After a wild weekend of Summer Game Fest, the Xbox Games Showcase, and PlayStation’s State of Play, Nintendo did the smart thing and waited for the dust to settle before grabbing the spotlight for itself. The June 2026 Nintendo Direct is locked for Tuesday, June 9, kicking off at 7 AM PT/10 AM ET, running roughly 50 minutes, and followed immediately by a 95-minute Nintendo Treehouse: Live loaded with extended gameplay. This is Nintendo’s first big general Direct in a good while, and with the Switch 2 entering its sophomore year, it’s essentially the roadmap for the rest of 2026 and beyond. Here’s what we’re betting on, with a couple of dream picks stapled to the end.
1. The Duskbloods Locks In a Date
The Duskbloods, FromSoftware’s Switch 2 exclusive, has been conspicuously absent from the showcase circuit, skipping Summer Game Fest entirely. With the Gothic multiplayer adventure still slated for 2026, this Direct is the logical place for a proper gameplay deep-dive and, finally, a hard release date. This is Hidetaka Miyazaki’s team building something Nintendo-exclusive with a PvPvE twist, a major get for the platform, and fans of Elden Ring and Bloodborne have been frothing for a real look ever since the reveal.
Given how protective Nintendo is about its showcase headliners, The Duskbloods feels like a strong candidate to anchor a big chunk of the broadcast, and the post-show Treehouse is tailor-made for an extended hands-on. If it’s truly launching this year, the clock is ticking, and Nintendo doesn’t usually let a 2026 exclusive stay this quiet this late in the cycle.
2. Fire Emblem: Fortune’s Weave Unravels Its Gameplay
Announced at the September 2025 Direct, Fire Emblem: Fortune’s Weave is the eighteenth mainline entry and a Switch 2 exclusive, currently pinned to a vague 2026 window. The reveal centered on a gladiatorial spectacle called the Heroic Games, hosted by a mysterious Divine Sovereign, and ended with what sure looked like an adult Sothis, strongly hinting at ties to Three Houses‘ Fódlan. Many assume this is Nintendo’s marquee holiday RPG, though the series has a habit of sliding into summer slots too.
Either way, the game needs a release date soon, and a Direct this close to launch season is the perfect venue for fresh combat footage, character breakdowns, social sim mechanics and that all-important date. Of everything on this list, a Fortune’s Weave update is among the safest bets, since Nintendo simply can’t keep a 2026 release this vague much longer.
3. More Xenoblade Chronicles Switch 2 Editions, Please
The Xenoblade Chronicles X: Definitive Edition Switch 2 upgrade was, to put it kindly, a misfire. Shadow-dropped in February, it shipped with shimmering, smeary textures that Digital Foundry openly puzzled over, and some players were unhappy enough to request refunds. Yet the appetite for more remains huge, with fans desperate to see the main trilogy make the leap. Xenoblade Chronicles 1, 2, and 3 all deserve proper Switch 2 Editions, and after the XCX situation, the operative word is “proper,” meaning clean image quality and locked performance this time around.
Monolith Soft is one of Nintendo’s crown-jewel studios, and giving its modern masterpieces the definitive treatment would thrill. An announcement of the trilogy, handled with more care than the last one, would go a long way toward repairing the goodwill that upgrade chipped away.
4. Onimusha: Way of the Sword Slashes Its Way Onto the Switch 2
Capcom locked in Onimusha: Way of the Sword, the first new mainline entry in over two decades, for September 25, 2026 on PS5, Xbox, and PC, with a demo already live. The glaring omission is a Switch 2 version. Here’s the thing, though: Capcom’s RE Engine already runs beautifully on Switch 2 thanks to Resident Evil Requiem and Pragmata, so a port feels close to inevitable. The prediction is that Nintendo’s Direct is where Capcom finally reveals the Switch 2 edition, launching day-and-date on September 25 alongside everyone else.
Capcom loves a Nintendo stage for these reveals, and demon-slaying samurai action in Edo-era Kyoto would slot perfectly into the Switch 2’s growing third-party lineup. The blood-soaked Genma-hunting of Musashi Miyamoto on a handheld is an easy sell.
5. Mega Man Dual Override — Override the Silence
Capcom revealed Mega Man: Dual Override at The Game Awards 2025, the Blue Bomber’s first mainline outing since 2018’s Mega Man 11, slated for 2027 to coincide with the franchise’s 40th anniversary. It’s coming to just about everything, including Switch and Switch 2. Capcom has been drip-feeding teases ever since, from robot master silhouettes to a fan-driven design contest, keeping the side-scroller in conversation without dumping everything at once.
A fresh gameplay trailer showcasing the “Dual Override” gimmick at the Direct would keep that momentum rolling and give fans a reason to cheer. Although I was disappointed by the reveal due to Capcom’s refusal to give Mega Man the proper glo up they’ve given to their other franchises, a safe Mega Man is better than no Mega Man.
