Now that we have a bit more information about the Nintendo Switch 2, I thought it could be interesting to look ahead. My first-ever home console was a Super Nintendo, and I’ve also owned an N64, Wii, 3DS, Switch – and I was even one of about seven people who owned a Wii U ten or so years ago. So I like to think I have a tiny bit of a track record when it comes to Nintendo!
I gotta admit that I’m surprised about the Switch 2. Nintendo are the kings of innovation in gaming, with each of the company’s consoles having something different to entice players. The Switch 2 will be the first console in several generations (since either the GameCube or the Super Nintendo, depending on how we think about it) to play it so exceptionally safe. If I were being deliberately unkind, I might even suggest that the Switch 2 looks underwhelming and repetitive.
Until we’ve got a better look at the internals of the Switch 2, though, we won’t know for sure how different the machine really is and what its capabilities will be. I’m hoping to put a Switch 2 on my list of things to buy this year (or in 2026, if it won’t be launching in time for Christmas) but that will depend to a great degree on what games the console launches with – and how much better they might look compared to the current iteration of the Switch.
The Switch has some great games, that isn’t even a remotely controversial statement! And I’ve definitely been surprised to see that some very big, demanding games have survived being ported to the platform in a playable state. I’m thinking of titles like Hogwarts Legacy and The Witcher 3 in particular, but I’m sure there are others.
When it comes to Nintendo’s first-party titles, the Switch has excelled, too. Mario Kart 8 Deluxe, Super Mario Odyssey, and Animal Crossing: New Horizons ought to be in anyone’s top ten, with all three games taking established series and putting a new spin on them.
And it’s games I’d like to talk about today.
For all the innovation and advances that Nintendo has made, there are other companies in the gaming space that have gone beyond what Nintendo and the Switch have been capable of. As technology has improved, I don’t think it’s unfair to say that the Switch has, in some respects, held back Nintendo’s developers. Over the past few years, there have been quite a few games released in genres that Nintendo used to dominate… titles that have gone above and beyond the company’s recent output.
Today, we’re going to look at five games from the last few years that Nintendo needs to learn from in order to make their games on the Switch 2 the best they can be. Some fans will always be satisfied with more of the same – and that’s great! If you’re in that camp, that’s okay and I don’t intend any of this as some kind of attack. Speaking for myself, though, I’ve played several games in recent years (and watched gameplay from other titles, too) that genuinely eclipse anything Nintendo has created. Partly that might be down to the limitations of the Switch – but it’s also down to the inescapable fact that other companies and developers are innovating and pushing the boundaries in a way that Nintendo hasn’t been.
If Nintendo is to make the Switch 2 a success, then the company will need to read the room! Player expectations are always changing, and Nintendo can’t afford to remain stagnant and try to coast on past successes. A new console – with new, more powerful hardware at its heart – is an opportunity to catch up on a decade-plus of evolution and enhancements in game development, bringing at least some of Nintendo’s flagship series and franchises into the 2020s for the first time.
So let’s take a look at five games that I think Nintendo can learn from.
As always, a couple of caveats. Firstly, please keep in mind that all of this is the subjective opinion of just one person. If I make a point you disagree with, highlight a game you hate, or recommend a change that you think doesn’t need to be made… that’s okay! Nintendo fans are a passionate bunch, but there ought to be enough room in the fan community for civil discussion and polite disagreement.
I’ve also tried to be realistic in my selections. I’m not going to try and argue that Nintendo should turn the next Mario game into a gritty Red Dead Redemption II open-world, or that the next Animal Crossing ought to be an L.A. Noire-style murder mystery. I’ve chosen titles in either the same genre or a similar space that I believe Nintendo can learn from as the first few Switch 2 games are being worked on.
With all of that out of the way, let’s take a look at the list!
Game #1:
Palworld
Pokémon franchise
This is the game that really inspired me to put this list together! Last year, Palworld was a surprise hit. It took the monster-battling sub-genre and put its own spin on it, bringing in huge numbers of players in the process. I know several die-hard Pokémon fans who absolutely adore Palworld, and even looking in from the outside, I can see many ways in which the game goes beyond anything the Pokémon series has ever done.
