balloons that explode on impact.
• Ink Mines: Explodes when in close proximity to an opponent.
• Disruptors: Hinders the speed and abilities of the affected target.
• Point Sensors: Tags an enemy with a tracking marker for a short time.
• Splash Walls: Acts as a wall and shield that only you and your teammates can pass through unaffected.
• Seekers: Can lock onto a target and chase them down trailing ink of your color behind them.
• Suction Bombs: Works similarly to the Splat Bombs, but can latch onto walls and ceilings with its suction cup.
• Squid Beakons: Gives you up to three one-time-use jump points so you can quickly get back into the fray.
• Sprinklers: Sprays a small area around it with ink until it is destroyed or until a new one is thrown.

• Bomb Rush: Allows you to throw bombs repeatedly without spending ink.
• Bubbler: Activates an impenetrable shield that can be shared with your teammates if they touch you.
• Echolocator: Tags ALL opponents with a tracking marker no matter how far away from each other they are.
• Inkzooka: Powerful rocket-launcher type weapon that fires mini ink tornadoes that plow through multiple targets.
• Killer Wail: Spreads no ink, but obliterates any opponent in a straight line in front of it.
• Kraken: Transforms you into the invincible Kraken which lays ink behind it as it swims and changes its jump into a strong attack.
• Inkstrike: A powerful nuke-like weapon that creates a towering cyclone of ink at wherever you tap on the Gamepad's screen.

• Regular Battles (For Fun)

1. Turf War: The purpose of this game mode is to cover the ground with as much of your own color of ink as possible in three minutes. Any ink sprayed onto walls and any opponents knocked out do not count toward your final score and your win/lose ratio is not recorded at the end of the match. This game mode is also the primary way to gain money for purchasing clothes and weapons, and experience that levels up your currently equipped clothes and your character allowing you to equip higher-leveled weapons.

• Ranked Battles (For Glory)

1. Splat Zones: This game mode is much like a territories match where you and your teammates try to take control of an area (or two) by spraying the enclosed area with ink and keeping control of it until your timer runs out or whoever has the least time left when the match timer runs out. Losing control of a zone to the enemy team adds a penalty timer onto your main one and it must run out before you can start lowering your time again.
2. Tower Control: This game mode is more like King of the Hill, but with a twist. You need to take control of a tower in the center of the map by standing on top of it, but once you gain control of it, it will start to slowly make its way to a location near the opposing team's spawn point. You win once the tower reaches its destination, or whoever got the tower closest when the time runs out.
3. Rainmaker: A Capture the Flag style game mode where you need to free a powerful dragonfish shaped weapon called the Rainmaker from an orb in the center of the map and carry it to a designated platform near the opponent's base. As long as you are carrying the Rainmaker, you cannot super-jump, your running and swimming speed are reduced, and you are visible while swimming. You are also subjected to a sixty second timer in which if you fail to deliver the weapon to the opponent's base before the timer runs out, you will explode in the opponent's ink color. However, you can use the Rainmaker like a stronger, chargeable Inkzooka to help you get to the opponent's base a little more easily. Secondary win conditions are the same as in Tower Control.

Two maps for each mode are only available to play at any one time and are rotated out every four hours according to an online clock that the game pings when connected to the internet. While the Regular Battles are a lot of fun to be had, the Ranked Battles (which can only be played after you reach level 10) are more geared for hardcore players as your rank will go up or down based on your wins and losses. The cash and experience you receive if you win the match is based on your score in the match and much better than in the Regular Battles, but if you happen to lose, you receive absolutely nothing. This game mode would probably best be played after you max out your inkling's level and equipment so you would have less to ultimately lose. Also, once your level reaches 20, you can add more bonus slots to weaker pieces of clothing that you like by talking to Spyke and paying him 30,000 in cash, or with a Super Sea Snail that you can win from Splat Fest.

