We're looking for new writers to join us!

New games announced in surprise, pre-E3 mini Nintendo Direct

by: Sean Colleli -
More On: Nintendo Direct

The Big N has surprised us all with a mini Nintendo Direct, hopefully to warm us up for bigger unveils at E3. This Direct pulled back the curtain on Chibi Robo Ziplash, a side-scrolling action game that continues the misadventures of Nintendo's tiny, obscure automaton. The special edition of the game will come bundled with an exclusive Chibi Robo Amiibo, so get those credit cards ready to pre-order.

Nintendo's classic puzzler gets a new lease on life with Dr. Mario: Miracle Cure, coming to the 3DS eShop on June 11th. We also finally got confirmation that Bravely Second End Layer is coming stateside, and classic 16-bit rivals will try to best each other again in Mario & Sonic at the Rio 2016 Olympic Games. Check the video and the press release after the jump for further minor revelations, including more details about the 2015 Nintendo World Championship.

Nintendo Announces New Games in a Nintendo Direct Micro Video Presentation

New Announcements Surface for Wii U, Nintendo 3DS and amiibo Ahead of E3

REDMOND, Wash.--(BUSINESS WIRE)-- Nintendo’s Digital Event video presentation for E3 2015 might be only a couple weeks away, but Nintendo is jumping at the chance to get started early on some of its new announcements. A special Nintendo Direct Micro video is now live on Nintendo.com and YouTube and is not short on new reveals and further details about previously announced Wii U and Nintendo 3DS games. If you don’t want to spoil any of the fun surprises for yourself, stop reading now and watch the full 17-minute video presentation in its entirety by visiting http://www.nintendo.com/nintendo-direct. Come back when you’re done for a helpful recap of all the great news!

Chibi-Robo!: Zip Lash will launch exclusively for the Nintendo 3DS family of systems this October. ( ...

Chibi-Robo!: Zip Lash will launch exclusively for the Nintendo 3DS family of systems this October. (Graphic: Business Wire)

“This Nintendo Direct provides a nice preview of things to come – for Nintendo 3DS in particular – ahead of our Digital Event and other activities for E3,” said Scott Moffitt, Nintendo of America’s Executive Vice President of Sales & Marketing. “Between now and the end of the year, Wii U and Nintendo 3DS owners are in for a solid stream of great games.”

Highlights of the Nintendo Direct video include:

Nintendo 3DS

  • Chibi-Robo!: Zip Lash – Everyone’s favorite little robot is back, this time in a side-scrolling action game! In Chibi-Robo!: Zip Lash, Chibi-Robo must swing his plug to whip enemies, reach far-off platforms and solve environmental puzzles, as well as collect upgrades to extend his plug for getting hard-to-reach collectibles and uncovering hidden areas. Chibi-Robo!: Zip Lash will launch exclusively for the Nintendo 3DS family of systems this October.
  • Chibi-Robo amiibo – Launching exclusively in a Chibi-Robo!: Zip Lash bundle is a new Chibi-Robo amiibo figure. This new amiibo transforms Chibi-Robo into the all-powerful Super Chibi-Robo in certain stages in the game. In addition, players can level up this Chibi-Robo amiibo to acquire a variety of in-game collectible figures and items by saving their scores at the end of each stage. More details about this special amiibo will be revealed in the future.
  • Dr. Mario: Miracle Cure – The classic Dr. Mario puzzle game play that players have grown to love over the years returns in this new game, but with the addition of a game-changing new Miracle Cure item. This cure-all item activates a variety of capsule- and virus-eradicating powers. Dr. Mario: Miracle Cure is available for pre-purchase beginning today and writes a prescription exclusively in the Nintendo eShop on Nintendo 3DS on June 11.
  • BRAVELY SECOND END LAYER – The sequel to Square Enix’s much-loved role-playing game Bravely Default is coming to the West. Experience a rousing fantasy adventure with new and returning characters when the game launches for the Nintendo 3DS family of systems in 2016.
  • Pokémon Super Mystery Dungeon – This recently revealed new installment in the Pokémon Mystery Dungeon series finds players becoming Pokémon to explore randomly generated dungeons in a land inhabited only by Pokémon. In addition to the 20 Pokémon players can choose to become and also pick as their partners, all 720 known Pokémon are in the game. Pokémon Super Mystery Dungeon launches for the Nintendo 3DS family of systems this winter.
  • LBX: Little Battlers eXperience – Just like the popular anime and toy line, LBX: Little Battlers eXperience lets players build, customize and battle robots using more than 130 models and more than 4,000 in-game parts. Up to six players can connect via local wireless to battle it out and see whose robot emerges victorious when the game launches on Aug. 21.
  • Puzzle & Dragons Z + Puzzle & Dragons Super Mario Bros. Edition – Fans that have already been enjoying the wealth of content in Puzzle & Dragons Z + Puzzle & Dragons Super Mario Bros. Edition are about to get even more! In addition to two extra free unlockable worlds in both the Puzzle & Dragons Z and Puzzle & Dragons Super Mario Bros. Edition games, players can now start enjoying free weekly online distributions exclusively for Puzzle & Dragons Z. Check http://puzzleanddragons.nintendo.com/ for more details.

