2025 Nintendo Wishlist: Every Announcement We Hope To See From Nintendo This Year

Jan. 3, 2025, 9:31 p.m.

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2025 Nintendo Wishlist: Every Announcement We Hope To See From Nintendo This Year

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Nintendo is set to have one of its biggest years ever in 2025. Not only has it promised the long-awaited announcement of the Switch 2, but there are plenty of dormant franchises that could finally get a sequel or new entry. Fans have more than enough to look forward to in 2025, at least when it comes to Nintendo's output, but that doesn't stop them from dreaming about everything Nintendo might announce or reveal.

Naturally, there are all the Switch 2 third-party launch titles that players want, including the likes of Elden Ring and Cyberpunk 2077. However, those aside, players have a laundry list of other Nintendo announcements they'd like to see. From NSO improvements to ports and much-needed sequels, there is so much Nintendo could and should announce in 2025.

10 More Soundtracks Added To Nintendo Music

It's Looking A Little Empty At The Moment

Nintendo Music launched in 2024 to the surprise of many, with fans having both positive and negative reactions to the service. Largely, people were excited about the prospect of having Nintendo's plethora of incredible soundtracks available for free - with an NSO subscription - and legally. Nintendo has had a tricky relationship with distributing its music, which makes Nintendo Music all the more exciting. However, while the promise of Nintendo Music is appealing, the final product was a little bit of a letdown.

Notably, Nintendo Music launched with a distinct lack of music, as only a handful of soundtracks from some of Nintendo's more recent titles were added. Since its launch, there have been a few more added to the service, but it's missing some of Nintendo's best soundtracks ever, including the recent Tears of the Kingdom. Hopefully 2025 sees Nintendo announce which soundtracks will be joining the service and even release some of them before the end of the year.

9 A Mario Odyssey Sequel Announcement

Mario Needs A New Mainline 3D Title

Super Mario Odyssey is one of the greatest Mario games of all time and served as the perfect launch title for the Nintendo Switch. However, since its release all the way back in 2017, there hasn't been a brand-new 3D mainline Mario game. It's definitely time for Nintendo to rectify that, which is why 2025 will hopefully see it announce Super Mario Odyssey 2.

The only other 3D mainline Mario game on the Nintendo Switch is Super Mario 3D World, which is a remaster of a 2013 game. However, it came with an entirely original expansion, Bowser's Fury, which technically serves as the Switch's second and only other original 3D Mario game.

Super Mario Odyssey 2 has been a long time coming, and would definitely be the perfect Switch 2 launch title. Getting to experience more of Nintendo's platforming majesty would be great, especially if the sequel ramped up the difficulty a little and retained all the creative excellence found in its predecessor. Fans would almost definitely be overjoyed if Nintendo announced Super Mario Odyssey 2 - or really any new 3D Mario game - in 2025.

8 The Return Of Home Themes

The Switch 2 Should Have Themes

The Nintendo 3DS had home themes, dynamic wallpapers based on popular video games that usually came with music from that game's soundtrack. It was a fun and novel way to customize the 3DS as well as celebrate the console's best games. However, Nintendo, much like its competitors, ditched themes when it released the Nintendo Switch, and the console has been worse off as a result.

Customization is an important part of owning a console as it helps make it feel unique and specific to each player. Nintendo announcing that home themes are coming to the Switch 2 - as there is no chance they'll be randomly added at the end of the Switch's lifespan - would be incredible news for fans. The Switch 2 could launch with a number of simple themes bundled with it and further options inspired by the console's launch titles could be made available in the eShop.

7 The Next Animal Crossing Is Announced

It Has Been A Long Time Since The Last One

Much like the mainline 3D Mario games, there hasn't been a new Animal Crossing in quite a few years. Animal Crossing: New Horizons launched in 2020 and received a handful of post-launch updates, but fans have mostly long moved on. Of course, there's the excellent Pocket Camp Complete mobile game option, but the series is in great need of a fully-fledged console experience that hopefully Nintendo will announce in 2025.

It's unlikely that the next Animal Crossing will release in 2025 - although that would be great - but an announcement and potentially even a gameplay trailer would be amazing. There are plenty of features the next Animal Crossing needs, and hopefully Nintendo will deliver on these. However, just knowing that another Animal Crossing game is in the works will suffice.

6 Monolith Soft Finally Reveal Its New Game

Xenoblade Chronicles 4 Or A Whole New IP

Monolith Soft, the folks behind the Xenoblade Chronicles series and one of Nintendo's best, if not the best, first-party developers, announced it was hiring for its new game all the way back in 2017. At the time, all the developer stated was that it is an action game and not like its other titles, which intrigued fans. However, since then, there has been no news about what Monolith Soft has been creating, and it's time Nintendo finally unveiled it.

