Talking Point: Is Summer Game Fest Really Missing Nintendo's Presence?

Image: Zion Grassl / Nintendo Life

Let me get this out of the way – being at Summer Game Fest was amazing.

The people were amazing. The variety of games, both big and small, were amazing. I was lucky enough to go to E3 twice back when I wrote for a different site, and I would take the laid-back vibes, the layout, and the ability to socialise at my own pace any day of the week over the crowded convention centre of E3.

But there was one noticeable difference between Summer Game Fest and E3. Over the course of the week that encompassed the SGF Opening Showcase and the Play Dates that followed, I’d bump into colleagues and friends and catch up with them – many in person for the first time in years – and they’d all ask the same sort of question: “What’s your week been like what with Nintendo and all that?” That is to say, Nintendo’s lack of presence at Summer Game Fest, for a second year in a row, was noticeable to everyone.

SteamWorld Heist II, though! — Image: Alana Hagues / Nintendo Life

We know that Nintendo will be holding a Direct sometime in June, and we know the Big N has been marching to the beat of its own drum for a while. But there’s just a little bit of magic missing from the Summer Game Fest proceedings without some joyous new trailer for a Mario, or a Pokémon, or Smash Bros, or something.

Perhaps I’m a bit spoilt in that regard. 2019 was the last E3 I went to, and I was staying in a house-share with all my friends. This was also the first time I met my now-partner in person. We put the Nintendo Direct on the TV and relished the joy of it. This was the Direct that revealed both Hero from Dragon Quest and Banjo-Kazooie for Smash Ultimate, the Collection of Mana shadow-drop, Animal Crossing: New Horizons’ release date, and a teaser for “Sequel to The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild”. Remember those days?

In 2024, there were plenty of fantastic Switch-bound games at Summer Game Fest, but watching the big Summer Game Fest Live showcase in person, it was missing some of that child-like glee that a Nintendo game can bring. LEGO Horizon Adventures, the very first game during that showcase, was really the only one that delivered that, mainly because the fact it's coming to Switch was such a surprise.