Overall, Splatoon was a very nice surprise from Nintendo. They don't make many new big-name IP's any more, but when they do, they never seem to fail. Everything about the game is so perfectly polished and well designed. The gameplay is easy to pick up, the music is unique and fun to listen to, the game modes are varied enough that it rarely gets stale, and in order to improve the pacing and to artificially inflate the length of the game, content locked away on the disc (like new weapons and stages) gets released for free at specific dates along the game's lifespan via an online calendar. While this is a bit unorthodox, it is a smart way to keep the game from getting stale early in its life. SO, now I have one final question to ask you.

ARE YOU A KID, OR A SQUID?

But until then, I'll be seeing you.

Score:

Now the amiibo features that everyone knew about were kind of obvious. You would scan an Animal Crossing amiibo card and you would get a temporary villager that you could persuade to move into your town. But there was a lot more added beyond that that actually would want old players to come back in full force. Here is a quick recap of the features that were shown off in the Direct.

• A new room can now be added to your house that you can access at any time and can be used to contact Wisp who will allow you to scan your amiibo of choice. This room can also be decorated in the same fashion as how you can in Animal Crossing: Happy Home Designer. In addition, if you have save data from Happy Home Designer, you can now order extra large furniture from your catalog.
• An expanded campground site for RV's (run by a new character named Harvey) was added to allow new villagers to visit. 50 new amiibo cards will be produced featuring characters with these new RV's and will also allow exclusive special villagers and furniture based around Splatoon and The Legend of Zelda.
• Two new minigames were added being Desert Island Escape which was first included in Animal Crossing: amiibo Festival and Animal Crossing Puzzle League which is better known as Tetris Attack to fans of the classic game. These games can be respectively accessed from the new Wii U and 3DS furniture items.
• Daily missions are now added to your Town Pass Card that, when completed, will give you a new form of currency called MEOW Coupons (Mutual Exchange Of Wealth) which you receive from the new CAT Machine (Coupon Allocating Terminal) which then can be exchanged for brand new furniture and goods that cannot be bought at the shops.
• An amiibo Camera feature was added that will allow you to take pictures with animated versions of the amiibo figures that you can scan in.
• And finally, if you wish to start over from scratch, there is a brand new feature where you can now sell your town to Tom Nook and start a new game with the profits already in your bank.

With all of these features added in the new update, which is now live by the way, it makes the game feel fresh and new again. I for one will likely be playing New Leaf even more now and I hope that if you have the game, you would download it as well. But until then, I'll be seeing you.

Even though the video is much shorter than what Nintendo has done for E3 in the past, there was a LOT of new stuff shown off with only a few teasers that didn't actually have any gameplay. But as always I'll recap what I can, and as a bonus I'll even recap some of the news that Nintendo showed off in their live streams after the Spotlight video ended. So let's get started.

