Kingy

Wilds is extremely boring. Port MH4 Ultimate instead so more people can experience peak Monster Hunter.

That game manages to have a more compelling story than World and Wilds without having to assault you with constant cutscenes and forced trailing segments

@Andrew_G I'm sure for a lot of people it is about the satisfaction of seeing their favorite game at the top, but that wasn't what I was getting at.
The point I was making was that the only reason Trails is higher than Bananza is because it is less popular and has a lower mean of votes to account for. Which has nothing to do with the actual qualities of the game and everything to do with how the scoring system aggregates the votes of each individual game.
Ideally a best-of list wouldn't exclusively be a popularity contest, but I'm sure you'd agree that still ought to factor in? That's why I suggested separate categories, specifically I'd separate by genre. I think that would satisfy both people who are looking for specific games they've missed out on like yourself, and people who are just looking for recognition for the games they like. And it would showcase more games overall.

I mean tbh looking at the "Best Nintendo Switch games of 2025" and seeing over half of them being ports of games that are several years old doesn't exactly inspire confidence either.
Are you telling me Red Dead Redemption 1 was one of the best games of 2025??
Hell, if Unicorn Overlord got a Switch 2 edition this year it could have won Nintendo Life's GOTY two consecutive years in a row lmao!
That's it really, I won't pretend like I've put an insane amount of thought into my reasoning nor is the list particularly important, but I think it could be a lot better if they didn't leave it to the aggregate robot.

With the Switch 2 now long since released that's gonna be a "lmao, no".
Anticipation for Mario Kart World was doing a lot of heavy lifting for that lineup, and it wound up being a shallow mess.

Final Fantasy doesn't have any sort of core identity. They just do whatever they want for every entry now, what sort of feedback would be cohesive at this point?
It's easy to say I want a focused turn-based JRPG, but those haven't been relevant to this series for over 20 years now. Forget what I want, what even IS Final Fantasy??

Square Enix is more evidently headless than any other AAA corporation. They chase every single industry trend that pops up and are late to all of them. I genuinely could not name you a noteworthy game of theirs from the last 10 years that wasn't called Dragon Quest and/or developed by Team Asano.

Probably just shoulda made a Metroid game instead

Not to disparage Trails in Sky's qualities, it's made by Falcom so I'm sure it's great. But you guys seem to rely way too heavily on this "let the fans decide" scoring system, completely ignoring that some games are going to naturally have higher or lower user scores based entirely on how many people played it.

So you have the awkward results here where a few people played Trails in the Sky and nigh unanimously loved it, and a lot of people played Bananza to similar acclaim but because of the higher player count there's a much wider array of scores to account, ultimately lowering it (not to mention it will get its fair share of dismissive 1s precisely because of its popularity).
For example me giving a Bananza a 7 LOWERS its overall score despite the fact that I think it (and anything else I rate a 7) is exceptional.

And if what @rvcolem1 is saying is true then this system is extremely abusable lol. I'm not saying I'd prefer a list done solely by Nintendo Life staff, because it would just be every Nintendo game at the top. But I do think more effort in curation would go a long way. You can even create separate categories precisely so games like Trails in the Sky gets its due recognition despite it not being as popular as other games.

When people said they wanted the old Nintendo back, THIS is what they meant lol

Depends on what extent of usage and the results I'd say. But people have more than proven there's no place for nuance on this topic.
Generally speaking however I have no interest in an AI generated product.

@electrolite77 Switch 1 & 2 combined sold 10% less than Switch 1 did alone same time last year. That's a decline.
You'd think the "fastest selling console of all time" would be able to keep its momentum for its first holiday season...

...Or maybe the majority of people who were going to buy the Switch 2 already have it and the rest of the world doesn't care.
Guess we'll see what happens.

Edit: Also, you say "one territory" as if the US doesn't contribute the lion's share of hardware sales.
North America alone makes up nearly 60 million of the Switch 1's 154 million units sold.

@electrolite77 ...he said in the article about sales declining

@Lanmanna A slurry emporium

@Lanmanna Major releases like Mario Kart World, Pokémon Legends Z-A, and Metroid Prime 4 were crap. These are supplemented by actual shovelware like Welcome Tour and Drag X Drive, and re-releases of Switch 1 games with insignificant amounts of additional content to justify a $70-$80 price tag.
Nintendo's offerings on the Switch 1 were already a mixed bag. Now quality titles are becoming the exception, not the rule.

I expect a lot better from them and they aren't meeting those expectations. That's what I mean by low quality products. You can keep telling yourself it's just the economy though.

@Markatron84 God forbid you have to read anything but sheer positivity for your favorite multi-billion dollar sludge factory.

I'm sure overcharging for low quality products has absolutely nothing to do with declining sales.

