Friday 3rd March 2023 marks the sixth anniversary of Nintendo Switch’s launch. The console has built a remarkable library of software old and new in that time, so — as Switch enters its seventh year — we’re republishing this reader-ranked list of the 50 best games on the system.
A game needs a minimum of 50 user ratings to become eligible. Once it reaches that threshold, anything is fair game. Enjoy!
Nintendo Switch has amassed a huge amount of great games since the console launched back in 2017. Of course, this abundance of riches leaves us in something of a pickle — too much software, not enough time to play it all. In fairness, it’s a lovely problem to have. Help! There are too many excellent games to choose from!
But what are the best games on Switch so far? Well, we asked Nintendo Life readers to rate their favourite Switch games since launch and the list below is the result according to the User Ratings associated with Switch games on Nintendo Life’s games database. As with our round-ups of the 50 Best Games from various consoles, years and series, the order here is fluid which means our Best Switch Games change over time reflecting new releases according to their rating. That way, you can be sure it’s up-to-date whenever you look.
If you’ve yet to score your favourites, you can cast your ‘vote’ by clicking on each game’s rating below. Can’t see your favourite? Head to our library of Switch games (click the Games tab at the top of the page) and get rating. A game needs a minimum of fifty ratings to become eligible, so it’s entirely possible to influence the best Switch games ranking below and get your favourites on the list. And if you’d like to see the best Switch games of individual years (so 2017, 2018, 2019, 2020, 2021, and 2022), we’ve got you covered, too.
Without further ado, let’s dive into this selection of the very best Switch games you can play right now…
Publisher: Bethesda Softworks / Developer: Bethesda Game Studios
The Switch isn’t short of games that have already taken a bow, or several, on other hardware, but Skyrim might be the one that most deserves another look from both hardy Elder Scrolls adventurers and absolute beginners alike. Despite its age showing, with countless little cracks in its already fractured façade, it still delivers a palpable sense of space that few games before or since have managed. May its dancing northern lights never dim.
Publisher: Nintendo / Developer: Nintendo
Super Mario Maker 2 took everything you loved about Super Mario Maker and turned it up to eleven. It’s got more of everything: the Super Mario 3D World style, enemies, gizmos, powerups, vertical levels, the Story Mode having an actual story, multiplayer, and more (and slopes, of course). The list of additions is truly massive when you take a step back.
There are a few small issues here and there — the online is still hilariously obtuse in a way only Nintendo could make it, and the slight awkwardness of button-based building is disappointing after how natural it felt on the Wii U GamePad — but they’re overwhelmingly dwarfed by the sheer joy and unbridled freedom on offer. Free updates and tweaks to the formula mean the game has evolved since release much like the original did, with Ninji Speedruns and various new elements added to this expansive Mario toybox.
Publisher: Square Enix / Developer: Square Enix
Final Fantasy VII presented gamers with one of the biggest conundrums of our time: is it Aeris or Aerith?
Pronunciation posers aside, this game represented the series’ 3D debut and was the first mainline game to not appear on a Nintendo platform. Therefore, Square took full advantage of the space available on Sony’s CD media that simply wasn’t available on Nintendo’s cartridges at the time.
In many ways, FF7 is a relic. If you were there at the time, it likely affected you deeply; if you’ve never played it before, it’s influence quickly spread across the entire genre and you’ll most likely have seen everything it has to offer done elsewhere, and better in the intervening years. That’s only natural — and it happens to all the very best games — but if you can overlook the odd clunky mechanic and antiquated piece of design, the core game here is as brilliant as it ever was.
Publisher: Image & Form / Developer: Image & Form
SteamWorld Dig 2 is another confident effort from Image & Form, and a worthy successor to the original. Stylish and good-looking, it also has the series’ trademark humour and, yes, a pretty good soundtrack. It refines and expands upon the qualities of SteamWorld Dig and hits some delicious high points. Whether you played the first game or not, SteamWorld Dig 2 is a must-have — its charming aesthetic and cast set the scene for a tightly designed and clever exploration game.
Publisher: Capcom / Developer: Capcom
The original Ace Attorney is really getting on in years, which is remarkable when you consider just how well it holds up. Sure, it’s been ported plenty of times and the jump to Nintendo DS certainly helped shake off the retro cobwebs, but as a piece of interactive history, Phoenix Wright: Ace Attorney Trilogy is as utterly addictive and truly rewarding as it was back at the turn of the millennium. Whether you’re brand new to the world of virtual defence law or a veteran attorney, Phoenix Wright’s first adventures are still a fine set of cases to undertake.
Publisher: Microsoft / Developer: Moon Studios
What we have here is a flawless port of a game which absolutely deserves all of the praise it has received. From start to finish, Ori and the Blind Forest is a real joy to play. Challenging yet never feeling unfair or discouraging, and almost relaxing to control. The mesmerising art style and musical score are the icing on the cake that makes the player actually care about the protagonist and want to keep playing to the game’s conclusion. It was a bit of a surprise to see this game make its way to the Nintendo Switch, but we’re glad that it did. An unmissable experience.
Publisher: StudioMDHR / Developer: StudioMDHR
Cuphead was an absolute masterpiece when it originally launched on Xbox One and nothing has been sacrificed in its move to the Switch. A run-and-gun boss battler dressed up like a 1930s Fleischer or Disney animated short, it’s the same visually jaw-dropping, aurally delightful, knuckle-whiteningly difficult game it was on Microsoft’s console and the Switch’s library is all the better for its presence. Its focus on intense boss battles won’t be to everyone’s tastes, but as long as you know what you’re getting yourself into we can’t recommend it enough. Just look at it!
Publisher: Nintendo / Developer: PlatinumGames
Bayonetta 3 cranks up the chaos, improves the combat, polishes the level design, and adds a ton of new mechanics to the mix, making for the very best entry in this storied series to date. PlatinumGames has absolutely nailed it this time around, carefully layering on more ways to engage enemies, piling on the OTT gameplay sequences, and giving us multiple protagonists without upsetting the balance of what makes these games amongst the very best examples of their genre. With solid performance in docked and handheld modes, impressive visuals, non-stop action, and a hugely replayable campaign that’s a joy from start to finish, this really is a huge celebration of everything we love about Bayonetta, an action all-timer and one of the highlights of Switch’s impressive library.
Publisher: Square Enix / Developer: Square Enix
As with any 20-year-old video game, there are elements of Final Fantasy IX that don’t go down today quite was easily as they used to, but the characters, wacky story, and overall gameplay hold up very well in a modern context. Its medieval-style setting makes it a fun nostalgia trip for fans of the older series entries, or players fed up of all the futuristic Final Fantasies.
Publisher: Nintendo / Developer: Nintendo
The Legend of Zelda: Link’s Awakening was a technical marvel when it first arrived on the scene back in 1993. Easily one of the great Game Boy releases, it was a first bash at a handheld Zelda that took the formula as perfected by A Link to the Past, jammed it all onto a tiny portable console and, somehow, managed to make it all work while adding a host of new features and concepts to the mix. This beautiful Switch remake rebuilds all of this from the ground up in fine style. It adds modern conveniences, a dungeon creator, amiibo support and lots of little quality of life improvements whilst infusing every single square inch of Koholint – every secret passage, Piranha, Pokey and Pig Warrior – with a level of detail and depth that totally reinvigorates both its timeless story and classic Zelda gameplay for a whole new generation of gamers.
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