Month after month, the Nintendo Switch continues to add classic Japanese role-playing games through remakes, ports, and its online emulation service. Recently, we took a look at 10 classic JRPGs that – surprisingly – hadn’t made it to Switch yet. But what about RPGs developed west of Nintendo's homeland?
Trying to define a Western role-playing game quickly becomes a difficult, nebulous task. Games from the 1980s – like Ultima and Might and Magic – laid a clear foundation, but WRPGs released from the 2000s onward hardly resemble their ancestors. The genre has developed into one of massive worlds with staggering amounts of player choice and action that developers 40 years ago couldn’t have imagined.
The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim. The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt - Complete Edition. Baldur's Gate and Baldur's Gate II: Enhanced Editions. The Switch has had no shortage of classic 'WRPG's ported to it already, yet – unlike with JRPGs – the gaps in its catalogue are as wide as the open worlds the genre is known for.
So grab your wizard hat and Sword of a Thousand Truths — we’re taking a chronological look at the probability of these 10 classic Western-developed RPGs to one day make it to our favourite handheld hybrid, including a couple which veer into action-RPG territory...
Ultima (1981)
Without Ultima, we don’t think any other RPG on this list would exist. This seminal role-playing game not only paved the way for WRPGs, but also inspired Japanese role-playing games like Dragon Quest. Random battles, stat distribution, a fantastical world to explore — you name it, Ultima did it first.
Probability: 2/10 - Unfortunately, we’re more likely to find a real-world Gem of Immortality than get a port of any of the numerous Ultima games. The original creator, Richard Garriot, moved on from the franchise to become an astronaut, and there’s no recent precedent of Ultima games being ported to Nintendo consoles. Electronic Arts owns the rights now, and we’re pretty sure all its development houses are busy working on Maddens and Battlefields – but don’t quote us on that.
Diablo (1996)
A remake of Diablo II made a lot of sense. The sequel to Blizzard’s original dungeon crawler popularised the action-RPG genre that thrives to this day, yet many consider Diablo II the pinnacle that any subsequent game has yet to surmount. The first Diablo, however, didn’t receive the same genre-defining praise, but there’s no doubting it's an influential game that shockingly hasn’t yet received a remaster after all these years.
Probability: 5/10 - Guessing whether or not Diablo will one day make it to Switch is about as easy as unravelling Belial’s latest web of lies. Vicarious Visions found success resurrecting Diablo II on Switch – that’s true, and Diablo III also received a port that we’d argue makes for the best way to play Blizzard’s controversial follow-up. If some developer or another gets around to remaking the first Diablo, we’d expect it on Switch the same way we expect the Lord of Terror to somehow make another improbable return in Diablo IV.
But that’s a big if without even mentioning the Hell Bovine in the room: Microsoft now owns Activision Blizzard. There’s precedent for Microsoft allowing games it publishes to release on the Switch (see Ori and the Blind Forest, Banjo Kazooie), but until the dust settles on that massive acquisition, who can say how Microsoft will treat Activision Blizzard games?
Fallout (1997)
The Switch has become an unlikely home for many classic computer role-playing games, such as the enhanced editions for Baldur’s Gate and Neverwinter Nights. But where is the original Fallout? The 1997 classic deviated from previous CRPGs by thrusting players out from Vault 13 into a post-apocalyptic America – resplendent with 1950s imagery and nukes – rather than a fantasy world, creating a wholly unique setting that deserves a retool for modern sensibilities.
Probability: 5/10 - The question, much like with Diablo, is whether or not the Switch’s massive install base tempts Microsoft as it now owns Fallout’s current developer, Bethesda. We know Bethesda loves to port its properties to the Switch, and the Switch does have Fallout Shelter available on its eShop. We’re fairly confident in saying that the Switch would make too tempting of a home for a Fallout re-release if it were to happen.
Might and Magic VI: The Mandate of Heaven (1998)
The long-running Might and Magic series arguably inspired the games on this list as much as Ultima. Many consider the sixth entry, The Mandate of Heaven, to have ushered in a golden age of WRPGs with the fully explorable world of Enroth that enthralled players back in the late '90s, slaying the previous grid-based exploration seen in other Western role-playing games like a fearsome dragon.