MOOOORE RPGs! After getting through Dragon Quest II Remake and its post game, I've jumped straight into Dragon Quest VII. I'm playing the PS1 original and the 3DS remake simultaneously in preparation for next year's new remake.
I quite like DQVII so far, it has a lot of personality and the original wasn't afraid to take its time to introduce you to its world and characters. The 3DS version DEFINITELY is though, it currently feels like an abridged edition of the game and I get the sense that Square Enix is insecure about it being too long...
Obviously we already know that the new remake has cut out a sizable chunk of content and I'm worried that they are overcorrecting to appeal to a crowd who were never going to play the game anyways.
Other than that I'll be returning to my half year old save of Expedition 33 and finally get around to finishing it. I love this game and all the crazy ***** you can do in it with the right picto combinations... but I got sidetracked by a monkey marathon at the time, among many other games.

Sakurai and the team did an excellent job. Super polished, plenty of crazy unlockables, options to play exactly how you want, shockingly involved customization with your machine, spectacular stages and boss fights, a single player campaign. And weird Sakurai features like the machine market and gummies to add just a bit more personality to the whole package.
This is a complete game

@BTB20 Factor in that this site's userbase is the prime (no pun intended) demographic to be the most charitable to any Nintendo release and 8.3 really isn't very good.

I notice this list has yet another awkward case of NL calling the remaster superior to the original and yet the original scores higher lol. Idk if you guys are writing these blurbs in a vacuum, but you really ought to consider the order before you do if you're going to go by user scores.

Not a great game (maybe not even a good game), but Wario World has that pure crackhead energy I'm looking for in a game about my role model Wario. Full recommend

As long as the monsters are cool and intimidating, and there's something endearing about the human antagonists I don't think their longevity is important.
Salazar and Saddler were able to become extremely memorable antagonists through just a few cutscenes and radio calls, so much so that I think the remake did them dirty. Even Chief Mendez fits the former category, being an imposing presence that mutates into one of the most freakish creatures in the series. All three of them live and die in a single game.

For all of Wesker's overarching machinations in the series, I only really think of RE5 when I think of him, where he's had the largest role. We'll see what RE9 has in store but judging from trailers and preview footage I'm keeping my expectations low.

@Solid_Python Hopefully those aching knees are spared an exploding city block qte sequence

This old man about to throw out his back suplexing B.O.W.s

Jungle Beat was EAD 8's first game, nice little bit of fan service.

When I said the return of Steve Burnside, I was joking... But he would unironically be preferable to any of the Winters lol

@Potimarron A lot of people haven't, it's a pretty niche game. It was my GOTY last year but I assume the only reason it made the NL list is because there was basically nothing else of note released on the Switch in 2024. Save for Emio the Smiling Man, but nobody played that either lol

I guess as far as Switch 2 goes Bananza was the first stand out on it and probably the game with the widest appeal and least amount of drawbacks, so I'll go with that...
I like Air Riders more though.

I enjoyed two of the three games I have for it, so there's that.
Overpriced and underwhelming is all I can really say about Switch 2. Hopefully 2026 will be more promising.

Lol some stiff competition down at the bottom

So are the people gassing up Mario Kart World eventually going to admit that it's trash when the next Mario Kart comes out? That always seems to be the play, denigrate the previous game (or games) in favor of new product.
Release year Mario Kart 8 is leagues ahead of World, all the best tracks in the game were there from the start. The only critical feature missing from it at the time was 200cc, which came a year later (and is EXCLUDED from MKW funny that).
And the only major flaw with release MK8 is that it's battle mode was *****. But you're not allowed to complain about that, because MKW copy and pasted that same ***** battle mode... 8 YEARS AFTER MK8 DELUXE HAD FIXED IT!!
Enough with the revisionist history for the benefit of your sloppy $500 line game, it's gross.

.....also why is Rolling Stone doing a best video games list, aren't they a music or celebrity magazine or something?

Will be grabbing this as soon as the physical releases

No two City Trials I've done has felt the same, and that's thanks to all the little nooks and crannys on the map and a large variation of terrain, events and stadiums.
Now, who can say if I'll feel the same 100 hours later but this really wasn't an issue in the original Air Ride either. It was the rest of the game that couldn't match City Trial.
With Air Riders I feel like all the other modes (except arguably Top Ride to an extent) are now on par with City Trial's quality, it's a far more balanced game.

I'd bet if City Trial had a second map, people would be saying "why not three", and four, five, and onward. That's just how we've been tailored to think with these "live service" always online, always shuffling in new content kind of games.

The open world turned me off from the game, and a bunch of yammering tutorials wearing human skin aren't exactly enticing me back in.

