The Switch 2 arrived in June 2025, so the library is still young, and the list stops where the critical consensus stops rather than filling out a round number. It mixes true Nintendo exclusives with Switch 2 editions of Zelda classics and with ports of demanding games from other platforms, many of which have found a comfortable home on a hybrid. The console is at its best with Nintendo's own platformers, with tightly designed indie and retro-style games, and with big role-playing games that suit long handheld sessions. The list grows as new games reach critics, so it is worth returning. The write-ups explain what each game does well and where it falls short.
1. The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom - Nintendo Switch 2 Edition#
Nintendo EPD released Tears of the Kingdom in May 2023, and the Switch 2 Edition from June 2025 brings the same game to the new hardware with sharper visuals and a smoother frame rate. The sequel to Breath of the Wild keeps Hyrule but adds the sky islands and the Depths below, and above all it hands the player tools that turn physics into a toy box. Ultrahand glues objects together, Fuse attaches materials to weapons and Recall reverses an object's movement, so a bridge, a vehicle or a flying machine can be built from whatever is lying around. Critics rewarded that freedom with a Metacritic score of 95 for the Switch 2 version, the joint highest on the platform. The weakness is that weapons still break quickly, and the Depths are dark and repetitive compared with the surface.
2. Hades II#
Supergiant Games launched Hades II in early access in May 2024 and released the finished game in September 2025, including a Switch 2 version. As Melinoe, daughter of Hades, the player fights up out of the underworld to challenge the Titan of Time, choosing boons from Olympian gods and building a run around spells, weapon aspects and a growing witchcraft toolkit. Combat is fast and readable, and the hub between runs keeps rewarding failure with story, relationships and new upgrades, which is why critics scored it 95 on Metacritic, level with Tears of the Kingdom. The art, voice acting and music are again a benchmark for the genre, and a single run fits a short handheld session. The weakness is a heavy resource-gathering loop that asks for repetition before the deeper systems open up, and the structure will feel familiar to anyone who played the first Hades.
3. The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild - Nintendo Switch 2 Edition#
Released in March 2017 for Switch and Wii U, Breath of the Wild received a Nintendo Switch 2 Edition in June 2025 with improved resolution and frame rate. Nintendo EPD rebuilt Zelda around curiosity: anything visible on the horizon can be climbed, and a systemic engine lets fire, metal, wind and ice interact in ways the designers never had to script. Shrines work as short puzzle rooms, and the Great Plateau opening teaches the rules without a forced tutorial. Critics treated the original as a new template for open-world design, and the Switch 2 Edition sits at 94 on Metacritic, third on the platform. Playing it in a sharper, steadier form makes the landscape feel closer to what the art direction always suggested. The weakness is that weapons break constantly, and the four Divine Beasts are shorter and less inventive than the classic dungeons of earlier games.
4. Hollow Knight: Silksong#
Team Cherry released Silksong in September 2025, years after an announcement that made it one of the most anticipated games in the medium. Hornet, the agile protector from the first game, climbs through the kingdom of Pharloom with a needle, a thread and a set of crests that change how she fights. The world is denser and more vertical than Hallownest, the boss fights are demanding and the hand-drawn animation and music are exceptional. It scored 91 on Metacritic on Switch 2, tied with Donkey Kong Bananza for the best of the platform's original releases. The metroidvania structure suits handheld play and the Switch 2 version runs more smoothly than the original Switch release. The weakness is difficulty: sudden spikes, long runs back to a boss after dying and a steep early curve can wear down even patient players.
5. Donkey Kong Bananza#
Nintendo EPD released Donkey Kong Bananza in July 2025 as a Switch 2 exclusive, made by the team behind Super Mario Odyssey. Its idea is that nearly everything in the world can be smashed, dug through and carried. Donkey Kong tunnels through layered terrain in search of gold and Banandium gems, and the power of the new hardware lets the ground crumble and reshape itself in real time. Transformations, a young Pauline with a singing voice and a steady stream of secrets keep each layer surprising. Critics gave it 91 on Metacritic and placed it high on the year-end lists for 2025. It is the clearest example of a game that could not exist on the original Switch. The weakness is a mostly forgiving difficulty, which experienced platformer players may find too easy, and the destructible design does not give the tightly authored levels of Mario's best outings.
