2021 has come and gone (almost) and despite a quiet start to the year, Switch owners have seen some real gems launch over the past 12 months. We’ve seen big releases (admittedly re-releases or remakes in several cases) of most of Nintendo’s biggest franchises, with some big anniversaries popping up, too.
We got a Mario, a Zelda, a couple of Pokémon, a Metroid(!) and, perhaps most excitingly, a Big Brain Academy. Hey, it’s a fun little game! Throw in WarioWare, another Mario Party and a host of brilliant third-party and indie titles — plus a sexy new SKU in the Switch OLED model — and it’s tough to deny that Nintendo’s console ended up having a strong software showing throughout 2021.
As such, we asked Nintendo Life readers to rate the Top 50 Switch games of 2021, and the ranking below is the result, as governed by the User Ratings associated with every 2021 Switch game released according to our games database. As with many of our reader-ranked Best Games round-ups, the ranking will change even after publication to reflect those User Ratings — and that means it’s never too late to rate your collection and influence the list.
To score your favourites, simply click score the games below by clicking on their respective stars and rating them out of 10. Can’t see your favourite? Head to our library of Switch games to find what you’re looking for. To become eligible, a game needs to have been rated by a minimum of 40 users.
So, let’s take a look back at 2021AD and the best Switch games of the year.
50. PAC-MAN 99 (Switch eShop)
Publisher: Bandai Namco / Developer: Bandai NamcoRelease Date: 7th Apr 2021 (USA) / 8th Apr 2021 (UK/EU)
PAC-MAN 99 may seem initially daunting with mechanics it simply doesn’t explain but once you experiment and learn by fire, it won’t take long to realise its true potential. Arika and Bandai Namco have barely touched the formula of this four-decade-old classic, and yet with just a few new layers it feels like a brand new game. We’ve invested more time than we care to admit into the previous ’99’ entries and PAC-MAN 99 has exactly the same brand of evergreen greatness about it.
49. Blue Fire (Switch eShop)
Publisher: Graffiti Games / Developer: Robi StudiosRelease Date: 4th Feb 2021 (USA) / 4th Feb 2021 (UK/EU)
A very pleasant and enjoyable surprise, Blue Fire is an auspicious debut from ROBI Studios. Only the performance issues, mildly sloppy combat and high difficulty are points of contention, and the latter will certainly depend on your point of view. Developed with passion and skill, this is a world you can lose yourself in that’ll reward you the more you play and the better you get. It’s uncompromising in its difficulty but doesn’t resort to cheap tricks and “gotchas”. The graphics are appealing and, crucially, clear as day. This is a fantastic experience overall, even if it isn’t made up of the most original pieces. It’s gameplay-first and once you’re traversing the infinite space of the Void stages, everything else basically just falls away.
48. Toree 3D (Switch eShop)
Publisher: Diplodocus Games / Developer: SiactroRelease Date: 9th Apr 2021 (USA) / 9th Apr 2021 (UK/EU)
Going in with diminished expectations no-doubt coloured our impressions of Toree 3D, but our brief time with this 99-cent gem was undeniably delightful. For significantly less than the price of a decent cup of coffee, you get an enjoyably bite-sized, colourful 3D platformer with great music and a fun aesthetic that doesn’t take itself seriously in the slightest — and it doesn’t stick around long enough to get boring.
Can it compete with the scale and depth of the Switch’s finest 3D jump-fests? Of course not, but this low-poly PS1-style platforming experience is a joyous breath of fresh air that’s more than worth the asking price. A great way to spend those Gold Points.
47. Big Brain Academy: Brain vs. Brain (Switch)
Publisher: NintendoRelease Date: 3rd Dec 2021 (USA) / 3rd Dec 2021 (UK/EU)
Big Brain Academy: Brain vs. Brain is a fun little romp which doesn’t have ideas above its station and presents its brain-teasers in a more lighthearted, rowdier manner than Dr. Kawashima’s friendly but sterile style. This isn’t the kind of marriage between gameplay and (for lack of a better term) ‘work’ that you’ll find in Ring Fit Adventure, but it’s a greatly enjoyable and budget-friendly way to keep up the little pitter-patter of grey matter for all ages.
