The big announcement to end today's Nintendo Direct was the announcement of Fire Emblem: Fortune's Weave, the next game in the mainline series of Fire Emblem games and it will be releasing in 2026. 

Not much is known about the overall story but oh my is that adult Sothis at the end? The Three Houses discourse will continue! and oh my lord if the music that is playing in this trailer is the battle theme I am going to be sitting on that screen for so long just listening to that amazing music.  

Fire Emblem: Fortune's Weave releases in 2026 for Nintendo Switch 2.

Full disclosure. I did absolutely nothing special for my milestone 40th birthday. No one joked "lordy lordy, he's 40", nor did they buy me a cane, and sign me up for an AARP membership. It was uneventful. I think I definitely turned up the heat on birthday number 42, but that may be besides the point.

Much like my friends and family thought it was going to be THE event, we thought Nintendo was going to come in Fire Flowers blazing. We thought we could get a new 3D Mario, or at the very least, the permanent return of the amazing Super Mario 35. Neither one of these things happened. I'm not mad, just...

Super Mario Galaxy 1 + 2 was announced, and they will release together, and separately, on October 2nd. Nintendo promised new visuals, and more pages to the in game story book. There will also be a physical Story Book, exclusively sold at the MyNintendo Store. If you already have 3D All Stars, then the only thing you have to grab is Super Mario Galaxy 2. In line with this, the new movie will be titled The Super Mario Galaxy Movie, with all the main voice actors from the first movie returning. There were two Amiibo announced as well, coming next year. 

Mario Tennis: Fever was then announced, boasting 30 characters, and the ability to use the joy-cons as Tennis rackets. Fans familiar with the series will be able to pick it right up, but there are new additions, like Trial Towers and full on Adventure Mode, starring the baby Mario Brothers. The Nintendo Switch 2 exclusive releases February 12th. 

Super Mario Bros. Wonder is getting DLC via a Nintendo Switch 2 edition. The DLC is titled Meetup at Bellabel Park, and will offer competitive and co-op experiences. No word if it will include online features, which it should at least via game chat. We didn't get a lot of info, but it won't release until Spring 2026. This is also in line with a physical, non conversing Talking Flower. While it will just talk when it wants to, it doesn't respond to you, nor is it triggered. A Talking Flower assistant like a Amazon Echo would've made this a day one purchase. Moving on. 

Yoshi and the Mysterious Book will be available in Spring as well. There wasn't much given on this title. A Book named Mr. E has enlisted the help of Yoshi to navigate through the book and investigate unusual creatures. Sporting a different art style, as Yoshi games do, this felt like more of an announcement, and less informative. 

Even Donkey Kong Bananza has DLC coming. Titled DK Island and Emerald Rush, it's more of an expansion on the endgame. Once you finish the game, you can be hired by Void Inc to go Emerald hunting. As you're smashing through the terrain, you'll receive rogue like powerups to get helpful skills. These perks reset for every run, and you will be able to for each layer in the game. Rewards include statues to decorate the island with, as well as more outfits and colors for DK and Pauline. 

I suspect this can't be it for Mario's 40th. We have to be getting something else. I mean if the Virtual Boy can come back, we can't get Super Mario 40!? I'll pay good money for it! 

Happy 40th, Mario. I'm sure there are more presents for us. Maybe in the closet? In the basement perhaps?

We finally have a release date for Mortal Kombat: Legacy Kollection. It will release October 30th, digitally, for all the things. You will be able to pre-order it starting September 12th for all systems and PC, except Nintendo Switch 1 and 2. Atari and Digital Eclipse have also told people to stay tuned, as games like this in this format, have had add-ons. C'mon Shaolin Monks... 

I don't think I grasped the lineup at first, but seeing it at a glance, it's astonishing. Kombine it with a full museum of interviews, artwork, screenshots and features, on screen move lists, rollback netcode for online play, a full training mode, including a fatality trainer for all the games, and I feel like this is exactly what everyone wanted. Look at this list. LOOK AT IT! 

Mortal Kombat – 1992 (Arcade, SNES, Genesis, Game Boy, Game Gear)

Mortal Kombat II – 1993 (Arcade, SNES, Genesis, Game Boy, 32X)

Mortal Kombat 3 – 1995 (Arcade, SNES, Genesis)

Ultimate Mortal Kombat 3 – 1995 (Arcade, WaveNet Arcade, SNES)

Mortal Kombat Trilogy – 1996 (PlayStation)

Mortal Kombat 4 – 1997 (Arcade)

Mortal Kombat Mythologies: Sub-Zero – 1997 (PlayStation)

Mortal Kombat Special Forces – 2000 (PlayStation)

Mortal Kombat Advance – 2001 (Game Boy Advance)

Mortal Kombat: Deadly Alliance – 2002 (Game Boy Advance)

Mortal Kombat: Tournament Edition – 2003 (Game Boy Advance)

This is a day one for me. There is no question about it. Argue with Goro. 

