Five Essential Nintendo Switch Games You should Play on the Nintendo Switch 2

With the release of the Nintendo Switch 2 in 2025. Nintendo are currently riding the wave that was the success of the Nintendo Switch. Releasing a sequel console that not only upgrades the original switch but is also backwards compatible.

In this blog I will be talking about five of the best and most essential Nintendo switch games that you can get right now and play on your Nintendo Switch 2.

1) Super Mario Odyssey

Released In October 2017. Mario Odyssey is Mario's finest 3D adventure game. Travel across 14 different worlds that Mario and his Cap companion known as Cappy will explore, Hunting and collecting Moons one challenge after another. Bowser has unsurprisingly kidnapped Princess peach, taking her to be his bride to be. Its up to mario and cappys mystical power to transform Mario into many of the different creatures within the game, all with different gameplay styles and mechanics, in hopes of reaching Princess peach before the evil bowser takes princess peach away forever.

Mario Odyssey is an extremely well made and polished Nintendo game that still holds up today. While it is not my favorite 3D Mario game as that honor goes to Super Mario Sunshine, Mario Odyssey is easily the largest and most ambitious game within the 3D catalog of Super Mario games. This game is a mix of casual and challenging platforming and puzzles with lots of trial and error, that is elevated by the insane feel of Mario's precise controls. Mario has never felt better to control, making this the most advanced but also simple to pick and play 3D Mario title. One of the best things about this game is how beautiful it is to look at, It is easily one of the best looking games on the Nintendo Switch and only gets better with the Nintendo Switch 2.

2) Super Smash Bros Ultimate

Released in December 2018. Super Smash Bros Ultimate is the fifth installment into the greatest crossover competitive fighting game series of all time. Crossing over the likes of all the major Nintendo franchises such as Mario, Zelda, Pokemon, Animal Crossing, Splatoon and more. Not only that but Super Smash Bros Ultimate also breaks down barriers and crosses first party Nintendo Characters with Third party Non Nintendo characters such as Solid Snake from the Metal Gear series, Cloud from the Final Fantasy series, Steve from Minecraft and even more Third party characters.

Super Smash Bros Ultimate in my eyes is Nintendo's unofficial gaming Hall of Fame. The excitement of this game comes from the anticipation of who or what you will unlock as characters and new stages are thrown at you one by one. There so many of characters, 74 in total. Not only that but Smash bros ultimate is a great way to explore games series without actually playing those series, It's a great way to introduce yourself to game series you may not have thought of playing. For example, I only played Kid Icarus and Fire Emblem because of Super Smash Bros.

This game is crazy competitive, Online while flawed due to horrible optimization of servers on Nintendo's end can be a way to practice your skills at a very complex and fleshed out fighting system. The aim is to knock the other players off the screen by smashing them with your chosen fighters skills. The more damage you deal, the higher chance the other player will go flying off the screen gaining you a point and the other play the loss of one.

Smash Bros Ultimate is crazy fun and is pure chaos when you make it be. It's one of the best multiplayer games of all time in general, not just on the Nintendo Switch. It is elevated by it's cast of characters and stages to fight on, each with their own gimmick to shake up your fight and make the game unpredictable. Highly recommended.

3) Pokemon Scarlet and Violet

Released in November 2022. Pokemon Scarlet and Violet is the first open world mainline Pokemon game in the series. While this game suffers from awful frame rates, glitches, awful art direction, strange game play and world design. Somehow with all it's flaws and poor optimization, Nintendo and Game Freak still made a fun Pokemon game. Yes it needed more time in the oven to cook, but overall I enjoyed my play through of this game and it's low key one of my favorite Pokemon games. Now the reason this game is on this list is because the Nintendo Switch 2 automatically fixed many of the flaws of this game. While not perfect, it runs far better on the Nintendo switch 2 and for some people is finally playable.

My favorite thing about this game is the ability to just explore Paldea and just enjoy hunting for wild Pokemon. While the game is considered open world, It does suffer from the trait that the open world is unclear on which areas are designed to be for higher leveled Pokemon. Also some areas of the game require upgrades to your chosen legendary's skill set, Think HM's if you are familiar with Pokemon games. I question how open this game actually is. However overall this games focus on multiple side stories along side your main quest to Catch em all makes sure this game never feels boring. There is a lot to do in this game, and you can even play through the whole game with somebody else if you wish to do so through the games online mode.

