The last Nintendo Direct appeared in February, and had some pretty great announcements. This morning, Nintendo did it again, bringing the noise. Iwata recapped information for some games we already knew about, but then, out of nowhere, news of a new Zelda title for the 3DS set in the Link to the Past world.

[youtube http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wSXyo0z6LKA&w=760]
Because these Nintendo Directs have so much information in them, we’ll just outline the things discussed. You should take the time to watch the video, though, because it’s pretty great.

  • Mario & Luigi: Dream Team August 11
  • Mario Golf: World Tour
    • Real time play online and local play
    • Create different rules to allow people to play
  • Mario Party for 3DS
    • Each game board has its own gimmick.
  • New Super Luigi U Summer 2013
    • World map the same, but all stages are different
    • All courses only start with 100 seconds
  • Donkey Kong Country Returns 3D
    • Items and modes to make the game easier.
  • Yoshi Island 3DS
    • Basically the same gameplay as we all know
    • Yoshi can find giant eggs to throw that will break large blocks
  • Mario and Donkey Kong: Minis on the Move
  • Wii U updates
    • You’ll be able to download updates when the system is off.
    • You’ll be able to hold B when starting your Wii U to go straight into Wii mode.
    • Earthbound will be coming to Wii U Virtual Console.
    • Wii U Virtual Console titles will be able to be played on the GamePad; you can upgrade your old Wii Virtual Console games for $1-$1.50.
  • Pikmin 3
    • Flying Pikmin
  • Game & Wario June 23
  • Animal Crossing: New Leaf June 9
    • New 3DS XL bundle with the game
  • Shin Megami Tensei IV July 16
    • First run comes with music CD, strategy and design book, and custom slip case.
  • 3DS eShop
    • tLoZ: Oracle of Ages
    • tLoZ: Oracle of Seasons
    • Bravely Default: Flying Fairy
    • Professor Layton and the Azran Legacy
    • The Starship Damrey
    • Bugs vs.Tanks!
    • Attack of the Friday Montsers! A Tokyo Tale
  • The Legend of Zelda (Untitled) Holiday 2013
    • Height and depth will come into play
    • Link can turn into a drawing on the wall, allowing him to move in other directions than normal

Who ever came up with this Nintendo Direct idea should get a raise. So far, none of them have disappointed, and they somehow make it so the dearth of new games for the Wii U is less pronounced. It is also nice to see how much steam the 3DS is gathering.