46. Miitopia (Switch)
Publisher: Nintendo / Developer: NintendoRelease Date: 21st May 2021 (USA) / 21st May 2021 (UK/EU)
Miitopia is a weird old game, that’s for sure. If from what you’ve read you think you’d enjoy seeing King King Dedede [sic] encouraging our very own Zion Grassl to marry his daughter Kazooie over Jon Cartwright, then you’re bound to have a good time with this. It’s very much the type of game in which you get out as much as you put in; if you’re not into injecting a copy of Chibi-Robo!: Zip Lash into the role of a genie then you might want to think twice, or at least give the free demo a whirl. Whimsy and madcap situations a-plenty, this is a crossover that could rival Super Smash Bros. Ultimate, provided you’re willing to put the effort in.
45. Crash Bandicoot 4: It’s About Time (Switch)
Publisher: Activision / Developer: Toys for BobRelease Date: 11th Mar 2021 (USA) / 12th Mar 2021 (UK/EU)
The Switch version of Crash Bandicoot 4: It’s About Time is a perfectly passable port of a fantastic platformer that’s absolutely rammed with things to do. It may have the lowest frame rate and resolution of all versions of the game, but if the Switch is your main console or you’re looking to enjoy some bandicoot-bouncing on the go in handheld mode, it’s still an excellent offering when judged on its own merits.
44. Super Monkey Ball Banana Mania (Switch)
Publisher: SEGA / Developer: SEGARelease Date: 5th Oct 2021 (USA) / 5th Oct 2021 (UK/EU)
It may not be saying much but Super Monkey Ball Banana Mania is the best the series has been in almost two decades and newcomers are bound to find a lot to love. It wears its heart on its sleeve and clearly the team has true passion for the franchise. It’s packed full of content, new ways to play and there are so many extras and improvements that never existed in the original. Unfortunately, the engine beneath it all isn’t quite up to the job. What they’ve achieved with Unity simply isn’t on par with the originals and while the main game is still enjoyable, many of the party games are severely hindered. Until Monkey Target returns to its former glory, we cannot truly say Super Monkey Ball is back.
43. FEZ (Switch eShop)
Publisher: Polytron / Developer: PolytronRelease Date: 14th Apr 2021 (USA) / 14th Apr 2021 (UK/EU)
FEZ is a fun, challenging puzzle platformer fit to burst with original ideas and unique gameplay wrinkles. Its puzzles bend reality and even leech into our own world on occasion, but aside from a few select mega-challenges never stray into the category of too obtuse or unfair. A few visual and mechanical quirks stop this from being a perfectly polished experience, but these are outweighed by its charm and other wonderful qualities ninefold. It’s another one of those ‘games you have to play’ on Switch, and it couldn’t be more at home.
42. Kaze and the Wild Masks (Switch)
Publisher: Soedesco / Developer: PixelHiveRelease Date: 26th Mar 2021 (USA) / 26th Mar 2021 (UK/EU)
An absolute pleasure from start to finish, what Kaze and the Wild Masks lacks in originality it makes up for in the strength of its level design, responsive controls, kinetic move set and attractive visuals. Excellent, action-packed platforming through and through, with great gameplay variety and gimmicks that don’t compromise on what the game is best at — challenging, fast-paced obstacle courses and deviously-hidden secret areas. Easiest sell? Kaze and the Wild Masks is to Donkey Kong Country what Freedom Planet was to Sonic the Hedgehog. Don’t miss this one.
41. Cyber Shadow (Switch eShop)
Publisher: Yacht Club Games / Developer: Mechanical Head StudiosRelease Date: 26th Jan 2021 (USA) / 26th Jan 2021 (UK/EU)
If you consider yourself a fan of retro action platformers, you owe it to yourself to pick up Cyber Shadow. It’s clear in virtually every facet of Cyber Shadow’s design that this project was a labour of love and that its designer is intimately familiar with what makes the stalwarts of this beloved genre so great. Well-built levels, authentic presentation, tight controls and a high difficulty all combine to make this a supreme and focused experience, and one that we can easily say is well worth your time. Mechanical Head Studios has set a high bar with its inaugural release.