Wii U

  • Splatoon – Kicking off a series of free content additions throughout the summer, Splatoon will be home to a new weapon and map … as of 7 p.m. PT today! The nostalgia-packed N-Zap ’85 rapid-fire Shooter weapon and Port Mackerel map take the game play and strategy depth to new heights. Alongside these additions, Splatoon’s Ranked Battle mode will also become available for characters level 10 and above.
  • Art Academy: Home Studio – In this new application for Wii U, artists of all skill levels can take lessons, draw inspiration from 360-degree landscape photos and share their creations with friends. Art Academy: Home Studio will even allow fellow art enthusiasts to upload time-lapse replays of their creations to their YouTube accounts. Art Academy: Home Studio is now available for pre-purchase and launches exclusively in the Nintendo eShop on Wii U on June 25. Legacy artists who already own the Art Academy: Sketchpad software can get $4 off the purchase price of Art Academy: Home Studio as a thank you for their dedication to the franchise.
  • Project Treasure – A new trailer highlighting game play in this four-player co-op action game from Bandai Namco Entertainment was revealed alongside the Nintendo Direct video and can be viewed separately on YouTube. Take down enemies, evade traps and escape with spoils from the deepest of dungeons.

Wii U and Nintendo 3DS

  • Mario & Sonic at the Rio 2016 Olympic Games – All of your favorite Mario and Sonic characters are ready to join the fun in Rio, host of the Olympic Games in August 2016. Take the rivalry on the road with super-charged Olympic events like Soccer and Table Tennis in the Nintendo 3DS version, or see if you’ve got what it takes to hang with the best in the Wii U version, with events like Soccer, Rugby and Beach Volleyball. More details about the games will be announced in the future.

Nintendo Activities at E3 2015

  • Nintendo World Championships 2015 –Twenty-five years after the original, the Nintendo World Championships return on June 14, set to start at 3 p.m. PT, with pre-show broadcasts kicking off the day’s activities prior to the tournament. While the full lineup of games won’t be unveiled until the big event, hopeful contestants can prepare to compete in the original The Legend of Zelda, as well as a mix of other Nintendo games.
  • Periscope / Snapchat – Nintendo is expanding its social media presence … right in time for E3! Fans can follow @NintendoAmerica on both Periscope and Snapchat to reveal fun behind-the-scenes content leading up to and during the video game trade show June 16-18.

For more information about Nintendo, visit http://www.nintendo.com/. For Nintendo @ E3 updates and live streams, visit http://e3.nintendo.com/.

Remember that Wii U and Nintendo 3DS feature parental controls that let adults manage the content their children can access. For more information about this and other features, visit http://www.nintendo.com/wiiu or http://www.nintendo.com/3ds.

About Nintendo: The worldwide pioneer in the creation of interactive entertainment, Nintendo Co., Ltd., of Kyoto, Japan, manufactures and markets hardware and software for its Wii U and Wiihome consoles, and Nintendo 3DS and Nintendo DS families of portable systems. Since 1983, when it launched the Nintendo Entertainment System, Nintendo has sold more than 4.3 billion video games and more than 680 million hardware units globally, including the current-generation Wii U, Nintendo 3DS and Nintendo 3DS XL, as well as the Game Boy, Game Boy Advance, Nintendo DS, Nintendo DSi and Nintendo DSi XL, Super NES, Nintendo 64, Nintendo GameCube and Wii systems. It has also created industry icons that have become well-known, household names such as Mario, Donkey Kong, Metroid, Zelda and Pokémon. A wholly owned subsidiary, Nintendo of America Inc., based in Redmond, Wash., serves as headquarters for Nintendo’s operations in the Western Hemisphere. For more information about Nintendo, please visit the company’s website at http://www.nintendo.com.

TM USOC 36USC220506. Copyright © 2016 International Olympic Committee (“IOC”). All rights reserved. SUPER MARIO characters © NINTENDO. Trademarks are property of their respective owners. Wii U and Nintendo 3DS are trademarks of Nintendo. SONIC THE HEDGEHOG characters © SEGA. SEGA, the SEGA logo and Sonic The Hedgehog are either registered trademarks or trademarks of SEGA Corporation.