Nintendo Direct: Super Mario Maker 2, Link's Awakening remake among mountain of upcoming games announced

Today saw the announcement of a smorgasbord of new titles for the Nintendo Switch during the Nintendo Direct video presentation. Among the most talked-about include an all-new customizable Super Mario Maker 2, a remake of The Legend of Zelda: Link's Awakening, Marvel Ultimate Alliance 3, and many more. 

Things kicked off with an extended look at Super Mario Maker 2, the customizable Super Mario Bros. sequel that features loads of new options like sliding slopes, and the relentless Angry Sun from Super Mario 3. There's also the iconic lucky bell, which gives Mario a wall-crawling yellow catsuit. 

There's no word on any backwards compatibility with the first Super Mario Maker, nor on the options for sharing levels. We'll know more when Super Mario Maker 2 comes out sometime this June. 

There wasn't a new Zelda game announced, but the 1993 Game Boy classic The Legend of Zelda: Link's Awakening is getting a full-color makeover for the Switch. The game, which is due out sometime this calendar year, looks to be a perfect mix of old-school nostalgia and updated graphics. 

We also got a long look at the gameplay of Marvel Ultimate Alliance 3: The Black Order, particularly of Captain Marvel, who was heavily featured throughout the clip. In addition to online playability, the game will give you a local option to team with up to three of your friends to help take down Thanos' army. They also revealed a special "Ultimate Alliance Extreme Attack" that will make short work of the enemies you have to hack-and-slash your way through. 

There's a new Tetris on the horizon, too, but with an entirely new spin. Specifically, it's an online battle royale called Tetris 99. It's basically you vs. 98 other players, but you can cramp their block-stacking style by sending "garbage" to their screens, pushing their puzzles closer to the top. The game's available now, but only if you're a Nintendo Switch Online member. 

Among the other anticipated new titles discussed were Fire Emblem: Three Houses, the whopping 16th game in Nintendo's long-running tactical/RPG series, and Astral Chain, a Switch exclusive from PlatinumGames, best known for Bayonetta. Speaking of, the company teased that developers are "hard at work" on Bayonetta 3, but gave no additional information. So, we'll have to wait out an announcement a little while longer. 

The one-time PS4-exclusive Hellblade: Senua’s Sacrifice made its jump to the XBOX One last year, and now will be coming to the Switch on Aug. 30. Other noteworthy port games include a remastered Assassin's Creed 3, as well as the immortal Final Fantasy VII next month, and Final Fantasy IX, which you can download now.

Nintendo also teased a Super Smash Bros. Ultimate 3.0 update, and while they were light on specifics, they made it sound like a big deal. They also teased that Persona 5's Joker will be a playable character sometime this April. 

So, in summary, there are a lot of cool games coming out this year for the Nintendo Switch. If you don't have one now, this might be the year to reconsider that.