Top Nintendo Switch Games 2023

Boltgun impresses with Warhammer 40K chops and a fully realized vision of the famous franchise as a modern retro-shooter, light on story but heavy on action and nods to the tabletop game. The level design of its many fast-paced arena fights is enjoyable, but the momentum drags once the new weapon and enemy types run out about halfway through. Nonetheless, the quality's high enough that I never got bored – but I think someone who isn't hungry for a retro-shooter or any 40K game they can get their hands on might be a bit let down.

Advance Wars 1+2: Re-Boot Camp bundles together the first two games from the Game Boy Advance for the Nintendo Switch and adds modern features like updated graphics, online play, and a map maker.

Mario Strikers: Battle League takes the fundamentals of soccer and transforms them into a chaotic arcade game. It launches on June 10th on the Nintendo Switch.

WarioWare: Get It Together! is an absurd delight, testing your ability to think quickly and adapt on the fly in a series of ever-escalating microgames. That tried-and-true formula is still a lot of fun here, looking better than ever and introducing unique characters that can either bring interesting twists or mechanical frustration to familiar games depending on who you’re using. It’s a shame that Get It Together!’s multiplayer options somewhat drop the ball though, enough for an evening or two of laugh-out-loud fun with friends but lacking the staying power for many more beyond that.

WRC 10 is a great rally game and a lovely, if a fraction flawed, ode to the… 49-year history of the World Rally Championship. The end result isn’t streets ahead of the already impressive WRC 9 – and it’s still making some of the latter’s minor mistakes – but WRC 10 is another successful example of KT Racing’s commitment to fantastic stage design and frantic, fast-paced, and occasionally unforgiving fun.

Paper Mario: The Origami King is Nintendo’s latest roleplaying game for the Switch, channeling classics like Super Mario RPG and Mario & Luigi for a comedy adventure.

Zombie Army 4: Dead War feels largely familiar amid the horde of Left 4 Dead-style co-op shooters, but it isn’t without its clever mechanical touches and spins on the oldest of video game cliches: killing Nazi zombies. Between its varied and campy story campaign and an amusing horde mode, there are plenty of opportunities for harrowing teamwork and gory, disgusting X-ray kills. The weapon progression system doesn’t give a lot of reasons to branch out, though, so the pull of its replayability isn’t as strong as it could be.

Hyrule Warriors: Definitive Edition is a good-quality port of the Wii U game, but outside of much more stable performance and better local co-op it doesn’t add enough new content to make replaying the story mode interesting again if you’ve already tried it. Luckily, the Adventure Mode maps and 16 of the 31 unlockable characters are available from the start.

With its gleefully mischievous cast and a few new mechanical tricks, Lego DC Super-Villains is a refreshing twist on the trusted Lego game formula. It's a shame that long-running glitches that have plagued the series for years still rear their ugly heads, but subtle improvements across the board make them tolerable, in large part because there's so much else to like.

Disney Illusion Island’s dazzling presentation, tight platforming, and kid-friendly approach to nonlinear design will amaze young gamers, but its shallow mechanics may make less of an impression on Metroidvania veterans.