The Nintendo Switch has had quite a life (Nintendo) As the Nintendo Switch 2 release date looms what are the best games for the original Switch and are they still worth playing? There is a very good chance that the Nintendo Switch will end up as the best-selling video game console of all time, and that will be an accolade that is well deserved. Regardless of whether you agree about it being the best console ever made it has a line-up of first and third party exclusives that is unrivalled, certainly in modern times. With the Switch 2 now just weeks away from release we’ve tried to make a list of the 20 best exclusives, especially because the Switch 2 is backwards compatible and you should be able to play almost all of them on it (the new Joy-Cons are the only real problem, but we’ve noted that in the descriptions). We can’t make any claim to this being a definitive list though, as Metroid Prime 4: Beyond and Pokémon Legends: Z-A are due to be released this year, with Rhythm Paradise Groove and Tomodachi Life: Living The Dream scheduled for next year. Although in terms of Metroid Prime 4 and Pokémon Legends: Z-A, separate Nintendo Switch 2 Editions are also planned. It really has been a remarkable generation for Nintendo, with many other great games not quite making our list, including the likes of Snipperclips Plus, The Legend Of Zelda: Echoes Of Wisdom, Cadence Of Hyrule, ARMS, Paper Mario: The Origami King, and Kirby And The Forgotten Land. Then there’s enjoyable oddities such as the quickly forgotten Labo range of construction sets and the various massively multiplayer games on Nintendo Switch Online, such as Tetris 99, Super Mario Bros. 35, and F-Zero 99. The only franchise that hasn’t fared well over the last eight years is Pokémon, with both mainline entries and Pokemon Legends: Arceus proving to be outdated in terms of both ideas and technology. New Pokémon Snap was great, but that’s been all, so there’s still ways in which the Switch 2 can improve on its illustrious predecessor. 20. Splatoon 3 As a concept Splatoon is one of Nintendo’s best franchises and massively popular in Japan. A third person online shooter that features nothing more violent that spraying the map with paint, it’s highly original and hugely entertaining. The one problem, is that both Switch sequels have been more like standalone expansion packs than genuinely new games, which is really not what you’d expect from Nintendo. Splatoon 3 adds almost nothing new of substance and its single-player is slightly worse than Splatoon 2, in terms of what you get at first and the DLC. And yet if you’d never played a Splatoon game before this is easily top 10 material. 19. Fire Emblem: Three Houses As with most other Nintendo franchises on the Switch, Fire Emblem: Three Houses was not only the most commercially successful entry in the series but also a major shake-up for the formula. In this case, it was a mix between Harry Potter style role-playing hijinks at a military academy and Fire Emblem’s usual turn-based, tactical combat. It’s a fine game but its low budget is very obvious at all times, with some embarrassingly low-tech visuals. Depending on whether or not you enjoy the anime style melodrama of the story, the subsequent Fire Emblem Engage is either better or worse, but sadly its budget is even lower. 18. Super Mario Maker 2 Given the mouse controls of the Switch 2, it seems impossible to imagine we won’t be hearing about a sequel to Super Mario Maker 2 soon. Either way, the current version is already an excellent video game construction set, with controls and an interface simple enough that anyone can make their own 2D platforming levels. It’s a shame the game never tries to teach you any video game design wisdom but for those that prefer to play rather than create it’s a much more fully formed package than the original game, with an expansive set of pre-made levels that is almost worth the price of admission on their own. 17. WarioWare: Move It! The odds of a new WarioWare turning up on the Switch 2 are also very high, given how the series likes to take advantage of the unique controls of a new console. What’s interesting about WarioWare: Move It! Is that it was a response to a rare dud in the Switch’s line-up, in WarioWare: Get It Together! That game was so lacklustre it seemed to suggest the franchise had run out of steam but Move It! proved otherwise, by focusing on motion controls for its collection of five-second microgames. It’s essentially a direct sequel to Wii entry Smooth Moves and while too insubstantial if you’re playing on your own, it’s a fantastic multiplayer game. The game will run on Switch 2, except for any microgames that use the IR sensor, that only the Switch 1 Joy-Cons have. 16. Xenoblade Chronicles 3 By helping out on the recent mainline Zelda games, developer Monolith Soft have become an increasingly important studio for Nintendo and their good work as a support studio was rewarded with all four mainline entries in the Xenoblade series appearing on Switch in some form. The games are all action role-players, with a surprisingly straightforward anime style for a Nintendo game; although the unusual real-time combat is intriguingly unique, albeit it with a few nods to Final Fantasy 12. Xenoblade Chronicles 3 is arguably the best of the series and with a DLC expansion that directly hints at a new entry on Switch 2. 15. Super Mario Party Jamboree Another series whose popularity in Japan cannot be overstated, Super Mario Party Jamboree is already due to get a mini-expansion for the Switch 2, that takes advantage of its mouse controls and GameChat. Even without that, the core game is already the best Mario Party title, with a huge range of modes and mini-games that go well beyond the traditional board game inspired action. Mario Party may be simple but it’s almost the only quality video game that can be played by groups of absolutely anyone, of any combination of age and gaming experience, and that’s an important achievement. 