Is the Switch's projected library the best of any Nintendo console ever?

[Kano]

I've been considering this question as I'm playing the fantastic Metroid Dread, and and feel like, almost five years down the road, we can ask the question now: is the Switch's library, taking into account already announced games and assuming they are ending up as expected, the best of all Nintendo's consoles?

I used to think the DS and SNES were unbeatable, but now I'm feeling like Switch actually has the throne. It feels like a proper DS 2 to me, with extremely solid if not best entries of many staple handled franchises while also having all those console-like games that handhelds didn't get in the past, allowing it to best those consoles.

Here's how I feel the console lands at the moment. The tier list is ordered from left to right.

https://tiermaker.com/create/nintendo-consoles-and-handhelds-47951

How do you people feel?

 

[Mekanos]

It's a bit too soon for me but the potential is definitely there. If we got a new DK game I'd definitely lean towards it. Top 3 for sure.

SNES is the overall best but I'll always have the most emotional attachment to the N64.

 

[Naga]

It's up there, but I feel like it's both too soon to say, and outclassed in some genres/categories (RPGs being a big one).

 

[Helix]

hmmm, it's definitely worth an argument but maybe it's my sentimental value with Game Boy Color/Advance being like one of my first experiences with Gaming so I'd put that on top. The Pokemon experiences, Super Mario Land, Donkey Country (yeah, I played it on Game Boy first lol) were all eye opening and quite influential during my youth.

 

[Skittzo]

In terms of overall games? Yes, partially because it already has more games in the library than any other Nintendo console (by far), but also because it has (or will have) most of the best games from past generations too. It also has much more genre diversity, like past Nintendo consoles never had many (or any?) CRPGs.

In terms of first party it's getting up there too. The projected library might take the cake, yeah.

 

[Lelouch0612]

It is going to be the Ultimate Nintendo console yeah imo. At the end of 2022, I don't think there will much debate left tbh.

 

[mazi]

i think so, yeah. specially when you take into account 3rd party and indie games.

 

[Scrawnton]

I think we will easily reach that point. Now if we combine console / handheld throughout the years, I would give the edge to the Wii/DS combo.

 

[xsquiddox]

Yep tbh alot of nintendo games got new chances on switch + their main games are incredibly well made and doing insanely well. There is still some good years left so while it might right now not be the best libary itll certainly reach that point. And if you count third party + indie it's already there for sure.

 

[Mbolibombo]

Already is and I dont think it's particularly close

With that said, it has still a lot of potential to become even greater

 

[Dark Cloud]

Yes and it’s not even a question by the end of 2022.

 

[Heron]

I'm not the Switch's biggest fan (I'm a bit of a Wii U truther) but at this stage i can't see how you could argue otherwise.

Most beloved Nintendo consoles relied either on great first party games (like Gamecube) or great third party support (like DS). The last time a Nintendo console truly had both (imo) was the SNES, and while I love 2d games SNES games can't compare to what we've got on Switch.

That said, I just wish that more people would give credit that half of the great first party games on Switch are either Wii U games (including BotW) or sequels to Wii U games made in the same fashion. Nintendo's second golden age of software began on the Wii U.

 

[Dardan Sandiego]

Overall, yes, although it has some obvious advantages here. I think per genre and excluding non-original software, some Nintendo consoles were better at the time. Today I can definitely call it my favourite.

 

[Clix]

Not counting backwards comparability? I would say for right now the 3DS has an edge. Fantastic software lineup, especially Japanese 3rd parties. Plus a great VC, M2’s Sega Classic line, street pass, Miiverse, etc.

I'm not the Switch's biggest fan (I'm a bit of a Wii U truther) but at this stage i can't see how you could argue otherwise.

Most beloved Nintendo consoles relied either on great first party games (like Gamecube) or great third party support (like DS). The last time a Nintendo console truly had both (imo) was the SNES, and while I love 2d games SNES games can't compare to what we've got on Switch.

