The Rift Is Coming

With yesterday's Legend of Zelda Direct in the bag, it's time to take a broader look at what's coming to Switch consoles with the September Nintendo Direct. Yesterday's broadcast was mostly focused on the upcoming remake of The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time, but today, we're expecting to see a whole lot more than just the hero in green. In case you can't make it, we'll be covering each new announcement and trailer as they drop, so keep on scrolling to see all the reveals and hit your F5 key to refresh your feed as we dive into what should be a massive Nintendo Direct presentation. How to watch the September Nintendo Direct Once again, you can watch the presentation through Nintendo's official YouTube and Twitch channels. YouTube Twitch Nintendo Direct start time Hope you're in the mood to start your day bright and early, as the broadcast starts at 7 AM PT / 10 AM ET on September 9. Nintendo says the show will run for roughly 45 minutes, and it'll be followed by a Nintendo Treehouse livestream that'll feature gameplay from select titles. 7 AM PT 10 AM ET 3 PM BST 4 PM CEST 11 PM JST What to expect That's the big question, isn't it? As you'd expect, Nintendo is keeping quiet ahead of the Direct, but we're expecting the usual first-party games, upcoming titles from third-party partners, and related news. According to leakers, we could be in for a bumper reveal of Switch exclusives, as they're teasing a new Super Smash Bros. fighting game, a brand-new Star Fox, and a new 3D Mario to end the broadcast with a bang. Nintendo may need to pull a few heavy hitters out, considering that the Switch 2 price increased by $50 earlier this month, and having a stacked selection of upcoming games could be just what the company needs to start shifting units. Could we also get a new look at Pokemon Winds and Waves? Pokemon continues to be one of the biggest franchises on Nintendo hardware, and we wouldn't say no to a quick look at the game's region or even a few new pocket monsters. View the full article

Xbox Game Pass grows today with the addition of a popular Call of Duty game. New to the service from today, September 8, is 2020's Call of Duty: Black Ops Cold War. It's available on Game Pass Ultimate, Game Pass Premium, and PC Game Pass, and the game supports cloud streaming as well. Developed by Treyarch and Raven, Black Ops Cold War is set in Cold War-era 1981, with its campaign following Russell Adler as he and his team seek out a spy named Perseus. The game also has multiplayer, of course, along with Zombies. Black Ops Cold War was a bit hit, becoming 2020's best-selling game overall in the US. Game Pass isn't done adding more titles this month, as The Royal Writ and Virtua Fighter 5 R.E.V.O World Stage arrive on September 10, followed by RuneScape: Dragonwilds on September 15. After Microsoft bought Activision Blizzard, many assumed that back-catalog Call of Duty games would flood Game Pass, but that didn't happen. Instead of releasing Call of Duty games en masse to Game Pass, Microsoft has taken more of a selective approach. Black Ops Cold War is now just the sixth Call of Duty game on Game Pass, joining Call of Duty: WWII, Call of Duty: Vanguard, Call of Duty: Modern Warfare, Call of Duty: Modern Warfare II, Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3, and Black Ops 6. Modern Warfare 3 and Black Ops 6 were released day-and-date into Game Pass, but that's ending this year, and any Game Pass subscriber who wants to play Modern Warfare 4 at launch this October will have to pay for it ... or wait a year. View the full article