Recent Pokémon titles have been pretty stale and stagnant – if they even worked at all. Sure, they might add new monsters to the roster or be set in a different region of the franchise’s world, but Pokémon’s basic gameplay hasn’t changed in years. The series needs a good shake-up, and Palworld’s success should be the kick in the backside that Nintendo, Game Freak, and the Pokémon Company need.
Unfortunately, things aren’t looking great on this front. Nintendo has inexplicably chosen to try to sue Palworld and its developer out of existence with a frivolous lawsuit, something that shames Furukawa, Miyamoto, and all of the other cowardly executives. As I wrote last year: the history of gaming is one of piecemeal innovation, with companies from all across the industry seeing what works and building on it. Pokémon wouldn’t exist without the role-playing games, deck-building games, and top-down fantasy titles that came before it, and Nintendo doesn’t have the right to claim ownership of an entire genre.
So I hope, once the dust settles and the lawsuit is inevitably dismissed, Nintendo can do what it should’ve done from day one: learn what worked in Palworld and what players liked, and apply those findings to the next Pokémon game. That doesn’t mean copy Palworld beat-for-beat, but taking the best bits and the things players loved the most and using that knowledge to make Pokémon better.
Game #2:
Sonic Mania
2D Mario
Super Mario Bros. Wonder has been very well-received by Nintendo fans – and that’s great! Ever since 2D Mario games returned from a decade-long hiatus almost twenty years ago, though, they’ve more or less retained the same art style. Wonder definitely added a lot of new things to the mix, and there have been new power-ups and levels with different settings… but maybe it’s time to take a step back and really go back to Mario’s roots.
Sonic Mania is a fantastic title that has a really interesting development history. It was originally a fan project, but Sega saw the potential in the game and swooped in, licensing it as an official entry in the Sonic series. And I don’t think it’s an exaggeration to say that Sonic Mania is one of the best Sonic games since the Mega Drive days.
I’d love to see Nintendo really lean into the NES or SNES visual style with their next 2D Mario game. It could be a side-project rather than a full mainline game, and I wouldn’t necessarily expect an “old-school” 2D Mario as the Switch 2’s big launch title. But as a love letter to fans in Super Mario’s 40th anniversary year… what could be better?
Sonic Mania genuinely feels like a 16-bit Mega Drive game, bringing back not only the visual and art style of that era, but gameplay mechanics, too. After all the talk of doing better and pushing the boat out, maybe this seems like a bit of an oddity – and I fully accept that. But as someone who really got into gaming in the early 1990s, I would love nothing more than to return to that style of 2D platformer. Sonic Mania could be the template for how to do that – and do it right.
Game #3:
Disney Dreamlight Valley
Animal Crossing series
If you read my review of Disney Dreamlight Valley a couple of years ago, you might remember me saying that the game took basically all of my complaints about Animal Crossing: New Horizons and fixed them, while also adding in compelling characters and story missions to boot. I’m not sure that the next Animal Crossing needs a “main quest” of sorts… but there are so many other things that Dreamlight Valley does well.
Firstly, Dreamlight Valley has much more freedom in terms of decorating – both inside and out. With a simple button press, everything from small items of furniture to houses and trees can be moved, placed, and deleted, and there’s a near-unlimited amount of free choice in where things are placed and how many things can be placed. New Horizons, thanks to the Switch’s limited processing power, is notoriously laggy when too many items are placed outdoors – but the next game in the series should, at least, not suffer from that limitation.
Dreamlight Valley’s characters also feel more compelling and unique. Partly that’s because everyone gets a quest or series of quests, but it’s also because each character has a distinct personality – reflected not only in their choice of outfit and decoration, but dialogue, too. One of my biggest criticisms of New Horizons was how awfully repetitive the dialogue got after only a short amount of time – and without mini-games or other events to spice things up, as well as such a small number of villager “types” – I found I was getting the exact same line of dialogue over and over and over again from different characters.
In terms of design, customisation, character interactions, and more, Dreamlight Valley not only eclipses Animal Crossing… it blows it out of the water. There are pitfalls to be avoided, sure – Dreamlight Valley is too heavily-monetised for my taste – but it should be seen as a template for how to improve the Animal Crossing formula.
