E3 2019: Banjo-Kazooie, Dragon Quest Join Smash Bros. Ultimate

Dragon Quest XI also coming to Switch.

by Benjamin Richardson

At the very start of Nintendo's E3 2019 Direct presentation, an overture beloved by millions of RPG fans in Japan bellowed triumphantly over shots of the company's mascots waging war, which could mean only one thing: Dragon Quest was coming to Smash Bros. Ultimate.

Heroes of each of the long-running series, the biggest selling in its home country, then joined the fray, led by the unnamed protagonist of the most recent entry.

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To tie in with the Smash Bros. crossover, Dragon Quest XI: Echoes of an Elusive Age S: Definitive Edition (*gasp*) was also announced as migrating to Switch this autumn.

Perhaps more exciting for Western fans was the second Smash Bros. reveal at the end of the Direct. After a golden jigsaw piece disturbed Donkey Kong and pals' slumber, the camera cut to a silhouette of what seemed to be a bear and a bird... only to be revealed as the Duck Hunt Duo.

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Psyche! The pair were obviously then usurped by none other than Banjo-Kazooie, making a triumphant return to a Nintendo platform for the first time since Rare's Microsoft acquisition. If this heralds the arrival a new Banjo game on the Switch, why, we'd just wet out kegs.

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Editorial Team
Editorial Team

Benjamin was born in 1987, and is still not dead. He variously enjoys classical music, old-school adventure games (they're not dead), and walks on the beach (albeit short - asthma, you know). He's currently trying to compile a comprehensive history of video game music, yet denies accusations that he purposefully targets niche audiences. He's often wrong about these things.