Boss Rush Banter: What Has Been the Best Year for Nintendo Switch?

We’re now in the fourth year of the Nintendo Switch’s lifecycle, and Nintendo has released a surplus of first party, AAA, and indie games year after year. As of today, the number of titles that are available to play on the Switch is 3913. Since the release of the Switch in 2017, what has been the best year for releases? Let’s take a look at each year and the heavy hitters that came out.

2017 – Launch Year

Nintendo had an incredible launch year for titles, four of which are still in the top ten for games sold on Switch. No matter what genre of game you like, there was something here for you. The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild really set the tone for Switch as a launch title, and from there, we saw brand new installments in several franchises such as Mario, Xenoblade, Splatoon. There were even a couple of new IPs in Arms and Mario Rabbids Kingdom. Here’s a few of the most notable titles released in 2017:

*The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild* (left), *Mario Odyssey* (right)

The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild
Super Mario Odyssey
Xenoblade Chronicles 2
Mario Rabbids Kingdom Battle
Splatoon 2
Stardew Valley
Arms
Sonic Mania
Rocket League
Skyrim

2018 – Sophomore Slump?

Looking through the titles released in 2018, it seemed a little light when it came to first party games, and it was. Even with the lack of first party games in 2018, indie titles really shined, and arguably the year to thank for the recent boom in indie titles and developers. Cult favorites such as Celeste, Child of Light, Undertale, and Hollow Knight were all released in 2018, and they have continued popularity since then. There were a handful of ports that came along as well. How did you feel about this year in gaming? Let’s take a look at some of the more notable games released during 2018:

*Hollow Knight* (left), *Celeste* (right)

Super Smash Bros Ultimate
Octopath Traveler
Donkey Kong Country: Tropical Freeze
Captain Toad: Treasure Tracker
Bayonetta 2
Ys VIII
Monster Hunter Gnerations
Hollow Knight
Celeste
Undertale
Child of Light
Minecraft
Gris

2019 – Feeling Like a Prom King/Queen

This was the year Nintendo returned with first party titles. From May until December, it seemed like there was a big title release from Nintendo every month. We saw a brand new Fire Emblem game, the second installment of Mario Maker, Tetris 99–a new and innovative idea, and even a new RPG workout game with Ring Fit Adventure. They topped off the holiday season with a brand new Pokemon, Luigi’s Mansion 3, and even remade Link’s Awakening from the ground up. Not only did first party shine, we saw heavy hitter Dragon Quest XI S come to Switch as well, and they even had the new IP, Astral Chain, released that year! 2019 was jam packed with games from beginning to end, but was it the best year for the Switch? Let’s look at the notable games released in 2019:

*Fire Emblem: 3 Houses* (left), *Legend of Zelda: Link’s Awakening* (center), *Super Mario Maker 2* (right)

Super Mario Maker 2
Fire Emblem 3 Houses
Link’s Awakening
Pokemon Sword/Shield
Luigi’s Mansion 3
Dragon Quest XI S
Ring Fit Adventure
Mario & Sonic Olympic Games Tokyo 2020
Astral Chain
New Super Mario Bros U Deluxe
Crash Team Racing
Final Fantasy XII: Zodiac Age
Ni No Kuni: Wrath of the White Witch
The Witcher III
Cadence of Hyrule
Untitled Goose Game
Cuphead
Tetris 99

2020 – The Gap Year?

COVID was a wrecking ball in 2020. No matter who you were, it had some affect on you in one way or another. However, one of the few industries that’s boomed in 2020 was gaming. Nintendo sold Switch consoles at a record pace and 28 million copies of the insanely well timed Animal Crossing: New Horizons. Even though sales were high, production was down. We went the entire year without seeing a full Nintendo Direct or shadow drops for game announcements, but despite everything, Nintendo still came through with great new releases, two of which were nominated for Game of the Year at the Game Awards ceremony. Let’s take a look at some of the more notable games from 2020:

*Animal Crossing: New Horizons* (left), *Paper Mario: Origami King* (right)

Animal Crossing: New Horizons
Paper Mario: The Origami King
Hades
Pikmin 3 Deluxe
Xenoblade Chronicles DX
Super Mario 3D All-Stars
Hyrule Warriors: Age of Calamity
Trials of Mana
Immortals Fenyx Rising
Clubhouse Games 51 Worldwide Classics
Crosscode
Bug Fables
Ori and the Will of the Wisps
A Short Hike
Streets of Rage 4

2021 – Mask Off

Although the year hasn’t finished yet, we’re looking at an already incredible lineup for 2021. Capcom has been showing so much love for their Monster Hunter series, and JRPGs are here in a big way with the releases of Neo The World Ends With You, Monster Hunter Stories 2, Ys IX, Bravely Default 2, and Cris Tales. Along with those games, Nintendo has shown their first party games some love in porting Mario 3D World with additional content in Bowser’s Fury and Mario Golf. 2021 has potential to be the best year, but we’ll have to see how it plays out. Let’s look at what’s already been released:

*Super Mario Odyssey* (left) and *Bravely Default II* (right)

Bravely Default 2
Mario 3D World + Bowser’s Fury
Monster Hunter Rise
Tony Hawk pro Skater 1+2
Game Builder Garage
Pokemon Snap
Miitopia

And here’s what’s coming up:

Monster Hunter Stories 2
Ys IX
No More Heroes III
Mario Party Superstars
Wario Ware: Get it Together
Metroid Dread
Pokemon Brilliant Diamond/Shining Pearl
Advance Wars Reboot 1+2

Now that we’ve looked over a few of these games over the last few years, which year stands out to you the most? For me, I’d like to say it’s 2017, because Breath of the Wild and Xenoblade Chronicles 2 are two of my all time favorite games. What do you think? Let us know in the comments section or on our Discord!