Having passed Wii’s lifetime sales total, Nintendo Switch is now the company’s best-selling home console of all time. It’s the fastest home console to pass 100 million units sold, and according to Nintendo President Shuntaro Furukawa, Switch it's still in the middle of its lifecycle.
A major factor in the system’s longevity has been its steady stream of first-party games, from Nintendo’s launch-day masterpiece Breath of the Wild in 2017 to its reinvention of a beloved franchise in 2022 with Pokemon Legends: Arceus. The console is now in its sixth year, and Nintendo has shown no sign of slowing down support: After the latest Nintendo Direct, we know of 10 Nintendo games* in development.
To give Switch owners a better idea of what to expect in the months ahead, we’ve compiled those games in the list below, ordered by release date. Click through the gallery or continue scrolling for our full rundown of every game known to be in development at Nintendo, as of September 13, 2022.
*There's some wiggle room when it comes to what is and isn't a "Nintendo game," and we're not covering all Switch exclusives. Instead, we've included games that Nintendo itself considers to be Nintendo products according to their recent earnings material, covering new games Nintendo is developing, publishing, or licensing from third parties. (Technically, Mario + Rabbids Sparks of Hope is developed and published by Ubisoft, but it feels silly to leave a game with Mario in a starring role off the list.) Anything that doesn't quite fit those criteria (such as older games being re-released via Nintendo Switch Online) is not included.
Mario + Rabbids Sparks of Hope
Revealed at E3 2021, Mario + Rabbids Sparks of Hope is Ubisoft and Nintendo’s follow-up to 2017’s Kingdom Battle. Sparks of Hope is a single-player adventure that sends Mario and friends into space to fight against a new villain named Cursa.
While sharing a name and the foundation of strategy gameplay, Ubisoft says Sparks of Hope is more of a “spiritual sequel” to Kingdom Battle: “We never designed it as a sequel, but a new take on the tactical genre," game director Davide Soliani told IGN. Soliani, who you may remember from his endearing appearance at E3 2017, also directed the original game
This time around, levels aren’t linear; planets instead are open locations you can explore, each with their own stories and characters. Ubisoft has also altered gameplay in a significant way, doing away with Kingdom Battle’s grid system in favor of “a focus on fluidity and the action offered by the possibility to move the heroes in real-time.”
Sparks of Hope features nine playable characters, including Mario, Luigi, Peach, Rabbid Luigi, Rabbid Peach, Rabbid Rosalina, and more.
Bayonetta 3
Sega may own the Bayonetta trademark, but Nintendo is both funding and publishing Bayonetta 3, and therefore considers the game one of its own. It will be exclusive to Switch when it's released later in 2022.
Bayonetta 3 was announced with a short teaser trailer at The Game Awards 2017. Developer PlatinumGames stayed largely quiet on the project until its proper unveiling at a Nintendo Direct last September. The trailer finally gave us our first look at Bayonetta's new moves, mechanics, and enemies. It ended with a 2022 release window and a shot of someone who looks an awful lot like Vergil from Devil May Cry.
Our last update on the game came in September when Platinum released a new Bayonetta 3 trailer showing off combat, demon summoning, and more.
Bayonetta and Bayonetta 2 were ported to Switch in early 2018, shortly after Bayonetta 3 was announced.
Pokemon Scarlet and Violet
As revealed during February's Pokemon Presents, the series' next mainline games are Pokemon Scarlet and Pokemon Violet. The games' first trailer showed off a new region and the new Gen 9 starter Pokemon: the grass-type Sprigatito, fire-type Fuecoco, and water-type Quaxly.
Nintendo describes Scarlet and Violet as an "evolutionary" step for Pokemon; the games feature an "open world where various towns with no borders blend seamlessly into the wilderness." There are 70 Pokemon confirmed for Scarlet and Violet so far.
Nintendo most recently revealed Scarlet and Violet's three main stories: Victory Road, Path of Legends, and Starfall Street. The duo of games also introduces the Terastal Phenomenon, a new battle form exclusive to the Paldea region that causes Pokemon to take a gem-like appearance and increases their powers.
Fire Emblem Engage
Fire Emblem Engage is the next mainline game in Nintendo's beloved strategy-RPG series. Engage introduces a new protagonist, Alear, who is known as a "divine dragon." Alear shares a spiritual connection with past Fire Emblem protagonist Marth. Returning characters Sigurd and Celica also appear in the reveal trailer.
Engage first leaked back in June with a handful of screenshots. The series' most recent mainline entry, Fire Emblem: Three Houses, received a 9.5 from IGN for its "incredible amount of choice both on and off the battlefield."
Kirby's Return to Dream Land Deluxe
Nintendo and developer HAL Laboratory are bringing the 2011 Wii game Kirby's Return to Dream Land to Switch on February 24, 2023. The 2.5D sidescroller comes to Switch complete with its collection of minigames, four-player local co-op, and updated visuals.
IGN awarded the original Wii release of Return to Dreamland a 7.5, calling it "capable and competent" yet unoriginal.
