14 Predictions for the September 2026 Nintendo Direct and Zelda 40th Anniversary Direct

The Return of Multiplayer Zelda

The Zelda Direct is 30 minutes long, so I think there’s time for one more game announcement in addition to everything I’ve already discussed. If I’m putting this presentation together, though, I don’t really want to overshadow Ocarina of Time with anything too big. With that said, I think the time is right for the return of a multiplayer Zelda game. Nintendo hasn’t put out a multiplayer-focused Zelda game since 2015’s Tri Force Heroes on 3DS, and neither it nor the Four Swords games are available on Switch or Switch 2.

It’s a more niche corner of the franchise that’s been neglected for some time, and there are a few ways a multiplayer surprise could go down. We could get the “Zelda 99” battle royale treatment we’ve seen applied to classic games like Tetris, F-Zero, Pac-Man, and even Super Mario Bros. for its 35th anniversary. Or, it could be an NSO rerelease of the Game Boy Advance’s Four Swords, or the GameCube’s Four Swords Adventures, either of which could hugely benefit from online multiplayer support. Of course, it could be a brand new game in the style of past co-op Zeldas, but that feels the least likely. No matter what form it takes, I’m ready to see multiplayer Zelda return in the Direct.

The Next Main Zelda Reveal?

The core 3D Zelda team – led by Director Hidemaro Fujibayashi and longtime series producer Eiji Aonuma – are no doubt hard at work on their followup to 2023’s Tears of the Kingdom. The question is, will we see it on Tuesday? I’m inclined to guess we won’t. Ocarina of Time is the big Zelda story right now, and even a glimpse of what’s next might take away from the conversation surrounding the remake. If it does show, though, I don’t think it’d be any more than the smallest of teases. We’re talking five to 10 seconds of Link looking over a hill. But I’m not holding my breath. Especially with another general Nintendo Direct the following day, there’s no need to fire the open-world Zelda cannon at this point in the Switch 2’s life.

My Pie-in-the-Sky Dream: The 8-bit Breath of the Wild Prototype Is Released

I said all of my predictions were meant to have a solid chance of happening, but this one’s just for me. While exploring early concepts that would lead to the development of Breath of the Wild, the Zelda team built a playable, 8-bit prototype to test their ideas. It demonstrated ideas like chopping down trees to cross rivers and fire spreading across a grassy field, set in a Hyrule reminiscent of the NES original. It wasn’t meant to be a commercial product, but how cool would it be if Nintendo dropped it on Switch as part of the anniversary celebrations? I think the odds of this happening are essentially zero, but I’d love nothing more than to have access to a playable piece of Breath of the Wild’s development history.

General Nintendo Direct Predictions

That’s just day one! On Wednesday, September 9, Nintendo is airing its general Direct, featuring 45 minutes of updates on Nintendo Switch 2 games. This one is particularly exciting for different reasons: the Zelda Direct is presumably all about getting answers to our Ocarina of Time questions, while we have no idea what the centerpiece of the Wednesday show will be.

Updates on the 2026/2027 Slate

Much of the runtime will likely go to final updates and trailers on Nintendo games still set to come out this year. Expect last looks at Fire Emblem: Fortune’s Weave (out September 17) and Nintendo Switch Sports Resort (October 22), as well as updates on Pokémon Pokopia’s next waves of DLC.

We could also get another look at Xenoblade Genesis, Monolith Soft’s next RPG that’s due out in 2027. Something I’m not expecting to see is Pokémon Winds & Waves, though. It’s also set for next year, but given that mainline Pokémon games typically release in the Fall, I’m not expecting to see the next generation show up again until a Pokémon Presents showcase in February 2027 at the earliest.

