After 18 years of waiting, Metroid Prime 4: Beyond manages to replicate that magical sense of discovery from the GameCube original while pushing the series in some incredible new directions. Separating the main biomes with a vast open world sounds ridiculous on paper, but the slick traversal provided by Vi-O-La makes exploration more satisfying than ever.
Combine this with the stunning art direction, ferocious new boss characters, and a surprisingly endearing squad of Federation troopers, and to our mind Beyond is quite possibly the boldest, most well-realised Metroid game to date. The long wait was more than worth it. Welcome back, Samus.
Yakuza Kiwami 2 is a wonderful experience on Switch 2. The improved visuals and streamlined mechanics make for a delightful gameplay experience bolstered by a compelling narrative at its core.
There are so many ridiculous minigames to keep you entertained, and exploring Kamurocho and Sotenbori remains enjoyable five or even fifty hours into the game. It stands alongside Yakuza 0: Director's Cut as one of the finest entries in the series.
Street Fighter 6 on Switch 2 is a cracker, and in portable mode, it may be our preferred way to play this fantastic entry in Capcom's storied franchise. The only fly in the ointment with this port is 30fps fights in World Tour. It's a shame, and it's 100% gonna be a dealbreaker for some.
But if you can overlook that, the rest of what's here is crisp, clean, and as slick as we could have ever hoped. All other modes are fully featured and running at 60fps, and online works a treat, making this an early, flagship port for the console that showed on launch day that — like its predecessor — this little system can punch well above its weight.
In many ways, Octopath Traveler 0 feels like a ‘victory lap’ for the beloved series, remixing various elements that you’re familiar with from the past games while introducing some interesting new ones to spice things up a bit. Importantly, this prequel does not feel like a proper Octopath Traveler 3, but that doesn’t mean that it isn't still an incredibly good time and a much better JRPG than most genre peers.
Even if it's a retread in some ways, though, an absolutely monstrous amount of content, interesting new gameplay elements, gorgeous visuals, and compelling storytelling all come together to make Octopath Traveler 0 a must-buy.
Persona 3 Reload is an extensive and thoughtful remake of the original and unquestionably the best way to experience this modern RPG classic. Switching between daytime and nighttime activities is a blast, and the streamlined gameplay and slick presentation make even the smallest actions feel satisfying.
Minor frustrations remain, chiefly the repetitious nature of Tartarus, while the lack of FES and Portable content prevents Reload from being the definitive version of Persona 3. If this doesn't bother you, though, consider it a must-play on the Switch 2.
Zelda: Breath of the Wild - Nintendo Switch 2 Edition is undoubtedly the best way to play one of the greatest games of all time. The visual and performance enhancements remove any issues that you may have had to endure with the original game. It's practically flawless from that perspective.
Sadly, the Zelda Notes app really brings the whole thing down. Useful features that should have been implemented in-game have been relegated to your smartphone, and using it completely breaks immersion in this incredible world. I'm only thankful that it's not even remotely mandatory.
Leave Zelda Notes to one side, though, and you've got the definitive presentation of a modern classic.
Kirby and the Forgotten Land - Nintendo Switch 2 Edition + Star-Crossed World (say that five times, etc.) gives you the base game at a delicious 60fps with a whole big bunch of new content thrown in for good measure.
If you've had your fill of Forgotten Land on Switch 1, there's nothing here to warrant replaying the entire game again, but the 12 remixed areas that make up the DLC are uniformly delightful, the new transformations are excellent, and there's even new challenges for hardcore Kirby fans to get stuck into.
One of the best games on Switch and one of our favourite 3D platformers in years, polished to a sparkly sheen and packing some meaningful new content? That's a very easy recommendation and a truly excellent addition to the Switch 2's early lineup.
Final Fantasy Tactics: The Ivalice Chronicles cuts content from the War of the Lions PSP version, and it's a shame. However, put this one issue aside and you've got a fantastic — and fantastically thoughtful — revamp otherwise. Meaningful quality-of-life changes meld with delicate gameplay nips and tucks, CPU enemy tune-ups, and a smoother-flowing experience overall to deliver a game that's pretty much impossible to knock.
Fans will be fully absorbed into the story all over again, enjoying the new flow of the narrative and experiencing the whole thing so wonderfully well-acted. Newcomers, who're less likely to be bothered by the missing content, well, you can just get busy lapping up one of the all-time great tactical RPGs looking and playing better than ever.
Arriving to banish the memories of the Switch 1 Cloud Version, Capcom presented a direct sequel with Resident Evil Village that continues the story of protagonist Ethan Winters. This time, he winds up in a rural village overlooked by a vast, elegant castle as he strives to locate his kidnapped daughter, Rose.
Village borrows heavily from RE4, and the results are somewhat mixed. The characters — and by extension, the story — feel pretty throwaway, and even Lady Dimitrescu, who ruled the internet for a good while there, doesn’t make an enormous impact.
This is still a great series entry, though, with excellent gameplay and pacing, and there’s one very specific moment that remains one of the scariest in the series’ history. When compared to RE7’s superb story and the wider franchise lore, however, Village is a bit of a narrative anomaly that hasn't aged as well as its predecessor.
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.
The title says it all for this sedate little catch-'em-all fishing game. Also available on Switch 1, Cast n Chill is easily one of the nicest-looking games on either console, and one of the most effective uses of this retro pixel art style we've yet encountered.