That said, I just wish that more people would give credit that half of the great first party games on Switch are either Wii U games (including BotW) or sequels to Wii U games made in the same fashion. Nintendo's second golden age of software began on the Wii U.

I see you’re an individual of taste and refinement

I too am a Wii U truther. Fantastic system and I wish people stopped saying it was a POS when it had fantastic games and I loved the OS and it’s features (even if slow I admit).

 

[Kano]

Not counting backwards comparability? I would say for right now the 3DS has an edge. Fantastic software lineup, especially Japanese 3rd parties. Plus a great VC, M2’s Sega Classic line, street pass, Miiverse, etc

Counting the games released for that system, not backward compatibility with prior libraries. Although I guess I'd count Virtual Console since those are rereleases for that machine.

 

[WestEgg]

I really do think we’re looking at (current) peak Nintendo right now. Especially with NSO classic game libraries, it really is an essential system. Are there still some obvious holes in the library? Yeah, but we’re still only halfwayish into its life cycle.

This feels a lot like NES/ SNES Nintendo, in that they feel like they’re in a place of confidence and power, and are looking to really hone their craft rather than reinvent it.

 

[SlightlyMadGames]

Yes!

 

[Dardan Sandiego]

please don't call yourselves "Wii U truthers"

 

[bixente]

The Switch is the greatest system of all time imo.

I've got hundreds of quality titles to play in my backlog alone.

And hundreds more in my wishlist.

I disagree with N64 in C tier though. Loved it to bits.

 

[excelsior]

What I do find fantastic is that I have over 100 games and I feel like I'm missing out on plenty. I don't remember a time when I had so much choice in what to play on a Nintendo platform. On Switch I actually feel overwhelmed with releases, which is a complete turnaround from Wii U. It's a great problem to have.

 

[Mori Medinayo]

I'm not the Switch's biggest fan (I'm a bit of a Wii U truther) but at this stage i can't see how you could argue otherwise.

Most beloved Nintendo consoles relied either on great first party games (like Gamecube) or great third party support (like DS). The last time a Nintendo console truly had both (imo) was the SNES, and while I love 2d games SNES games can't compare to what we've got on Switch.

That said, I just wish that more people would give credit that half of the great first party games on Switch are either Wii U games (including BotW) or sequels to Wii U games made in the same fashion. Nintendo's second golden age of software began on the Wii U.

Okay thank you!! I though I was crazy when thinking that the Wii U was one of the most creative eras in Nintendo's history.

 

[YoboD]

I think so, yeah. Their first party stuff is as good as it’s ever been and indies, for me at least, indies more than make up the gap left by the traditional third parties.

All we’re missing is Rhythm Heaven at this point and then it’s a certainty.

 

[Baobab]

At this moment, at least, it is already the second best nintendo sofware library ever made.
You could argue that at the moment the SNES could be slightly ahead because of the third party support that produced the cutting edge software of that time for the SNES in great numbers( a remark which is not true for the Switch) .The advantage is really small though.
I think the above observation is actually very debatable because on the switch we have a whole new categoty of Indy developers which are producing and designg exceptional games that were not at all present on the SNES.

With the projected planned software the Switch will Take the firts place without any doubt.
2022 should already put the debate to rest! Project triangle, Mario and rabbids, MH rise expansion, Splatoon 3, Botw 2 and rumored new Xenoblade+ DK + RE Game would make the software library of the switch the best ever of a Nintendo Console.
Notice i did not include highly anticipated indies( Silksong, Sport story etc..) and possible 2d Nintendo games ( Mario, Zelda) or any new Metroids.

All in all the Switch is the best nintedo console for both dedicated and casual gamers...we only need the Labo VR expansion for Tetris effect!

 

[Tron1]

No f-zero?

 

[storres]

I think as of now, it is. Add the 2022 games, and it will be hard to top.

 

[Clix]

Ones N64 and GB/GBA games are added, then it will be my ultimate Nintendo system.

Unfortunately, by the time we hit NGC and Wii, file sizes start to balloon, so I doubt they’ll ever to NSO for those two systems.

