In the year since the release of the Nintendo Switch 2, Nintendo has already released more exclusive games than the entirety of the PlayStation 5 generation. Not every game is for everyone—for example, I’m not interested in a remake of Star Fox, but I am interested in an awesome new Donkey Kong—but there’s already the sense that there is something for everyone.
After February 2027, the Nintendo Switch 2 will boast: an exclusive 3D Zelda, a new Donkey Kong, a Star Fox game, a Mario Kart, a Pokemon crafting game, a Metroid and a Metroid Prime, a Fire Emblem, a new Splatoon, a Yoshi game, a Hyrule Warriors, and more. Later that year, a new Xenoblade and a new mainline Pokemon will also release.
That’s already a massively successful lineup for any Nintendo hardware, and that’s not including enhanced ports of existing Nintendo Switch games or brand-new IPs such as the exclusive co-op game Orbitals.
Nintendo’s new plan of announcing games just months before they release means we don’t truly know the true output of their plans for 2027 and beyond, either. Hell, we didn’t even mention FromSoftware’s exclusive multiplayer game, The Duskbloods, which will certainly find a home on Nintendo Switch 2 whenever it releases later this year.
As we force ourselves to ask questions like “Is PlayStation Stupid” over its decisions to burn bridges with Hideo Kojima, kill physical games, and focus on live-service failures over and over again, it’s clear that Nintendo simply knows how to service gamers. While the studio has slipped over the years in terms of its hardware decisions, the onus of Nintendo is still clear: make great games.
The early years of the Nintendo Switch were certainly ropier in terms of output compared to the Nintendo Switch 2. As the company still waned off its home console/handheld split with the 3DS and Wii U, some titles that seemed perfect for Switch were still stuck on 3DS, but that era is thoroughly dead and combined, and Switch 2’s output is lightning fast with a new exclusive release almost every month.
The reality is that Nintendo is still operating its console like console makers should. Yes, the gaming giant has focused more on DLC than prior generations, but Nintendo is still focused on servicing its hardware with brilliant and engaging software, and games are releasing at a pace only really seen on the Nintendo GameCube.
This means that there’s pretty much always something around the corner for someone. For example, as a Metroid fan, I bought my Nintendo Switch 2 for Metroid Prime 4: Beyond. Yes, it was a major disappointment, but now there’s a new Metroid game in the form of Metroid Ravenous launching in just a few months. Between that time, I enjoyed Donkey Kong Bananza, my partner enjoyed Pokopia and will enjoy Fire Emblem, and we’re both looking forward to The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time Remake.
This is without speaking about any of the third-party support that Nintendo Switch 2 has received which has eclipsed every generation of Nintendo hardware. For the first time since the SNES, pretty much every major third-party game is trying to release on Switch 2 with Final Fantasy, Resident Evil, The Witcher, Cyberpunk, Fallout, The Elder Scrolls and more coming to the system.
Despite all this, the reaction to essentially every Nintendo Direct this generation has been met with a “that was mid” response from social media, despite the fact that even one of these Directs would’ve blown the nuts off of fans during the Wii U era. So far, there hasn’t been a single Nintendo Direct without something of substance, but that just shows how siloed some fans are. Some Nintendo fans only care about Smash Bros, some only care about Animal Crossing, but with the cadence of games so far, it seems clear that every major IP Nintendo has will be present in at least some form.
Nintendo isn’t just the only platform trying this generation, it’s trying hard. Nintendo is trying so hard it feels like it’s still on an apology tour for the Wii U era. There are still some annoying decisions, Virtual Console being a subscription instead of allowing us to own games is frustrating and Wind Waker HD still isn’t available on the platform, but the positives far outweigh the negatives.
The Nintendo Switch 2 generation will be the strongest generation in Nintendo history. While the battle with nostalgia will always subdue the actual accomplishments of any generation, the Switch 2 library is already stacked and, if the current cadence continues, we will have dozens of exclusives by the time the handheld is being carted off to the drawer as Switch 3 makes its debut.
