Skip to main content
  1. Home
  2. Gaming
  3. Features

What games will Nintendo Switch 2 launch with? We have some ideas

By

We’re officially on “new console watch.” Reports from credible publications like Eurogamer say that Nintendo secretly showed developers its next system behind closed doors at this year’s Gamescom. While it’s only a rumor, it’s a realistic one. We’re six years into the Nintendo Switch’s lifespan and even the longest-running consoles turn over at eight. If Nintendo’s next system is one or two years away, it’s time to start lining up support from third-party developers.

We’ve speculated on features we’d want in a new system before, but the reality of a new platform has me asking another question: What games would you launch with something like this? The Nintendo Switch’s launch day was crucial to its long-term success thanks to a bonafide classic in The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild. While the rest of its launch lineup wasn’t as impressive, Nintendo capitalized fairly quickly with titles like Mario Kart 8 Deluxe and Splatoon 2. If Nintendo’s going to push Switch owners over to a new system, it’ll have to roll out the big guns.

Recommended Videos

While Nintendo’s next console may realistically only launch with one or two major exclusives, that hasn’t stopped me from putting together my dream “day one” list. From some very likely Nintendo sequels to third-party ports that could showcase a new system’s power, I’d be happy to see any of these games usher in a new era of Nintendo hardware.

Related

Super Mario Odyssey 2

Mario twirls his cap in front of New Donk City in Super Mario Odyssey.
Nintendo

In just a few weeks, we’re getting the next 2D Mario game in the form of Super Mario Wonder. Based on what we’ve played so far, it’s a delightful evolution of Nintendo’s best formula. While I’m sure that’ll entertain me, it’s the next 3D Mario game that I’m really looking forward to. Super Mario Odyssey was an important game for the Nintendo Switch in 2017, proving that Nintendo was committed to bringing its A-game to the system beyond an all-time great Zelda game. It has a chance to make that statement again on its next system by leading with the plumber’s next adventure.

The Super Mario Odyssey formula was a winning one and I’d be happy to see it repeated for a proper sequel. But what’s fun about 3D Mario games is that Nintendo always finds a way to take the series in an unexpected new direction. It’s a philosophy that’s given us classics like Super Mario Galaxy and left-field swings like Super Mario Sunshine, a personal favorite. Hopefully, Nintendo keeps that formula up and finds a new approach to Mario that takes advantage of its next system’s technical upgrade.

Mario Kart 9

Mario and friends zip through a race course in Mario Kart 8.
Nintendo

At this point, Mario Kart 9 seems like the most realistic possible option for a Switch 2 launch game. Mario Kart 8 Deluxe is the best-selling Switch game by a mile and it wasn’t even a new game. The Wii U game’s life truly began on Switch, as Nintendo turned a simple port into a six-year platform that it could keep investing in. Long-tailed DLC support found Nintendo coming as close as we’ve ever seen to creating a long-tailed live-service game.

While that’s impressive, the trick isn’t likely to work again on another platform. It’s time for an upgrade. If positioned as a launch game, Mario Kart 9 has the potential to be another sales behemoth that anchors the new system’s entire lifespan. With proper DLC support, it could easily become the game every Switch 2 owner needs to have in their library. Even if it’s not a day-one game, I’d be shocked if it didn’t hit the system within six months of release.

Metroid Prime 4

Samus looking up at the menacing Meta Ridley in Metroid Prime Remastered.
Nintendo

Very early in the Switch’s lifespan, Nintendo was perhaps a little too eager to tease what games would hit the platform. Titles like Bayonetta 3 wouldn’t actually hit the platform until five years later. The worst offender, though, was Metroid Prime 4. Originally unveiled with a simple logo reveal, the project ran into trouble when Nintendo decided to restart development on it under Retro Studios. Video games take a long time to develop, so it was a costly setback which explains why we haven’t seen anything about it since.

At this point, Metroid Prime 4 makes more sense as a cross-gen title that’s playable on both Switch and its successor, much like The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild. The series has earned some new fans in the Switch’s lifetime thanks to the excellent Metroid Dread and a fantastic Metroid Prime remaster, so there’s a lot of momentum to capitalize on. A surprise launch announcement would feel like a cathartic payoff for patient fans and instill confidence in players that Switch 2 won’t just focus on Mario and Zelda.