Probability: 3/10 - Ubisoft owns the rights to Might and Magic and all its subsequent spin-off series at the moment. The company seems content with exiling the franchise into the crowded wastelands of the mobile market. Though much like Bethesda, Ubisoft enjoys porting its games to Nintendo Switch as much as it loves milking its best-selling franchises for every penny. If a Might and Magic remastered collection were to happen, we’d expect the game to pop up on Switch without a doubt – but with how little brand recognition the Might and Magic series wields these days, we won’t hold our breath.
Deus Ex (2000)
The first Deux Ex, developed by Ion Storm and now championed by Eidos Montreal, successfully merged Western role-playing games with first-person shooter elements, setting a precedent for other hybrid RPGs (Mass Effect and BioShock, anyone?). Players solved scenarios in any way they saw fit: through extensive dialogue trees, hacking computers, or with guns if words weren’t their forte.
Probability: 6.75/10 - Only once has a Deus Ex game appeared on a Nintendo console, and that was Deus Ex: Human Revolution - Director’s Cut on Wii U. The latest main entry in the series, Mankind Divided, came out a year prior to the Nintendo Switch. When there’s another Deus Ex game, the Switch might not be able to handle it, but if the original is ever remade or remastered, we wouldn’t need JC Denton to infiltrate Eidos Montreal to uncover whether it’s coming to Switch or not. It most likely would.
With Embracer Group in the process of acquiring the studio and IP from Square Enix, perhaps we'll once again see activity in this series.
The Elder Scrolls III: Morrowind (2002)
Whenever Todd Howard and friends ever stop porting Skyrim to every system imaginable, we very much hope they port the older Elder Scrolls games to Switch. None more so than The Elder Scrolls III: Morrowind, the title that launched both the series and the open-world RPG genre into popularity as if it used a Scroll of Icarian Flight. Morrowind, like many titles on this list, is a little rough around the edges, but perhaps a polished re-release ahead of The Elder Scrolls VI to drum up hype is in order.
Probability: 5/10 - There’s no saying when or if Bethesda has plans to re-release Morrowind or other TES games. But despite Microsoft’s acquisition, we’d expect any remake or remaster to wind up on the Switch with how strong Bethesda and Nintendo’s relationship seems.
Vampire: The Masquerade - Bloodlines (2004)
Often labelled 'Deus Ex with vampires', Vampire: The Masquerade - Bloodlines lurked out of sight like a particularly stealthy vampire when it debuted, eventually gaining a cult-like status. For some time the series has slumbered until recently when Hardsuit Labs and Paradox Interactive revived the franchise with the announcement of Vampire: The Masquerade - Bloodlines 2. To this day Bloodlines has some of the best writing seen in a WRPG, making it a shame that so many missed out on it the first go around. This game begs for a remaster or a port more than any other on this list.
Probability: 7/10 - The Vampire: Masquerade franchise is being brought back to life like an improperly slain vampire. Ahead of Bloodlines 2, Vampire: The Masquerade - Swansong releases next month on multiple platforms including the Nintendo Switch. With two games in the works and perhaps a vampire renaissance on the horizon, a remake of the cult classic that also lands on the Switch seems like an inevitability.
Neverwinter Nights 2 (2006)
For better or for worse, we got the first Neverwinter Nights on the Nintendo Switch in 2019. BioWare’s role-playing classic, along with Baldur’s Gate, laid the foundation for its later mega-hits in Dragon Age and Mass Effect – and its sequel, Neverwinter Nights 2, though Obsidian Entertainment took the reins for the second outing. But as of now, we haven’t yet gotten the follow-up on the Nintendo Switch.
Probability: 7/10 - CRPGs have seen somewhat of a renaissance on the Nintendo Switch, with enhanced editions galore being ported to it. It’s somewhat of a surprise that only the first Neverwinter Nights received the Switch treatment, but we expect before long some developer or other to wrangle the licensing from whatever demon-infested dungeon it languishes in.
Dragon Age: Origins (2009)
It’s been over a decade since Dragon Age: Origins impressed the gamers and critics alike with its complex characters and incredibly engrossing narrative. We’re sorry for pointing that out, and hope you don’t feel as old as we do. But – and stay with us here – a decade denotes the ‘classic’ status, does it not? If a Dragon Age collection game to the Nintendo Switch similar to the Mass Effect: Legendary Edition (and where's that by the way?) were to appear, we’d be first in line to pre-order.
Probability: 2/10 - Sadly, we have no confidence a Dragon Age collection would wind up on Switch after the Mass Effect collection skipped the console. Surely, Dragon Age: Origins would run well enough, but the third game in the series, Inquisition, might struggle on the Switch’s hardware.
