The last couple years have been quite a great time for Nintendo fans. Ever since the Nintendo Switch released in March of 2017, the company has been delivering a steady stream of quality games on the system. 2017 saw fantastic releases such as The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild, Super Mario Odyssey, and Xenoblade Chronicles 2, while 2018 featured games like Octopath Traveler, Pokémon Let’s Go Pikachu/Eevee, and most recently Super Smash Bros. Ultimate. Additionally, there have been a wealth of indie games, third-party support, and Wii U ports that can easily fill in potential drought periods. Additionally, while the system is approaching 8 years old (already!?) the Nintendo 3DS still has just a little bit of life left, and even that system will provide some intriguing games in 2019.
No matter what, there is something for everyone to play. The last two years have been a great time for Nintendo fans, but despite how great the last couple years have been, could 2019 be even better? Well, it’s too early to say, but if all the games are on schedule and release at the proper times, we could be talking about 2019 being Nintendo’s best year yet. 2019 looks to provide a few heavy hitters from franchises we haven’t seen in a few years, as well as fill in just about all of the gaps for each kind of gamer. Here we will look at some of the most interesting games that will appear on a Nintendo system that could make Nintendo fans extremely happy in 2019.
30 Generation 8 Pokémon RPG
While Pokémon Let’s Go Pikachu/Eevee was the first Pokémon RPGs to release on a home console since Pokémon XD: Gale of Darkness, they weren’t exactly cannon games. Those games primarily focused on bringing in the Pokémon Go crowd and having them experience a taste of traditional Pokémon gameplay.
This will be the real Pokémon experience veteran fans have been waiting for.
Game Freak already confirmed that another Pokémon RPG is on its way to Nintendo Switch this year and it will be a more traditional experience that will include a brand new generation of Pokémon. They have teased fans about how surprising it will look once it is revealed. This will very likely be the most popular release of 2019.
29 Animal Crossing Is Finally Coming To Switch
The Animal Crossing fan base is almost a completely different demographic of gamers compared to most of Nintendo’s other series. Much like Pokémon, there hasn’t been a console game in quite a while, not since Animal Crossing: City Folk on the Nintendo Wii. Since then the series has had a 3DS release, a few sub-par spinoffs like Amiibo Festival, and even a smartphone app.
It only took 10 years for another console Animal Crossing game.
After the strong demand from fans, Animal Crossing will finally release on Nintendo Switch this year and many people couldn’t be more excited. The ability to have this game on the go and in a home setting will help connect players with both real friends and their animal friends.
28 Fire Emblem: Three Houses
Back in February of 2017, Nintendo announced that a Fire Emblem game is in development for Nintendo Switch. Again, much like the previously mentioned games, it’s been a while since Fire Emblem has appeared on a home console, not since Radiant Dawn in 2007. The game would be kept under wraps until it was finally revealed at E3 2018 with an impressive trailer showcasing a large scale presentation, quality music, and voice acting, as well as what appears to be some open world segments.
Fire Emblem Three Houses may be one of the best games releasing on Switch this year.
Many veteran fans were worried that the series would continue off of the popularity of the more light-hearted Fire Emblem Fates, but the trailer for Three Houses shows that the terrible dialogue and Waifu fan-service may be a thing of the past.
27 Luigi’s Mansion 3
Back when Luigi was featured in a Castlevania-themed Super Smash Bros. Ultimate trailer, many fans started wishing for a Luigi’s Mansion game to appear on the Nintendo Switch. To everyone’s surprise, Nintendo has actually been working on Luigi’s Mansion 3 for the Nintendo Switch and it will launch sometime this year.
Not much was shown in the announcement trailer last September, but the neat fact is that the Super Smash Bros. Ultimate Castlevania trailer actually revealed the Poltergeist G-00, which is what Luigi will use in the upcoming game, before the announcement trailer was even shown!
26 Metroid Prime 4
One of the biggest surprises of E3 2017 was the teaser trailer of a brand new Metroid Prime being in development. What may be even more surprising is that the development studio behind the original trilogy masterpiece, Retro Studios, is not the ones working on it, but likely Bandai Namco is instead.
An open world exploration Metroid game would be a dream come true.
While the Prime series was originally established as a trilogy, the existence of the largely forgettable Metroid Prime: Federation Force shows that there is still another story arc for Samus Aran that has yet to be explored and Prime 4 will likely dive deeper into that.
Just a few days after this article's publishing, Nintendo announced that the game has restarted development from scratch and that Retro Studios will not be a part of the project. As such, it is safe to say that this game will not release this year and may not release until 2021 at the earliest.
