My Nintendo Direct hopium grows as Switch 2 big hitters Metroid Prime 4 and Hyrule Warriors get rated abroad

Two big upcoming Switch 2 games have recently gotten age ratings, prompting speculation that news of release dates could be on the way and fuelling my hopium for an imminent Nintendo Direct.

Nintendo had already pegged Metroid Prime 4: Beyond for a release this year - heck, a London underground ad even cruelly announced the fourquel was "Out Now," seemingly out of spite for anyone who's been waiting for what feels like an eternity. Thankfully, we don't seem far out from actually playing the full game.

That's because Metroid Prime 4 has just been rated in Korea and been classed as appropriate for players aged 12 and up. Machine-translated quotes tell us that the game has "a slight display of violence" - we know Samus is going to be kicking alien butt - but nothing more extreme than that.

Hyrule Warriors: Age of Imprisonment is the other Switch 2 exclusive that's seemingly received a rating, this time in Brazil. The Musou sequel was due sometime this winter, and it now seems very likely to make it in time for that slot.

Ratings don't always indicate that a release is imminent, though they do signal that games are nearing a finished state since ratings boards would need to verify content. For example, Death Stranding 2 was rated in Korea in February, announced its release date in March, and eventually came out roughly four months after that.

Outside of Pokemon Legends Z-A, the Nintendo Switch 2's holiday line up is slightly shrouded in mystery. We don't know much about games like Kirby Air Riders and whatever's coming in the months between, so perhaps a Nintendo Direct is closer than we think.

In the meantime, check out all the new games of 2025 and beyond.