Fans of Mario Tennis Aces will be thrilled to hear that plenty of new information was dropped in yesterday's Nintendo Direct; specifically that the game will be updating to Version 2 later this month and bring with it brand new content.

Firstly, four new characters will be added no doubt throughout the coming months - Birdo and Koopa Paratroopa (who we already new about) as well as Shy Guy and Petey Piranha. That last one is especially surprising since Petey was also a boss fight in the game's Adventure mode and will act similarly in that he doesn't use a racket. For those curious about character classes, Birdo will be an All-Around type, Petey will obviously be a Power type and Paratroopa and Shy Guy will both be Technical types.

Unlocking characters in Mario Tennis Aces is simple since you only need to compete in an online tournament to earn them. And if you don't, they'll be unlocked for you anyway at the end of the month, so it's safe to assume that these four will be released the same way. Nintendo also promised that more characters will be released up until June.

online co-op challenge

Speaking of online play, the update will also bring a brand new Co-op Challenge mode that will allow you to team up with other players to take part in special challenges that can unlock new costumes for characters. These challenges will only be available for a limited time, however, and there's currently no word on if these unlockables will work the same way as the characters. This is all obviously to tie-in with and encourage players to sign up to the Switch's online service, which Nintendo have finally given a launch date for. Hopefully these costumes won't be locked out for anyone who doesn't want/can't afford the online service.

The Direct hosted a bunch of other exciting announcements too, including a new Super Smash Bros. Ultimate character - Animal Crossing's very own Isabelle, which was immediately followed with a confirmation that a new Animal Crossing is coming to Switch next year.

The new update for Mario Tennis Aces will launch on September 19th. In the meantime, you can check out our initial review of the game and find out if it'll make the upcoming online service worth it.