As acts to follow go, the Wii U wasn’t the toughest in the world.
Nonetheless, Nintendo has done brilliantly with the Switch, selling over 40 million of the hand-held hybrid and pushing out gaming hit after hit. True, many of these are rebaked Wii U games, but given that nobody played them last generation, then what’s the harm?
The library keeps on growing, but these are the games that should definitely be on your radar. But first, some questions you should consider...
Switch or Switch Lite?
Nintendo has two versions of the Switch to buy: the regular vanilla Switch, and the Switch Lite.
The Switch Lite is smaller, better looking and cheaper. But it’s also far less flexible: it can’t output to a TV, and the Joy-Con gamepads on the side can’t be removed. In other words, it’s a Switch that doesn’t, uh, switch.
That means games like Super Mario Party, 1-2 Switch and Ring Fit Adventure will need extra Joy-Cons to use. And you won’t be able to charge them off the Switch. Plus you’d be stuck playing on a tiny screen.
In other words, if you want the full catalogue and intend to spend a lot of time playing in your living room, pay a bit more for a full-size Switch. If not, feel free to save a few quid on the Lite.
Do I need a Switch Online account?
The Switch has its own online service with a name that must have involved literally minutes of brainstorming: Nintendo Switch Online. It costs less than £20 per year, but even at this price it isn’t wholly necessary.
In short, it offers three main perks: it lets you play certain games online, it means you can make cloud backups of your saves, and it opens up a growing catalogue of NES and SNES games to play solo or online. The last one is worth the price of admission alone if you’re the kind of person who goes misty eyed at the words “Excite Bike”.
Should I get console ports?
The success of the Switch has led to lots of developers porting their Xbox One and PS4 games to Nintendo’s hybrid. The problem is that it’s a lot less powerful, which can lead to reduced functionality, shoddy framerates or weaker graphics. Sometimes all three.
As a rule of thumb, check dedicated Switch-version reviews. If a game is unplayable, it’ll definitely be highlighted. But generally Switch ports of full console experiences – Wolfenstein, Skyrim, Doom, LA Noire, Alien Isolation and the like – have been pretty solid. And in the cases where they’re a bit weaker, such as with The Witcher 3, the ability to play on the move more than makes up for it.
Physical games or eShop download?
While some games are eShop exclusives, most of the big hitters get a physical release too. First-party Nintendo games – which make up the majority of this list – stubbornly stick to their RRP in both formats.
That means you’re generally better off buying the cartridge: you’ll be able to sell games on when you’re done, and you’ll probably get most of your money back.
That said, if the convenience of never having to switch cartridges appeals, then it’s worth buying eShop credit online. The likes of CDKeys sells eShop top-up cards at a discount, and it all adds up...
Best Nintendo Switch games: The list
Super Mario Odyssey
Best for: Pure Nintendo magic
The game that actually made me buy a Nintendo Switch in the first place, Mario Odyssey is packed full of beautiful worlds to explore, innovative level design and utterly charming moments. It’s also a lot longer than you think – beating Bowser (apologies for the entirely predictable spoiler) is actually just the beginning, with a whole bunch more moons to collect just as you think you’re done.
It’s probably the best Mario game ever made… well, it's between this and Mario Galaxy anyway. But until Nintendo decides to print some money by remaking the latter, this is the best you’ll get on the Switch.
Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild
Best for: Role playing with a Nintendo flavour
What do you get if you cross the tight dungeon design of Zelda with the open world exploration of The Elder Scrolls? Probably something that looks an awful lot like Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild, which deservedly scooped up pretty much every Game of the Year award going when it launched with the Switch in 2017.
Mario Kart 8 Deluxe
Best for: Split-screen multiplayer perfection
Mario Kart games are always good value, and Nintendo struck gold when it came up with Mario Kart 8. Or it would have it hadn’t been released on the hugely unpopular Wii U console.
Still, waste not want not: Nintendo was able to quickly remake it for the Switch along with the eight optional DLC courses from the Wii U, and suddenly it got the lavish praise it should have received back in 2014. It’s Mario Kart that you can play with a friend in the pub, three friends in the living room or 11 potential friends online. What’s not to like?
Mario + Rabbids Kingdom Battle
Best for: Cartoony strategy
Ubisoft’s Rabbids may be approaching a certain comparison site’s meerkats for running a one-note joke into the ground, but Mario + Rabbids Kingdom Battle shows there’s life in them yet.
