65 Switch 1 & 2 Games To Check Out In Nintendo's Holiday eShop Sale (Europe)

The Stanley Parable: Ultra Deluxe (Switch eShop)

£7.99 (-60%)

A thoroughly enjoyable expansion of an already classic game treated with love, care, and most importantly a meta awareness that pays tribute to everything that made the original so beloved. The Stanley Parable: Ultra Deluxe may leave a small few questioning more than they’d like, but we wouldn’t want it any other way.

The Walking Dead: The Complete First Season (Switch eShop)

£2.59 (-80%)

Whether you played this back in 2012 or are completely new to the series, Telltale's The Walking Dead: Season One is a masterpiece of video game storytelling.

It features some of the best voice-over performances you’ll find on any gaming platform and sets the stage for a grand, multi-season odyssey of tragic proportions. However, this is also a satisfying and poignant collection even if you never play the subsequent episodes.

Even if you lost patience with Rick Grimes and TV series adaptation of the comic books, this remains an incredible interactive adaptation of Robert Kirkman's world of walkers.

The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt - Complete Edition (Switch)

£12.49 (-75%)

The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt remains a masterpiece, and being able to take such a grand and engrossing adventure on the go is something well worth celebrating.

The Switch's Complete Edition is a truly impressive achievement, and although performance isn't perfect, it's still an incredible and impactful role-playing experience.

CD Projekt Red set the bar for modern RPGs back in 2015, and this port is a startling reminder that it has arguably yet to be bettered. One of the most impressive ports on the system.

There Is No Game: Wrong Dimension (Switch eShop)

£8.18 (-30%)

When it comes down to it, There Is No Game: Wrong Dimension is a bit of a misnomer. There is certainly a game to be found here, and it’s a ruddy good one.

If you’re not a fan of point-and-click style adventure games, then you may want to look elsewhere, but with an experience packed with ingenious puzzles and excellent self-aware jokes, this is one of the strongest examples of the genre in recent years. It’s right up there with the best; don’t miss out.

Thronebreaker: The Witcher Tales (Switch eShop)

£4.24 (-75%)

While utilising the ruleset of a more traditional CCG system might put off some players, the on-brand approach to turn-based combat in Thronebreaker: The Witcher Tales is still a positive addition to the world. Because with such an involved and intricately designed story — and such an interesting world to explore beyond the confines of Geralt — Thronebreaker offers the opportunity to lose yourself in the Continent like never before.

Thumper (Switch eShop)

£3.19 (-80%) - NEW

Thumper is a fantastic video game, an extravagant rhythm experience that's also a brutal assault on the senses. It's extremely difficult — painfully so at times — yet we feel the need to persevere, retrying tough stages over and over again. Even when that's done, the drive for better ranks remains simply because the game compels us to play on.

The only real flaw of Thumper is that it offers so little respite and no 'easy' mode. Some may scoff at that, saying it's a game designed to be tough, but the downside is that without that optional concession, the game will be inaccessible and impenetrable for some. That's a pity, as for those up for the challenge, it's a wonderful, albeit gruelling gaming experience.

Tony Hawk's Pro Skater 1 + 2 (Switch)

£15.99 (-60%) - NEW

Tony Hawk's Pro Skater 1 + 2 on Nintendo Switch is a rock-solid port of a pair of genuinely fantastic remakes.

These really are two of the very best arcade sports titles of all time, revamped, reworked and re-imagined for modern audiences with all the graphical bells and whistles, collectibles and game modes we've come to expect in this day and age.

With flawless performance in both docked and handheld modes and visuals that still look the part after a few necessary concessions here and there, this is one collection we highly recommend you kickflip right into.

Two Point Campus (Switch)

£6.24 (-75%) - NEW

Two Point Campus is a masterclass management sim game bursting with creative new ideas and a wholly original approach to success. Its wholesome ‘invest in students and they’ll invest in you’ strategy is a beautiful way to put a positive spin on an otherwise NPC-exploitative genre. Dampened only by some technical issues, it still manages to be a standout amongst its peers and shine brightly at the top of the class.

