Gaming Influence: Thoughts - Nintendo Direct: Partner Showcase 7.31.2025

Hello everyone,

Welcome to Gaming Influence, a reboot of the same name I created in WrestleCorp. However, I will not only share my thoughts on certain video games and video game series, but also on video game movies, anime, digital presentations, and more.

For this edition of Gaming Influence, I'll share my thoughts on the Nintendo Direct: Partner Showcase on July 31, 2025.

Before I begin, please note that not every game shown in this presentation will be discussed, as I will primarily focus on games that I am particularly interested in and care about. If the games you care about and are interested in don't show up here, don't take it personally, have nothing against the games, but they're just not for me, or it's just that I don't have much to say about them except cool. However, if you're happy with the games that you care about and are interested in, I have nothing to say about it, good for you, and I'm happy for you.
Anyway, let's get started!

This Nintendo Direct: Partner Showcase will cover Switch 2 and Switch games from third-party publishers and developers that are coming in the future, so let's get to it!

MONSTER HUNTER STORIES 3: TWISTED REFLECTION is a role-playing game developed and published by Capcom, which will be released on Switch 2 in 2026.

Wait, we're getting another MONSTER HUNTER STORIES game?! Awesome. It's been four years since Monster Hunter Stories 2: Wings of Ruin, so great to see the series continue, as it's a nice different feel compared to the mainline Monster Hunter games. The graphics are beautiful as always with these games, and the story seems quite interesting as well. Really looking forward to seeing more of this game when it comes out on Switch 2 next year.

Once Upon a KATAMARI is a third-person puzzle-action game developed and published by Bandai Namco, where the game is set to be released on Switch on October 24, 2025. 

Wait what?! We're getting a new KATAMARI game?! Heck yes! After re-releasing the old KATAMARI games, it looks like we got ourselves a new original KATAMARI game, which is awesome to see. This game still has that same feeling that past KATAMARI games have, which I love, and I love the customization in the game as well. Plus, the game also has multi-player as well, whether local or online, which is awesome. Finally, the music for this game sounds awesome, and I'm looking forward to hearing more about this game once it's released in less than three months.

DRAGON BALL: Sparking! ZERO is a fighting game developed by Spike Chunsoft and published by Bandai Namco. The game is set to be released on Switch 2 and Switch on November 14, 2025.

I had a feeling that this game was going to come on Nintendo consoles eventually, and it finally did. Very cool to see that this game will have all of the features that it had in the other versions of the game, as that's great to see. It also looks very good on the console itself, as well as I'm very curious to see how online will work with this game. Regardless, looking forward to seeing more of this game once it's released on Switch 2 and Switch in less than four months.

Plants vs. Zombies: Replanted is a strategy game developed by PopCap Games and The Lost Pixels and published by EA. The game is set to be released on Switch 2 and Switch on October 23, 2025.

Oh wow, didn't expect a remake of the original Plants vs. Zombies, but this is quite cool to see regardless. Love the art style that they did for this remake, as it looks like it's going back to its roots with this remake which I appreciate. I'm very curious to see how this remake turns out once it's released in less than three months.

PAC-MAN WORLD 2 Re-PAC is a platformer developed and published by Bandai Namco, where the game will be released on Switch 2 and Switch on September 26. 2025.

Well, if PAC-MAN WORLD was getting a remake, I was expecting PAC-MAN WORLD 2 to be remade, and we got it, as it looks great. It also seems like they remade the game from scratch as well which is nice to see. Looking forward to replaying this game to see if they changed anything, or kept everything the same, as it'll be released in less than two months.

FINAL FANTASY TACTICS - The Ivalice Chronicles is a remaster of the tactical role-playing game developed and published by Square Enix on PSX in 1997, Final Fantasy Tactics. The game is set to be released on Switch 2 and Switch on September 30, 2025.

We saw this game back at the PlayStation State of Play last month during Summer Game Fest week, but great to see that the game will be coming to Nintendo consoles, which is awesome. Very curious to see how the final product will turn out, and great to see FINAL FANTASY TACTICS back after eighteen years. Looking forward to replaying this game with the new features in two months.

Persona 3 Reload is a role-playing game developed and published by Atlus, where the game is set to be released on Switch 2 on October 23, 2025.

I had a feeling that Persona 3 Reload was going to come to Nintendo consoles eventually, and it looks like it was because it was waiting for Switch 2, as it looks to be great on the console so far. It looks like the game is also only coming to Switch 2 as well so sorry, Switch fans, you wanted the game on Switch. Regardless, very curious to see how the game will play and run on Switch 2, as I'm looking forward to trying it out once it's released in less than three months.

Hyrule Warriors: Age of Imprisonment is a hack-and-slash game developed by Koei Tecmo and published by Nintendo. The game is set to be released on Switch 2 this winter.

I wasn't surprised that we got to see this game in this presentation, as it didn't disappoint at all. This game continues to look great, as that extra power the Switch 2 is definitely making this game look and run a lot better. It looks like we've got some new characters to play with in this game as well, where I'm curious to see how they'll play in the game. Hope to see more of this game and looking forward to playing it once it's released this winter.

EA SPORTS Madden NFL 26 is an American football game developed and published by EA, where the game is set to be released on Switch 2 on August 14, 2025.

Despite not being into these types of games, I have to say that this is a big announcement for Nintendo, as they haven't had any Madden games on their consoles since the Wii era. This is a huge get for them, and it's a game coming to other consoles on the same day, too, and not a port. I'm very curious to see how this game will do on Switch 2 once it's released in a few weeks.

Chillin' by the Fire is a campfire simulation game developed and published by Oink Games, where the game is available now on Switch 2. 