• After the preview for the video had ended, there was a new trailer for Xenoblade Chronicles 2 for the Switch which showed off a small bit of some actual gameplay and more story elements. A definitive release date wasn't yet confirmed but it has a planned release for the holidays at the end of the year.
• Next a brand new Kirby game was shown off for the Switch and it appears to run on the same engine as the past three main series games. It appears that the game is already pretty far in development as gameplay footage of Kirby recruiting enemies as helpers and fusing abilities together in the trailer. It has a projected release of 2018.
• A brand new core series Pokemon game was revealed to be in development for the Switch. No other info about it was announced at this time.
• In an amazing surprise reveal, it was confirmed that Metroid Prime 4 is currently in development for the Nintendo Switch. However it was also confirmed that Retro Studios will not be working on this entry in the series meaning the game that they're currently working on for Nintendo is still unknown at this point in time.
• A brand new Yoshi game is in the works for the Switch and it was confirmed that it is being developed with Unreal Engine 4 of all things. It has a similar look and feel to the previous Yoshi game, Yoshi's Woolly World, but it has this new gameplay feature where you can flip the environment backwards when you ground pound and even throw eggs at enemies in the foreground and background. This game is also set for a 2018 release.
• Gameplay and story footage was shown off for Fire Emblem Warriors. A full voice cast will also accompany the game giving an official English VA for the character Marth. It was also shown that it will not feature characters from the entire series, but rather just the games Shadow Dragon, Awakening, and Fates. It is slated to launch this Autumn.
• Content for first DLC pack for The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild called The Master Trials was shown off preceded by the announcement for amiibo support in the Switch port of The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim. The first DLC pack will go live at the end of June. In addition to this, a preview of the second DLC pack for Zelda was teased and the official name for the story that it will tell was revealed to be called The Champions' Ballad. DLC pack 2 will launch some time this holiday season. 4 new Breath of the Wild amiibo based on the 4 champions Mipha, Daruk, Revali, and Urbosa were also announced for the game. No official release date the amiibo was announced at the time of the conference.
• Ubisoft revealed new info for their brand new crossover game for the Switch, Mario + Rabbids: Kingdom Battle which features Mario, Luigi, Peach, and Yoshi stopping an invading force of rabbids with the help of 4 "friendly" rabbids that are dressed like them. The gameplay footage shown off is a turn-based strategy game with heavy emphasis on cover-based shooting; much like X-Com. It will launch August 29 of this year.
• Psyonix revealed that their hit game Rocket League is coming to the Nintendo Switch with special Nintendo themed content exclusive to the Switch version. In addition, they confirmed that the game would have cross-platform multiplayer with the XBox One and PC versions of the game when playing online. Its slated for a holiday release.
• And finally, new features were shown off for Super Mario Odyssey. In the new gameplay footage, at least 2 new worlds were shown off (one being monochrome and one being prehistoric); Mario was seen to have the ability to ride certain vehicles and turn 8-bit to move around wall paintings; and through the use of Cappy, the spirit that is occupying his hat for this adventure, Mario can possess a plethora of different objects and enemies to help him on his quest to save Princess Peach. Also, after the Spotlight presentation, it was confirmed that the game would have Co-Op play where player 2 plays as Cappy. It will be released on the 27th of October this year.
• Now after the Spotlight was over, a few more things were announced. One of them being that we're getting not one, but two new Metroid games. The second one they announced was Metroid: Samus Returns for the 3DS and is being developed by MercurySteam. According to Yoshio Sakamoto, the game is said to be a reimagining of Metroid II on the original Game Boy. The remake will be adding many new features such as melee countering and amiibo support, and will use the original game as a base (I guess now we know why AM2R got hit with a cease and desist so soon after it was finished). It will be released on September 15th. New Metroid series amiibo were also confirmed to be in development for the game in the form of Samus in her Metroid II boxart pose, and a metroid with a soft, squishy outer membrane. These new amiibo will launch alongside the game.
• Separate from the E3 streams, Nintendo announced that a remake of Mario & Luigi: Superstar Saga was being made for the 3DS with updated graphics and new content in the form of a strategic battle mode where you take control of Bowser's minions. Mario & Luigi: Superstar Saga + Bowser's Minions will launch on October 6th of this year.
• A rather unusual new IP called Sushi Striker: The Way of Sushido was revealed for the Nintendo 3DS and is being developed by Indieszero of NES Remix and Retro Game Challenge fame. Judging by the gameplay shown, it appears to mix the concept of match-3 puzzle games with real-time combat in a frantic style of game where you need to eat as much sushi as possible, collect the plates that the sushi was sitting on, and then use the plates as ammo to knock out your opponent. No release date was confirmed, but it will be released some time in 2018.
• More amiibo were confirmed to be in development. Mario, Peach and Bowser in wedding garb were shown off as well as a Goomba and Koopa Troopa for the Mario series set. In addition to those, Chrom and Tiki from Fire Emblem Awakening were also shown off in amiibo form. The new Mario, Peach and Bowser amiibo will launch alongside Super Mario Odyssey and the Goomba and Koopa Troopa will be released at the same time as Mario & Luigi: Superstar Saga + Bowser's Minions. No date has yet to be confirmed for the Chrom and Tiki amiibo but I would imagine that they would be released around the same time as Fire Emblem Warriors.
• More of Miitopia was shown off in detail. Movement in dungeons appear to be mostly automatic with occasional input from the player and combat is turn-based with the option for auto-battling. Amiibo support was also confirmed and would be used to gain Nintendo themed equipment. As for the miis in the game, all of them come from the system's internal memory or you can import them from Tomodachi Life. Miitopia will launch July 28th of this year.
• A bit more info for the 3DS game Ever Oasis was revealed. It will give the player the ability to customize their own oasis paradise and go dungeon crawling for more loot and experience. The overall combat appears to be similar in design to the Mana series of games which makes sense considering it was conceived by the same creator. The game will launch incredibly soon on June 23rd and a demo of the game is now available to download from the 3DS eShop.
• And last but not least, the first DLC character was shown off for ARMS in the form of the one of the game's previous champions, Max Brass. It was shown that he has skills that mirror the abilities of both Spring Man and Master Mummy. The new character, along with a spectator mode, will be patched into the game later this month.