Witcher II: Assassin of Kings
If you argued Witcher III: Wild Hunt epitomised the WRPG genre, we’d be hard-pressed to disagree. Few games on this list received as much universal praise as Geralt’s third role-playing adventure, which focused heavily on an involved narrative with an abundance of difficult choices to make with every quest. We’re looking at you, Bloody Baron.
To the surprise of many, Witcher III made it to the Nintendo Switch. And so too did the spinoff card game, Thronebreaker: The Witcher Tales. But what about the first two games CD Projekt Red developed? The first Witcher game wears its age on its sleeve, but Witcher II: Assassin of Kings is a formidable WRPG in its own right.
Probability: 5.5/10 - Unlike many WRPG developers, Microsoft has yet to buy CD Projekt Red (knock on wood). If we one day get a Witcher collection, we’d likely get a version on a Nintendo console.
There are doubtless dozens of Western-made RPGs that could have graced this list with how massive the genre has grown from its humble beginnings. Let us know in the comments which of your favourites we missed, and vote in the poll for which of the above you’d most like to see ported or remastered for the Nintendo Switch.
Comments (66)
I’d love to see Fallout 1/2/New Vegas and Deus Ex on Switch.
there’s no precedent of Ultima games being ported to Nintendo consoles
There were at least three Ultima games on the NES, and one on the SNES.
Hopefully they’ll be full price and have frame rate drops if they come out.
I'd sell my kidneys to have Dragon Age on the Switch!
Deus Ex might come now that Embracer Group are going to take over the franchise. They seem to have a strategy of bringing classic (or at least semi classic) games to Switch (and Deus Ex IS a true classic IMO - even though it's not an easy game).
Would love to play it on a handheld.
Still waiting for that System Shock remake from Nightdive Studios that's suppose to be for all platforms.
Ultima would be awesome... I'd go for a remaster of Ultima Underworld... as long as it's not as disastrous as the recent attempt at a revival.
Strange that they haven't ported Oblivion, Fallout 3 and Vegas, also Dragon Age, as they all have a Console Port and aren't as demanding as Skyrim for Example.
Even Morrowind was on the XBox.
For the Rest, it is even more Work to do, especially for Games that do not run in higher Resolutions.
They need a Treatment like Baldurs Gate.
Diablo 1 has a good Source Port with DevilutionX, play it anywhere you can, Smartphone, Laptop, PC, modded Switch.
You only need the MPQ File you get for Example from Gog.com
i would love the ultima series to be back on nintendo consoles but it will never happen as richard garriot the creator of ultima has asked the current owner e.a to make it happen and has been rebuffed every time..
@CANOEberry ninja'd to the remark, but my quick Wikipedia search actually dag up TWO games on SNES - seems like both VI and VII made it there. A total of five is a bit jarring to overlook indeed.
@CANOEberry There's actually 8 total including spinoffs! They're not all worth playing though. Runes of Virtue on GB is pretty good, but it's more of a puzzle based Zelda clone than a proper part of the series.
The Switch needs more Fallout. I’m a bit surprised Bethesda hasn’t brought 1/2 in the same way they did with Quake & Doom
I’m not sure if this qualifies as an RPG or not but I would like to see a port of Jade Empire, even though that is very unlikely
It's seems like most of them are significantly unlikely then!
Fallout, Might and Magic, Dragon Age & Deus Ex are the ones I want the most. Imagine playing these in handheld
I'd even take a port of the good Wii U game, Deus Ex: Human Revolution, to be honest.
Might and Magic DS was one of my fav DS games of all time though I appreciate it's not really to do with the mainline series. I'd love to play the mainline and the DS game on the Switch (though I still have the DS cartridge).
@dsparil @Lowell As dsparil says, there have been quite a few Ultima ports to Nintendo consoles.
I want to thank you for this article. The Western roots of RPGs are too rarely mentioned these days, and almost never on this site. I would love to see remakes of the M&M series in particular. I'm sure there is a Christian Whitehead-type figure out there who would be interested...
Might and Magic DS was one of my fav DS games of all time though I appreciate it's not really to do with the mainline series.
@LEGEND_MARIOID Interesting. How did it compare in quality and gameplay to the main series, for you?
I'd kill a man for Morrowind and/or Oblivion on Switch.
