“It’s hard to believe that it was already a year ago that I was telling you about the amazing games that we had lined up for the Nintendo Switch. Now I won’t get all wistful on you, but I do want to thank the Nindies – the content partners that made this last year one to remember,” said Damon Baker, Nintendo of America’s senior manager for publisher & developer relations. “What started as a community has grown into a family, supported by the shared passion between independent developers, their games and the fans that have embraced them. I’m happy to say that the family will continue to grow through 2018 and beyond.”
As much as we would love to shout about the excellent remasters of modern classics – the likes of Mark Of The Ninja, Lumines, Banner Saga and its sequel, Reigns: King And Queen, Dark Souls, Crashlands and Hyper Light Drifter – on the near horizon, we’ve decided to dedicate this space to 12 of the very best brand-new titles reaching the system before the year’s end. Nintendo has, reportedly, got more games in the pipeline than it has time to market or bandwidth to get onto the store front, so expect the library of games to only increase as the year winds on; it’s been a long time coming, but Nintendo is finally back on top, working hard to make the Switch one of the most attractive and diverse gaming systems on the market.
1. FANTASY STRIKE
Designed to be an accessible fighting game that doesn’t compromise on its depth, Fantasy Strike looks to be a fun combination of tactical button bashing and visually impressive special attacks that change up the speed and scale of combat for both brawlers. It’ll be hitting Switch this summer.
2. JUST SHAPES & BEATS
Have you ever wanted to play a co-operative music-based bullet-hell game? No, we can’t say we’ve even entertained the idea either, but that doesn’t mean we aren’t hugely excited to see how it plays out! Just Shapes & Beats looks completely mad – we are 100 per cent into it.
3. GARAGE
No Time To Explain developer tinyBuild is back, this time with a top-down shooter called Garage. Violent and fast-paced, Garage is heavily inspired by B-movie action and subsequently traps you in a dark underworld setting in which you must battle against waves of the walking dead to survive.
4. POOL PANIC
Winning the award for least realistic pool simulator, Pool Panic is a Switch console exclusive coming in 2018. It looks fun and slightly unhinged, which is what you’d expect from Adult Swim Games. This off-kilter game has over 100 levels and supports four-player local multiplayer.
5. BOMB CHICKEN
Gaming’s obsession with putting chickens in compromising positions is unending, as proven once more with Bomb Chicken. Go on a mission to find out what’s in the secret sauce in this puzzle-action platformer, laying bombs to overcome puzzles, defeat enemies and escape a litany of dangerous situations.
6. LIGHT FALL
Fans of Celeste will want to take note of Light Fall. It’s got a visually arresting artistic design, a stunning soundtrack and pixel-perfect jump mechanics. Manipulating a magic box to aid you in your journey, expect Light Fall to be a frustrating platformer that you won’t be able to put down.
7. WEST OF LOATHING
Slapstick comedy makes its way to Switch in the form of West Of Loathing, a console exclusive RPG played out through a wacky stick figure visual design. Don’t let its simplistic looks fool you though, this Wild West game is surprisingly deep and intuitive, featuring optional turn-based combat and smart opportunities to shape the story through your actions.
8. PODE
Inspired by Norwegian art and culture, Pode is a beautiful co-op exploration game in which you and a travelling companion seek to unlock the mysteries of the land by solving puzzles and avoiding a variety of dangers. Pode seems fairly easy going, giving us ample opportunity to soak in its wonderful audio and visual design.
9. THE MESSENGER
There’s more than meets the eye to this Ninja Gaiden-inspired must-play action-platformer. The Messenger is in actuality a time-travelling adventure; completing it first time through will open up portals across the game world that let you dive between 8-bit and 16-bit generations to access new areas, enemies and secrets.
10. BAD NORTH
Real-time tactics, minimalistic visuals and punishing roguelike elements come crashing together in Bad North, the new strategy game from Plausible Concept. Defend your home from invasions and be wary of losing commanders on the battlefield during the fray – once they’re lost, they’re lost forever.
11. BANNER SAGA 3
Stoic’s critically-acclaimed fantasy role-playing series Banner Saga is making its way to Switch this summer. The stunning visuals, nuanced story, deep strategy systems and easily digestible structure
makes the Switch a natural fit. This is one game you’ll want to have installed ahead of any journey.
12. TRAVIS STRIKES AGAIN: NO MORE HEROES
Travis Touchdown (along with a co-op partner) will make his way through seven virtual worlds, each comprised of a different genre – action, racing and puzzle have already been confirmed. It certainly isn’t No More Heroes 3, but this still looks like it’s going to be a lot of fun.