Well that's all the info I can muster up for now. I can certainly say that if you are a Nintendo fan like me, then their announcements this year probably made you a very happy camper. Metroid Prime 4 and Metroid: Samus Returns were certainly a welcome surprise for those that were disappointed by Metroid Prime: Federation Force, but only time will tell if they are in good hands. So until then, I'll be seeing you.

Now compared to the first Splatoon, the gameplay is virtually unchanged. There are still many of the same main weapons making a return from the previous iteration, but in this game, two new weapon types make their first appearance: The Dualies, dual wielded pistols that give you the ability to perform a dodge-roll; and the Brella, a combination scattergun and shield which can be launched forward trailing ink behind it. In addition to this some new sub weapons were introduced, but that is nothing when you find out that EVERY special attack from the first game has been replaced with one of many brand new ones. These new specials force the player to think of brand new strategies that were not possible in the first game, and I for one welcome them.

Now when playing online, the stage rotation now updates every 2 hours instead of every 4 allowing for more varied arenas more often. Some stages are updated ones that have returned from the previous game, but most of them are brand new with some special exclusive stages that are only available to play during the game's occasional Spatfests, which are time exclusive parties to see which of 2 selectable teams is better in a themed competition.

When online you can play your normal Turf Wars and Ranked Battles like in the previous installment, but now you have 3 ranks for ranked battles; one for each mode. In addition to this, some elements from the battles have been updated. For instance: In Tower Control, you now have to pass by a certain number of check points before the tower can reach its final destination; and in Rainmaker, the rainmaker itself has been upgraded from being a chargable inkzooka to something more like a grenade launcher. Plus now if you want to play Squad Battles, you now have to have a minimum rank of B- to play them as it has been renamed to League Battles and now has its own unique stage rotation separate from the normal ranked battles.

The real star of the show here though is the game's new hoard mode: Salmon Run. In this game mode you and 3 other players will play cooperatively with a random set of loaned weapons to collect golden power eggs from the mutated salmonids living in the toxic waters just off the coast of Inkopolis. Now unfortunately this game mode can't be played whenever you want as it is on this bafflingly asinine clock where it is only open for about 12 to 24 hours every other day, but when it CAN be played I think I can safely say that this is probably my favorite of the game modes available and the unique rewards that come with it certainly more than make up for it.

Now like the previous game, there is a single-player story campaign. In this story we find out that Splatoon 2 takes place 2 years after the events of the first game. You have been chosen by Marie of the Squid Sisters to help her recover the once again stolen Great Zapfish and rescue her missing cousin Callie, the other half of the Squid Sisters. You will learn the game's basics in this mode and it will progressively become more difficult the further you get into the game, but now you can unlock and use any of the nine main weapon types found in online multiplayer and will also have more than double the number collectibles to find with some of them only found in the hub world.

And finally, the dojo from the previous game (which is was the local multiplayer game mode) has been completely removed in favor of a new local multiplayer mode called The Shoal. Instead of it being where you and one other person compete to see who can pop the most balloons before the time expires, it now is just a simple local wireless or LAN mode where 4-8 players can compete against each other in either a regular combat match, or a game of Salmon Run.

