The Best Nintendo Switch-Exclusive Games Of 2024

Nintendo's new console might be coming as soon as 2025, and while it won't spell the immediate end for Nintendo Switch, which is approaching its eighth anniversary, it's certainly approaching the end of its life cycle. 2024 was a year in which we nevertheless saw an innovative new Zelda game, and Mario and friends continued to pop up left and right.
In picking the five best Nintendo Switch games of 2024, we opted to choose from console exclusives, meaning games that you won't find on any other consoles (games with PC releases are eligible). That left us with a list largely dominated by Nintendo itself, which isn't terribly uncommon, although we did have one third-party release that stood out from the crowd.
Even with the continued proliferation of handheld systems like Steam Deck and its many competitors, Switch remains a great place to play games in the late stages of its life. Read on for what we think are the best new Switch games from 2024, presented in alphabetical order. Be sure to also check out our picks for the 10 best games of 2024 (several are multiplatform and available on Switch), Game of the Year (sorry, Switch owners), and our ongoing list of the best games to play on Switch right now.

Bakeru

Bakeru may have flown under the radar, but I am here to say it's a game well worth your time, especially if you love bright and colorful Nintendo 64-style 3D platformers. Bakeru itself is a bit of a spiritual successor to the old Ganbare Goemon games and is even made by some of the original people who worked on them.
You play as Bakeru, a boy who is a member of the Tanuki clan and fights off evil spirits with his taiko drum and transformation ability. In order to stop the villain, who is trying to take over Japan using festivals, you have to fight back against his army and purify all of Japan's prefectures. It feels like a fun road trip through a fairy-tale version of Japan--one helped by the collectibles you pick up along the way. Themed souvenirs and fun trivia all based on what prefecture you are in add wonderful texture to an already-vibrant presentation that all comes together to make Bakeru a joyful time.It might not have the name recognition of other games on this list, but Bakeru is a wonderful platformer/beat-'em-up that I cannot recommend enough. It even has a demo, so give it a go and have fun saving Japan!
-- Ben Janca
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The Legend of Zelda: Echoes of Wisdom

The Legend of Zelda fans have waited for years to see Zelda in her own starring role, and this year Nintendo delivered. But it wouldn't be enough to simply make the princess a carbon copy of our favorite little elven adventurer. Instead, Zelda has her own unique set of powers and abilities, which appropriately for her "wisdom" attribute make her more of a thinker than a fighter. With a special echo wand, she can capture and then summon copies of just about anything in the world, from objects like pots and trampolines, to enemies like Moblins and Poes.
The sheer wealth of objects you can copy means there are countless creative ways to solve environmental puzzles, and you can dispatch enemies by siccing your own copies on them or creating hilariously elaborate traps. It pulls all this off while using the cute, lovable art style from the Link's Awakening remake, which makes all of the characters look like little Rankin-Bass dolls. Coming up with a whole new way to interact with this world couldn't have been easy, but it makes Echoes of Wisdom a deservedly unique entry in Zelda canon.
"If Zelda's debut in the spotlight is a one-off, at least it's a memorable adventure," Steven Petite wrote in our Legend of Zelda: Echoes of Wisdom review. "But hopefully this is the beginning of a new legend for the heroine. Echoes of Wisdom's brilliantly integrated echoes system links two eras, proving that the freeform mechanics of the new age can coexist with the franchise's classic formula. Don't mistake this for a spin-off or minor entry between big 'mainline' games: The Legend of Zelda: Echoes of Wisdom is a major moment that shouldn't be missed."
-- Steve Watts
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Paper Mario: The Thousand-Year Door

Paper Mario: The Thousand-Year Door has earned an almost-mythic reputation as the peak of Mario RPGs. With the recent remaster of Super Mario RPG and this year's return to Mario & Luigi sub-series with Brothership, it was a good time for Thousand-Year Door to showcase its own unique qualities.
In this updated version of the 2004 GameCube original, Mario is joined by a rotating cast of memorable characters--many of them common Mario platforming enemies given a clever name and personality. Combat involves timing-based attacks, as in most Mario RPGs, but you simultaneously have to try appealing to a crowd in the theater where the whole show is taking place. It's the little touches and stellar writing that make this take on the Mario RPG stand out, and the Switch version opens it up to a whole new audience.
"The Switch version of Paper Mario: The Thousand-Year Door is the definitive way to play the best turn-based RPG starring Mario," Steven Petite wrote in our Paper Mario: The Thousand-Year Door review. "More of an enhanced HD remaster than a full-fledged remake, The Thousand-Year Door has small yet meaningful quality-of-life features that ease some of the bloat from the original GameCube version. The catchy remixed soundtrack wonderfully complements the thoroughly entertaining and dynamic turn-based battle system. Throw in a stellar cast of characters and consistently playful writing, and The Thousand-Year Door has all the ingredients of an incredible turn-based RPG. Well, it always had them, but now they are blended a bit better."
-- Steve Watts
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Princess Peach Showtime

Princess Peach took another stab at her own starring role this year with Princess Peach Showtime. The charming, family-friendly game finds Peach and her Toads trapped in a hexed playhouse by the villainous Grape. The only way to stop her machinations is to don the costumes and their associated powers and set things right.
The premise leads to loads of variety, serving as a sampler for a variety of genres. One moment you might be swashbuckling as a Swordfighter while the next you may be topping desserts as a Patissiere or shooting down enemy ships as the superheroic Mighty Peach. The individual game types may not be as mechanically solid as longtime Mario platformer fans expect from the franchise, but by framing the variety this way, it's a nice introductory game for new players to find the games and genres they'll grow to love.
"Princess Peach Showtime is a friendly, inviting game that's made to be easy to digest," I wrote in our Princess Peach Showtime review. "Some of the genres work better than others in this format, but none of them are too tricky or off-putting, and most of it will come down to personal taste. None of these stages are fleshed out enough to support their own game, but they're an invitation for novice gamers to explore a bunch of different game types, with a charming (and apparently polymathic) princess offering her gloved hand to welcome them in."
-- Steve Watts
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Super Mario Party Jamboree

Nintendo snuck in a third Mario Party game at the tail end of the Switch's lifecycle, and thankfully, it's one of the good ones! Super Mario Party Jamboree crams a lot into its package, and while not all of the game's various modes knock it out of the park, the core Mario Party experience is a delight, mixing in some of the best maps from previous entries in the series with new levels that stand up very well next to them.
Jamboree's core new gameplay feature is its buddy system, which gives players the opportunity to pick a partner character that can help, but also hinder, them in their journey to obtain as many stars as possible. To acquire these characters, the players must compete in extra-large minigames that evolve the tried-and-true formula of the series.
Combined with the game's various other modes, a Pro variant of the core experience that reduces the role luck plays in winning, and a rewarding progression system that has you unlock new characters and maps, Super Mario Party Jamboree is a must-play for fans of the series.
"[O]nce you grab a few close friends and you're laughing with it over a few beers, the deeply flawed game turns into a raucous night of camaraderie and laughter," Dan Ryckert wrote in GameSpot's Super Mario Party Jamboree review. "Jamboree is no more or less nonsense than any Mario Party, and it's one I'll still be playing a ton of despite its flaws."
-- Tom Caswell
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