Game #4:
Doom Eternal
Metroid Prime series
With Metroid Prime 4 due for release on the Switch this year – presumably before the Switch 2 launches – there’s limited room for serious improvements. But if the Metroid Prime series continues and will get a new entry in the years ahead, the fast-paced combat of Doom Eternal should be the high bar that the series aims for.
I haven’t played a Metroid Prime game since the GameCube days, so maybe I’m not the best person to offer advice on this series! But I know what I look for in a single-player first-person shooter, and of all the games in that genre I’ve played over the years, none felt as energetic and exciting as Doom Eternal. With the Switch 2 offering the chance for a serious upgrade, the next Metroid Prime game could have more enemies on screen at the same time, a wider range of enemy types, more weapons, and so on.
Doom Eternal’s grappling hook mechanic also worked exceptionally well, and something like that could be a fine addition to the Metroid Prime series, too. Adding in some platforming and puzzle-solving elements along with fast-paced combat could be a ton of fun.
I’d also be remiss not to mention the fantastic soundtrack that the modern Doom titles have had. A hard rock/heavy metal soundtrack was pitch-perfect for those games, and added so much to the wild action and thrill of gunning down hordes of demons. Metroid Prime doesn’t need to go down the heavy metal route, of course, but a soundtrack that helps bring the game to life and fits with its design philosophy will be essential.
Game #5:
Astro Bot
3D Mario
A moment ago, we talked about the next 2D Mario game and how I’d like to see the series go back to its roots – both in terms of gameplay and visual style. But 3D Mario should really aim to go above and beyond, pushing the Switch 2’s hardware to its limits while retaining the charm of titles like Super Mario 64 and Odyssey. PlayStation’s Astro Bot – which was in the running for game of the year on many publications’ lists in 2024 – is exactly the kind of game Nintendo should be paying attention to.
I have to admit that I haven’t played Astro Bot for myself; I don’t own a PS5 and, as much as I might want to, I can’t justify the expense of buying one just to play one game! But I’ve seen a lot of gameplay online, and Astro Bot looks like the kind of game that knows what it’s trying to be… and absolutely nails it.
Many critics have noted – quite correctly – that Astro Bot is drawing inspiration from Nintendo’s 3D platformers. But graphically and in terms of level design, it seems to go beyond them, too. Super Mario Odyssey, arguably the best and certainly the biggest 3D Mario game, is now almost eight years old, so fans are absolutely right to expect to see significant improvements when the next entry in the series is ready. Astro Bot shows how beautiful a 3D platformer can look with modern hardware, and it’s also a masterclass in level design.
I’m pretty sure that Nintendo will be hard at work on the next 3D Mario already. We’ve caught a glimpse of a new Mario Kart in the recent Switch 2 teaser, so that could well be the console’s big launch title. But a new 3D Mario is unlikely to be far behind. I hope some of the developers and producers have played Astro Bot to get a feel for how that game works and to see what it does well.
So that’s it!
We’ve taken a look at five games that I think Nintendo needs to examine closely and learn from as the Switch 2 and its games are in development.
The Switch 2 is definitely on my wishlist – if for no other reason than a brand-new Mario Kart game is always gonna be something I’ll want to play! But I’m curious to see how much more powerful the console can be, and whether Nintendo (and other third-party developers, too) are going to be able to fully take advantage of that. Better graphics and shinier-looking games should be a guarantee – but I’d love to see Nintendo also paying attention to the improvements and evolution in some of these genres. Although there’s been less of that in the last ten years than there was from, say, 1995 to 2005, there are still plenty of areas where Nintendo can improve.
When we learn more about the Switch 2 in April, I’ll definitely be sharing my thoughts on how the console is shaping up. I’ll be keeping my ear to the ground for news on launch titles, too! So when we have more news about Nintendo and the Switch 2, I hope you’ll join me here on the website. Until then, I hope this has been a fun and interesting look ahead.
The Nintendo Switch 2 will be officially shown off in April and will launch in 2025 or early 2026. All titles discussed above are the copyright of their respective publisher, developer, studio, and/or corporation. Some promotional art and images courtesy of Nintendo and IGDB. This article contains the thoughts and opinions of one person only and is not intended to cause any offence.
Trekking with Dennis 