 

[Elven_Star]

For some reason this thread and those poll results made me so happy I want to cry. I might have had too much coffee today, but still.

 

[FrostyLemon]

It's got one of the best if not the best 3D zelda and 3D Mario games. The greatest Smash Bros ever with an unbelievable roster including Banjo Kazooie. An enhanced port of the Best Mario Kart, Bayonetta and Donkey Kong Games. A dream release with the first 2D Metroid in 20 years. Multiple full Pokemon games finally released on a home console and an a dream open world game on the horizon. A beautiful sequel to Pokemon Snap - another dream game 20 years later. It's got the best Fire Emblem game as far as im concerned. The best Luigi's Mansion game. Best Splatoon game, a stunning remake of one of the greatest RPGs in the last decade with Xenoblade Chronicles DE. A great sequel to that game too. Brand new IPs with Arms, Astral Chain and Ring Fit Adventure.

Console exclusive third party games such as Mario + Rabbids - which was doomed to fail but was better than anyone expected. Monster Hunter Rise - which may go on to be the best selling title in the series. Current gen Third party games that have no business being as good as they are on a portable system - The Witcher 3, Doom 2016, Doom Eternal, Divinity Original Sin 2, Dragon Quest XI, Civiliation VI, Overwatch, Rocket League, Diablo 3, Alien Isolation, Mortal Kombat 11, Hellblade, Dragon Ball Fighterz, Crash Bandicoot 4, Ori 1 and 2, Xcom 2.

Not to mention the indie library which is just as impressive and the third party ports of older titles. Soon it will have access to the best games in the NES, SNES and N64 libraries - including maybe Rare Classics? It's absurd.

It's only just over half way done...

It's the best.

 

[ReyVGM]

I you see it as a console, then it's the console that has received the most (good) 1st & 3rd party support since the SNES!

If you see it as portable, then no, Nintendo's portables have always received great support from everyone.

 

[9-Volt]

Best home console library? Eh, no. We still have some crucial genres missing from the system.

Best handheld library? This is where it's heading right now.

 

[Kano]

I you see it as a console, then it's the console that has received the most (good) 1st & 3rd party support since the SNES!

If you see it as portable, then no, Nintendo's portables have always received great support from everyone.

Best home console library? Eh, no. We still have some crucial genres missing from the system.

Best handheld library? This is where it's heading right now.

Best console library. No distinction is made between home console and handheld.

 

[Josh5890]

I need a good Star Fox game before I can agree to this.

But yea it is definitely projecting to be the best Nintendo system from at least a first party perspective. I'm not 100% sure that it will top the full SNES library but it definitely can.

 

[Lichtsang]

I've been considering this question as I'm playing the fantastic Metroid Dread, and and feel like, almost five years down the road, we can ask the question now: is the Switch's library, taking into account already announced games and assuming they are ending up as expected, the best of all Nintendo's consoles?

I used to think the DS and SNES were unbeatable, but now I'm feeling like Switch actually has the throne. It feels like a proper DS 2 to me, with extremely solid if not best entries of many staple handled franchises while also having all those console-like games that handhelds didn't get in the past, allowing it to best those consoles.

Here's how I feel the console lands at the moment. The tier list is ordered from left to right.

https://tiermaker.com/create/nintendo-consoles-and-handhelds-47951

How do you people feel?

For me it is, absolutely. I think in the end it could even beat the all mighty SNES for me, which is tied with it for my personal top spot.

 

[MetalLord]

First Party

NES 68
SNES 53
Sattleview 49
64 - 59
Gamecube - 59
Wii - 112
Wii U - 66

GB - 60
Virtual Boy - 7
GB Color - 40
GBA - 81
DS - 279 (149 + 130)
3DS - 192 (128 + 64)

Android - 7
Arcade - 36

Switch - 104 (84+20)






Nintendo
Virtual Boy 22
64 388
Gamecube 657
NES 715
Wii U 772
3DS 1335
GBA 1500
Wii 1544
SNES 1756
DS 1976
Switch 3931


Overall

Virtual Boy - 22
Master System - 312
Xbox Series X - 320
64 - 388
PS5 - 428
Dreamcast - 620
Gamecube - 657
NES - 715
Wii U - 772
Genesis - 902
XBOX - 1000
Saturn - 1092
3DS - 1335
PSP - 1366
PS3 - 1443
GBA - 1500
PSVITA - 1525
Wii - 1544
SNES - 1756
DS - 1976
360 - 2086
ONE - 2826
PS1 - 3070
PS4 - 3118
Switch - 3931
PS2 - 4489

 

[9-Volt]

Best console library. No distinction is made between home console and handheld.