25 New Super Mario Bros. U Deluxe
The first noticeable game for Nintendo Switch will already be available in stores by the time this article is published. New Super Mario Bros. U Deluxe is a port of the Wii U launch title with the DLC game New Super Luigi U included. This was a 2D platformer that focused on cooperative play, allowing up to 4 players to play together or compete in mini-games.
Sorry Bowsette fans, your character won’t be canon just yet.
This particular game became famous for the addition of a new item, the Super Crown, turning Toadette into Peachette. The Super Crown’s effect became an internet phenomenon last year after fans created what would Bowser look like if he wore the crown. Unfortunately, to them, Nintendo explained that the Super Crown will only work on Toadette.
24 Yoshi’s Crafted World
Yoshi’s Crafted World was revealed back in E3 2017 and took a noticeable absence at E3 2018, but now the game is well on its way and will release on March 29th, a few weeks before taxes are due. Yoshi’s Crafted World will continue to build off the art style of Yoshi’s Wooly World, but this time with cardboard.
It features an unusual mechanic of being able to “flip” the level horizontally and allowing the player to play in the background or behind certain structures. This will mean that there will be plenty of secrets to be found in this game. The game also supports local co-op play. After being in development for as long as it has, this game could be a sleeper hit among the first half of games this year.
23 Bayonetta 3
Let’s be real, if it wasn’t for Nintendo stepping in to publish Bayonetta 2, this series would have lasted only one game, and as long as Nintendo continues to support the series, you’ll only see it on their systems. It’s so fortunate that they have published it as Bayonetta 2 was one of the few superb games on the Wii U, now ported to Switch along with its predecessor.
There is next to nothing known about Bayonetta 3 other than the fact that it exists, but this game is right in Platinum’s forte and is fully expected to be one of the biggest hits of the year on Switch, assuming there aren’t any delays.
22 Marvel Ultimate Alliance 3: The Black Order
In one of the surprise announcements of The Game Awards 2018 is the return of the Marvel Ultimate Alliance series, but even more surprising is that the game is a Nintendo Switch exclusive due to Nintendo publishing it. Additionally, it is going to be developed by Team Ninja, known for their work on Ninja Gaiden.
This is an action role-playing cooperative game where you can play as characters from The Avengers, Guardians of the Galaxy, as well as X-Men characters (something we still won’t have the privilege of seeing in the movies yet.)
21 Travis Strikes Again: No More Heroes
No More Heroes was a 2-game series that appeared on the Nintendo Wii featuring a crazy otaku known as Travis Touchdown. It was a rather violent, action-packed, and suggestive series that easily stood out among games on the heavily casual Wii console. There haven’t been any other entries in the series from Suda51 until now.
Travis Strikes Again is again developed by Grasshopper Manufacture, but with the budget of a large indie title. Unlike the past games, has more of a classic arcade gameplay approach, but it will still involve all the same crazy action from the previous games. It will also have co-op play for two people.
20 Resident Evil Fans Rejoice!
The Nintendo Gamecube era was one of the most enjoyable times to be a Resident Evil fan. Capcom’s survival horror series had some of the best games during that era, Resident Evil Zero, Resident Evil (remake), and of course, Resident Evil 4.
Resident Evil 4 is so good, it’s worth buying again to have it on the go.
While the series has since abandoned Nintendo systems with the exception of the Revelation series, fans of these classic titles will be able to experience them again on Nintendo Switch this year. It may not be as hype as the very impressive looking Resident Evil 2 remake, but some of these games are timeless classics.
19 Final Fantasy Fans Can Also Rejoice!
Much like Capcom bringing over classic titles on the Nintendo Switch, Square Enix will be doing the same with their flagship series Final Fantasy. For a very long time now, Final Fantasy has had plenty of spinoff releases on Nintendo Switch, but for the first time ever, many of the great mainline numbered titles will be available. Final Fantasy VII, IX/X-2, and XII are all coming to Nintendo Switch this year.
At least now we can justify Cloud’s appearance in Super Smash Bros.
With Final Fantasy XV already available on Switch (albeit the lame Pocket Edition,) perhaps things could change with the series appearing on Nintendo consoles. It will be up to the Nintendo faithful to show Square Enix their support.
18 Digimon Survive
Usually Digimon isn’t a series worth getting excited for in video games unless you are a hardcore fan, however, Digimon Survive looks to be an impressive title. Digimon Survive is a survival strategy role-playing game where the players make choices that will affect the direction of the story, and even a Digimon’s evolving process.