Overall, I love all the new content that was introduced and little improvements that were made here and there. You can now customize your hairstyle and leg-wear, the amiibo make a return as a way to save you loadout preferences, you can now assign specific abilities to equipment (assuming you have enough ability chunks), and I especially like that you can now have the ability to buy bonuses like double money or XP from the newly added food truck in the square. To some, the online mode, AKA the main focus of the game, may feel like "more of the same" but that isn't always bad thing. This game did everything right when it comes to sequels: Fix what was broken, and build upon what was already good. I just hope that some day in the future they remove the limitations from Salmon Run, but until then, I'll be seeing you.

Score

This Direct was a mix of both 3DS and Switch news this time around and I don't think anyone was expecting anything like this.

• First off, it was revealed that a compilation of WarioWare games would be coming to the 3DS in the form of WarioWare Gold which will contain over 300 microgames. No information if it will be released as digital only or as physical copy, but it will launch on August 3.
• The third entry in the "Dillon" series was announced and it appears to have a bit of a street racing theme this time around. Dillon's Dead-Heat Breakers will be available May 24 with a demo becoming available on May 10.
• Mario & Luigi: Bowser's Inside Story was revealed to be getting a remake and will include a new game mode similar to the Bowser's Minions mode in the Super Star Saga remake. Mario & Luigi: Bowser's Inside Story + Bowser Jr.'s Journey will launch sometime in 2019.
• Detective Pikachu was reconfirmed to be getting a March 23 release date with a jumbo Detective Pikachu amiibo being released along side it.
  
• The Game Cube classic Luigi's Mansion was revealed to be getting a remake for the 3DS and would include a new Boss Rush mode. It will be available sometime later this year.
• Moving on to Switch news, Kirby Star Allies was revealed that other characters besides the many other partners in the game would be playable such as King DeDeDe and Meta Knight. In addition to this, other Kirby legacy characters like Marx and Gooey would be playable later in a future update.
  
• Okami HD was revealed to be getting a Switch port and would have both touch screen and Joy-Con motion support. It will launch this Summer.
  
• The new IP Sushi Striker: The Way of Sushido was revealed to be coming to the Switch and will launch simultaneously with the 3DS version on June 8.
• Project Octopath Travelers had some new gameplay footage shown off in the form of 2 new characters (a merchant and an apothecary), the ability to have characters combine job classes to offer new strategies for battle and an official name. Octopath Traveler will launch on July 13 alongside a collector's edition that will include a pop-up diorama, a map, a sound selection CD, and a coin modeled after the in-game currency.
  
• Gameplay was finally shown off for Travis Strikes Again: No More Heroes and it appears that the gameplay is mostly a top-down hack'n'slash that has different gameplay mechanics dependent on the world. It will also have a 2-player co-op mode where player 2 plays as Badman. It will launch later this year.
• Dark Souls Remastered was shown off and was revealed that a network test would be available allowing for players to try the game before it launches. In addition to this, it was revealed that an amiibo of Solaire of Astora would be available as well. They will both launch on May 25.
  
• News about My Nintendo was shown off regarding the gold points that you earn from purchases. Digital purchases on the Switch eShop will now give a number of gold points equal to 5% of the price of the software purchased (rounded). These gold points can also now be used to purchase games on the Switch eShop with each point being worth 1 cent.
• New info and gameplay features for Mario Tennis Aces was shown off. Players now will have a set number of tennis racquets for use in each match and you can perform super moves to that can give you the ability to break the opponent's racquet. Online tournaments and motion controls would also be a part of the experience among other things. It will launch June 22 with a pre-launch online tournament being announced some time later.
• Captain Toad: Treasure Tracker was revealed to be getting a port to both Switch and the 3DS and would include brand new stages based on Super Mario Odyssey and a co-op mode exclusive to the Switch version. Both versions will launch June 13.
• The critically acclaimed indie title Undertale was revealed to be coming to the Nintendo Switch...eventually.
  