The SSX series was one of my favorite extreme sports series of games growing up, especially SSX Tricky and SSX 3. Unfortunately we haven't seen a new game in the series since 2012 and while that game was okay, it wasn't nearly as good as it could and should have been. Skip ahead to 2025 and former publishers Acclaim have been revived and one of the first games they have announced is HyperYuki: Snowboard Syndicate and to me this is something that is right up my alley. 

This game looks like something you would have seen on the Dreamcast and looks like SSX and Jet Set Radio had a baby together. I absolutely love the art style in this game and just from this short trailer, the layout of the mountain looks just like mountains you would shred down in SSX, especially with some of those rail placements. Just like SSX as well it looks like you can hit massive air and perform some pretty crazy tricks in the air as well like breakdancing on the board in mid air. Great stuff. 

From the description the game will have three game modes including a challenge mode where you have to complete challenges to advance and unlock new levels. A race mode where you can race against NPCs and what's called "chill" mode which seems to be an endless mode where you can ride down the mountain at your leisure. The game will also include both online play where you can compete with up to seven other players or local via split screen.  

HyperYuki: Snowboard Syndicate will be available on PC and no release date has been announced as of yet. 

Next week's launch of the Dungeons & Dragons Heroes of the Borderlands Starter Set is a throwback to a 1979 original: the adventure module The Keep on the Borderlands. This adventure was packed into the D&D Basic Set some 46 years ago, making it one of the most played (and to this day one of the most popular) D&D adventures ever written. 

This new Heroes of the Borderlands adventure is deconstructed into three adventure booklets.

The Keep on the Borderlands adventure booklet is 19 pages and covers the titular military installation. The place is all crenelated walls, pointy wizard hat turrets, and garrisoned soldiers. In addition to the fortress, the Keep has a barn, private apartments, smithy, provisioner's shop (lanterns and rope), trader's shop (weapons and armor), bank, inn, tavern, guild house, and temple.

As far as your D&D adventures are concerned, I think that about covers it.

The Wilderness adventure booklet is 15 pages and leans into the exploration pillar of D&D. While it's only a few miles between the Keep and the Caves, there's still plenty of adventure to be had on (and off) the trail. From the woods to the fens to the tamarack stand, there's wild fey, occult secrets, territorial lizardfolk, and giant spiders.

Sorry, arachnophobes. There's no Session 0 in the Starter Set. No discussion of dealbreaker topics. You will simply have to face your fears—and eat them.

The Caves of Chaos adventure booklet is 27 pages, serving as the meat and potatoes of The Heroes of the Borderlands adventure. Something is attracting an inordinate number of evil creatures to these caves. While they're broken down into bite-sized locations, altogether the caves make up a 65~ish room complex. Welcome to baby's first megadungeon. Just remember to step out for some fresh air every now and again. 

Don't come here for the plot. In collaboration with the Dungeon Master, players will come up with emergent storylines. Sure, Curse of Strahd introduces one of the most popular villains in any media. And adventures like Shadow of the Dragon Queen do it for the plot, as they say. But Heroes of the Borderlands is a sandbox. Follow the players' instincts. They'll come up with their own "big bad evil guy."

I love me a good hardbound D&D adventure book. But I'm appreciative of the Starter Set breaking it down into booklets. At any given time, I'm within 15 to 27 pages of all the prep I need. The cover art for each booklet is evocative. And the Keep itself looks safe enough to turn into a base of operations—while promising D&D's bread and butter—of dragons and dungeons—to only be found if you bravely venture forth. Go to.

The Heroes of the Borderlands Starter Set releases September 16. This has been the first face-to-face roleplaying I've done in 30 years. I can't think of a better boxed set to help me through it.

Bungie is bringing Star Wars to Destiny 2. While the press release claim it's a "Star Wars inspired" story, the Drifter is frozen (in what might as well be carbonite), AT-STs are walking around, the Cabal are wearing Storm Trooper armor (and aiming about as accurately amirite?), X-Wings grace the sky over a Sarlacc pit, and guardians are opening up lightsabers. It's Star Wars. Basically Bungie is turning your Guardian into budget Han Solo or Boba Fett and letting you traverse the "lawless frontier" taking on smuggling or bounty jobs. It all comes with the next expansion, Renegades, that is set to release December 2nd, as was laid out previously in this year's content announcement. 

