April 1st isn't an ideal day to hold a press conference, but that is what Nintendo did nonetheless. Thankfully all the new games, products and console functionality announced during the company's latest Nintendo Direct was no joke. There is plenty to talk about, so let's dive in.
Here are the biggest announcements that came out of the April 1st Nintendo Direct.
Fans Can Vote For Super Smash Bros. Characters They Want To See Next
Nintendo opened up a new portion of the Smash Bros. website that allows fans to vote for what characters they would like to see come to the game as DLC. The possibilities are near endless, and fans are already rallying their forces to get favorites like Ice Climbers, Waluigi and even Goku from Dragonball Z into the game.
You can check out seven characters we think deserve a shot here, and be sure to vote for your favorites via the official Smash Bros. website.
Lucas Joins Super Smash Bros. Wii U and 3DS
This announcement kicked off the press conference and truly came out of nowhere. Fans were led to believe no DLC characters would be coming to Super Smash Bros. beyond the previously announced Mewtwo. Lucas returns after last being seen in Super Smash Bros. Brawl for the Wii and hails from the same game franchise, Earthbound, as Ness. Lucas is currently scheduled to be released for download in June.
More Amiibo
Lots more. You knew it was coming -- Nintendo's interactive figurines have proved to be a big hit for the company, so it shouldn't come as a surprise that there are several new waves of figures on the way. First up is the next wave of Smash Bros. characters, which will be coming May 29 along with new Splatoon Amiibo. Those will be followed by yet another wave of Smash Bros. fighters and will include Zero Suit Samus, Bowser Jr., Dark Pit and more. Those will be releasing in July and September. Last but certainly not least comes a brand new type of stuffed Amiibo. These yarn Yoshi's will be released alongside Yoshi's Wooly World later this year. For everything Amiibo, including game functionality and availability, check out our comprehensive Amiibo guide.
Nintendo DS and Nintendo 64 Games Arrive on Wii U
If you've been itching to play some of Nintendo's classics, even more will soon be available via the Wii U Virtual Console. Games like Super Mario 64 and Yoshi's Island DS are already available, with more titles being released over the month of April.
New Fatal Frame Coming To Wii U
The latest entry in one of the biggest video game horror franchises is returning to North America. No word was given on a release date or official title, but the game released in Japan last year and allows players to use the Wii U Gamepad as a camera that can see objects (and ghosts) hidden in environments.
New Fire Emblem Coming In 2016 Makes You Choose A Side
The critically acclaimed Fire Emblem: Awakening allowed players to make their own character, but this latest Fire Emblem is going one step further by making your custom character the star of the entire story. An even bigger change is the choices that will be involved. Players will be able to pick between two factions to fight for, resulting in two entirely different campaigns for players to experience.
Codename: S.T.E.A.M. Is Getting A Much Needed Patch
The recently released Codename: S.T.E.A.M. for the Nintendo 3DS received mediocre reviews when it released last month. At the top of every critics list of complaints? Painfully long wait times as enemy forces took their turns that can't be skipped or sped up. It can be upwards of a two minute wait as players wait for the enemies to move into position, made even more painful by the fact that thanks to the game's lack of an overhead camera, you often can't even see what the enemy is doing. It looks like Nintendo has heard the complaints and took a moment out of their Direct to announce a patch will soon be on the way which will allow players to fast forward through enemy turns.
Attack On Titan: Humanity In Chains Coming Stateside
Attack on Titan is popular outside of Japan, but many wondered if the recently released Japanese Attack on Titan 3DS game would come stateside. Wonder no more, as the game will be localized for western audiences and available to download on the Nintendo eShop in May. You can also download two episodes of the popular anime via the eShop for free right now.
New Animal Crossing Uses Amiibo Cards
An Animal Crossing spin-off game titled Animal Crossing: Happy Home Designer will uses Nintendo's new Amiibo cards as a core functionality. The cards are a cheaper way to integrate Amiibo functionality into a game without having to produce a full-blown figure. This particular game will be all about home decorating and is slated to release this fall, along with the Amiibo NFC reader peripheral to enable Amiibo support on older 3DS models.
Two New Mii Plaza Games Coming Soon
Two new Streetpass games are coming to the Mii Plaza on Nintendo 3DS later this year. One is a fishing game where players will receive various types of bait from Mii characters they meet via streetpass that allow the player to catch various types of fish. The other is a zombie game. Mii characters met via streetpass will bring a weapon, which players then must use to fend off waves of zombie enemies. No release date for the games were given, but each will retail separately for $4.99 or $7.99 if bought together.
Mario Kart 8 Speeds Up With 200 CC And Receives Second DLC Pack
A free update coming to Mario Kart 8 will add an even faster style of racing to Nintendo's racer -- 200 CC. The new, faster game mode will work on all Mario Kart 8 courses and be available the same day as the game's second DLC pack, which includes new courses, karts and racers. Both will be released on April 23.
Shin Megami Tensei X Fire Emblem Still Exists
Originally announced back in 2013, Shin Megami Tensei X Fire Emblem fell off the radar shortly afterwards. Nintendo is bringing it back to the forefront with a new trailer that highlights some of the game's cast of characters and setting. Still no word on when this will actually be coming out, but at least Nintendo isn't letting us forget about it.
That's about it for Nintendo's latest press conference. You can watch the Nintendo Direct in its entirety below.
What were your favorite announcements? Let us know in the comments below.
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