This game appears to be a mix of Pokémon with Fire Emblem.
This will allow for multiple playthroughs and endings, but it could be a potentially dark story as your choices could affect the fate of multiple lives throughout the story. What is already impressive is how beautiful the artistic anime style looks, probably one of the best looking “anime” games of the year.
17 Team Sonic Racing
If you really love racing games, this one will be for you. Team Sonic Racing features similar racing gameplay to Sonic & SEGA All-Stars Racing (except no transformations,) but with a bit of a twist. The races are team-based, where the combined results of all of your team members will determine where you place. You race in a team of three, but you’ll have to use a bit of strategy and awareness to know what will help not just yourself, but your teammates too.
This game was originally scheduled to release in 2018 but SEGA wisely delayed it to improve on it and to avoid ultra-popular games like Super Smash Bros. Ultimate and Red Dead Redemption 2.
16 Crash Team Racing Nitro-Fueled
Sonic isn’t the only mascot getting behind the wheel this year, Crash Bandicoot is as well. Crash Team Racing was one of the more iconic games on the original PlayStation, but now it’s back and it will be available on every platform. However, Switch owners may have to wait just a tad bit longer, but it should still release this year.
It's a good time for Sonic and Crash to get their kart-racing fix, until Mario Kart 9 is announced.
Much like the N. Sane Trilogy, this game will be remade from the ground up, but will feature new tracks, online gameplay, and kart customization. Additionally, Nitros Oxide will be a playable character this time around!
15 Yes, Dragon Quest XI Is Still Coming To Switch
In case you might have forgotten, one of the very first games ever announced for the Nintendo Switch (back when it was called NX,) is still on its way. Square Enix reassured that the Switch version of Dragon Quest XI is still on its way, but under a new name, Dragon Quest XI: S.
This game was praised for its visuals, plot, and traditional turn-based battle system. It is unclear if there will be any differences from XI: S than the original version but it is expected to be released in Japan this year, hopefully, the rest of the world doesn’t have to wait much longer.
14 Mario & Luigi: Bowser’s Inside Story + Bowser Jr’s Journey
It is 2019 and there is still some sort of life left in the Nintendo 3DS. While the system is definitely on its last breath, there are a few of games left that are worth looking into. One of them is a remake of A DS classic, Mario & Luigi: Bowser’s Inside Story. Much like the remake of Mario & Luigi Superstar Saga in 2017, this game will feature a brand new side quest featuring Bowser Jr. It will implement the same mechanics as seen in the Bowser’s Minions story, but focus on a previously untold part of the original game’s plot.
If you missed out on this the first time, you owe it to yourself to give this one a try as it is one of the best games in the series. Bowser teaming up with Mario & Luigi couldn’t appear more bizarre, yet it is an amazing pairing!
13 Kirby’s Extra Epic Yarn
Another 3DS game worth noting is a port of a Wii game Kirby’s Epic Yarn. Kirby’s Epic Yarn was a very different game from the standard Kirby experience where Kirby no longer had his copy ability, instead of a yarn whip that can defeat enemies and untangle obstacles. It was best known for its very creative art style featuring just yarn aesthetics as well as its very charming presentation, like most titles in the Kirby series. However, it was considered very easy and lacked much of a real challenge plus, as mentioned before it lacked many of the typical Kirby elements.
In the 3DS version, the main difference is that you can now play as King Dedede and Meta Knight. Kirby’s Epic Yarn was a solid platformer and if you missed out on this or its “cousin” Yoshi’s Wolly World, it can be great as a casual co-op experience.
12 Daemon X Machina
Daemon X Machina is a game that can easily fly below anyone’s radar, it is a brand new I.P. with no connections to any big name game, but this game will be one of the sleeper hits of the year for the Switch. In Daemon X Machina, you control big mechs to take down far bigger mechs.
If you like giant machines, explosions, and intense action, this game is perfect for you!
The customizations for weapons, frames, appendages, even the design of the pilot is very deep, just going off the information available. This is a little similar to Xenoblade Chronicles X, but it is more action-based instead of exploration so if you just want to blaze through battles and missions, this is your game.
11 Tales of Vesperia: Definitive Edition
It’s been a while since Namco’s Tales series has been relevant on a Nintendo System, but by the time you read this, Tales of Vesperia: Definitive Edition will be released on Nintendo Switch.
It may be a 10-year-old RPG, but there is plenty to go off of if you haven’t experienced it before. The battle system is great with engaging gameplay mechanics. While the game suffers from being a bit linear and cliché (like most games in the series,) the wealth of new content will provide plenty of hours for fans.