People like to complain whenever a game they're looking forward to wasn't mentioned, but it's important to keep in mind that Nintendo never said it would be there. I want to take a little bit of time to explain why the Direct saying nothing about Animal Crossing means there was nothing to say about Animal Crossing.
1. Nintendo announced two new games they were making, and gave details for a game we already knew about.
Super Mario Maker 2 and Link's Awakening were both announced during the Direct. Both of these games are a big deal to a lot of people, and showing Animal Crossing information could easily overshadow not only the aforementioned games, but also Fire Emblem Three Houses. Nintendo had a pretty good amount of information just from themselves, ignoring the amount of third party announcements.
2. Just because it wasn't mentioned doesn't necessarily mean we'll have to wait until E3 for information.
Nintendo has had Nintendo Directs dedicated to Animal Crossing in the past. One was for Animal Crossing Pocket Camp and one was for Animal Crossing New Leaf Welcome amiibo. Considering the relative insignificance of those titles, it's not unreasonable to assume that an Animal Crossing Direct for the 2019 game could happen.
That being said, Wild World, City Folk, and New Leaf were all announced at E3s. Though this was back when Nintendo was heavily involved in E3 and before Nintendo Directs were a thing.
2.5. Why an Animal Crossing 2019 Direct is probable?
Pocket Camp is a mobile game and Welcome amiibo is an update to an existing game. It's hard to imagine those deserve a Direct to themselves but a full game doesn't. We can also assume Animal Crossing 2019 will have functionality with Pocket Camp, as Nintendo said Pocket Camp would integrate with a full Animal Crossing game, which was not Welcome amiibo. It's fair to say that a full Animal Crossing game will have more content than Pocket Camp, and will likely rival New Leaf Welcome amiibo as well.
3. Why does the game's absence likely mean nothing?
People like to point to Metroid Prime 4's announced delay as an example that Nintendo could have delayed the game. It's important to note, however that Metroid Prime 4 was pushed from an unknown release date to a further off unknown release date. We never had a timeframe for Metroid Prime 4 and we still don't. Nintendo had at least some confidence that Animal Crossing for the Switch would be out in 2019.
It's also important to note that the rumor that the game would release in the first quarter of the year was unsubstantiated. And Wild World, City Folk, and New Leaf were all released in November of their respective years. It's not uncommon for Animal Crossing games to released very late in the year.
Conclusion:
I know people are excited for Animal Crossing on the Switch. It's easily my most anticipated game of the year. Just because it wasn't in the most recent Direct doesn't mean it's been delayed or cancelled.
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