What’s Coming to Nintendo Switch 2? [2026 Edition]

[Wman1996]

firebush03 said:

curl-6 said:

Nintendo nowadays generally waits until their games are close to release before announcing them, probably cos they got burned last gen by announcing stuff like Prime 4, TOTK, and Bayonetta 3 early and then not being able to get them on shelves until years and years later.
This way, they don't have to worry about having to delay stuff.

Third party stuff also tends to get held back to be shown in Directs.

There is likely a ton of big games coming next year that just haven't been revealed yet.

It’s crazy to think that DKBananza only had three months between reveal and launch. MKWorld could also be argued as not having a full reveal until only two months prior to launch. Same goes for EoW, SMPJamboree, Mario Wonder, and so many others.

I really do respect this approach as it leaves fans not needing to wait too long for a title to release.

If there's anything bigger than Fire Emblem in 2026 (again Fire Emblem isn't big but less niche than the past), it's probably a Pokémon RPG (Gen V Remakes or Gen 10) or Luigi's Mansion 4. There's also a possibility of Switch 2 Sports or Switch Sports 2 or whatever they'll call it. It was not as successful as Wii Sports, but I think a sequel is still all but guaranteed. That's not a big game in the vein of Mario or Zelda, but it will likely sell a lot. 

Animal Crossing is off the table with the Switch 2 Edition coming in January. 2028 now seems the earliest for a New Horizons successor. 

I don't think we're getting a new 2D Mario already, especially with content coming to Wonder. 3D Mario seems off the table with DK just coming out in July 2025.

It's way too soon for a new 3D Zelda. Even if for some reason Nintendo scales it down from the latest two, I see no way it launches in 2026. 

Sakurai will probably be the director of Smash again. I don't think development has started, or maybe just barely has. Smash has gotten to big to only take a year to develop, even if the next game is scaled down. 

Super Mario Maker 3 could happen in 2026, I guess. But it would probably make more sense to give it a Switch 2 Edition and save 3 for late in Switch 2's life or Switch's 2 successor.