In advance of the wait for the "expansion" Renegades, Destiny 2 only yesterday advanced the calendar yesterday with the "major update" of Ash & Iron. Major Updates function similarly to Seasons of years past, by introducing some new features and mechanics but falling short of enough new content to be called a full-blown expansion. They are also free to all players, whereas expansions do require a purchase. Ash and Iron reintroduces the Plaguelands playable area for the first time since Destiny 1, a new three-player activity called Reclaim, an Epic difficulty level for the latest Raid from the Edge of Fate (starting September 27th), one new strike on October 7th, and refreshes the rewards pass.

There are also two events to look forward to in Ash & Iron: the return of the Festival of the Lost starting October 21st around Halloween and the Call to Arms event from November 11th until December 1st. In its current state of grind Destiny 2 is hurting and player counts are down seeing historic lows. But recent events like Solstice were actually pretty good at offering increased rewards to help offset some of the tedium the game is suffering from presently. So events might be something to genuinely look forward to, but I'm not going to revisit all the missteps Bungie is making with their game in this post. They've acknowledged things aren't good and now is the time to give them time to cook up solutions than keep bashing those points over the head. 

For more info on Renegades, check out the ViDoc below. 

We are getting a collection of Bubsy games before GTA VI. I can't think of any other gaming franchise that has a history of releasing as many terrible games as it did and then had a major resurgence in modern day. Well here we are as Bubsy in: The Purrfect Collection is now available digitally. This collections will include console and portable games of the original Bubsy games including the infamous Bubsy 3D. The game also includes a number of behind the scenes photos, magazine scans and more. 

The collection includes following games are included in the collection... 

• Bubsy in: Claws Encounters of the Furred Kind (SNES, Super Famicom, Sega Genesis)
• Bubsy II (SNES, Sega Genesis, Gameboy)
• Bubsy in: Fractured Furry Tales (Atari Jaguar)
• Bubsy 3D (Playstation)

Bubsy 3D, which was infamous in how terrible it was, will also include a "refurbished edition" which will include modern analogue controls. The collection will also have screen filters, borders and most importantly, save states and a rewind feature and trust me, as someone that played these games as a kid, you are going to need them. I can't even begin to count the number of times you are running at full speed, almost outrun the screen and die in a single hit because no human could ever react fast enough to stop when an enemy shows up in front of you. 

Regardless of how bad these games are, I am happy to see more and more games getting these kinds of modern collections to preserve them so they aren't lost to time. Even bad games deserve preservation as teams of developers put their time, energy and money to create these games, and regardless of the outcome, their work deserves to be preserved. 

Bubsy in: The Purrfect Collection is now available digitally on PS5, Series X, PC and Switch. Physical editions are currently available for pre-order on Atari's store and will ship later this year. 

The new Dungeons & Dragons starter set doesn't just hand out healing naps like candy. Thank goodness. This new starter set leans into the grind—where players must learn to manage abilities and resources early, and resting isn't a given.

In D&D, players gain powers and abilities. Very few of those have unlimited uses, however. You don't want to waste your biggest attacks on the kittens before you take on the momma cat. If you do, you'll be left taking your weakest swings, or casting your weakest spells, in the big boss fight.

In video games, you might build up your special attack by defeating enemies and building up a power bar, or by letting a timer countdown to the next use of your special attack. Well, in D&D, you regain your special attacks through resting. In one adventuring day, you can have two Short Rests and one Long Rest.

Astragon Entertainment has launched Firefighting Simulator: Ignite for PC, PlayStation 5, and Xbox Series X|S. Set in the fictional American town of Oakridge City, it features a single-player campaign that can also be played in online four-player co-op, including cross-platform multiplayer. As you respond to emergency calls, you’ll be doing so in licensed authentic gear from manufacturers like HAIX, Fire-Dex, and STIHL, as well as licensed fire trucks from Rosenbauer America.

Prepare to take on missions with a variety of challenging scenarios including trapped civilians, grease fires, explosions, and more. Between missions, you can hang out at the firehouse and prepare for the next callout, or, if you get the Year 1 Edition, you can pet your fire dog too.

Stay tuned for my full review right here on Gaming Nexus, and check out the new launch trailer below.

Atari is never going away. As you probably know already, they've teamed up with My Arcade to release the Gamestation Go, but now they have a release date. The Gamestation Go will release October, and will have a price tag of $179.99 USD. With it, comes 200+ games from the Atari 2600, 5200, 7800, and arcade games. All of your favorites are here. Asteroids, Centipede, Breakout, Missile Command, and the like. It will also include some of the recharged titles. 

The Gamestation Go boasts a high resolution 7" screen, integrated trak-ball and keypad, Wi-Fi, illuminated controls via Smartglow Technology, and a 4-5 playtime on battery. The inclusion of Pac-Man further makes this a collectable.

You can preorder the handheld here, and maybe dig into Atari 50 on consoles or the VCS, to see what's coming to you in the next couple of months.