Feature: Nintendo Life's Switch Game Of The Year 2020

That's a pretty fair list. Most of those I got myself and enjoyed.

I've only played a few games on this list, but of those I've played ACNH is the clear winner. Everything else seems like it's in the right order. Plus, this list reminds me I still need to play Origami King.

Only game missing that comes to mind is Crosscode, besides that a nice list!

The list is good, but I'd exclude Super Mario Bros. 35. from the list and put AoC a little bit higher on the list. I gotta check if AC:NH has won any gaming awards.

Fair and good list. But second place? Come on Nintendolife
there are much better games.

I thought you guys would have put 10/10 Horace at number one

Glad to see Super Mario 3D All Stars make the list. Yes, they could have added extra features. Yes, Super Mario Galaxy 2 is a weird omission. Yes, the games are an absolute pleasure to play after all these years. The best-value game I've bought this year. Looking forward to playing Animal Crossing and Paper Mario over the Christmas break.

A Short Hike could have got a little higher, but great list.

@sandman89 Horace wipes its arse with so many games on this list it's not even funny - unlike Horace itself, which is hilarious.

…This list feels empty to me.

3d all stars should swap places hwaoc, that or not even be there at all. Its just some old mario games emulated.

3d all stars should have been excluded. They're all ports of fantastic games. So it deserves to be the number 1 because all 3 games are better than Animal Crossing imo. On the other hand, it's lazy porting so it doesn't deserve to be in the top 20. Excluding this game would make the most sense I feel.

Looking forward to just trying Paper Mario for myself over the holiday break. Great to see SoR4 do well here, it’s the 2020 game I most enjoyed this year.

Paper Mario really got a dumpy albeit predictable reception that dampened the fun. Its really a great game, and one of my favorites this year. The criticisms are valid, but not to the extent that the louder critics would have you believe.

My top 5 are

Doom 64
Hades
Streets of Rage 4
Huntdown
A Short Hike

With honourable mentions to Duke Nukem 3D and Horace.

The list is pretty fair but Huntdown really should have made the top 10, brilliant game.

Some good games on the list but the impact from Animal crossing New Horizons can't be denied, game of the year no doubt.

Missing XC:DE and Clubhouse Games.

Animal crossing, it was to be expected. Not my cup of tea, but it will also be the readers choice.

Super Mario 3D All Stars above Hades is an absolute travesty. Hades is a new game and a fantastic one at that. SM3DAS is a collection of remasters that barely stretch the meaning of the word. New games should always get precedence on the basis that they’re new. No points for originality on a Nintendo website? Ironic.

Got to be honest. This is a pretty light year for the switch in my opinion. Understandable though, given all circumstances.

Jeje, animal crossing sales records etc.

Now give me some more hardcore gaming games . F-Zero, Metroid, Zelda, Bayonetta, maybe an exclusive horror game somewhere? 2021 let’s go!

My Switch GOTY candidates for 2020 would be these:

1. Shaolin vs. Wutang
2. Samurai Shodown 7
3. Immortals Fenyx Rising
4. Trials of Mana
5. Doom Eternal
6. Xenoblade Chronicles: Definitive Edition
7. Crysis Remastered
8. Paper Mario: The Origami King
9. Hades
10. Need For Speed: Hot Pursuit Remastered / Burnout Paradise Remastered

No Xenoblade or Bioshock in the top 10 has me a little sad.

My 2020 list...
1) Animal Crossing: New Horizons (Switch)
2) Puyo Puyo Tetris 2 (Switch)
3) Mega Man Zero/ZX Legacy Collection (Switch)
4) Tony Hawk's Pro Skater 1 + 2 (XB1)
5) Pop'n TwinBee (Switch - NSO - Super Nintendo Entertainment System)
6) Super Mario Bros 35 (Switch)
7) Clubhouse Games: 51 Worldwide Classics (Switch)
8) Bloodstained: Curse of the Moon 2 (Switch)
9) Kirby Fighters 2 (Switch)
10) Jump Rope Challenge (Switch)

-Honorable Mentions-
Good Job! (Switch)
Pokemon Cafe Mix (Switch)

New Horizons, in my opinion, definitely deserved the 2020 GOTY honor. I've long waited for an Animal Crossing game that breaks a lot of mold while being given the option to play on either TV or on the go, and New Horizons (among other things) gave me that.