In that case it's still in the "wait and see" phase. I wouldn't put it on the same tier with SNES, personally. SNES had best-of-all-time JRPGs like Chrono Trigger, FF4-6, Dragon Quest 5-6, Secret of Mana and Star Ocean. Switch needs a little levelling up on this front.

 

[Uniomni]

Tbh, it frankly just lacks too many jrpgs for my taste, to be the best Nintendo console ever.
Xenoblade DE was cool but mid imo.
Xenoblade 2 offends my game sensibilities.
3 Houses was great though, as was Origami King.
Loved Mhs2, meh at Bravely 2.

Better than GameCube and N64, but nothing in comparison to the Snes or DS.

If Monolith starts dropping midtier jrpg classics with Chrono Cross/Radiata Stories/Star Ocean/Valkyrie Profile DNA littered within, then the Switch will rise to the top of the mountain.
The current offerings don't move the needle much imo.

 

[bixente]

The sheer depth of the system's library makes it #1 for me. Grandia HD Collection is the 805th highest rated title on the system according to Metacritic and I thought it was great. Other games rated similarly (around the 800/900 mark) are Snake Pass, Gato Roboto, Cathedral, Mail Mole, Shocktroopers, Miitopia, A Robot Named Fight etc.)

So eventually there'll be more than a thousand games worth playing.

 

[Lichtsang]

Tbh, it frankly just lacks too many jrpgs for my taste, to be the best Nintendo console ever.
Xenoblade DE was cool but mid imo.
Xenoblade 2 offends my game sensibilities.
3 Houses was great though, as was Origami King.
Loved Mhs2, meh at Bravely 2.

Better than GameCube and N64, but nothing in comparison to the Snes or DS.

If Monolith starts dropping midtier jrpg classics with Chrono Cross/Radiata Stories/Star Ocean/Valkyrie Profile DNA littered within, then the Switch will rise to the top of the mountain.
The current offerings don't move the needle much imo.

You really need to play Octopath Traveler!
And next year we'll get Triangle Strategy too!
CrossCode is on there too as a great RPG. We also have DQXIS, TMS, soon SMT V, so many Final Fantasy, Mana and SaGa games, Ni No Kuni 1 & 2, Dark Souls 1, some Ys games, Tales of Vespiria, Undertale and Dragon's Dogma.
I really love the roleplaying library of the Switch.

For me it beats the DS handily. Even the 3DS beat the DS easily.

 

[Uniomni]

I forgot about Octopath, but Triangle I already planned on getting.

Tbh, when I rate a console I count exclusive software.
Maybe just the boomer in me.
Games I already played years ago, I don't count them as gems in a library, as scarcity denotes value.
So all the ff I see on the Eshop, I don't really count.

Don't know if that's crazy or normal

 

[bixente]

You really need to play Octopath Traveler!
And next year we'll get Triangle Strategy too!
CrossCode is on there too as a great RPG. We also have DQXIS, TMS, soon SMT V, so many Final Fantasy, Mana and SaGa games, Ni No Kuni 1 & 2, Dark Souls 1, some Ys games, Tales of Vespiria, Undertale and Dragon's Dogma.
I really love the roleplaying library of the Switch.

For me it beats the DS handily. Even the 3DS beat the DS easily.

There's also the Dragon Quest 3 remake.

 

[Savii]

Switch is still missing a new Tomodachi Life, Rhythm Heaven, and Style Savvy.

