Switch 2 launched in June 2025 and, although a young console in the scheme of things, it’s already built up a sizeable software library, mixing some choice exclusives with a host of ‘Nintendo Switch 2 Editions’, which include optimised, improved versions of some of the greatest video games ever made.
But what are the best games for Nintendo Switch 2 available? Which Switch 2 games are must-haves? What should you play first?
With well over 50 titles on the system now, we’ve compiled this ranked list of the very best Switch 2 games. It will, of course, expand in the coming weeks and months, with plenty of top-quality games coming soon that’ll be jostling for a place – and inevitably pushing some of these out of the top 50.
Handy Hockey is a re-release/remaster of 2010’s Japan-only DSI title from ITL, and it’s the epitome of laser-focused game design. There is one thing to do here, and it’s play air hockey.
This lovely little Switch 2 version allows players to compete with a mixture of human/CPU opponents in matches that can be either singles or doubles. With Mouse Mode functionality and the option to lay your Switch 2 on the table, it’s a no-frills winner that does exactly what it says on the tin – and at 120fps, too.
A follow-up to developer tokoronyori’s BOKURA from 2023, BOKURA: planet was a lovely surprise.
This two-player-only puzzle-platformer features an intriguing, diverging co-op narrative that creates tension beneath its novel puzzles without completely jettisoning its cutesy vibes for pixel horror.
If you’re looking for a reflective, grown-up adventure with laughs, gasps, and perhaps even a tear or two — and one that really showcases GameChat — this affecting little expedition will claim but a few hours of your life and is worth enlisting a friend for.
WWE 2K25 powerbombs onto Switch 2 in an excellent port that holds its own against the likes of the PS5 version, and keeps the action smooth and silky, even when you start piling on the wrestlers in a Royal Rumble.
With great looks, best-in-class core mechanics, a ton of online, local, and solo modes, and an enormous roster, this one will keep all you Switch 2 wrasslin’ fans busy for a good long time. Intergender matches, improved MyRise and Showcase, in-depth tutorials, and the return of chain wrestling are all just icing on top.
The Exit 8 is a cool experience that’s worth the low asking price to play a game that’s become a cult hit — popular enough to spawn a movie, in fact — but it’s not something we imagine going back to anytime soon.
‘Scary’ would be generous, but there are definitely moments that made us feel uneasy. If developer Kotake Create had really leaned into the horror and made something a bit closer to Hideo Kojima’s P.T., we could have had a modern classic here.
Survival Kids is a thoroughly competent, cosy game of cooperative gathering and crafting. It’s not much of a looker, and its ideas aren’t mind-blowing, but it’s all good stuff thanks to its robust controls and easy-to-grasp loop.
We’re not sure we’d want to be stuck with it on a desert island, but it’s good company for several happy hours with a friend – especially a less experienced gamer.
Technos’ Scrambled Egg is a top-down arcade egg-kicker from 1983. You wander around the yard cracking eggs with your feet and booting the hatchlings out of bounds to safety, all while baddies prowl around trying to get you.
With some timing and skill, you can boot the chicks into enemies and take them out for extra points. Simple stuff, but fun enough to soak up some quarters.
Nintendo Switch 2 Welcome Tour is a calming, surprisingly engaging hardware exhibition with a handful of cool minigames, a trove of interesting info, and some neat demos that showcase exactly what the little system can do. It makes you feel good about buying the thing, which makes the platform holder’s decision not to bundle it with the console utterly baffling. Featuring expensive add-ons you might not own also won’t impress anyone who’s indignant that the company wants another 10 bucks for this.
That aside, it’s an undeniably fine demonstration of Nintendo’s thoughtful design approach. It’s cute, it’s fun, and it’s a shame the whole pack-in argument overshadows the delightful software. Anyone interested in tech, design, or Nintendo in general should check it out immediately.
Super Mario Party Jamboree – Nintendo Switch 2 Edition + Jamboree TV (breathe) gives an already fantastic party game a huge shot in the arm, with a bunch of brilliant Mouse Mode and mic-based games that also allow you to see your big silly face as you play. It’s all very knockabout, very easy to use, and very easy to enjoy.
With a huge base game packing seven boards and a whole bunch of modes, and the Switch 2’s new tech adding to the fun in meaningful ways, this is a thoroughly delightful and totally family-friendly way to party Mushroom Kingdom-style.
Daemon x Machina: Titanic Scion is a decent mech game with plenty of depth in its weapons setups and lots of cool loot to discover in its large open-world maps. The combat is flexible, it’s fast, and it’s very often plenty of fun.