1. Animal Crossing
2. Xenoblade Chronicles Definitive Edition
3. Mario 3D All-Stars
4. Mario 35
5. Paper Mario

And that's it, I played 5 new games this year.

No Bioshock? Booo!

Hades is my pick for GOTY, and not just on Switch. Nothing else even came close.

Objectively, the GOTY is Animal Crossing. I may have limited interest in it, but it offered such right things at the right time that it became a goddamn social phenomenon in its own right.

Personally? It's Portland, baby! Switch has always been my gateway to more games I'd be struggling to access otherwise, but 2020 was particularly insane in that regard. Even Rune Factory 4 and Xenoblade Chronicles were most welcome (and both ended up actually preordered) despite me having them on 3DS - the new versions scored me the Japanese voiceovers, among other things. But holy Moses... Tokyo Mirage Sessions? Two Langrissers and the original Final Fantasy Crystal Chronicles??? All the Bioshocks and most of the Borderlands?! Burnout Paradise and Need for Speed Hot Pursuit?!! Felt like its own Christmas for every quarter of the year. Even the early SaGa games just got released.

I'm don't participate in the NL picks which somehow rely on their general 5 star system (the kind of silliness I only ever humour on Backloggery, and idly at that), but I'd have trouble picking one anyway. For a time that took its toll on everyone including the VGI, this still managed to be one heck of a year to own a Switch. And the fourth year of being the all-time best console to date in my eyes.

Played or playing all of those. All great games. Personally I would but Xenoblade Chronicles DE first.

This list is missing my favorite game of 2020: Spiritfarer. Otherwise, happy to see Paper Mario on here, as it really is a great game.

Decent list overall, though the lack of Xenoblade Chronicles is disappointing.

With all the praise Hades continues to receive, I'm considering getting it. Thing is, I'm not a fan of roguelikes and am worried it'll be a wasted purchase.

This list is how you know it was a weak year for Nintendo

Paper Mario OK, Doom Eternal and Ori 2 for me. Amazing games.

Agreed with the #1 spot. It's by far my favorite game of 2020.

Good ranking. Street of Rage 4 is just amazing.

There are some good games on that list but I would have rather seen Xenoblade Chronicles on the list over the Mario trio pack.

Overall, that list shows me that 2020 was not a great year for Switch games. Luckily, we had enough show stoppers that it felt like we did have more than we actually got. Let's hope that 2021 is more like 2017 and 2019. I guess odd years reign supreme?

My personal top 5
1. SwSh Expansion Pass
2. Good Job!
3. One Step From Eden
4. Paper Mario: Origami King
5. Mad Rat Dead

I'm so glad to have finally discovered the sheer joy and merriment that is Animal Crossing.

I’ve not played Hades or A Short Hike. But the other 8 were great games 🙌🏻

Animal Crossing and Hades top my list for the Switch. Paper Mario’s up there too. Mario 3D all-stars is my biggest disappointment, but to each their own:)

I played the same games as last year......

Streets of Rage 4 was great.

Otherwise, not my favorite year, but there were some solid Switch games. A few not mentioned here that I enjoyed include Clubhouse 51, Trials of Mana, and the fantastic Bug Fables.

Harvest Moon??? Where are you?

Bugsnax robbed once again.

Decent list NL

Wow. I can't believe I didn't think of 3D All-Stars for game of the year. I've been saving it for when I see my nieces next. We'll play Mario Galaxy.

“ Say what you like about the barebones presentation of Super Mario 3D All-Stars...”

