Shack Chat: What was your favorite part of the Nintendo Switch 2 Direct?

Fresh off the Nintendo Switch 2 Direct the Shacknews staff weigh in with their favorite moments.

The Nintendo Switch 2 Direct has come and gone, and boy was it a good one. We're on information overload here at Shacknews, cranking out stories and features regarding the Switch 2 and everything we know. We've all got our favorite moments from the showcase, so we figured it would be worth tossing together an impromptu Shack Chat to discuss what stood out the most to each of us individually.

Question: What was your favorite part of the Nintendo Switch 2 Direct?

Remember that we want to hear from you. Wherever you're seeing this, leave us a comment and let us know what you found exciting from the full reveal of the Switch 2. If you're a Chatty member, you can comment directly on this article, but feel free to hit us back wherever you find Shacknews online.

The encouraging third-party support - Ozzie Mejia, Senior Nintendo Owner

It's been a long time since it truly felt like Nintendo had third-party support on the level of what PlayStation and Xbox have had. Even with the first Switch, it felt like for every quality port like Doom or Skyrim, there would be two or three garbage ports like Mortal Kombat 1 and Hogwarts Legacy.

Today's Direct felt like the first time in a while that Nintendo felt like it was dead serious about third-party support. Square Enix is bringing Final Fantasy 7 Remake to Switch 2 with more in the series to come later. Capcom is bringing Street Fighter 6 to Switch 2 with brand new Amiibo figures and cards. Civilization 7 is getting that fancy Joy-Con 2 mouse support. This is all before even getting to that Call of Duty game that's supposed to eventually come to Nintendo platforms.

I'm stoked to see how much farther Nintendo can go with this and how much more support they'll get from partners like Square Enix, 2K Games, Capcom, and so many others. Could we even see GTA 6 on Switch 2? I feel like that idea is way more plausible now than it was a few hours ago.

Performance & Quality Mode - TJ Denzer, Senior News Editor

Performance and Quality modes have been staples of various games for a very long time. PC has been able to enjoy that luxury longer, but PS5 and Xbox Series X/S games like Final Fantasy 7 Remake and Cyberpunk 2077 have also enjoyed those options. They, to my knowledge, have not been on Nintendo Switch.

And that’s when it finally hit me that this is a brand new era of Nintendo. Yes, we could have seen this coming for the sheer fact that the Switch 2 is a new system with new technology and Performance/Quality Modes are standard features on a lot of games these days. But to see it laid out in a Nintendo Direct was still wild. The Switch 2 is almost here, it’s more powerful, and Switches new hardware finally looks like it will keep up with the rest of the pool while still keeping Nintendo’s innovations in the console’s various features and first-party games. Performance vs. Quality in a Metroid game? Pinch me, it must be a dream.

Donkey Kong Bananza - Asif Khan, CEO/EIC/EIEIO

Donkey Kong What GIFfrom Donkey Kong GIFs

Banana.

Better Specs - Bill Lavoy, Shackmaps Overlord

It’s tough to pick just one thing to be excited about, but if I’m staying true to myself it’s the better specs coming to the Nintendo Switch 2. Playing games in 1080p and 120 fps while in handheld mode is impressive. Playing games in 4K while the system is docked is amazing. I truly can’t wait to see what Tears of the Kingdom looks like docked, especially with the Nintendo Switch 2 edition. I’ve always acknowledged how amazing ToTK is, but I’ve also wanted to see it running on better hardware. Looks like I’ll get my wish on June 5.

The Duskbloods - Sam Chandler, Fear the old Blood

It’s not Bloodborne 2. It’s not Elden Ring. It’s not even a Dark Souls game. The Duskbloods is something completely new and entirely different - and it’s a Nintendo Switch 2 exclusive. If I didn’t already have one pre-ordered, this game guarantees I’d be getting the console.

The Nintendo Switch 2 Direct showed us quite a big look at The Duskbloods, and I look forward to Vaati’s hours’ long breakdown of the trailer. However, it looks like FromSoftware is digging into its catalogue of games, with assets from just about all of ‘em being used to create this new beast.