6. Elden Ring: Tarnished Edition#
FromSoftware's Elden Ring reached Switch 2 in August 2026 as the Tarnished Edition, and reviews of the port landed at around 90 on Metacritic. Set in the Lands Between, it lets the player ride, glide and fight across an open world full of optional dungeons, hidden bosses and lore delivered through fragments, and the version includes the Shadow of the Erdtree expansion. Outlets scored the port in the top range, several giving it 9 or higher out of 10. It is a rare case of one of the defining games of the decade fitting a portable, with the open world intact. The weakness is performance: the port targets 30 frames per second both docked and handheld, with no 60 fps option, and reviewers reported dips in large boss fights and busy areas.
7. Resident Evil Requiem#
Capcom released Resident Evil Requiem on 27 February 2026 as the ninth main entry in the series, and it reached Switch 2 alongside the other platforms. Critics responded warmly, with Metacritic scores around 90 that placed it above the seventh and eighth games in the mainline series. It returns to a heavier, more atmospheric kind of horror, where limited resources and unsettling environments carry more weight than action set pieces, and the player can switch between first- and third-person views as FBI analyst Grace Ashcroft. The Switch 2 version drew praise for holding a steady 60 frames per second in handheld mode, and it is proof that a modern horror game can live on a hybrid without becoming unrecognizable. The weakness is that fitting a demanding game onto portable hardware still costs some image quality and detail compared with the strongest PC and console versions.
8. Mina the Hollower#
Yacht Club Games, the studio behind Shovel Knight, released Mina the Hollower in May 2026 for Switch 2 and other platforms. It is a top-down adventure drawn in the style of Game Boy Color games, in which Mina fights with a whip, uses a range of sidearms and can burrow underground to dodge attacks and slip through the map. The blend of Zelda-style exploration, Castlevania atmosphere and punishing but fair combat earned a Metacritic score of 90 on Switch 2, among the best of the year at launch. The compact, pixel-perfect art holds up on both a television and the handheld screen, and the design rewards short sessions as well as long ones. The weakness is that it wears its influences openly, so players who want a structure that departs from the classics it honors may find parts of it familiar.
9. Trails in the Sky 1st Chapter#
Nihon Falcom's remake of the 2004 role-playing game reached Switch 2 in September 2025, with a Switch 2 Edition offering sharper graphics and shorter load times. Estelle and Joshua Bright set out as apprentice bracers, the local guild workers who help townspeople, and gradually uncover a conspiracy that stretches across the kingdom of Liberl. The remake rebuilds the series opener with new 3D visuals, real-time exploration and a tactical turn-based combat system with plenty of options. Critics called it the best-reviewed entry in the long-running Trails series, with Metacritic scores of around 90. Reviewers found that Switch 2 handles it well, with only occasional stumbles when docked. The weakness is pacing: it is a slow, dialogue-heavy opening chapter that ends with the story only beginning, so it asks for patience and a follow-up.
10. Onimusha: Way of the Sword#
Capcom released Onimusha: Way of the Sword in September 2026, reviving a dormant action series with the swordsman Miyamoto Musashi in a demon-haunted Kyoto. Its combat rewards precise parries and counters that let the player absorb the souls of defeated demons, in a design close to the classic games but with modern speed. The Switch 2 version is reviewed at around 89 to 90 on Metacritic, and coverage noted that handheld ports of demanding engines rarely score as well as the console and PC versions of the same game. Several outlets gave it 9 or 10 out of 10. The weakness is that the Switch 2 version cannot match the PS5 in visual fidelity, so it is best recommended to players who want the game on a portable.
11. Pokémon Pokopia#
Pokémon Pokopia was released in March 2026 as a Switch 2 exclusive, co-developed by Game Freak and Omega Force and published by Nintendo and The Pokémon Company. The player is a Ditto in human form who arrives in a bare landscape and rebuilds it by gathering resources, crafting furniture, growing crops and shaping habitats that attract Pokémon, each with its own skills. It sits somewhere between Animal Crossing and Minecraft, and critics called it a cozy, generous life sim that earned a Metacritic score of 89, the highest of any Pokémon game. Reviewers also noted that it runs at a steady 60 frames per second. The building loop suits short handheld sessions. The weakness is that it contains no traditional battles or collecting, so players who want the mainline formula will not find it here, and the pace is deliberately slow.