@CANOEberry The plot was just okay but the battle system gameplay mechanic was an entire game in itself. It involved a highly complex match 3 plus system. There is a good review of the game on this site.
@CANOEberry There were actually two Ultima games on SNES (Ultima VI and Ultima VII). There is also Ultima: Runes of Virtue for the original GB.
That being said, I doubt we will get another Ultima port, for the simple reason that most people nowadays don't seem interested in this series, despite how influential it is.
I want Elemental Gimmick Gear (EGG). Such an amazing game with a beautiful soundtrack that sadly has never made it off the Dreamcast
I'm very surprised that diablo got only 5%... but yes those are all excellent picks
I think the market for some of these dated RPGs is incredibly small. The biggest reason Ultima or Might and Magic will never be ported to Switch has gotta be that no one is going to buy them.
The first two Might and Magics also have enhanced ports for NES and SNES respectively and III has a roughly PC equivalent SNES port. Those would be easy to throw on NSO.
I would like to see Fallout 3 or maybe Fallout 4 on Switch
@LEGEND_MARIOID I forgotten all about Clash of Heroes on the DS, I loved the mechanics in that game. Might have to dig out my DS and have a spin on it again
It's a tough one, because none of these games would sell very well, so either you port them as they are — and get a bunch of genius galaxy brainers pointing out that the graphics and UX in these games are "long in the tooth" or "showing their age" — or you remake them from the ground up, at which point they wouldn't even be the same games anymore because the whole vibe and point of stuff like Fallout and Deus Ex is their specifically 90s feel, warts and all. Either you roll with that or you're better off playing something newer. (I'm in the "rolling with that" camp.)
Thankfully, you can run most of these games on a potato and they're (mostly) widely available on PC, for very cheap.
Would like a fallout 3/New Vegas port/remaster. Very surprised Bethesda hasn’t done anything like that yet after all the money Skyrim special edition no doubt made them. Same goes for a oblivion remaster.
I would like Morrowind, Dragon Age and Mass Effect as well.
❗️I voted for 'Fallout' but would prefer Fo3 and New Vegas but WITH the technical bugs and glitches FIXED!
Morrowind would be terrible on the Switch, because Nintendo doesn't allow mods, and Morrowind has TWENTY YEARS worth of mod content. The other games seem like solid choices, though, especially Fallout!
@ZimmerRemmiz Hahaha, agreed. I have to tell you, this comment made my day.
For many years I worked with a great guy at a software company and he knew when to cut tensions randomly by saying things out of the blue like "I killed a man", or when asked about a certain feature in a meeting and he would say "I would kill a man for that". Had everyone cracking up in seconds. Thank you for that reminder.
I’ve been hoping that MS and Nintendo are still buddy enough to get some Bethesda ports for the Fallout series. Especially FO3 & NV. Would also pick up FO4 if they did that too. The original Fallouts would be fun as well.
Out of all these Morrowind is by far my most wanted but I would love it if all these came at some point, I love older PC RPGs, games like Morrowind came out and basically started my interest in PC gaming and even if these never come, I plan on getting a new PC someday so I can relive some of these classics.
I love the Ultima Exodus and Ultima Quest of the avatar for the NES. Exodus music is so good. It kind of reminds me of Zelda 2 music in the dungeons. I spent hours as a little kid drawing the mapS For these games. I love them and I miss them. I have them on ROMs but I wouldn’t mind if we had them as a collection. I know they’re not gonna be on NSO. I remember mowing many a lawns for Exodus. I even had to mow Miss Crabtrees lawn. She was filthy and had rats 🐀 And she only gave me $10. What a Hagatha she was. Good times.
Would love to see Dragon Age and Fallout in some form finally come to Switch. Elder Scrolls III and IV would be sweet too.
I don't think Morrowind or other Elder Scrolls work that well outside the mod-friendly PC. Morrowind has one of the most unique fantasy worlds and great writing, but it is still a buggy mess without mod support.
As for Vampire, the series seems more like it's in death throes than actually reviving. The paper part is hitting miss after miss and the sequel to Bloodlines seems to have entered development hell. Some smaller World of Darkness titles are coming out (and my FLGS got a shipment of Vampire books just now), but overall the series seems to have died with the 90s and 2000s.
Would love to see Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion on switch! My first open world game and still one of my favourites.