A crossover nobody expected, the result is a surprisingly deep X-Com style turn-based strategy game that has proved a bit of a sleeper hit for the platform. It gets bonus points here, because it can often be found a lot cheaper than the rest – and given my Switch clock says 25 hours, it’s safe to say you get a lot of bang (as well as crash and thwack) for your buck.
Smash Bros Ultimate
Best for: Beating seven shades out of friends
What would you get if every Nintendo character (and some officially licenced friends) decided the best way to settle their differences was not via karting, tennis or golf, but with a massive punch up?
The result is Smash Bros Ultimate. Grab three friends, pick a fighter (bagsy Kirby – yes, I know it’s a bit of an easy move) and knock seven bells out of each other. In game, obviously.
Dark Souls Remastered
Best for: Total masochists
If you don’t react well to seeing the words “YOU DIED” repeatedly popping up on your screen, then Dark Souls Remastered might be one to avoid. It’s a punishingly difficult action RPG that revels in making you learn things the hard way. The very hard way, to be exact.
Each time you die, you’ll hopefully have learned your lesson, and maybe you’ll inch a bit further along. Maybe you’ll even have reached the campfire to level up – assuming you didn’t leave all your XP next to the scary dragon thing that you definitely weren’t ready to take on yet...
Dr Kawashima’s Brain Training
Best for: Self improvement
You may remember Dr Kawashima from the Nintendo DS in the early 2000s. Well now he’s back with another prescription to keep your mind sharp – albeit one that feels somewhat similar to what the good doctor recommended in 2005. At least he’s more qualified than Dr Mario...
In any case, that means you’re looking at a bunch of sums and mental puzzles to keep your grey matter lively. This time around, some of them rather neatly involve the Switch’s IR sensor, testing the dexterity of your hands to make shapes quickly.
Play sessions are short – you’re only expected to play for ten to 20 minutes per day – but it’s fun, and certainly good at blowing the dust off of a morning. Partner it with Ring Fit Adventure if you want to work on your body as well as your mind.
The Witcher 3
Best for: RPG enthusiasts
The winner of countless 2015 Game of the Year awards is finally available on Nintendo Switch. It’s the same great game, just suddenly available to play on the go.
If you’re familiar with The Witcher 3 and the hundreds of hours you’ll need to put into it, you’ll realise that’s no mean feat. And while it’s undoubtedly smoother and more impressive on other platforms, you just try dragging a PS4 Pro and 40-inch TV screen on the Tube and see how far you get. Hint: it likely won’t be as far as the platform.
Alien Isolation
Best for: Horror fans
Another Xbox One and PS4 hit that’s made the jump to Switch, Alien Isolation is one of the most tense games you can play, now with the added risk of alarming fellow commuters when you jump out of your skin.
While past Alien games have had you absolutely armed to the teeth, in this one you may as well be using a water pistol on the xenomorph for all the good it’ll do. Instead, the game relies on stealth and cunning. It’s the most tense game of ‘hide and seek’ you’ve ever played – unless you had an extremely tough upbringing.
Overcooked 2
Best for: Couch co-op fun
Work the kitchen cooperatively in this slightly stressful action-puzzle game. Recipes pop up on screen that need to be prepared, cooked and served as quickly as possible, while you trip over your fellow chefs and try not to set the whole place on fire.
It doesn’t help that for some reason you’ve been given the least appropriate kitchen locations around: busy main roads, moving ships and fiddly spacships. Organisation has never been this much fun and it’s frequently hilarious, but be warned: this is a game that’s been known to stress-test even the strongest relationships...
5 Honourable eShop mentions
Best for: Quick bursts of downloadable fun
Of course some of the best games for the Switch can’t be found on cartridges and have to be downloaded from Nintendo’s eShop. You can’t go wrong with any of the titles below:
Cuphead: A hard-as-nails platformer that looks and sounds like a 1930s Disney cartoon.
Untitled Goose Game: You’re an obnoxious goose tasked with raising havoc in an idyllic village that quickly grows to hate you.
Golf Story: Part NES-style golf game, part RPG. All charming.
Stardew Valley: Leave the big city and start a farm in this charming Harvest Moon-like simulation.
Rocket League: What you get when you cross football with monster truck rallies – and playable by up to four people split screen.
£30 eShop credit: £28.99 | CDKeys | Buy it now
Verdict:
While everything in the list above offers something unique, if for some weird reason you can only buy one game for your Switch then, for my money, it should be Super Mario Odyssey. It’s huge, great fun and marvellously quirky.
We can only hope we get DLC for it at some point. But even if we don’t, it’s a great illustration of what Nintendo does best and why, 131 years after it was founded, the company still has the power to surprise and delight in equal measure.