Astral Chain 2

A cop peers out a a city in Astral Chain.
PlatinumGames

Any console launch needs a few third-party standouts to help sweeten the pot. It’ll be crucial that Nintendo leans on its strongest partners to show that external developers are ready to develop for the console. The best ally it could have in its corner come next console launch is Bayonetta 3 developer PlatinumGames — and it just so happens that the company might have a project in the works that could be a perfect fit.

Last year, rumors indicated that the studio might be working on a sequel to its 2019 Switch title Astral Chain. While the leak should be taken with a grain of salt, it’s a believable rumor. The action game was beloved by fans and critics alike, so it seems likely that PlatinumGames would want to capitalize with a sequel. If it can deliver that on day one, it’ll be a perfect option for Nintendo’s more hardcore audience who are hungry for a fast-paced action game.

Baldur’s Gate 3

A team of warriors fighting a big eyeball snake.
Larian Studios

When the Switch was announced, Nintendo nestled a big third-party announcement into the show: Yes, Skyrim was coming to the system. It was a bit of a meme moment, but an important one. It showed that the Switch was a more technically capable console that could handle a massive Bethesda game. Granted, The Elder Scrolls game was six years old at that point, so it wasn’t the most impressive feat in hindsight. But Nintendo could repeat that magic moment with another landmark RPG: Baldur’s Gate 3.

Larian’s enormous CRPG is making waves right now and is on its way to being considered one of the all-time greats of its genre. Even if a Nintendo version comes out one year after the PC game’s launch, it’ll still be the kind of high-profile third-party game that gets players excited. Not only that, but it would be the perfect game to flex how much more powerful Nintendo’s new system is. It’s not a pipe dream either: Larian’s Divinity: Original Sin 2 is available on Switch, so the developer has a history of getting its big titles working on Nintendo’s limited hardware. If it can pull that off, the presumably portable Switch 2 could become the definitive way to experience it.

GameCube games on Switch Online

The colorful cast of Paper Mario: The Thousand Year Door stands on grass.
Nintendo

I’ll cheat a little bit here because this entry includes a whole bunch of games. The Switch has become a haven for retro titles thanks to Switch Online. There, subscribers can play a batch of games from the NES, SNES, Game Boy, Game Boy Advance, Sega Genesis, and even Nintendo 64. That’s all exciting, but there’s one key console that’s missing: GameCube.

The GameCube was home to some of Nintendo’s most important games, from Super Smash Bros. Melee to Animal Crossing. A select few of those titles came to Switch in the form of ports and remasters, but many of them are still lost in space. If Nintendo really wanted to add an extra value proposition to both its new console and its online plan, bringing along a batch of GameCube classics would be an excellent move. I know I’d re-up my subscription if it meant having an easy way to play F-Zero GX or bring Mario Kart: Double Dash online.

Editors' Recommendations

Topics
Giovanni Colantonio
Giovanni Colantonio
Section Editor, Gaming
Giovanni is a writer and video producer focusing on happenings in the video game industry. He has contributed stories to…
Nintendo Switch’s weirdest launch game is getting a surprise sequel
Key art for Everybody 1-2-Switch!

Nintendo has quietly announced Everybody 1-2-Switch!, a sequel to one of the oddest launch titles for Nintendo Switch.
1-2-Switch! was a Nintendo Switch launch title that served as a tech demo of sorts for the Joy-Con controllers, with players completing minigames based on direction from actors in live-action clips. It's a very quirky and critically divisive Nintendo Switch game, so it's a bit surprising to see a follow-up. According to the eShop listing for Everybody 1-2-Switch!, this game lets players use their Joy-Cons or smartphones to complete a variety of team-based minigames. And that's about all we've seen or know about this $30 game ahead of its June 30 launch alongside some new pastel Joy-Cons.

Everybody 1-2-Switch!'s announcement was quite unorthodox for Nintendo. It simply tweeted about the game's existence and opened up preorders on the eShop. This all happened with no reveal trailer less than a month before the game's launch. It's unknown why Nintendo's taking this approach instead of including the game in a Nintendo Direct or other major showcase, but a 2022 report from Fanbyte may reveal the answer. According to that report, Everybody 1-2-Switch! tested horribly, and Nintendo worried that the game could "damage the company’s reputation as a great software developer." 
Almost a year after that report, it seems that the game has improved enough to release, or maybe Nintendo is just willing to take the hit after the impressive launch and critical reception of The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom. Either way, this is a weird sequel to a weird Nintendo Switch launch game that's being mutedly marketed so it doesn't elicit much hype. We'll just have to wait and play it for ourselves if we want to know whether Everybody 1-2-Switch! is an enjoyable game or not.
Everybody 1-2-Switch! will be released physically and digitally for Nintendo Switch on June 30.