• Crash Bandicoot The N.Sane Trilogy was also revealed to be getting a Switch port on July 10.
  
• A definitive version of the game Little Nightmares was revealed to be coming to the Switch and was shown to be compatible with the Pac-Man amiibo in order to unlock the paku mask. Little Nightmares: Complete Edition will be available on May 18.
  
• South Park: The Fractured But Whole is surprisingly enough also coming to the Switch with the DLC packs being available to purchase soon after. The game plus DLC Packs 1 and 2 will launch on April 24 and DLC Pack 3 will launch later this year.
  
• Hyrule Warriors Definitive Edition now has a release date of May 18.
  
• Nintendo will be hosting an official ARMS tournament with the qualifier beginning in the game's ranked matches on March 8 at 5pm PT and ending March 18 at 4:59pm PT with the online finals being on March 31. Another ARMS Testpunch will also be available for 3 more days starting on March 31.
  
• Splatoon 2 is getting a 3.0 update which will include over 100 new pieces of gear, a handful of new stages a brand new X rank for online ranked matches. It was also revealed that the game will be getting its first paid premium DLC in the form of the Splatoon 2 Octo Expansion which will introduce a brand new story campaign where you play as an amnesiac octoling assisting Cap'n Cuttlefish in a new subway themed overworld area, and once this game mode is finished you will be able to play as an octoling in the online matches. It will launch this summer with a price of $19.99USD, but you can pre-purchase it now and it will include special octo gear as a thank you.
  
• And as a special surprise announcement, it was revealed that what appears to be a brand new Super Smash Bros game, not a port of the Wii U or 3DS games, will be coming to the Switch sometime this year and will have the Inklings from Splatoon as playable characters.

Well that's it, and I must say it was one helluva Direct. Not only did we get confirmation of paid DLC for Splatoon 2 and ports of both Crash Bandicoot and Undertale, but the fact that we're getting a brand new Smash this year is newsworthy enough in my book. I just hope that the roster is even bigger this time around, but until then, I'll be seeing you.

But as always, if you're pressed for time I'll recap the news to the best of my ability. So let's get started.

• First they showed off that the arms that the player can equip have different weights that affect how they work in battle. I.E. heavier arms move more slowly, but pack more of a wallop whereas lighter arms are weak, but travel quickly. In addition each arm also have different attributes that activate when fully charged like Fire, Ice, or Electricity.
• Next they showed off the ten fighters that will be in the game revealing three new fighters in the process: Kid Cobra, an athletic snake-like fighter; Byte & Barq, a robotic cop with a robodog teammate; and Twintelle, a movie star who's hair does the fighting for her.
• The Versus game modes were shown off being a standard Fight, a 2-on-2 mode where you're tethered to your teammate, V-Ball which is volleyball with a twist, Hoops in which you grab your opponent and dunk them into the basketball hoop for points, Skillshot which is basically a shooting range type affair, and an arcade-like 1-on-100 mode where you're pitted against an army of weaker opponents one after the other.
• In order to get more arms to use in battle, you spend your fight winnings on the Arms Getter which is like a sideways crane game mixed in with the Skillshot game that was mentioned before. Duplicate arms collected are greater in strength than the previous ones you collected.
• The other modes were shown off next being Grand Prix, a single-player ladder climb that is a staple to many fighting games, Party Match an online mode for the game for up to 20 players per lobby (or 8 per lobby for local multiplayer), and Ranked Matches where you fight 1-on-1 online for glory.
• In addition to the content that was revealed right now, it was also confirmed that the game would be getting new fighters, stages, and arms as free updates throughout the life of the game.
• And finally, from May 26-28 and June 2-4 a free demo of the game will be available to try from the Switch eShop called the ARMS Global Testpunch.

That was all the info that was announced for ARMS, but the video didn't end there. As a surprise addition to the end of the Direct, brand new info for the single-player campaign for Splatoon 2 was revealed. Marie of The Squid Sisters appears to be the person you talk to do the missions and it appears that Sheldon of Ammo Knights from the first game supplies you with new weapons to be used against some of the new enemy types. Not much else was shown off besides a piece of art promoting the single player story. So until then, I'll be seeing you.