OK, I will. It didn’t deserve to be on this list at all, let alone 2nd place. That game would get first place on my list of biggest gaming disappointments of 2020, beating even cyberpunk (a close second).

My favourite game of the year was Pikmin 4. Same as last year and the year before that. How Weird!

And for the record Super Mario 64 and Galaxy are two of the very best and important games of all times so it’s not fair including them in this list.

@JohnnyC I've had some serious nerd ragers mad at me for claiming Super Mario 3D All-Stars is a great value, but for my money.. it's one of the best things I've played in a long time. I have 55 hours in it so far and I haven't even cracked open Galaxy yet, which I'm insanely excited for. I love 3D platformers and no one does it quite like Mario. I understand some people have their reasons for being disappointed, but for my money.. I got two games I love (hadn't really played Sunshine, though it's growing on me), many hours of fun and visually they all look better than I've ever seen them. Sunshine is surprisingly nice looking in HD. And Galaxy almost looks current gen Nintendo. I'd probably have paid $40+ just for Galaxy.

Xenoblade Chronicles: Definitive Edition should be on this list, especially if Super Mario 3D All-Stars is being put as the 2nd best game of 2020.

@beazlen1 How is it that being two of the most important and best games of all time should exclude them from the list...?

@I-U I definitely think it's a travesty that apparently Nintendo Life would rather play Two Point Hospital than Xenoblade Definitive Edition.

@TenEighty Harvest Moon is garbage trash. And did it even put out a game this year...?

@jump bio shock isn’t a 2020 game, it’s just a port

Pretty princess party

Most Disappointing Switch Game candidates of 2020 would be these:

1. Final Fantasy Crystal Chronicles HD Remastered
2. Jump Force: Definitive Edition
3. Samurai Shodown: NeoGeo Collection
4. Super Mario 3D All-Stars
5. Fire Emblem: Shadow Dragon and the Blade of Light
6. Star Wars Episode 1: Racer
7. Mortal Kombat 11 Ultimate
8. The Outer Worlds
9. Puyo Puyo Tetris 2
10. Super Meat Boy Forever

Note: Despite these are disappointing games for me doesn't necessarily mean that they are bad games.

DOOM ETERNAL is the Game of the Year for me

Switch Games that kinda surprises me of 2020 are these:

1. CONTROL
2. Cyberpunk 2077 (through Android and Stadia)
3. Jump Rope Challenge
4. No More Heroes 1 & 2
5. Final Fantasy IX (physical release)
6. Infini
7. Ys Origins
8. Mario Kart Live: Home Circuit
9. Oddworld: Abe's Oddysee - New 'n' Tasty
10. Nickelodeon Kart Racers 2: Grand Prix

These are games that I didn't expect to see on Switch, was surprise that it work on Switch, got release for Switch unexpectedly, was a weird game but enjoyable on Switch, or was at first release thought to be a mediocre Switch title but actually end up being a very good enjoyable game for me.

Mario 3D Collection is a little high on this list and I'd probably not have Mario 35 on it, but otherwise not bad.

@JokerCK Actually, there aren’t many better games. Galaxy alone is better than any other game released this year. The problem is the ports were kind of lazy.

I would've switched (no pun intended) hades and SM3DAS but overall good list

Not a bad list.

Hades is obviously a modern masterpiece. It stands up to the hype — which, considering how deafening it is, is actually quite an achievement.

I have to admit the Mario collection, and especially Mario 64, was one the best gaming experiences of the year for me. But it does feel a little odd as a celebration of 2020 gaming.

@Deltath

I agree with your point, despite what I wrote above. I hadn't played any of these Mario games. Not really, anyway. And being able to comfortably go through all of them was more than delightful. They're amazing — even if I still don't entirely gel with Sunshine.

@Tyranexx

That depends on what it is you don't like about rogue-likes.