The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom
One of the most anticipated games regardless of publisher is undoubtedly The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild 2. The sequel to IGN’s Best Game of All Time was revealed at E3 2019 with a trailer that set a notably darker tone than the 2017 original.
For two years Nintendo remained quiet about Breath of the Wild 2. Then, at E3 2021, Nintendo debuted the game’s second trailer, showing Link gliding through the air and traversing Hyrule using techniques both familiar and new. At one point, Link wields a handheld flamethrower; at another, he teleports vertically through stone, hinting at the sequel’s expanded traversal mechanics. The trailer ends with an ominous shot of Hyrule Castle suspended in midair.
The sequel will, of course, be a single-player adventure, though when asked, Nintendo wouldn’t deny the possibility of co-op in Breath of the Wild 2. It’s being directed by Hidemaro Fujibayashi, director of many past Zelda games including the first Breath of the Wild.
In September Nintendo revealed the sequel's official title, Tears of the Kingdom, as well as a May 12, 2023, release date.
Pikmin 4
Shigeru Miyamoto confirmed Pikmin 4 was in development back in 2015, saying at the time the game was “actually very close to completion.” However, in the six-plus years since, Nintendo has revealed very little about Pikmin 4.
In 2016 Miyamoto reiterated development was ongoing, though he noted it had fallen down Nintendo’s list of priorities. The next update came at E3 2017 when Miyamoto once again said Pikmin 4 was "progressing."
Now, following the latest Direct, we know Pikmin 4 will finally hit Switch sometime in 2023.
The series’ most recent mainline game, Pikmin 3, was released for Wii U in 2013. Pikmin 3 Deluxe, which adds new content and quality-of-life improvements, came to Switch in 2020.
Advance Wars 1+2 Re-Boot Camp
Nintendo will follow Kirby with Advance Wars 1+2: Re-Boot Camp, a remastered collection of Advance Wars and Advance Wars 2: Black Hole Rising. The military-themed strategy game comes to Switch with an all-new art style and animated character portraits. It features two campaigns and a four-player Versus Mode.
Re-Boot Camp is being developed by WayForward (Shantae) under the supervision of Nintendo, which will also publish it. Nintendo originally scheduled Re-Boot Camp for December 2021 but delayed it to 2022 to give the team “a little more time for fine tuning.” It was then delayed again, this time indefinitely, due to the war in Ukraine.
We awarded Advance Wars and Advance Wars 2 a 9.9 and 9, respectively, when they were released in the early 2000s for Game Boy Advance.
Detective Pikachu 2
A sequel to the 2018 3DS game Detective Pikachu is in development for Switch.
Detective Pikachu 2 will provide a conclusion to the cliffhanger ending of the first game. Nintendo says the sequel will have “a different take on the ending than what you saw in theaters,” referring to the Ryan Reynolds-voiced Detective Pikachu movie.
We called the first Detective Pikachu game “a bold take on the iconic Pokemon, which succeeds thanks to Pika Prompts that build Pikachu beyond detective stereotypes.”
Metroid Prime 4
In 2017, Nintendo announced work had begun on Metroid Prime 4, reportedly at Bandai Namco Studios Singapore. It was a celebratory day for Metroid fans, who hadn't had a new Prime game since 2007.
However, Nintendo scrapped that game in 2019 and announced development was restarting at Retro Studios, the Nintendo-owned studio responsible for the original Metroid Prime trilogy. The decision was made after Nintendo concluded the first version of Metro Prime 4 wasn't meeting its standards for the series.
Longtime series producer Kensuke Tanabe is still overseeing the project at Retro. He’s joined by former DICE art director Jhony Ljungstedt, who was hired for the same role by Retro in 2020.
Outside of a logo, we’ve yet to see anything official from Nintendo. The last update came during E3 2021, when the company said it was still “working hard” on Metroid Prime 4.
The series’ latest, Metroid Dread, was released in 2021. We awarded it a 9 and said it “has just enough clever innovation to balance its familiarity.”
Nintendo DLC
The Mario Kart 8 Deluxe Booster Course Pass includes 48 remade retro tracks, released over six waves, for $25 USD. The first wave was released on March 18, the second on August 4. Wave 3 is due out this holiday. Nintendo is planning to release all 48 tracks by the end of 2023 — at which point the game will feature over half of all Mario Kart tracks ever made.
Nintendo Switch Sports will add golf to its lineup of games this holiday. Available as a free update, Switch Sports' golf will include 21 holes from the Wii Sports series and support for local and online play.
Pauline and Diddy Kong will be added to Mario Strikers: Battle League in September as a free update, alongside a new stadium, gear, Striker Ranking, and more customization options.
Xenoblade Chronicles 3's second wave of DLC will be released on October 13. Available as part of the game's $30 USD season pass, the DLC adds a new mechanical hero named Ino, challenge battles, and new outfits.
There you have it: every Nintendo game we know to be in development. Let us know what you think of Nintendo’s upcoming lineup by commenting or voting in the poll below!
Interested in more content like this? Check out our article on every game in development at EA and stay tuned for our similar breakdown of every game in development at Ubisoft.
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