12. No Man's Sky#
Hello Games' space exploration game arrived in a Switch 2 edition on 5 June 2025, and reviewers received it well, with a Metacritic score of 89. Nine years of updates have turned the once-troubled 2016 launch into a game of planet hopping, base building, freighter fleets and shared expeditions, all on procedurally generated worlds. Outlets described the port as nearly seamless in handheld form. It is a long-form game that suits the console's pick-up-and-play nature, since a session can be a quick hop or a long survey. The weakness is that the combat and inventory management remain the least polished parts, and the sheer number of systems is overwhelming for a newcomer.
13. Pragmata#
Capcom released Pragmata in April 2026, a new science-fiction franchise set on a lunar research station. Astronaut Hugh teams up with an android child called Diana, and combat combines third-person shooting with a hacking minigame played on the same buttons, so the player must solve small puzzles while enemies close in. Critics praised the striking art direction and the inventive loop, and the Switch 2 version scored 89 on Metacritic, well received as an example of Capcom's porting work. The relationship between the two leads is what gives the story its emotional weight. The weakness is a plot that leans on familiar science-fiction clichés, and the hacking system takes time to feel natural before it turns into a strength.
14. Split Fiction#
Hazelight Studios, led by Josef Fares, released Split Fiction in March 2025 through EA, and a Switch 2 version followed. It is a co-op-only adventure in which two writers, Mio and Zoe, are trapped inside a machine that steals ideas from their stories and must jump between science-fiction and fantasy worlds. Each level introduces a new mechanic, from grappling to gliding to rhythm sequences, and then discards it before it grows stale, which is the same trick that made It Takes Two so admired. Critics scored it around 88 on Metacritic. The Switch 2 version supports local co-op and online play, and handing a second controller across the couch fits the console well. The weakness is that it requires a second player, and reviewers noted that the Switch 2 version runs at lower settings than on PS5.
15. Final Fantasy VII Remake Intergrade#
Square Enix released the Intergrade edition of Final Fantasy VII Remake on Switch 2 in January 2026. It retells the first act of the 1997 classic in Midgar, where Cloud joins the eco-terrorist group Avalanche, in a hybrid of real-time action and paused tactical commands, with the Yuffie episode included. Critics rated the Switch 2 version in the high 80s, and reviewers praised it as a first-class port that keeps the cinematic presentation and the reorchestrated soundtrack. The console holds a locked 30 frames per second, docked and handheld, with no reported dips. The weakness is that the frame rate is well below the PS5 version, the image looks somewhat darker, and it tells only the first part of the original story, so the full picture requires its sequel.
16. Street Fighter 6#
Capcom released Street Fighter 6 in June 2023, and the version for Switch 2 reached the console in June 2025 with a large roster and the full set of modes. The Drive System gives every character a pool of defensive and offensive tools, and Modern controls let newcomers pull off special moves with simplified inputs while veterans keep the classic six-button layout. World Tour lets the player create an avatar and explore a city, and the Battle Hub gathers the online community. Critics rated it among the best fighting games ever made, with a Metacritic score of 87 for the Switch 2 listing. Having a top-tier fighter on a portable console is a genuine advantage for anyone who plays with friends on the go. The weakness is that the Drive gauge and the many systems demand study, and World Tour is uneven compared with the excellent versus mode.
17. Final Fantasy Tactics: The Ivalice Chronicles#
Square Enix's remaster of the 1997 tactics classic reached Switch 2 in September 2025 in a Nintendo Switch 2 Edition, with quality-of-life improvements, voiced cutscenes and a choice between the original and a rebalanced difficulty. The story of Ramza Beoulve, a nobleman drawn into a political war, is told in some of the sharpest writing of its era, and the job-based, grid-based combat has few peers among tactical role-playing games. The Switch 2 edition scored 87 on Metacritic, and Nintendo Life called the tweaks meaningful for a game it considered an all-time great. The weakness is that some players would have wanted a more thorough overhaul, since the story pacing and sharp difficulty curve are unchanged, and grinding can still matter.
18. Blue Prince#
Dogubomb's puzzle adventure reached Switch 2 on 3 March 2026, as a shadow drop during Nintendo's Indie World presentation, almost a year after the game launched on PC and other consoles. The player explores a mansion that rearranges itself, drafting rooms from a choice of three each time a door is opened and trying to reach a mythical Room 46 while resources shrink. It is a roguelike puzzle game with a large web of secrets, and it collected awards and nominations from many major shows in 2025. Its Switch 2 version sits at 87 on Metacritic. Runs are short enough for handheld play. The weakness is that the drafting luck can frustrate, and the deepest puzzles lean heavily on notes and outside knowledge that some players will find too obscure.