Making my way through the Dragon Quest II Remake which I'm enjoying A LOT more than the first one. Having multiple party members obviously makes the new bosses and souped up enemies more enjoyable to fight. But what I'm enjoying the most is the frequent new dialogue between the main characters.
Arguably the worst part about the first three games is that they have a very rudimentary story and practically no characters.
The DQIII remake did basically nothing to rectify this, it's pretty much just as shallow as the original. DQI on the other hand adds quite a lot to its story, but most of it is superfluous and doesn't really add anything but busywork to the thin narrative. Princess Gwaelin's contribution to the cutscenes if you keep her with you was a treat however.
DQII has your cousins chiming in a lot, and I think it's nearly bringing the game on par with the series best. The Prince of Cannock is an absolute sweetheart.

Other than that I'll be plugging through more Kirby Air Riders achievements and maybe even finish the story mode. The game is a blast, I could do City Trials all day and never get tired of it.
I've been on and off Haunting Ground because honestly I'm just not that into it. I didn't really care for Clock Tower 3 either so that probably should've been expected.
And maybe I'll finally get back to Hollow Knight and finally finish it.

Unfortunately I'm addicted to Umamusume again after a new update and some time away from the game. My previous veteran team is very lacking and will be spending the rest of their retirement in the glue factory

Partners in Time isn't the greatest but I respect it for what it is. This was back when Mario games were allowed to have an edge, I will cherish that era

Solid high 7, fast tracking to an 8 just cause I haven't put much time into single player.

All three multi-player modes are a blast, super chaotic and addictive. Customization is awesome, every play session is capped off with some new demented machine being created. The checklist is as satisfying as it always is.
I don't really have any complaints about Air Riders, it's just plain simple fun with that Sakurai brand of style and spectacle.
On track to best Switch 2 game of the lot I'd say, at least for now.

@Flashlink99 Mike Haggar to clean the bombed out streets of Raccoon City

My roommate and I created a very sultry Patrick Star in a bunny suit and stilettos

The triumphant return of Steve Burnside

At this point I'm just buying whatever few games actually come with a game in them lol. Adding this to the calendar

@iLikeUrAttitude @Spider-Kev "Samus just moved *****... with her FREAKING MIND!!" - Marvel McChucklemeister

Not a fan of the hideous Switch 2 Edition blurb at the bottom, but I'll probably pick this up.

Nice, first two games are decent so I am definitely interested in this. All I've seen and heard about Little Nightmares 3 is that it's crap, or mediocre at best. Glad we didn't need to wait too long for this one

He's the Clark Kent that transforms behind the nearest KOF arcade cabinet.

This game will sell 10 copies and I'll be one of them! First time in months my Switch 2 will see the light of day!

Resident Evil is very much a grab bag of quality. Based on everything I've seen I'm going into this game assuming it won't be great.
They can always prove me wrong, I thought RE4R was going to be crap but was pleasantly surprised with how great it was despite its warts.
Buuuut... RE4R was also using one of the best games of all time as a base. Whereas Requiem looks like it's closer to 7 & Village, which are very much not. So guess we'll see.
Best range I can hope for is "as good as RE7 to not as terrible as Village".

Tomb Raider Reboot was the game that convinced me to buy a PS3 back in 2012. I only had Nintendo consoles beforehand but for whatever reason E3 Tomb Raider gameplay absolutely blew me away.

The game did not disappoint (though I haven't played it since the year it came out), but furthermore it essentially introduced me to one of my favorite consoles. The PS3 kicks ass.

Dead or Alive 5, Dragon Age Origins & Dragon Age II, Arkham Asylum, Catherine, Portal 2, Uncharted, Dragon's Crown, Dead Space, Devil May Cry, Fallout 3 & New Vegas, RE5, Red Dead Redemption, Ni no Kuni, Rayman Origins!
And that's not even considering the massive library of PS1/PS2 on the store, that's how I was introduced to masterpieces like RE2 and Final Fantasy IX.
Thanks Tomb Raider Reboot

Any other year I'd pick this up day one, but we've had so many back to back to back releases I'm afraid Demonschool will need to wait in the dreaded backlog

Hades II slipped my mind when making my predictions. Surprised not seeing Split Fiction on here, I was expecting KCDII to get snubbed.
Obviously these awards don't mean anything but for what it's worth this is a stronger list compared to other years.
I can't even remember last year's nominees, all I know is that Unicorn Overlord wasn't one of em, for shame.

As far as video game movie adaptation goes they could look a hell of a lot worse.

This is one of the lists of all time for sure

Plenty of deserving games on here, some others not so much. And some criminal omissions (no Pikmin 2, no Resident Evil Remake, no Explorers of Sky, no Radiant Historia, Dragon Quest III, V, IX, pretty sure I never saw Bowser’s Inside Story or Metroid Fusion)
Also yeah, the order is wacky as hell, though tbf I'd probably have a hard time ordering them too.
About what I was expecting from IGN.