The eldest kid has a birthday coming up, and he wants a particular game (Super Mario Odyssey) that apparently only appears on the Nintendo Switch. …Well, I don’t want to disappoint the little guy, you know what I mean? So I guess we’re just gonna have to go get one. Fortunately, my relatives are gonna help kick in for it, so it won’t be too dear.
The question is, though: what other games should I be getting? For the kid, that is. I mean, obviously, aside from Zelda: Breath of the Wild. I hear that that’s a decent game and everything.
“Zelda: Breath Of The Wild” is the only worth-while game on the Switch. Good luck.
Nonsense. Skyrim is on the Switch now.
Well, you’ve named the big two- Odyssey and BotW. I suppose Mario Kart would be another, but I was never into that series. Oh, Splatoon, but that really needs to be online. Later this year, there will be a Kirby and Donkey Kong game, as well as Smash Bros.
There’s also the Labo thing, which is Nintendo’s “build stuff with cardboard” thing which is… a thing.
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In the “not for your kid” category, there’s Bayonetta 1 and 2, Xenoblade, and I play Disgaea on it, but a lot of the Switch’s recent content is with indie games, which you’d already have access to on the PC. And that’s about it. Maybe Nintendo will announce stuff later this year, but that’s it for the moment. I do know one friend who uses it to play the new games that go crossplatform, like Wolfenstein, but he really doesn’t have free time to game, except when he’s on a plane, and your kid won’t have that issue.
Indies may be worth your while on the Switch market, as many reports I’ve heard say Steam is so flooded with crap its hard to sort through reskinned-clone spam for anything good. Nintendo has, apparently, far more curatorial standards.
Here’s my library, with my thoughts (not in ranked order):
1. Super Mario Odyssey – An excellent entry in the Mario universe. Intuitive controls and a lot of interesting things to do. Becoming a T-Rex is one of the most fun things I’ve done in a game.
2. Mario Kart – It’s the same game that came out for the Wii U, with some additional tracks/racers, so if you like Mario Kart, you’ll like this.
3.
3. Breath of the Wild – I feel like I’m about 40 hours into this game and have barely scratched the surface. There’s always something grabbing my eye and pulling me away from the “main” quest. Absolutely recommend.
4. Puyo Puyo Tetris – Fun little puzzle competition game. I’ve only played in VS mode against my wife and it makes for some fun fights.
5. Snipperclips – An underrated co-op materpiece. Requires thinking outside the box and communicating with your partner. Also leads to a lot of unintentionally suggestive things being shouted….”Put your thing in that hole and rotate around!”
6. Moon Hunters – Interesting concept. It’s an RPG that plays out over the same 5 day period as many times as you want to play it, with procedurally generated levels and a lot of interesting backstory. On the marketplace; not a physical disk.
7. Skyrim – I haven’t even opened it yet, but it’s just sitting there waiting for me.
8. Mario/Rabbids – Surprisingly deep turn-based squad shooter. Builds a lot of concepts into a game with a very cartoony feel to it, but a great intro to turn-based strategy games for kids.
9. Stardew Valley – My wife is OBSESSED with this game. Farming/life simulator in the vein of a Harvest Moon, but a little deeper, in my opinion.
I don’t have any comment on the Nintendo Switch, I just wanted to complement Moe on how slickly he managed to spread the guilt on this purchase. “For the kid, that is”
I bow before the Master.