The devs have nailed little details such as the plop and pull of your float, the gentle rumble of your controller as you rake a spinner across a shoal of fish to attract them, and the weight and heft of everything, really. Oh, and you've got a dog with you to pet.
With only two buttons controlling everything you do (and even an idle mode, if that's your thing), there's even a local co-op mode for a friend to join you in the same boat, so you can cast and chill together. Blissful.
Following its release in 2017, and the Switch 1 Cloud Version in 2018 (or 2022 outside Japan), Nintendo fans finally get to experience Capcom’s soft reboot on Switch 2 natively - and it’s excellent.
The visuals remain largely consistent with the game’s initial release on PS4 and Xbox One. You’re not going to get any fancy ray-tracing here, but it’s nevertheless a gorgeous-looking game, whether you’re playing docked or handheld, making this a wonderful way to experience one of the series’ best entries.
In time, we suspect this entry will be looked upon with as much reverence as the 1996 original, and we urge you to add it to your library.
Pokémon Pokopia is the freshest Pokémon experience in a long time, bursting at the seams with charm and content that rewards both curiosity and creativity. It’s an easy game to get swallowed up in, even with a few gameplay and progression issues that need ironing out.
But as a first go at something different for the franchise, it’s a big win. We don’t know how Pokémon has stayed away from this kind of structure for so long, and we’d easily take a dozen more.
Even in its attempts to swing big and do something different, Final Fantasy VII Remake Intergrade respects where it’s come from. The classic's pro-revolutionary heart is still intact, and it’s never afraid to get a little weird and funny. The Switch 2 version makes impressively few compromises to get this gorgeous-looking game running on the system – even at 30fps, this looks and feels fantastic.
The fact that everything from the PS5 release is preserved in such excellent fashion here is remarkable, and it makes us excited (and anxious) for Rebirth.
Hollow Knight: Silksong’s beauty is beguiling, hiding an interior that’s deliberately harsh but endlessly rewarding. Everything feels deliberate, pushing you to learn, improve, and perfect, or simply just explore a little more. And what a world it is to dig into.
Somehow, Team Cherry surpassed our expectations tenfold and delivered a mesmeric blend of balletic combat and movement with persistence, joy, and an incredibly invigorating map at the centre. We’ve never felt better surmounting the challenges put before us.
“Can time not be stopped?” That’s the question Hades II asks you every time you clear a run.
We're not sure about time, but it's clear that developer Supergiant Games is unstoppable; the studio is five-for-five with this huge, triumphant sequel that manages to diverge mechanically and offer more challenges and variety than its predecessor. It helps that it’s nearly faultless on Switch 2 in particular.
Sometimes there’s a bit too much going on, and in shooting for a bigger, more tragic story, it’s lost a bit of heart. But, quite frankly, we don’t want time to stop because if it does, we won’t be able to play Hades II anymore.
A remake of the very first game in the series, Trails in the Sky 1st Chapter is maybe the most gorgeous game Falcom has ever created.
Modernising things while also bringing newcomers up to speed with the origins of Zemuria's current saga, this is a comprehensive audio-visual update of a classic series opener, with great characters (Estelle and Joshua are fantastic leads, but the entire cast gets their chance to shine), a world that you’ll want to explore, and deep combat with a wealth of options.
1st Chapter is on Switch 1 (30fps) and 2 (60fps), and as you'd expect, the updated style runs best on Switch 2, with only the odd stumble in docked performance. A joyously chill turn-based adventure.
Cyberpunk 2077: Ultimate Edition was a remarkable launch-day port for Switch 2. CD Projekt Red's deep, diverse, and tangible world is fully realised with impressive performance for such a low-powered device.
If you've not taken your first steps into Night City already, or you're a long-time player with a portable-play itch that needs scratching, you're in for a serious treat, choom.
Donkey Kong Bananza is an almighty re-introduction to the world of 3D platforming for DK, and arguably the Switch 2's first absolute must-play. The punching and crashing is a passing novelty that, once you get your fill, quickly becomes just another way of exploring the wonderfully varied and beautifully presented layers.
Whether it's smashing through the scenery with a Bananza Transformation or carefully planning a route to a hidden Banandium Gem, you'll have trouble finding more originality and, crucially, more enjoyment from a platformer in recent years. As the DK Rap so wisely said, "Donkey Kong is here." Now let's just hope he stays.
Resident Evil Requiem sets a new benchmark for a series that has been pretty consistently great for the last decade or so.
By combining classic survival horror with the more action-focused gameplay of RE4, the result is an experience paced to perfection. Add in a lore-heavy narrative and copious easter eggs, and you've got what might be the ultimate expression of Resident Evil.
There are a few minor visual hiccups along with some inconsistency in frame rate during busier moments, but the fact that we've got a brand-new flagship RE game running well on Switch 2 should be celebrated. The lack of a Mercenaries Mode feels like a missed opportunity, but we've got our fingers crossed that it eventually shows up. An excellent video game.
And there you are, the top 50 best games on Switch 2. Well done for making it to the end.
Before we go, let's quickly answer some frequently asked questions that Nintendo Life readers have about the best Switch 2 games.
The Switch 2 release date was the same worldwide, as with its predecessor: Switch 2 launched on 5th June 2025.
As of the end of December 2025, the best-selling Nintendo game on Switch 2 is Mario Kart World (14.03 million sales), followed by Donkey Kong Bananza (4.25 million), and Pokémon Legends: Z-A (3.89).
