Last week’s Nintendo Direct was well worth the wait. The 40-minute presentation was packed with fan favorites and dream titles, starting off strong with Fire Emblem Warriors: Three Hopes, and ending with Xenoblade Chronicles 3. Nintendo is certainly riding the high, but only seven days later, the company is right back to frustrating fans and making strange decisions behind the scenes. The announcement of a Wii Sports successor, Nintendo Switch Sports, was certainly a highlight of the stream–but for those participating in this weekend’s Online Play Test, you better keep your mouth shut and your screenshots under lock and key.
The sign-up page for the upcoming playtest states that “by downloading and participating in the Nintendo Switch Sports Online Play Test, you agree not to publicly share any details from this online play test, including on your social media channels.” It’s not exactly clear how Nintendo will police players who post information about the game online.
People are already baffled by this decision, taking to social media to vent their frustrations with the company.
The Nintendo Switch Online Play Test will run from February 18 until February 20, and will be available during the following time slots:
- February 18 at 7pm-7.45pm PT / February 19 at 3am-3.45am GMT
- February 19 at 3am-3.45am PT / 11am-11.45am GMT
- February 19 at 11am-11.45am PT / 7pm-7.45pm GMT
- February 19 at 7pm-7.45pm PT / February 20 at 3pm-3.45pm GMT
- February 20 at 3am-3.45am PT / 11am-11.45am GMT
Nintendo Switch Sports is scheduled to be released on April 29, 2022. A free update will be released this summer and will allow players to play football matches with a Joy-Con controller and the leg strap accessory. A second free update will arrive in the fall and will add golf. Online play is supported across all sports.
The Nintendo Switch title is the third main entry in the Wii Sports series of games, following Wii Sports and Wii Sports Resort. A high-definition remake, Wii Sports Club, was released for the Wii U in 2013. Selling over 82 million copies by the end of 2017, Wii Sports is still the best-selling single-platform game of all time.