As always, if you are pressed for time, I will give you all of the juicy details and recap all of the news regarding the presentation to the best of my ability. So let's get started.

• The system will launch globally and simultaneously on March 3, 2017 with a price of 29,980 Yen in Japan, $299.99 in North America, and a varying price in Europe depending on the retailer.
• A new paid online service was revealed with a free trial period lasting until Autumn.
• Switch software WILL be region free.
• The system's battery life will vary by the game that's being played, but the general range is anywhere between 2.5 and 6 hours of continuous play. It will also come with a USB Type-C cable for recharging purposes.
• The screen is a capacitive touch screen.
• Up to 8 Switches can connect wirelessly to each other during local play.
• The Left Joy-Con was shown to have a "Capture" button which is used for taking screenshots (and eventually video footage) of the game you are currently playing.
• Two buttons on the interior of each Joy-Con were shown to be how the controllers lock into the console and also double as the L & R buttons for each player.
• Joy-Cons will also be available in other colors with the first 2 being neon blue and neon red.
• Each Joy-Con also has an IR camera at their bottom half which apparently is sensitive enough to detect the difference between rock, paper, and scissor hand gestures or varying distances from the screen.
• The brand new HD Rumble feature was shown off that somehow has the ability to mimic changes in shifting weight making for a more immersive experience.
• Two new games were shown off for showcasing the Joy-Con's features, one being 1-2-Switch which is a multiplayer party type game, and the other being Arms, a strange boxing game featuring characters with long spring-loaded boxing gloves. 1-2-Switch will launch along side the console and Arms will launch in spring.
• Splatoon 2 was announced which showed off many new features such as duel-wielding, dodging, and a bunch of new special weapons. It is planned to launch this summer.
• Super Mario Odyssey was revealed and showed Mario in a plethora of new areas all based around different parts of the world and showed of a new gameplay mechanic revolving around throwing his hat. It unfortunately won't be released until the holiday season.
• Two new games were then revealed after the reveal of Super Mario Odyssey. These games were Xenoblade Chronicles 2, and Fire Emblem Warriors.
• Dragon Quest X, Dragon Quest XI, and Dragon Quest Heros I & II were announced for the system, but currently only for Japan.
• A new Shin Megami Tensei game and a new Square Enix game tentatively called Project Octopath Traveler were shown off in addition to Skyrim Remastered.
• What possibly might be a brand new No More Heroes game was revealed to be in development by Suda51.
• A brand new Fifa game was revealed to be coming to Switch with a 2017 release window.
• The complete package for the Switch was shown which includes the console and Switch Dock, a Left and a Right Joy-Con (either both gray or one of each neon color) with matching wrist straps, the Joy-Con controller dock, an HDMI cable, and an AC Adapter. The Pro Controller will be sold separately.
• And finally, The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild was revealed to launch along side the Nintendo Switch on March 3, 2017 with both Special Edition and Master Edition bundles also available at $99.99USD and $129.99USD respectively.
• Now outside of the presentation many other games were shown off such as Mario Kart 8 Deluxe which has new items, new racers, and a PROPER battle mode in addition to the possibility of having all DLC pre-installed on the cartridge.
• Super Bomberman R and Puyo Puyo Tetris were shown off in addition to the reveal that Sonic Mania would also be coming to the Switch.

I tell ya, this was one helluva presentation. While they didn't show off what the system's specs were, I still can't wait for the system to launch. March 3rd can't come soon enough. And as for the games, I am truly excited for many of the new games that are coming out for it (especially for Zelda, Mario, and Splatoon 2), and the fact that the system is only $300 is just icing on the cake. Granted the lack of launch games for the system is a bit of a letdown, but I'm sure the Switch is bound to thrive after the unfortunate failure of the Wii U. Only time will tell if it will last long-term, but until then, I'll be seeing you.