19. Mario Kart World#
Nintendo EPD released Mario Kart World on 5 June 2025 as a Switch 2 launch title. It is the first new main entry in the series in over a decade and it connects its courses into one continuous open world, with up to 24 racers on the road at once. Grand Prix races run across the map, Knockout Tour eliminates the slowest drivers in a marathon format and Free Roam allows the player to explore between events. Handling has the same polished feel the series is known for, and the multiplayer is as sharp as ever for a room full of people. Critics scored it 86 on Metacritic, respectful but below the best of the series. The weakness is that Free Roam offers little to do beyond collecting, and the larger races can feel chaotic compared with the tighter format of Mario Kart 8 Deluxe.
20. Deltarune#
Toby Fox, the creator of Undertale, has been releasing Deltarune in chapters since 2018, and the first four chapters are available on Switch 2 and other platforms after the June 2025 release of the latest two. Kris, Susie and Ralsei fight through turn-based encounters in which the player dodges bullet patterns and can spare enemies instead of defeating them, a system that lets the combat carry jokes and character work. The writing is quick and strange, the soundtrack is among the best in modern games and each chapter builds on the last with more ambitious set pieces. Critics rated it 86 on Metacritic. Short, self-contained chapters also suit handheld play. The weakness is that the story is not finished, so a player must accept that the ending still lies in the future.
21. Ball x Pit#
Kenny Sun and Devolver Digital's Ball x Pit reached Switch 2 in October 2025, mixing the brick-breaking of Breakout with a roguelike run and a base-building layer between fights. The player fires an ever-growing volley of balls at descending waves of monsters, fusing and evolving them into absurd combinations, and each run feeds a town that unlocks new heroes and options. Critics scored it 86 on Metacritic for the Switch 2 listing, and short runs fit handheld play well. The weakness is that the core loop repeats, so the appeal depends on how much a player enjoys tuning builds, and the later stretches can feel grindy.
22. Cyberpunk 2077#
CD Projekt Red released Cyberpunk 2077 in December 2020 to a troubled reception, and the game has since been rebuilt through patches and the Phantom Liberty expansion. The Ultimate Edition for Switch 2, released alongside the console in June 2025, includes both, and it ships on a 64 GB game card. V's story through Night City, with its branching quests, memorable side characters and an espionage thriller in Phantom Liberty, is now regarded as one of the strongest role-playing narratives of recent years, and the Switch 2 edition scores 85 on Metacritic. Reviewers described the port as technically impressive, with a 1080p target when docked. The weakness is that it targets 30 or 40 frames per second, well below what the same game achieves on PC and current consoles, and the driving and combat still show their age.
23. Dispatch#
AdHoc Studio, formed by former Telltale developers, released Dispatch in late 2025, and the Switch and Switch 2 versions arrived on 28 January 2026. It is an episodic, choice-driven comedy about Robert Robertson, a former superhero who takes a job dispatching a team of reformed villains, mixing branching dialogue with small management minigames. A cast including Aaron Paul and Jeffrey Wright helps it stand out, and the Switch 2 version has a Metacritic score of 85. Nintendo's platform required toned-down sexual content, and the Switch 2 version runs at higher resolution and frame rate than the standard Switch release. The weakness is that the management minigames are thin next to the writing, and the censorship changes are a reason for some players to look at other platforms.
24. Dragon Quest VII Reimagined#
Square Enix released Dragon Quest VII Reimagined on 5 February 2026, a remake of the sprawling 2000 role-playing game in a new diorama-style art direction. The story of a group of young islanders who travel back in time to restore lost lands is told in dozens of small, self-contained chapters, and the remake trims padding and adds quality-of-life features that make it what Nintendo Life called the most fun version yet. Critics scored the Switch 2 version around 84 on Metacritic. The vocation system offers plenty of build variety and suits long handheld sessions. The weakness is length: the story still takes many hours to get going, and the episodic structure means some chapters are far stronger than others.
The Switch 2 library is short compared with the systems that came before it, and many of these picks are also available on other platforms, but that is the honest state of the console. Nintendo's Zelda editions, Hades II and Silksong currently sit at the top, and the exclusives from Donkey Kong Bananza to Pokémon Pokopia show what the new hardware is meant for. The list will change as new releases reach critics, so it is worth returning.