6. A New Nintendo Switch Sports Serves Up
The original Switch Sports was a casual juggernaut, the spiritual heir to Wii Sports that got families swinging Joy-Cons again. With the Switch 2’s revamped Joy-Con and new mouse functionality, either a brand-new Switch Sports or a Switch 2 Edition packing fresh sports and modes feels like a natural, almost obvious move for Nintendo.
A motion-friendly system-seller is exactly the kind of broad-appeal title that anchors a holiday lineup. Nintendo loves printing money with accessible party games, and the Switch 2’s new tricks are begging for a sports showcase to flaunt them.
7. Super Metroid Remake Returns Us to Zebes
With Metroid Prime 4: Beyond finally out the door, attention naturally swings to Samus’s 2D side, and the rumor mill has been whispering about a new 2D Metroid. The dream a lot of us are quietly nursing is a full-blown Super Metroid remake, reimagining the 1994 SNES masterpiece with modern art, quality-of-life tweaks, and that same suffocating sense of isolation. Few games carry the reverence Super Metroid does, and a tasteful remake reveal would short-circuit the internet. With the Prime sub-series caught up, the door for 2D Samus has never been more open.
8. Metaphor: ReFantazio on Switch 2 No Longer a Fantasy
Atlus’s Metaphor: ReFantazio, one of 2024’s highest-rated games, skipped the original Switch entirely, and leakers including NateTheHate and PH Brazil have repeatedly tagged it as Switch 2-bound. The “fantasy Persona” is a perfect match for handheld JRPG marathons, and a Switch 2 reveal would be a layup. With Persona 3 Reload already confirmed for the system, Atlus’s pipeline to Nintendo is wide open, and Metaphor is the missing gem fans most want slotted into the Switch 2 library. Expect it sooner rather than later.
9. Dragon Quest Monsters: The Withered World Gameplay Reveal
Square Enix announced Dragon Quest Monsters: The Withered World (titled Dragon Quest Monsters 4 in Japan) during May’s 40th-anniversary stream, starring dual protagonists Bianca and Nera from Dragon Quest V. The problem? We only got a brief teaser, with no real gameplay and no firm date. It’s already ESRB-rated and tagged “coming soon” across Switch, Switch 2, and other platforms, so it isn’t far off. A proper gameplay reveal showing off the monster-taming, the world, and a release window fits a Nintendo Direct like a glove, especially given the series’ deep Nintendo roots. Series creator Yuji Horii has said he hopes to ship it before the freshly rebooted Dragon Quest XII, so Square Enix has every reason to start showing this one in earnest.
10. A New 3D Mario Breaks The Internet
It’s been almost nine years since Super Mario Odyssey, and the 3D Mario team has been suspiciously quiet, with several veterans sitting out Donkey Kong Bananza. NateTheHate and, frankly, most of the fanbase expect the next big 3D Mario to land in the 2026 holiday window to supercharge the Switch 2’s second year. There’s a counterargument worth respecting: with the Super Mario Galaxy movie having crossed a billion dollars at the box office, some believe Nintendo is treating Galaxy as the anniversary centerpiece and may keep Mario’s next game under wraps a while longer. Even so, a tease, a logo, a single new mechanic reveal is all it would take to overload servers.
11. The Ocarina of Time Remake We’ve All Been Waiting For
Here’s the rumored headliner. Multiple reports, by way of NateTheHate and VGC, point to a The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time remake reveal for Switch 2, capitalizing on the momentum from the live-action Zelda movie on the horizon. Reimagining the 1998 Nintendo 64 landmark with modern visuals would be a system-seller and a nostalgia bomb of nuclear proportions, exactly the kind of swing Nintendo saves for a marquee moment. It’s the single most-cited rumor heading into this Direct, and a playable Treehouse segment right after the show would absolutely seal the deal. If any one thing closes this broadcast on a mic-drop, it’s Link stepping out of the Deku Tree in glorious UHD.
12. Wario Muscles Back Into the Spotlight
The same insider who called recent Rayman and Spyro projects, alongside leakers like Nash Weedle, has suggested something Wario-related is cooking, with fans specifically dreaming of a new Wario Land. Nintendo’s greedy garlic-loving anti-hero hasn’t headlined a proper platformer in ages, and his brand of chaotic, treasure-hoarding mischief is overdue for a comeback. Whether it’s a fresh Wario Land, an ambitious take on Wario World or something entirely new, a Wario reveal would be a delightful curveball in a lineup heavy on heroes. He’s one of Nintendo’s most underused characters despite a devoted following, and the Switch 2 era would be a fitting time to finally let the man chase his gold again.