The original Fallout and Fallout II were utterly amazing games, BUT anyone who remembers them well knows that A LOT of the dialog in those games would likely get censored/edited before these would be put on Switch. There is no way those games would have been able to get released as they are in today’s climate.
I am not condoning censorship nor do I agree with it. I am just pointing out what would likely prevent us from seeing this on Switch.
I don't see Microsoft/Bethesda being in a rush to port their older games to Switch, but they've got nothing to loose and only to gain.
It's such a shame that Ultima has faded into obscurity. Not only was Ultima one of the founding computer RPGs, it also spawned one of the early MMORPGs.
It's like if Batman or Captain America had been completely forgotten and nobody knew that they were once among the most famous members of the Justice League and Avengers.
Maybe somebody will reboot the series as it approaches its 50th anniversary, which is not that far off now. I'm sure there's money to be made with a quality game or series and some decent marketing work. EA probably won't do it, though.
Bethesda Studios will gladly port Skyrim to goddamn refrigerators, but god forbid the Switch gets a proper Fallout game. I would love Fallout 3/New Vegas on Switch! What are you waiting for, Todd?!
I just want a new Wizardry game.
None of them will ever come to Switch.
Mass Effect would be my choice.
I would love to see the ORIGINAL Wizardry series (1-5) on the switch. Wizardry was such an influential RPG series. It would also need the company of the Original Zork series and the Original Ultima games.
@Ryu_Niiyama You are my new brother! I am so glad that there is someone other than me that loves Wizardry.
@jojobar I would vote for Diablo, but only if it came with the illegal Hellfire campaign and the legendary Cow levels.
I didn't play Deus Ex until 2014, and even then it was one of the best games I'd ever played.
When I saw Western RPGs I first wondered how there could even be 10 classic rpgs about cowboys.
I'd love to see one of the might and magic games appear on Switch just for the nostalgia factor.
Morrowind is by far the best elder scrolls to me in terms of how the world works.
Wouldn't play any of these again though, too dated in mechanics and looks and I've spent more than enough time with them in the past.
I will absolutely die if Fallout 3, Mass Effect Trilogy, Deus Ex: Human Revolution and Dragon Age II ended up on Switch. Especially Fallout 3. That's my biggest request right there.
@Magician Same here. It's supposedly releasing this year finally so we just gotta wait, lol
@KayFiOS My feelings exactly. Fallout 3 and New Vegas have never had a port or remaster to anything but Skyrim is literally on everything. I have to start up my PS3 to play those games. I just figured that Bethesda doesn't care about Fallout fans apparently, lol. Here's hoping for an announcement this year but I'm not holding my breath, lol
Can't understand for the life of me why Fallout isn't already on the Switch like 3 years ago. 3 or New Vegas would sell well.
here's my list
@JustMonika I think Fallout 76 is pretty telling of what Bethesda thinks of Fallout fans lol
I think Fallout 1 & 2 are more likely than a 5/10. If they had a small team touch up these games and re-release them, uncensored & unchanged like the current Steam versions are, I doubt they'd exclude the Switch - it's not like they're new AAA releases.
@Bearzilla823
I think hellfire is not illegal. Its made by another studio but it was sold officially as far as i know.
@SmaggTheSmug
Let's be fair, Oblivion and Skyrim were buggy messes too. And Daggerfall. Fallout 3 too. New Vegas as well. Fallout 4 needs a lot of patching.
@shaneoh And the less is said about Fallout 76 the better.
@SmaggTheSmug
I've never heard of such a thing. The last fallout game they released was 4
Deus Ex is my favourite video game ever, a port of this on the switch would be phenomenal!
Fallout. And the second episode could be even a good idea.
@Magician Xbox and PlayStation right? And PC.
Switch isn’t getting it.
Seeing all these wishlists for games on Switch makes me wanna see so many titles ported over from all developers and all previous console generations. Right now my biggest wish (outside Nintendo) would be to see Nier Automata. Would also love to get the Metal Gear games ported, especially Metal Gear Rising
@Bearzilla823 I would be a sister since I am female, but yeah the Wizardy series is a classic. I started with the Japanese spinoff on ps3 and then tried 8. Have yet to play all of them though. Don’t have the time.
@Ryu_Niiyama I am deeply sorry I normally do not pay attention to profiles on here because most of the time they are not even filled out. Lesson learned. In the future I will look before.
My Wizardry journey began with 5 on the pc. I have played them all except the odd PS ones (which btw there is 1 or 2 spin-offs on the PS2).
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