4) Kirby and the Forgotten Land

This is the best Kirby game of all time. Released in March 2022. Kirby and the Forgotten Land sent waves in to the Nintendo Switch fanbase. Nobody was expecting a fully 3D platforming Kirby game at the time it was revealed. Not only that, but this game turned out to be one of the best 3D platforming games of all time. Kirby and the Forgotten land takes inspiration from 2D kirby games but also redefined what Kirby games could be going forward. Borrowing the formula from games like Super Mario 3D world and making something completely new but familiar. This game turned the Kirby series into a real contender for Mario's title of best platforming series.

Kirby is thrust into a unusual but familiar world through a portal that mutates Kirby to be able to stretch and take shape and control of objects like Vending machines, cars and light-bulbs. Not only this but Kirby has the ability to suck and take control of the many powers from enemies dotted around the various and unique levels across the forgotten land. This game is a real blast from start to finish and even after it's finished it carries on and only gets better as a whole second story is unlocked.

This game is getting an upgrade on Nintendo Switch 2 with a whole new story to play through called the Star Crossed worlds. While I write this post, Star Crossed worlds has not been released, so I can not comment on that story mode yet. However if it is anything like the post apocalyptic and science fiction storyline with twists and turns that the base forgotten land is packaged with, then the Nintendo Switch 2 Edition will be well worth it.

My particular highlight of this game is the final chapter of the main story and without spoiling the game, I can only describe as Bonkers.

5) The Legend of Zelda: Breath of The Wild

If you haven't played this game yet, I plead that you stop reading this and go and experience this game yourself. Apart from it's sequel known as Tear of the Kingdom. there is simply nothing like this game that you can truly compare it to.

This game is special. Released in March 2017 as a launch title for the Nintendo Switch. It is one of those games that comes around every few years and becomes an instant classic. This game won Game of the Year at the 2017 Game Awards and still in my opinion is better than most of the games that are released today despite it's age.

This game was the first open sandbox style Zelda game. It was a huge departure from the original Zelda formula that was starting to feel overdone and tired. Nintendo knew they needed to reinvent the Zelda Series and Breath of The Wild was the answer. This game gave you all the tools you needed within the first hour of the game, a huge open world to explore with the most interesting locations, A captivating chose your own direction quest to take on, Lots of side adventures, a Banging DLC expansion if you purchased it, a complex combat system, A complex inventory system and was a visual treat to your eyes.

This game went on to be the best selling Zelda game of all time and it is easy to see why as it took inspiration from games Like Minecraft and The Elder Scrolls. Two highly successful game series with winning formulas. I can only explain that the inspiration Breath of the Wild took though was rearranged and redone in Zelda fashion. Making the game feel completely new and never been done before, but also super familiar and easy to pick up and play.

Even though Tears of the Kingdom is out now and I will talk about that game later. Breath of the Wild is the definitive Nintendo Switch game in my opinion. The game came out at the right time for Nintendo as it really brought nintendo back to form after the disaster that was the Wii U and helped make the original Nintendo Switch a must buy. There is a reason this game has re released with the Nintendo Switch 2 as a Nintendo Switch 2 edition and that is because this game is still widely played today and new discovery's are made all the time. Not many games can say they were a launch title for two consoles back to back. Seriously go play the Nintendo Switch 2 edition. It is beautiful.

Conclusion

Those were five Nintendo Switch games that you should play on or replay on your Nintendo Switch 2. There is a huge selection of Nintendo Switch games out there. The original switch in my eyes is the greatest games console of all time and the Nintendo Switch 2 has a huge legacy to live up to. I honestly think that The original Nintendo Switches catalog of games is second to none and really should not be forgotten about now the Nintendo Switch 2 is here. Nintendo games historically have been polished to the point that Nintendo have their own formula for their games and it works over and over again. I highly recommend you play the games I have mentioned if you haven't already, which is kind of concerning as if you are reading this now, I would have expected you to have played them by now. Ah well better late than never.

Thanks for reading make sure you check my Youtube Channel Switchbored. - https://www.youtube.com/@Switchbored

I will see you for the next post

Sam