Nintendo Direct: Splatoon 3 and Skyward Sword - What were the big announcements?

An Animal Crossing x Mario crossover is coming!

Nintendo have announced a host of new games, remakes and crossovers, in their latest Nintendo Direct event.

This is Nintendo's first full-length Direct in two years - a Direct is a special announcement where Nintendo share some of the things they're working on, with fans.

Shinya Takahashi, who manages the planning and development at Nintendo, introduced the video and announced that new games like Splatoon 3 and Mario Golf would be coming to the Switch console.

As well as this, Producer Eiji Aonuma apologised to fans that there was no news on the new Zelda Breath of the Wild sequel, but said that everything was going smoothly, and that there would be more information out later this year.

Let's take a look at some of the top announcements from the Direct...

Splatoon 3

The big news from the Direct was the announcement of a third Splatoon game.

In Splatoon you play as a squid kid, also known as an Inkling, and you battle against other players using a paint gun to cover as much of an area in your colour paint as possible.

The new game sees your Inkling character head to a new area called the Splatlands, as well as introducing new paint weapons like a bow.

Splatoon 3 will be released some time in 2022.

The Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword HD

If you're a fan of the Legend of Zelda series, then this remake might be up your street.

Skyward Sword was originally released for the Wii console in 2011, and is the earliest story in the Zelda timeline taking place before the Master Sword was created!

Taking on the role of Link, players can explore the floating island of Skyloft and the land below it, completing quests, solving puzzles and battling enemies.

The remake is smoother and has better graphics than the original, and will allow players to slash and defend using the Switch Joy-con controllers.

The game will be released later this year on 16 July, and this year is the 35th Anniversary of the Zelda games, so fans can likely expect even more announcements this year.

Mario Golf: Super Rush

FOURRRRRRR!

A surprise announcement last night revealed that Mario was swapping his tennis racket for a golf club!

Super Rush is the latest in the Mario golf series, where players can pick up a virtual golf club and take on a variety of courses playing as characters like Mario, Luigi, Princess Peach and Bowser.

The new game has a story mode, or a multi-player mode allowing players to play with their friends.

Mario Golf will be released on 25 June later this year.

Animal Crossing: New Horizons + Super Mario Bros. 35th Anniversary

The Mario news wasn't finished yet, Nintendo also announced that an Animal Crossing and Mario crossover was coming.

Fans of Animal Crossing New Horizons will get to experience Mario themed items, outfits and events in the game.

Players can even place warp pipes on their Island, to quick-travel from one side to the other in a matter of seconds.

The new Super Mario Bros. themed items will be available on 1 March, following an update on 25 February.

Miitopia

Nintendo also announced that Miitopia would be heading to the Switch.

Miitopia was originally released for the 3DS console in 2016, and allows players to create their own character, or Mii, and go on a fantasy adventure.

Players can play on their own or with friends and family, to take down the villainous Dark Lord.

Miitopia will be released on 21 May, later this year.

Fall Guys: Ultimate Knockout

Finally Nintendo announced that the game Fall Guys was heading to the Switch console.

The game was hugely popular when it launched last year, with players crashing the game's servers because too many people tried to play at the same time.

Players race against each other to compete in wacky obstacle courses with lots of different costumes to wear.

Fall Guys: Ultimate Knockout launches on the Switch this summer.

What do you think about the announcements? Are you excited, or disappointed? Let us know in the comments below...