However, performance issues — which are also present on other platforms, so don’t sweat it too much, Switch 2 owners — make for a janky experience in places, with mushy controls and limp feedback. It’s just not nearly as polished as it could be in this respect. With stutters loading into new areas and low-res textures a common sight (again, also on other systems), the overall feeling here is of a game that needs a few patches and tweaks to get it where it needs to be.
A wordless experience that puts an emphasis on the ‘visual’ in visual novel, it’s not every day that a game successfully manages to craft a moving narrative about art, life, and the passage of time solely on the merit of its visual and musical storytelling.
But even if this short game itself remains silent, Dear me, I was… is absolutely worth talking about.
Following the disappointing Switch 1 port, Apex Legends redeems itself on Switch 2. This upgraded version gives us 60fps shooting action with crisp, clear resolutions and none of that juddery, unresponsive, blurry stuff we had back in 2021.
It’s arguably still the best hero shooter/Battle Royale out there, with amazingly fluid traversal, best-in-class gunfeel, and a ping system that puts proper teamwork and tactics front and centre. The cherry on top, of course, is that it’s free to play, too, so there’s no good reason for shooter fans not to dive right in.
Fortnite on Switch 2 fixes all glaring — and not so glaring — issues with the Switch 1 version of the game. This is a huge package of activities; from battle royale to survival game, racing, creative modes, music festivals, and more besides. It’s a lot, and it now runs at 60fps with crisp, clean resolutions all round.
Mouse mode controls are a revelation, loading times are hugely improved, graphics look very nice indeed, thanks, and, well, I reckon this is now the best way to play this one, regardless of a slight downgrading in visuals.
While it lacks the additional content seen in the PS1 port, the original arcade iteration of Ridge Racer remains a landmark release in the history of the racing genre, and it’s just as gripping and playable today as it was back in 1993.
The ability to compete for high scores online adds massively to this version’s staying power, and while its long-term appeal does have a fairly low ceiling, it’s easily worth the modest asking price just to experience the primal satisfaction you get from pulling off a perfect power slide.
If you’re intrigued by Shadow Labyrinth‘s fresh approach to Pac-Man, we recommend giving it a shot on Switch 2.
It provides an intriguing narrative in a foreboding world with varied environments throughout, and PUCK proves to be a compelling character. The short bursts of Pac-Man-style gameplay help mix up the experience, and this is very welcome since the game never really delivers a ‘wow’ moment.
Much of it has been done better elsewhere — and it’s giving off some strong Hollow Knight vibes — but this is nevertheless a promising new direction for an ageing franchise.
Whether you should take a punt on Sonic X Shadow Generations for the Switch 2 will depend on whether you already own it on Switch 1 or not. If you don’t, it’s perhaps Sonic’s best 3D game, and this is undoubtedly the best way to play it on Nintendo systems.
If you do, however, you should think twice about double-dipping. It’s already a splendid game on Switch 1, and with no upgrade path or new content, you’re missing out on very little if you skip it. Personally, we’d wait for a sale if you absolutely cannot live without those 60 frames per second.
Namco’s racer was originally released the very same year as Wave Race 64 and Hamster has done another solid job bringing a ’90s arcade classic to Switch 2 and making it sing. Unfortunately, without much content present in the base game, there are only so many times you can revisit this colourful racer before things get repetitive.
Aqua Jet offers good features, with toggleable gyro controls and online leaderboards to keep you cracking away at course times. But with no multiplayer, there’s barely any reason to revisit this once you’re satisfied with your performance.
One of a selection of arcade classics we hoped to see come to Switch one day back in 2021, Namco’s superpower-infused sports sequel (to 1993’s Numan Athletics) has found its way to Switch 1 and 2 courtesy of Hamster’s Arcade Archives series.
A multiplayer Olympics-style competitive affair, it’s great to have it more widely available, and we’re looking forward to checking it out on a Switch.
A free upgrade if you own the Switch version, High On Life: Nintendo Switch 2 Edition adds mouse controls to Squanch Games’ comic FPS where the guns talk. You also get bumps to texture quality, resolution, and frame rate.
The High On Knife DLC is included, too, so if you’ve got the appetite for a dozen hours of fairly solid first-person shooting, with gabbing weaponry that spit Rick & Morty-esque gags at you for the duration, well, here it is.
A little more resolution is always going to be useful in a strategy game, and that’s true for Nobunaga’s Ambition Awakening.
This ‘Complete Edition’ builds on the Switch 1 foundation by adding a half dozen new scenarios and all the previously released DLC, plus Mouse Mode functionality and 4K support giving you a better look at the battlefield and more precise control over your campaigns.
If you liked the base game on Switch, the Switch 2 additions enhance the experience in exactly the way you’d expect and hope, arguably fulfilling the game’s potential on the handheld hybrid where it struggled before.