Okay, this is a game that I didn't expect to show up here, but a nice surprise regardless, as it looks to be a nice cozy and chill game to hang with friends. Setting up your own campfire in this simulation game is quite interesting, and the fact that you can use the Nintendo Switch 2 camera for this is quite cool as well. Very curious to see how this game turns out, as it's available now for players to try.

Hela is an enchanting 3D co-op adventure game developed by Windup and published by Knights Peak. The game is set to be released on Switch 2 in 2026.

This is another game that I didn't expect to show up in this presentation, but a nice surprise regardless. It looks to be a fun adventure game that you can play with friends, and you get to play as a rat, too, which is quite interesting as well. Looking forward to seeing more of this game in the future once it's released next year.

Cronos: The New Dawn is a survival horror game developed and published by Bloober Team, where the game is set to be released on Switch 2 on September 5, 2025.

Okay, this is another game that I didn't expect, but it looks like Bloober Team is developing another original title on their own here, which is interesting to see. Bloober Team definitely did great work with the remake of Silent Hill 2, so let's see if they learned what they did with that game and applied it to this original game they're making. I'm very curious to see how this game turns out once it's released in more than a month.

Yakuza Kiwami 2 is an action-adventure game developed by Ryu Ga Gotoku Studio and published by Sega. The game is set to be released on Switch 2 on November 13, 2025.

Great to see more Yakuza/Like a Dragon games coming to Nintendo consoles, as the more, the merrier. I love the additional features that they added here with the higher resolution and better frame rate, which is really appreciated. Looking forward to seeing how this game will run on Switch 2 once it's released in less than four months.

Yakuza Kiwami is an action-adventure game developed by Ryu Ga Gotoku Studio and published by Sega. The game is set to be released on Switch 2 on November 13, 2025.

The game has already been released on Switch, but great to see that the game is coming to Switch 2 with enhanced features like higher resolution, better frame rate, and more language support. I continue to love that Sega is putting these Yakuza/Like a Dragon games on Nintendo consoles, and I hope they continue to do so moving forward. 

Romancing SaGa 2: Revenge of the Seven is a role-playing game developed and published by Square Enix, where the game is now available on Switch 2.

Oh wow! Didn't expect this game to get a Nintendo Switch 2 version, but we got it here, and it looks awesome. It looks like we got both the higher resolution and the better frame rate, which is always appreciated. Very great to see that Square Enix is giving a Switch 2 edition for this game, and curious to see how it turns out as it's available now to play.

SHINOBI: Art of Vengeance is a 2D action platformer developed by Lizardcube and published by Sega. The game is set to be released on Switch on August 29, 2025.

We've seen this game in past presentations already, but great to see that this game will be coming to Nintendo consoles, which is very nice. Interesting that this game is only coming to Switch and not Switch 2, but since Switch 2 is backwards compatible with Switch, it'll be fine. Plus, we have a demo for the game available now, which is very exciting. Looking forward to playing this game once it's released in a couple of weeks.

Borderlands 4 is an action role-playing first-person looter shooter developed by Gearbox Software and published by 2K. The game is set to be released on Switch 2 on October 3, 2025.

Nice to see that we got an update for this game coming to Switch 2, as this is a pretty good get for Nintendo here. Even though this game won't launch simultaneously with the other versions of the game, the fact that it's only one week away from the others is quite impressive. I'm very curious to see how the game turns out on Switch 2 once it's released in three months.

The Adventures of Elliot: The Millennium Tales is an action role-playing game developed and published by Square Enix, with a release date on Switch 2 scheduled for 2026. 

Holy crap, we got a new HD-2D game from Square Enix, and it's an action RPG! I didn't see this coming, but it looks freaking amazing. As usual, love the graphics as it's HD-2D, but the combat looks like it's so much fun with all of the different weapons you can use in the game, as well as the customization with magic. Also, love the companion that Elliot, the protagonist, has with Faie, the fairy, as she also fights and helps Elliot in and outside of battle. Not only that, we got a demo for this game as well, with a post-demo survey, which is great. Looking forward to seeing how this game will turn out once it's released next year.

OCTOPATH TRAVELER 0 is a role-playing game developed and published by Square Enix, where the game is set to be released on Switch 2 and Switch on December 4, 2025.

Wait what?! We're getting a prequel of the first Octopath Traveler?! No way! I did expect that we were going to get another Octopath Traveler game, but didn't expect it to be a prequel, and that's insane. It looks like with this game, you get to customize the character you play as, and you get characters from the other Octopath Traveler games to be in your party, which is awesome. Plus, it looks like you can create your town in this game too, which is cool, and the fact that you can have up to eight party members in a battle is crazy. So looking forward to playing this game, and I can't wait to play it once it's released in five months.

Overall, this was a good presentation from Nintendo. Granted, it didn't have any major first-party games that people were hoping for, but since this was a Partner Showcase, I expected that. Besides, we did get Hyrule Warriors: Age of Imprisonment, which is awesome. Plus, the announcements that they had here were very surprising, with some new original games, and not all of them are ports, which is nice. With that being said, I know it's not for everyone, but I think they did a good job of showcasing a lot of variety in terms of genres, so hands off to Nintendo there. It's only a matter of time before we get more first-party games on Switch 2, and we'll probably get that in a future general Nintendo Direct, but we've got to be patient. Either way, looking forward to seeing what else Nintendo has in store for Switch 2 in the future.

You can catch the whole presentation of the Nintendo Direct: Partner Showcase with the link below:

What are your thoughts on this Nintendo Direct: Partner Showcase?

What were your highlights, and what games do you really want?

Let me know in the comments below, and thank you for reading.