Now that the Xenoblade Chronicles series has concluded - Xenoblade Chronicles X's Definitive Edition port completes the collection on Switch - it is time for Monolith Soft to move on to new projects. If any developer has the ability to really test the Switch 2 and push it to its limits, it is Monolith Soft. Hopefully, Nintendo will announce its bold new game and showcase some gameplay, although it's best not to rush a master developer, so it's unlikely it'll release until 2026 or beyond.

5 Twilight Princess And Wind Waker Come To Switch

It's The Zelda Ports Everyone Has Been Asking For

Fans have been clamoring for The Legend of Zelda ports since the Switch originally launched. Surprisingly, so far, there have only been three Zelda remasters or remakes on the Switch, despite the fact Nintendo bundled together three classic Mario games and remastered a handful more, including spin-offs. These included Link's Awakening, Hyrule Warriors, and Skyward Sword, all of which sold well on Nintendo's hybrid console.

It's no surprise, then, that fans have been demanding ports of Wind Waker and Twilight Princess, arguably two of the best and most popular Zelda games of all time. Nintendo's reluctance to release them on the Switch is a little head-scratching, but hopefully, it was all so that it could announce remasters - or even remakes - of them in 2025. This doesn't seem like an outlandish thing to wish for in 2025, but time will tell.

Hopefully It's Launching Soon

Mario Kart 8 Deluxe - despite being a port of a Wii U title - is the number one best-selling game on the Nintendo Switch by around 20 million copies. Around half of Switch users - going by the number of Switches sold - own a copy of Mario Kart 8 Deluxe. So, it would be surprising if Nintendo didn't attempt to replicate its success on the Switch 2 with Mario Kart 9.

With plenty of potential tracks to remake and new ones to conjure up, Mario Kart 9 could easily become the definitive Mario Kart experience, especially if it follows its predecessor's DLC strategy. It is likely that Nintendo will, at the very least, announce Mario Kart 9 in 2025 and show off some gameplay. However, it is also possible that Mario Kart 9 could end up launching alongside the Switch 2.

3 Genshin Impact Launch On Switch

It Has Been In The Works For Years

Genshin Impact was announced for the Nintendo Switch before it initially launched and yet, all these years later, it has yet to materialize. It has been delayed multiple times, with even the Xbox port released before it in 2024. Early rumors claimed these delays were due to hardware issues, which could lend credence to the idea that HoYoverse, the developers behind Genshin Impact, is waiting for the Switch 2 to release.

It would be great to see a Genshin Impact Switch release date announced in 2025, if only to finally give Nintendo fans the amazing experience that everyone else has been enjoying for years. It is the last platform without the critically acclaimed gacha game, with even mobile users able to play it. Frankly, it would be incredible to get any form of news surrounding the whereabouts of Genshin Impact on the Nintendo Switch sometime soon.

2 GameCube Games Added To NSO

It Would Make The Service Significantly Better

Nintendo Switch Online (NSO) is a pretty good service, especially for those who are into classic Nintendo games. It currently allows players to access a range of beloved NES, SNES, Game Boy, N64, GBA, and Sega Genesis games - the last three are only available via the Expansion Pack membership tier - with new games being added to the service all the time. However, a lot of these titles are so well-known and so beloved that they've been played ad nauseam, and are, in a lot of cases, available physically for not a lot of money.

GameCube games, on the other hand, are a lot rarer and lesser known, in large part thanks to the console's surprisingly low sales when it was released. Considering it's impossible to buy a lot of the best GameCube games, with many of them simply no longer accessible or far too expensive, it would be great for Nintendo to add them to the NSO service. Not only would it help with game preservation, but it would also give players the opportunity to try some of the greatest games barely anyone has played.

1 A Nintendo Switch 2 Reveal

It Finally Has To Happen

Of course, the biggest and most important item at the top of everyone's Nintendo 2025 wishlist is a Nintendo Switch 2 announcement. While nothing is ever completely guaranteed to happen in the world of video games, a Switch 2 reveal should, by all accounts, happen before March 31, 2025. Nintendo has stated that it will reveal the Switch 2 by that date multiple times, and it typically sticks to its word.

Related 10 First-Party Exclusives The Switch 2 Needs At Launch The Nintendo Switch 2 will need to launch with several impressive first-party titles, many of which should come from these franchises.

By now, everyone knows the Switch 2 is coming. Most people even believe they've seen what it looks like, so it's only a matter of time before Nintendo finally lets the Switch take a well-deserved rest and the Switch 2 take its place. Ultimately, Nintendo has constantly surprised players throughout the Nintendo Switch's lifespan, with new games being announced even towards the very end. No matter what Nintendo does in 2025, it's certain to delight and surprise fans and that's an exciting prospect.

Source: Monolith Soft/X, Xbox/YouTube