 

[Lichtsang]

There's also the Dragon Quest 3 remake.

Oh yeah, in HD2D! Can't wait for that! Thank you for the reminder!

 

[Lichtsang]

I forgot about Octopath, but Triangle I already planned on getting.

Tbh, when I rate a console I count exclusive software.
Maybe just the boomer in me.
Games I already played years ago, I don't count them as gems in a library, as scarcity denotes value.
So all the ff I see on the Eshop, I don't really count.

Don't know if that's crazy or normal

I personally would count everything, because you can't assume people did play some of those games on other platforms, and some of those games are simultaneous multiplatform games, so no late ports. But I also totally get your angle!

 

[9-Volt]

For me it beats the DS handily. Even the 3DS beat the DS easily.

3DS had one of the worst third party support in Nintendo history, though. Lots of grindy dungeon crawlers and too few action games. Did you know the only FPS game on the system was Metroid Federation Force? What's up with that???

It was kinda sad when Vita got 2 Ninja Gaiden games and a Assassin's Creed game after 3DS's entries of same series got cancelled before the system was out.

 

[Uniomni]

I personally would count everything, because you can't assume people did play some of those games on other platforms, and some of those games are simultaneous multiplatform games, so no late ports. But I also totally get your angle!

Yeah, it's just that when I think of the best console I ever had, it goes to the ps1 or ps2, and that was because they had everything exclusively. Years later, there's still some 3rd party games that never went past them.
And that's how I've always rated console content since.

Dqxis, I would rate higher if it was a simultaneous launch vs a delayed one.

 

[Lichtsang]

3DS had one of the worst third party support in Nintendo history, though. Lots of grindy dungeon crawlers and too few action games. Did you know the only FPS game on the system was Metroid Federation Force? What's up with that???

It was kinda sad when Vita got 2 Ninja Gaiden games and a Assassin's Creed game after 3DS's entries of same series got cancelled before the system was out.

I meant the 3DS has a way better library in terms of RPGs than the DS. And that is my favourite genre, so I put it above the DS.

 

[7threst]

I think it is, the Switch library is shaping up to be a monster of quality. Not agreeing with your tier list though, NES and Gamecube should definitely be higher. I realize this is nostalgia talking, but still

 

[Pineapple Pizza]

Just by virtue that there are so many great ports and remasters/remakes of older classics that you can play wherever makes it the very best console of all time. There is literally something for everyone and all budgets if you use sites like DekuDeals to track sales.

 

[9-Volt]

I meant the 3DS has a way better library in terms of RPGs than the DS. And that is my favourite genre, so I put it above the DS.

IMO, even in JRPG's I think 3DS is way behind DS.

DS had: 2 FF remakes, 7 FF new spinoffs, 3 DQ remakes, 2 new Tales games, 2 SaGa remakes, 2 new Mana games, 4 new SMT, 3 Megaman Starforce games, 3 Etrian Odyssey games games and other one of stuff like: Chrono Trigger, Avalon Code, Nostalgia, Sands of Destruction, Suikoden Tierkreis, Lufia Curse of The Sinistrals, Valkyrie Profile Covenant of the Plume, Blue Dragon games, Summon Night Twin Age, Phantasy Star 0, Solatorabo, Lunar Knights, Radiant Historia, Luminous Arc 1-2, bunch of Success games, and tens of more I can't list here.

3DS had: 1 FF spnioff, 2 DQ remakes, 1 Tales game, 4 SMT games, 8 Etrian Odyssey games (my total EO playtime on 3DS was around 450 hours. I don't even like the series), Bravely 1-2, 7th Dragon 2, Lord of Magna, Yokai Watch 1-2-3, Stella Glow, Legend of Legacy 1-2. Way too many grind based games. And many of Atlus's games were basically DS up-ports.

I'm sorry, 3DS was the darkest phase of my gaming life, I just don't understand the praise it gets from everyone.

 

[Aleh]

Yep it’s the best thanks to the convergence of handheld and home console series.

#1 Switch
#2 DS
#3 3DS

and then everything else.