14. Metroid Dread Metroid Prime 4 will be released on the Switch this year, but only after the Switch 2 is already out. As well as the excellent Metroid Prime Remastered though, there’s also Metroid Dread: the first 2D Metroid on a home console since the SNES era. Developed by the same Spanish team behind the 3DS’s Metroid: Samus Returns, it’s a full bloodied Metroidvania, with virtually no hand-holding and some enjoyably tough challenges. It may not add much to the formula but it executes on it perfectly, even if it still offers few clues as to the franchise’s future outside of the Prime sub-series. 13. Pikmin 4 One of the most extreme makeovers of any franchise on the Switch came not a moment too soon for the Pikmin franchise, which had definitely begun to stagnate. After being basically the same game for three entries, Pikmin 4 transformed itself into more of an action puzzle game, although you’re still commanding armies of plant-like pikmin in order to retrieve lost items and battle pint-sized enemies. Diluting the real-time element made the game a very easy at times but there’s no doubting it was a lot more fun and accessible, becoming the best-selling entry by a wide margin. 12. Astral Chain It’s sad to think that PlatinumGames as we know it did not last the generation, but they still managed to put out some great games before the end. This top notch action game was more successful than Nintendo expected and while it does share some DNA with Bayonetta, Astral Chain is very much its own thing, with a unique combat system that revolves around your character also controlling a tethered supernatural being at the same time as they fight. As usual for Platinum, the story is overcomplicated nonsense but that’s all part of the charm. 11. Ring Fit Adventure Despite its huge success, few people would’ve described Wii Fit as one of their favourite games. In fact, it wasn’t really a game at all, and didn’t try to be. But Ring Fit Adventure is. It’s essentially an old school, turn-based Japanese role-player, where selecting attacks means having to perform a set number of exercises. These are monitored by the Switch’s motion controls, with one of the Joy-Cons strapped to your leg and another inserted into a special Pilates ring. Between battles you jog along, collecting resources and performing simpler exercises, in what is an inspired mix of video game and a keep fit program, and something that we’re still using to this day. It’ll work on the Switch 2 too, although you’ll need to use Switch 1 Joy-Cons with it, because the new ones are a different shape. The best remasters and remakes on Nintendo Switch With the exception of Mario Kart 8 we’ve kept remasters and Wii U ports off our top 20 list, but once you start adding them to the conversation you see just how impressive the Switch’s line-up really is. Some of these remasters, such as Super Mario 3D World, even add new content, while the likes of Zelda: Skyward Sword Is arguably superior to its original release. So here’s everything of note, in alphabetical order: Nintendo Switch remasters: Advance Wars 1+2: Re-Boot Camp Bayonetta 2 + BayonettaCaptain Toad: Treasure TrackerDonkey Kong Country Returns HDDonkey Kong Country: Tropical FreezeLuigi’s Mansion 2 HDMetroid Prime RemasteredPikmin 1+2Pikmin 3 DeluxePokkén Tournament DXSuper Mario 3D World + Bowser’s FuryThe Legend Of Zelda: Skyward Sword HDTokyo Mirage Sessions ♯FE EncoreXenoblade Chronicles: Definitive EditionXenoblade Chronicles X: Definitive EditionNintendo Switch remakes: Another Code: Recollection Famicom Detective Club: The Missing Heir & Famicom Detective Club: The Girl Who Stands BehindMario Party SuperstarsMario Vs. Donkey KongPaper Mario: The Thousand-Year DoorSuper Mario RPGThe Legend Of Zelda: Link’s Awakening 10. Mario + Rabbids Sparks Of Hope Mario has appeared in almost every genre of video game imaginable but the one thing you would’ve bet on him never doing is wielding a gun. But somehow not only did Ubisoft talk Nintendo into a crossover with the Rabbids, but they did so in the form of a turn-based strategy similar to XCOM. As if that wasn’t wild enough the resulting sequel, Sparks Of Hope, was extremely innovative for the genre, adding real-time elements and doing away with grid-based movement. Creator Davide Soliani has moved on from Ubisoft now but hopefully whatever he does next will evolve the formula further. 9. Bayonetta 3 Even ignoring the current state of PlatinumGames, the fact that Bayonetta (and Devil May Cry) creator Hideki Kamiya was one of the first to leave the studio does not bode well for the future of the series. Some may still prefer Bayonetta 2, which was also ported to the Switch, but Bayonetta 3 is a stunning action game in its own right. Stuffed to the gills with content and outrageous set pieces and boss battles, it is one of the very best action games of the generation. It occasionally struggles with the Switch’s limited power though, so we really hope there’s going to be a Nintendo Switch 2 Edition. 8. Luigi’s Mansion 3 The Switch may only have a modest amount of horsepower but of all the games on the system Luigi’s Mansion 3 is the most technically impressive. The cartoon style visuals are fluid and filled with character, with a surprising amount of high-end effects, including a physics system that is barely used in gameplay terms and just seems to be there for the developer to show off. It’s not clear what Next Level Games is doing next – some suspect they might be the ones behind Donkey Kong Bananza – but this is their best game yet and a thoroughly enjoyable action adventure, with some wonderful puzzles and secrets. 