Read more
Don’t expect Zelda’s $70 price to become the new Switch standard, says Nintendo
Link looks at his hand in The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom.

The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom will be Nintendo's first Switch game to be priced at $70. News that Tears of the Kingdom, a sequel to one of the bestselling and most critically acclaimed titles on the system, will have an increased price compared to its predecessor came as a surprise over three-and-a-half years after its announcement. It also raised questions about what the future of pricing for Nintendo games will be, especially as Sony, Microsoft, and third-party publishers all upped the cost of their new games in recent years. 
While Nintendo will release Tears of Kingdom at $70, a spokesperson for the company tells Digital Trends that this will not always be the case for its first-party games going forward. 
"No," the spokesperson said when Digital Trends asked if this is a new standard. "We determine the suggested retail price for any Nintendo product on a case-by-case basis." 
The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom – Official Trailer #2
To get more insight into the price shift, I spoke to Omdia Principal Analyst George Jijiashvili, who explains what has caused the price of games to go up in recent years and how Tears of the Kingdom demonstrates that Nintendo will "remain flexible about first-party title pricing." Ultimately, Nintendo fans are finally starting to feel the impact of inflation that's been sweeping across the game industry, even if it's only "on a case-by-case basis" for now.
The price is right
Nintendo claims that not every one of its significant first-party game will be $70, and we can actually already see that in action. Preorders just went live for Pikmin 4, which launches on July 21, after Tears of the Kingdom, and it only costs $60. Still, Zelda's price tag indicates that going forward, Nintendo will at least consider raising the price of its most anticipated games to $70. But why start with Tears of the Kingdom?  
When asked why it chose Tears of the Kingdom as its first $70 Nintendo Switch game, a Nintendo spokesperson simply reiterated that the company will "determine the suggested retail price for any Nintendo product on a case-by-case basis." Still, it's a surprising choice for Nintendo to make that pricing change to just one exclusive game almost six years into the Switch's life span. Jijiashvili thinks the choice to do this with Tears of the Kingdom was a pretty apparent one for Nintendo, although it won't apply to everything going forward.
"If you are going to make a game $70, it's going to be the follow-up to one of your most critically acclaimed and bestselling games ever," Jijiashvili tells Digital Trends. "I don’t think that this means that $70 will become the standard price for all major Nintendo releases. It's worth noting that Metroid Prime Remastered is priced at $40. It's clear that Nintendo will remain flexible about first-party title pricing."

It makes basic financial sense for Nintendo to ask for a little bit more for a game it knows will be one of the biggest releases of 2023. But what factors in the game industry and world's economy at large caused Nintendo to make this decision? 
Priced Out
For more than a decade, people got comfortable with AAA video games being priced at $60. Of course, there were occasional exceptions to this rule, but it was seen as an industry standard until the dawn of the PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X. Publisher 2K was one of the first to announce a price increase, and companies like EA, Sony, and Microsoft have all followed suit. Jijiashvili chalks this up to inflation-related pressure on game publishers.
"The games industry has already been experiencing a lot of inflationary pressure," he explains. "AAA games are much more expensive to make now than they used to be, but prices have actually been declining in inflation-adjusted terms -- if prices had risen with inflation since 1990, they would now be over $90. On top of that, we’ve had a big burst of general inflation, meaning that publishers are looking at big increases in everything from salaries to tools. It’s going to be really hard for most publishers to avoid passing on all those extra costs at some point."
Jijiashvili provided us with a graphic created by Omdia that "shows what the typical price points for each generation would look like if you adjusted for inflation." As you can see, the inflation-adjusted prices are only exponentially growing, and the big game pricing shifts the graph highlights were all technically not even enough to keep up with inflation when they happened. 

Read more
Metroid Prime Remastered just surprise launched on Nintendo Switch
Samus Aran stands tall in Metroid Prime Remastered.

A remastered edition of Metroid Prime was just surprise announced via February's Nintendo Direct. Even more shocking is the news that Metroid Prime Remastered is available to download via the Switch eShop today.

Nintendo Direct 2.8.2023 - Nintendo Switch

Read more