Because while Hades does have the repetition, it subverts most of the other staples of the genre, offering a deep story, a continuous sense of progression, a great deal of immersion, a powerful sense of purpose (through both narrative and gameplay goals, some of which you set for yourself), a colorful cast of characters, etc. Some rogue-likes have kind of moved in this direction, especially with their progression systems. But this is on another level.

That said, it's still a rogue-like. You'll still be going through the same four biomes over and over again. It's still brutally difficult, at first. (It gets much easier later on. And there's an even easier God Mode, too.) The story goes a long way towards mitigating the repetition, though, by including every single run as part of an ongoing narrative, so that losing actually moves the plot along.

@Deku-Scrub Your chat icon is fairly intense.

Not a bad list, I would say Animal Crossing was my #1 Switch game of 2020 as well. Simply because it's the one I've sunk the most hours into. Honestly, I don't think I've played enough games that were released this year (taking a look, I've only bought six games that were released this year), but from what I've played, I would rank them as...

1. Animal Crossing: New Horizons.
2. Super Mario 3D All-Stars
3. Hyrule Warriors: Age of Calamity
4. Paper Mario: The Origami King
5. Pikmin 3 Deluxe
6. Pokémon Mystery Dungeon: Rescue Team DX

To be perfectly honest, I enjoyed my experience with every game... obviously, some more than others on that list, but they all helped me get through this crazy year that is 2020.

Ori, Hades, A Short Hike and Streets Of Rage 4 are infinitely better than anything Nintendo has put out this year.

@Retro_Player_77 is there a way to use stadia on Switch? Or did you use your phone? Thx and Merry Christmas everyone!

@Retro_Player_77 I only have one game on your list of disappointments, and the Playstation version at that. But I agree, Samurai Showdown was disappointing. The actually fighting is decent, but the amount of content is woefully small. And after charging $60 for what amounts to half a game, the DLC characters cost $6 each? Outrageous!

@Gwynbleidd Despite not being a big fan of Animal Crossing (I have new leaf, and I just find it boring), I wouldn't argue New Horizon's being on this list. It was a huge success, so many people love it, and unlike many games on this list, you can't point to several other games and claim they deliver roughly the same experience. But I will agree with you on 3D All Stars. Slapping together three old games with half hearted upgrades doesn't really make them new games.

I have Hyrule under the tree so looking forward to that.

My top 5 would be ACNH, Ori, Hades, Clubhouse Games and short Hike. Honourable mention to Lonely Mountains Downhill.

Tried Horace recently as it was only £1 but it just seemed to be a generic platformer with a vaguely interesting story - but I’m not really into games for their story so it was a bit tedious with all the cut scenes. Don’t understand the hype on that one (compared to say Hades where it’s completely justified).

In terms of best experience I had it would be Tokyo Mirage. I know it’s not a new release technically but I missed out on the wiiu version and I was so happy they ported it. It was one of the few(including xeno x) that I really wanted but didn’t expect a port of. In terms of best new content this year, it would be the three houses dlc. I celebrated this fire emblem anniversary pretty intensely!

No matter what anyone's opinion is on the actual game, and I'm sure most of us love it, there isn't anyone that wouldn't have clearly guessed #1 was ACNH.

Didn't play too much this year, but if I had to make a top 5, it would go something like this, I guess:

1. Paper Mario: The Origami King
2. Animal Crossing: New Horizons
3. Need For Speed: Hot Pursuit Remastered
4. The Wonderful 101 Remastered
5. Among Us
Honourable Mentions: Super Mario 3D All-Stars, Minecraft Dungeons

@Beaucine My main issues with previous roguelikes I've played (primarily the Pokemon Mystery Dungeon series) were the repetition and lack of progression despite hours of investment in many cases. Not as big of a deal if I had all the time in the world and didn't like a myriad of other genres lol. These main grievances were enough to drive me off from the genre for years.

From what you're describing and according to my own tastes, it sounds like the characters and narrative would keep me engaged. I love a good story, and a sense of progression is a definite plus. You've definitely pushed me a little more over the "buy" fence, but I might wait awhile first. Thanks!

