Nintendo Summer of Play Announced

By Marc Deschamps

Nintendo has announced a Summer of Play event, which will appear at nine different malls around the country. The event will allow visitors to play different Nintendo Switch games, and "explore the worlds of some of your favorite Nintendo characters." The teaser image for the event shows areas based on a handful of existing Switch games, including Splatoon 3, Animal Crossing: New Horizons, and Mario Kart 8 Deluxe. Nintendo has also confirmed that visitors will be able to play games such as The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom. The event is being held at the following locations:

  • Mall of America- Bloomington, MN. June 15th-18th
  • Great Lakes Crossing Outlets- Auburn Hills, MI. June 22nd-25th
  • Meatpacking District Pop Up- New York, NY. June 29th to July 2nd
  • West Town Mall- Knoxville, TN. July 7th-10th
  • The Florida Mall- Orlando, FL. July 20th-23rd
  • Barton Creek Square- Austin, TX. July 28th-31st
  • Flatiron Crossing- Broomfield, CO. August 17th-20th
  • Santa Monica Place- Santa Monica, CA. August 25th-28th

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Fans shouldn't expect to see any new games appearing during the Summer of Play event, but it could be worth checking out for those in the area. Nintendo says that visitors can "take pictures around the campfire with Isabelle and Tom Nook from the Animal Crossing: New Horizons game, or take a snapshot with Pikachu and other Pokemon featured in the Pokemon Scarlet and Pokemon Violet games." 

Nintendo's plans for the rest of 2023 are a bit of a mystery. After releasing Tears of the Kingdom in May, Nintendo will be releasing Everybody 1-2-Switch! this month, and Pikmin 4 in July. Beyond those two games, everything else is currently a mystery, including the company's plans for the holiday season. Fans have been hoping that a Nintendo Direct presentation might clear things up, but Nintendo has been quiet on that, too! Hopefully the company won't keep fans waiting too much longer for more information.

Are you planning to attend Summer of Play? Do you think we'll be getting a Nintendo Direct soon? Let us know in the comments or share your thoughts directly on Twitter and on Hive at @Marcdachamp to talk all things gaming!

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