7. Into The Breach Many indie developers report that their games sell best on the Switch, often by a wide margin, but there are still surprisingly few that are console exclusives. Although even if there were hundreds, Into The Breach would still be the best. It may not look like much but it’s a wonderfully addictive turn-based strategy that feels like a puzzle game crossed with chess. The idea that you’re fighting kaiju in giant mechs doesn’t come across that well in the visuals, but the tightly designed rules and abilities are perfectly balanced and the knowledge that you’re only ever one turn away from disaster makes every battle thrilling. 6. Super Mario Bros. Wonder For years the only new 2D Super Mario Bros. games have been the anodyne New Super Mario Bros. sub-series, but with Super Mario Bros. Wonder we finally got a completely original, and far more imaginative, alternative. The basics are the same as ever, while keeping the four-player co-op options from the more modern games. There’s lots of new power-ups, including one that transforms you into an elephant, but the main selling point is the unpredictable, reality warping nature of each level. You literally never know what’s going to happen next, from the stage suddenly switching to a top-down view, Mario transforming into a Goomba, or all the Piranha Plants bursting into song. 5. Super Smash Bros. Ultimate You know a game’s something special when both its creator and its fans are at a loss to suggest how a sequel could ever possibly live up to it, so comprehensive and stacked with content is the appropriately named Super Smash Bros. Ultimate. Featuring every character that has ever been in one of the games, plus numerous new ones, the scale of Ultimate is staggering and yet it remains a highly accessible fighting game that, by some miracle, isn’t insanely unbalanced. For the first time in the series’ history it even has a decent single-player story mode, and while the online is predictably unreliable it’s still hard to imagine the franchise ever topping this. 4. Animal Crossing: New Horizons By coming out at the same time as lockdown began, Animal Crossing: New Horizons may have had the most fortunate timing in gaming history, but that shouldn’t take anything away from what a great game it is and how cleverly it evolved the gameplay of the previous entries. The new focus on crafting and more detailed customisation are exactly what was needed and, along with more in the way of structure and reward in the early game, this is every bit as masterful a reinvention as Zelda or Pikmin. It’s still baffling as to why Nintendo cut support for it so early but hopefully that means a sequel is going to appear on Switch 2 sooner rather than later. 3. Super Mario Odyssey It might not have been a launch game, but Nintendo made very sure that a new 3D Mario was available within the Switch’s first year… and that it lived up to the franchise’ impeccable credentials. The lack of any similar announcement for the Switch 2 is perplexing but then following up Super Mario Odyssey is not going to be easy. The central gimmick of flinging your cap at enemies to possess them is great but the game never loses sight of the fact that the core platforming gameplay has to be the main appeal. And it is, in a serious of wonderfully designed levels that are bursting with imagination and secrets within secrets. 2. Mario Kart 8 Deluxe At over 67 million copies sold you can’t argue with the numbers behind the Switch’s best-selling game, even if it is little more than a straight Wii U port. It would’ve been a crime to leave the game hidden away on the Switch’s predecessor, given it’s unquestionably the definitive Mario Kart game and now, following the release of even more DLC, so stuffed full of content it’s no wonder a brand new game was never released for the console. Mario Kart World on the Switch 2 seems to be the Zelda-esque rethink the series never got but Mario Kart 8 Deluxe, with all the trimmings, is the ultimate incarnation of the classic formula. 1. The Legend Of Zelda: Breath Of The Wild Despite having the best first party line-up of games in video game history it’s ironic that the very best game on the Switch is still its very first: Wii U port Zelda: Breath Of The Wild. Apart from anything else, it is the most daring reboot of a successful series ever seen, with a new open world approach that is breathtaking in both its scope and the amount of freedom you are given to explore, discover, and experiment. More Trending Follow-up Zelda: Tears Of The Kingdom, using a variation of the same map, is just as good, especially the physics behind the Ultrahand system, but after that it’s impossible to imagine where Zelda goes from here. But that’s just one of the reasons the Switch 2 seems so exciting, even if topping the original Switch seems almost impossible at this point. The Switch 2 is backwards compatible with the original (Nintendo) Email gamecentral@metro.co.uk, leave a comment below, follow us on Twitter, and sign-up to our newsletter. To submit Inbox letters and Reader’s Features more easily, without the need to send an email, just use our Submit Stuff page here. For more stories like this, check our Gaming page. Arrow MORE: Games Inbox: Is it weird to not like GTA games? GameCentral Sign up for exclusive analysis, latest releases, and bonus community content. This site is protected by reCAPTCHA and the Google Privacy Policy and Terms of Service apply. Your information will be used in line with our Privacy Policy