After months of smaller showcases, insiders are pointing towards a more traditional Nintendo Direct happening after Summer Game Fest.
There have been seven Nintendo Directs so far in 2026, but the only substantial first-party reveals from any of them have been Pokémon Winds & Waves and the Star Fox remake, the latter of which saw a showcase all to its own that aired in the dead of night.
Nintendo has also been using its Nintendo Today app to share one-off updates and trailers for the likes of Splatoon Raiders and Yoshi And The Mysterious Book, and even to announce a new mobile game, Pictonico.
As such, it’s no wonder some people feel like Nintendo is moving away from the general Directs where it’s typically hosted multiple announcements, but it is claimed that the company still plans to hold a more traditional showcase this summer.
Even after the death of E3, June remains the time of year where game publishers run showcases to highlight their upcoming releases, and Nintendo has been no exception.
It’s aired general Directs in June for years now and while the company has been more unpredictable than usual lately, Giant Bomb’s Jeff Grubb (who has made accurate insider claims in the past), recently said he’s heard Nintendo aims to have a showcase around the middle of that month.
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‘They might do it after Summer Game Fest or around Summer Game Fest,’ he said during the latest Giant Bombcast. As a reminder, Summer Game Fest is running in the first week of June (June 5 to June 8), while Nintendo’s past June Directs have traditionally aired during the third week of the month.
Grubb added that he wasn’t able to nail down if it’s going to be the general Direct everybody is waiting for or not but given the timing, he believes that it should be.
‘I don’t think there is anyway [the Nintendo Today app] is doing well in the way a Nintendo Direct does well. Nintendo Direct is something everybody tunes in for, it is still an event. If they’re doing it around Summer Game Fest, to me that implies some level of excitement around there.’
This also lines up with what insider NateTheHate said back in March when he shared purported details about Nintendo’s plans for the year: ‘It doesn’t sound like we’re getting a general Direct until the month of June.’
When queried about Grubb’s comments on X, NateTheHate said he will ‘give an update later this week.’
As a reminder, NateTheHate’s claims of a Star Fox remake, as well as summer release dates for Splatoon Raiders and Rhythm Paradise Groove, were completely accurate.
This lends credence to everything else he said Nintendo has planned for 2026, including a full remake of The Legend Of Zelda: Ocarina Of Time, a summer release for Fire Emblem: Fortune’s Weave, and a Switch 2 Edition of Pikmin 4.
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