13. Kid Icarus: Uprising HD Gets Its Overdue Encore
Kid Icarus: Uprising, Masahiro Sakurai’s beloved 2012 Nintendo 3DS shooter, has topped community wishlists for years, perpetually hamstrung on its original hardware by awkward stylus-and-shoulder-button controls that left players’ hands cramping. The Switch 2’s dual analog sticks, and its new mouse mode, could finally give Pit the control scheme the game always deserved. The demand is loud, Sakurai’s stock has never been higher, and Nintendo has shown a willingness to revive dormant gems lately. It’s a long shot, but a one that would make a lot of fans happy.
14. Bloober Team’s Project M Crawls Out of the Shadows
This one’s better grounded than it looks. Bloober Team, fresh off the acclaimed Silent Hill 2 remake and its own Cronos: The New Dawn, has a Nintendo-exclusive horror title codenamed Project M, developed by its second-party studio Broken Mirror Games, and it’s been confirmed for an official premiere in 2026. The studio’s CEO recently hyped up the Switch 2’s potential as a horror machine, and Bloober just put Star Trek: Shadow Frontier on the system, so the relationship is warm and active. A Project M reveal at the Direct fits the timeline perfectly. Nintendo doesn’t dabble in dedicated horror often, so a Switch 2-exclusive scarefest from one of the genre’s hottest studios would be a standout, mood-shifting moment in an otherwise family-friendly show.
15. Mario Maker 3 — Back to the Drawing Board
Super Mario Maker 2 was a Switch phenomenon, a bottomless well of user creativity that kept players building and sharing for years. A threequel engineered for Switch 2, with beefier online sharing, new themes, mouse controls and maybe even 3D building tools, is a popular “left-field” pick among fans for good reason. Nintendo hasn’t dropped so much as a hint, so this lands firmly in speculation territory, but the demand for more user-generated Mario is effectively infinite. The Switch 2’s horsepower and faster online infrastructure would make an ideal home for a bigger, more ambitious Mario Maker, and Nintendo knows exactly how sticky that community-driven engagement can be.
Pie in the Sky: Super Smash Bros. Brings the Fight to Switch 2
Every Nintendo showcase carries the faint, flickering hope of Super Smash Bros. Masahiro Sakurai wrapped his enormous post-Ultimate DLC duties a while back, freeing him up, and the fanbase never stops speculating about what comes next. No new entry has been confirmed, and Sakurai has stayed characteristically coy, so a reveal would be a genuine shock. But even just a logo, would send the entire community into orbit. Super Smash Bros will get a release on the Nintendo Switch 2, what makes this a dream pick is getting one announced this early.
Super Pie in the Sky: Captain Falcon, Please
The deepest cut of them all. F-Zero fans got a small mercy with 2023’s F-Zero 99, a clever battle-royale spin on the SNES original tucked inside Nintendo Switch Online, but a true, full-fledged new entry has been missing in action for roughly two decades. Captain Falcon deserves a proper next-gen revival, all blistering speed and gleaming chrome, and the Switch 2 finally has the muscle to deliver one. Nintendo has shown zero signs this is happening, which is exactly why it belongs in this category. It’s the longest shot on the entire board. But if the Blue Falcon roars onto the screen, I will absolutely lose it.
Robert Kellett Weighs In
I’m never the only one around here with showcase on the brain, Robert Kellett, Assistant Editor in Chief at LOGNet for his predictions as well.
Like me, Robert’s hyped for Star Fox, but he’d be “even more excited” if Nintendo dropped the GameCube classics—Star Fox Assault and Star Fox Adventures—onto the NSO Expansion Pack. That spun off into a bigger retro wishlist for him: third-party support, with Bandai Namco bringing Pac-Man World 3, SEGA serving up Sonic Adventure 2: Battle and Billy Hatcher, and Konami slipping in Metal Gear Solid: The Twin Snakes.
His last big curiosity overlaps with my own pick: he wants to see exactly what that rumored Ocarina of Time remake looks like. Will it stay “faithful to the original,” or lean into the Breath of the Wild era of Zelda? Robert’s hoping for “something in the middle between the two”—and that’s the sweet spot I also hope they take.
Final Thoughts
Nintendo may have saved the best for last when it comes to the Summer Game Fest season. If all of the rumors come true and are announced here, it will be a blowout Direct. The safest money is on the confirmed-for-2026 games getting dates, namely The Duskbloods and Fire Emblem: Fortune’s Weave, plus that loudly-rumored Ocarina of Time remake that could steal the whole show. Everything else ranges from educated guess to outright prayer, which is exactly the fun of a Nintendo Direct. The House of Mario specializes in the curveball nobody saw coming and remember, the Treehouse broadcast right after means we get extended gameplay on the day’s biggest reveals as well. Tune in to the Nintendo Direct June 9 at 7 AM PT/10 AM ET, and we’ll also have more coverage of the aftermath.