Two Point Hospital (Switch)

£8.74 (-75%) - NEW

The highest praise we can give Two Point Hospital is that it feels impossible not to have fun with it. It’s zanier than an episode of Scrubs and shot through with some of the most satisfying sim gameplay of any title this generation. It may be heavily inspired by games that came before, but in truth, it feels like a natural evolution of Bullfrog’s title, surpassing it in so many ways and is an endlessly enjoyable addition to the Switch’s third-party library. It's also arguably the best version of the game so far, given its visual similarity to other versions, and being able to carry the experience around with you makes it even more appealing and addictive.

Unpacking (Switch eShop)

£7.19 (-60%) - NEW

Unpacking manages to do several things very well, all at the same time. It’s a touching story told through interaction, it provides the creative play space of a great dollhouse game, and it deftly applies established game design ideas from completely different genres.

Its only real shortcoming is the repetition that is a necessary byproduct of landing its message. Effort has gone into making the controls satisfying on Switch, and the visual and sound design are delightful throughout, making Unpacking, like any sane person’s cutlery, absolutely top-drawer.

Vampire Survivors (Switch eShop)

£2.99 (-25%)

Vampire Survivors skyrocketed in popularity in 2022 for good reason. It's one of the best roguelites in recent memory thanks to its gripping gameplay loop and metagame that hijacks your mind.

The Switch port only adds more to love with local co-op and updated content. It's so easy to slip into a blissful sense of flow in Vampire Survivors' Castlevania-inspired, comically named levels as its ripping soundtrack and satisfying sound design propel you into the horde that you'll surely lose track of time playing it.

It's a good thing that rounds don't usually last more than half an hour. With the addition of free Adventures and a host of DLC, including the excellent Ode to Castlevania, this undead master is teeming with life.

Wargroove (Switch eShop)

£6.39 (-60%)

As far as strategy games are concerned on the Switch, Wargroove is one of the best titles you can find on the eShop. Extremely deep and diverse strategy gameplay, ridiculous amounts of replayability, and charming presentation all combine to make this one an easy recommendation to anybody looking for a deep and cerebral experience for their Switch. Advance Wars did finally return, but Chucklefish's Wargroove and its sequel stand as worthy successors to that franchise.

Wargroove 2 (Switch eShop)

£10.05 (40%)

It isn’t often that war is a cosy affair, but Wargroove 2 manages to pull it off. We loved the game’s colourful, vibrant art and playful writing, and there is enough depth and variety in the main campaign to satisfy most tactics fans while the Conquest mode will offer an even greater challenge for those seeking it.

It doesn’t change much from the previous game; it just tightens up some of the existing mechanics and adds a couple of extra wrinkles to an already great formula. It's a brilliant sequel, and yet another worthy successor to Advance Wars.

We Love Katamari REROLL + Royal Reverie (Switch)

£6.24 (-75%) - NEW

In rounding off Katamari Damacy’s rougher edges and upping the ante with more diverse mechanics and challenges, even goofier writing, and a terrific soundtrack, We Love Katamari cemented itself as a high watermark for video game sequels in 2005. Even without the remaster treatment, the game’s maintained its lustre remarkably well but Reroll + Royal Reverie is (an admittedly thin layer of) icing on an already decadent cake. With a number of solid quality-of-life updates and sharper, brighter visuals, this is undeniably the best way to experience the 2005 classic.

Yakuza 0: Director's Cut (Switch 2)

£31.49 (-30%) - NEW

Yakuza 0 is the best of the traditional-styled Yakuza games, with the most complex story and interesting characters of the lot. It's also the ideal place for newcomers to get started with this weird and wonderful series.

The new multiplayer mode in this remastered Director's Cut is a little throwaway, for sure, and the fights do get repetitive (turn-based Yakuza FTW), but otherwise, this is a phenomenal 4K/60 port of an epic adventure that's now probably our favourite way to get down on the mean streets of 1980s Tokyo and Osaka.