The write up on A Short Hike got me thinking. Are there a lot of indie developers who create games, with the 32 bit era graphics in mind? I’m so used to the 8 and 16 bit eras being shown love, I never thought about 32 bits.

I laughed after reading the first line for #1. I honestly couldn’t think what could possibly be #1. Totally forgot it came out this year.

Interesting... I’ve noticed that some times a game may be fully worthy of a 10/10, and another 8/10, but you may actually enjoy the 8/10 game more, even though you know it’s not perfect.

A lot of my favourite games are flawed, but I still prefer playing them to games that even I concede are better.

Example: paper Mario origami king vs luigis mansion 3
Luigis mansion probably the better game. But I’ve only played it once so far.
I’ve already done pm twice.
(I hope to play lm 3 at some point again though)

Just saying that it’s more about how much you personally enjoy something, which is why more flawed games may get higher on the list of favourites than games rating a 10/10

This was a sad Switch year if you don’t care for Animal Crossing. Super Mario 3D All Stars was my highlight. Borderlands games and Hades were runners up for me.

I agree with it not being on this list, but Journey of a Broken Circle was a charming little release with a killer soundtrack and visual style. And if memory serves, I picked it up for free. So that might be my personal favorite, but I also (somehow) have yet to play any titles on this list (despite owning a few of them).

@Alpha008 Astute point. I can think of many examples to corroborate your observation.

Personally my favorite Switch game this year was Paper Mario. Just a good time. I haven’t tried Hades or a Short Hike but they’re on my list.

I don't really agree with 3D All Stars being on there... They deserve to be on a list of the best games of 1996, 2002, and 2007. A 2020 list should be reserved for new games, or at least old games with a substantial amount of new content/features.

I'm glad to see A Short Hike on there. I'm sure I'll play Hades and Ori eventually.

Wow, I never realized how weak of a year this really was for Switch. Most of the games I’ve been playing were released last year so I personally have no complaints. Also, no Horace?

@Deltath just because it’s not fair on new releases. In all seriousness Galaxy alone tops AC any day IMHO. However, having said that there will be a lot of first time players so I guess it makes sense to include it in this list.

For me:

1. Animal Crossing.
2. Paper Mario
3. Mario 3D All Stars
4. Immortals: Fenyx Rising (played on PC)
5. 51 Worldwide Games
6. Final Fantasy 7R (PS4)
7. Tetris Effect Connected (XBOX Series X / PC; GamePass)
8. Baldur's Gate 3 (early access PC)
9. Cyberpunk 2077 (PC)
10. Assassin's Creed Valhalla (XBOX Series X)

Love you guys! Good list!

You gave too much love to Nintendo for the OK collection of Super Mario 3D All stars but there are some great games on here! Some complained about Switch's 2020, but with the quantity of games on the eshop, I can't imagine ever feeling like there is a lack of games.

Wow, Age Of Calamity is lower than Paper Mario even with the controversy surrounding Paper Mario.

That's a shock.

I played 6 games on this list and enjoyed most of them, although I don't agree with their rankings. I would add Pikmin 3 to the list, as I ended up enjoying it more than I had expected to. I am also a little surprised by the amount of love Hades and Animal Crossing received - I really wanted to like both of them (especially Hades as it looked awesome) but ended up disappointed (just did not get on well with the game). Regardless, it's interesting to see what other people enjoy playing and has given me a couple of games to look into buying.

Yikes...Hades at number 3? I'm embarrassed for this website. 😳

TOK does not deserve to be there. But again, its nintendo life and there really werent too many games this year.

ACNH was my biggest gaming disappointment this year, I think I need goals
Is Origami King really worth it? So many mixed reviews (I’ve played Bug Fables, was decent).
I have a voucher burning a hole in my pocket

When are the ones be shown we all voted for like it's been done in the last years?