The Duskbloods Release Date

Following its network test last month, I think we’ll get a release date for FromSoftware’s The Duskbloods. The Nintendo Store still lists it as a 2026 game, and December is feeling the most likely to me right now. Nintendo is publishing The Duskbloods outside of Japan. If you follow the pattern of Nintendo typically publishing one game a month, and you accept my reasoning that Ocarina is the November game, the only month left for The Duskbloods to theoretically land in is December. Purely to get a guess on the record, I’ll predict Thursday, December 3, mostly for the reason that when Nintendo does publish a game in December, it’s generally pretty early in the month, like Metroid Prime 4: Beyond on December 4 last year.

2D Metroid Reveal

On the topic of Metroid, it’s time to see MercurySteam’s next entry in the 2D Metroid series. The studio released Samus Returns on 3DS in 2017 and Dread on Switch in 2021, so it feels like we’re due for a new one in 2027. There was a recent video game age rating leak out of Brazil for a submission titled “Metroid Ravenous”. That leak featured no details other than the name, so there’s still a lot up in the air. However, Dread’s main villain was named Raven Beak, making “Ravenous” a pretty intriguing title for a potential sequel. Nintendo has been revealing new games fairly close to their release dates over the last few years, so I wouldn’t be surprised to see Metroid Ravenous announced on Wednesday and released as early as Q1 of 2027.

The Big Finale

There’s been this itch in the back of my brain all day. Nintendo has never aired back-to-back Directs in this way on two consecutive days. In other years, they’ve just glued the Mario 40th Anniversary segment onto a larger Nintendo Direct. I find the order peculiar, too. If the Zelda Direct blows us away (which I’m expecting Ocarina of Time to), why isn’t that one airing second as the big endcap to the week? Ocarina of Time has the power to close out a show, but it’s probably not going to be a factor on Wednesday. This tells me Nintendo must have something pretty special to end its second Direct with. Something big that won’t launch until the second half of 2027, but the announcement alone will help fuel Switch 2 sales through the holiday season. The two things I can think of that fit the bill are either Super Smash Bros. or the next 3D Super Mario. I think we’ll see one – not both – of these announced at the end of Wednesday’s show.

I can see arguments for each: I predicted a Super Smash Bros. Ultimate – Nintendo Switch 2 Edition at the start of the year. Here’s what I said in January that I still feel today:

“My boldest call of them all is that we’ll get a tease this year for Super Smash Bros. Ultimate – Nintendo Switch 2 Edition to launch sometime in 2027. I believe Ultimate could get the Mario Kart 8 Deluxe treatment this generation, with an enhanced port that carries us through the next several years rather than an entirely new entry. Smash Bros. director Masahiro Sakurai wrapped up Kirby Air Riders a few months ago, and it’s entirely possible he’s already hard at work bringing Ultimate over to Switch 2 with a few new characters. Ultimate noticeably hasn’t received a Switch 2 performance patch like Super Mario Odyssey, the open-world Zeldas, and plenty of other best-selling Switch 1 games, and combined with the fact that a new Smash game almost always hits within the first two years of a new Nintendo console, it feels like a prime candidate for a Switch 2 Edition.”

And, after spending the last year declaring it to be too soon for 3D Mario in the wake of Donkey Kong Bananza – another 3D mascot platformer from much of the same team as 3D Mario – I now think we’re entering the window where we could see the plumber show up any time. The Bananza marketing cycle is winding down: the DK Challenge just ended on NSO, the Emerald Rush DLC has gone through an entire year of limited-time events, and by the time 2027 rolls around, Bananza will have had two full holiday seasons as the primary platformer on Switch 2. I think Mario’s time is coming.

My Dream: Ace Attorney 7

This is one of my favorite series, and I predict it every time. It has to happen at some point!

Those are my predictions for the pair of Nintendo Directs airing over the next few days. I can’t wait to cover it all here on IGN and Nintendo Voice Chat. Be sure to drop your own predictions in the comments!

Logan Plant is the host of Nintendo Voice Chat and IGN’s Senior Editor, Playlist and DB. The Legend of Zelda is his favorite video game franchise of all time, and he is patiently awaiting the day Nintendo announces a brand new F-Zero. You can find new episodes of NVC every Friday on the IGN Games YouTube channel, Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or your favorite podcast app.