Nintendo's new app, Nintendo Today, will soon become the home of updates about the Switch 2. Announced at today's Nintendo Direct, by none other than Shigeru Miyamoto, Nintendo Today functions like a calendar, with news on all things Nintendo. It'll include alerts for in-game events, future Nintendo Directs, and more. Nintendo Today will be available for later... today via the Apple App Store and Google Play.

But, perhaps more importantly, Nintendo Today will update fans on the Switch 2's progress "daily and directly," according to Miyamoto's announcement. Switch 2 updates will begin after the Switch 2 Direct on April 2, daily updates on the console. Exactly what form these "daily" updates will take isn't clear, and likely won't be until after the Direct. Until then, Nintendo Today content will include things like art, character bios, tie-in comics, and alerts for in-game events.

After April 2, Nintendo Today (Sort Of) Replaces Nintendo Direct

A New Strategy

Seen above, Miyamoto begins his introduction to Nintendo Today with what almost sounds like a post-mortem for the Nintendo Direct. "Since 2011, Nintendo Direct has delivered Nintendo news directly to you. And now, these presentations have grown into an event that many people watch." That's no secret - Nintendo Directs have become massive events, with thousands tuning in live for the latest Nintendo reveals, and thousands more seeking out recaps after.

However, Miyamoto makes it clear that Nintendo Today isn't going to replace Nintendo Directs completely - the company will continue to broadcast Directs periodically. Nintendo Today will serve as a fill-in news source, updating players daily on the biggest Nintendo updates. Beginning after the Switch 2-dedicated Direct in April, those updates will naturally all be focused on the latest console.

Daily updates on the Switch 2 seems like quite a lot, though - I wouldn't expect Direct-level announcements every single day. Instead, each Switch 2 news drop on Nintendo Today will likely focus on one hyper-specific aspect of the console: think launch titles like Mario Kart.

Nintendo Today Is A Stroke Of Marketing Genius

Every Nintendo Fan's Dream

If you've ever read the pre-stream chat before a Nintendo Direct, or scrolled through the Twitter replies beneath a Nintendo Direct announcement, you know that Nintendo fans have an apparently unquenchable thirst for news. The clamor of "Legends Z-A," "Pikmin 5," and "Silksong pls" is so distracting I often have to close the chat window just to focus on the stream.

There's something to be said for the magic of a Nintendo Direct - the months of anticipation, the joy of the unexpected, the flood of one hype trailer after another - but Miyamoto is right. The Direct is a big show, requiring tons of effort by camera crews, editors, and Nintendo executives to put together. It can't be Nintendo's only way of making announcements. Some of the smaller stuff inevitably gets lost alongside the big reveals, and not everyone can reasonably be expected to watch a 30-minute presentation first thing in the morning - sympathies to all those in PST.

So Nintendo Today is kind of a brilliant idea. Fans will still get all the splendor of the occasional Nintendo Direct, but Nintendo will also be able to send them push notifications daily about whatever's going on with their games and consoles. That slow trickle of information, paced out with the big reveals, could be a beautiful thing for Nintendo, and will certainly help to drive interest in the Switch 2.

Source: Nintendo of America/YouTube