According to the game’s official website, this is a PvPvE title where eight players fight each other against enemies. Players become Twilight Bloodlines that have gained power from their special blood and are trying to become the First Blood. This all has big Bloodborne overtones. In fact, it looks like one (all?) of the characters are vampires. I love it, I’m here for it. Get it into my veins.

The Duskbloods - Dennis White Jr., Future Switch 2 FromSoft Game No Hit Runner

Sure, it was one thing to see the Elden Ring announcement earlier in the Nintendo Switch 2 Direct. But, having a moment towards the end of the show with a brand new exclusive FromSoftware game was not something that I expected. I joked about a Bloodborne remaster announcement for weeks but what we saw in the trailer looks like a mixture between the gothic style of Bloodborne with a more open world like the one we loved in Elden Ring. There’s so muh to breakdown in that trailer! Steampunk elements are present but the player character is also shown biting into an enemy’s neck like a snickerdoodle cookie so I’m curious to find out what’s going on there.

Something like this lets me know that Nintendo is stepping into a new era when it comes to keeping up with the times to a certain extent. Between this reveal and the Mario Kart World announcement, this gives me more faith that Nintendo also has full faith in their online infrastructure moving forward. If both games have successful launches, there will be plenty of eyes on the Switch 2 early in it’s life cycle. This is a pretty large swing from Nintendo and guarantees a dedicated FromSoft fanbase that may not have otherwise committed to a new console purchase potentially hops on board to give this new game a try.

Mario Kart World - Donovan Erskine, The “GameCube is retro” guy

This is easily the most excited I’ve been for a new Mario Kart game at launch. MKW looks like a true evolution of the franchise formula, doubling down on everything that makes them fun. 24-player races, Knockout Mode, cosmetics (?), and free roam all look amazing. I can’t believe that I’ll be able to just hop in a kart and cruise around with my homies. I’m also going to cheat and give an honorable mention to Switch 2 Edition games. Pokemon at 60 FPS? Yes please.

Mario Kart World and More - Steve Tyminski, THE Stevetendo Show!

What was my favorite part of the Nintendo Switch 2 Direct? That is a tough question as it was jam packed with all kinds of stuff I’m interested in. It shouldn’t surprise anyone that The Stevetendo Show host really enjoyed the Nintendo Switch 2 Direct. An easy answer to this would be Mario Kart World. Hell, as I’m writing this, I’m rocking out to the harmonica theme from the Mario Kart World trailer on loop. Seeing a brand new Mario Kart always gets me going but Mario Kart World appears to have blown away my expectations. New vehicles, new modes, AND a Knockout Tour mode where you try to outrace the opponent. I loved the Koopathlon in Mario Party Jamboree and I think I’m going to love this.

FromSoftware bringing Elden Ring and The DuskBloods to the Switch 2 is appealing to me. I recently beat Dark Souls on Switch and have been wanting to play more. I have been waiting for Elden Ring to get on Switch for so long. In fact, I believe one year in our Shacknews deliberations, I voted that Elden Ring was the game I wanted on Switch the most. I knew it couldn’t happen but I had hope. So there could be an Elden Ring Switch 2 Stevetendo Show series in the future. Then there’s Donkey Kong Bananza. How can you go wrong with a brand new DK game? You can’t, so I’m looking forward to DK coming back too. The main thing I wanted from this presentation was the release date and price. June is earlier than I thought and the price for the system isn’t as bad as I thought it could be. There was so much that I didn’t even mention like Kirby Air Riders and Switch 2 Editions for Zelda and Pokemon and all the third party support. It’s a great time to be a Nintendo fan!

There you have it, folks. Those are our picks for the most exciting moments from the Nintendo Switch 2 Direct. Our Nintendo coverage is just getting started. We'll be talking about the Siwtch 2 day and night for the forseeable future. You can follow along with what we have cooking on the Nintendo Switch 2 topic on Shacknews.