It’s a bit shocking to realize that it has already been eight years since the Switch was released globally. The first Nintendo console to launch around the world at the same time (minus China, which still had regulations in place despite lifting its console ban in 2015), the Switch has gone on to become the most successful home console in Nintendo’s rich history. It’s also on pace to eclipse the sales of the Nintendo DS and potentially even the Sony PlayStation 2. Nintendo landed on something truly incredible with this device and the results have shown it.
What else is there to really write after eight years, though? More likely than not, anyone reading this owns a Switch or two and knows friends and family who have at least one. You’ve played the games, seen the evolution of Nintendo’s game design philosophy, and are probably jazzed that a successor is on the horizon. While I would like to say this has been Nintendo’s longest console generation, strangely the Super Famicom in Japan lasted from 1990 until 2003. People really loved that 16-bit machine, but then that same kind of love has been extended to the Switch.
As we head into 2025 and the proper eighth year of the device, there are some interesting turn of events regarding the future of Nintendo. The most recent comes from the Switch Online service, which is now delisting a game by the end of the month. Nintendo hasn’t removed a title from any of its NSO apps in the service’s six-year history, but that’s about to change. It could mean that when Switch Online is migrated over to Switch 2, we’ll start to see even more games get removed or become incompatible.
Personally speaking, there have also been a few game releases from 2025 that some could say are “underwhelming.” Donkey Kong Country Returns from the Wii is a classic and its 3DS port was very solid, but the Switch HD version left me wanting more. Quite notably, it had price higher than its original Wii iteration from 14 years prior that showed that Nintendo has absolutely jumped on the bandwagon of charging more for less. Could it signify $70 games for the Switch 2, something Nintendo has only thus far done with The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom?
I also don’t know what to make of all of these games already announced for the Switch 1 that are scheduled for 2025. We’re still waiting for firm release dates on Metroid Prime 4: Beyond and Pokémon Legends: Z-A, but will they have been designed with Nintendo’s next device in mind? Will their current-generation versions be heavily compromised, and thus not really worth consideration without upgrading? That question will likely be answered in a month’s time (when the Switch 2 unveiling finally happens), but it hangs like a dark cloud over the future of the Switch.
Even still, it’s hard to say that this console was anything but a resounding success. While its lack of hardware grunt has been a bit of an issue for the last few years, the exclusive games available on the console are some of the best in the industry. When both PS5 and Xbox Series devices routinely see game launches marred with bugs, glitches, and sometimes completely broken releases, Nintendo has mostly avoided that. Each first-party game has been stellar… as long as we look past Pokémon. That series needs a creative overhaul for sure.
As someone who loves PC gaming, I’ve also put a tremendous amount of time into my Switch over the years. I did happen to “upgrade” to the OLED model when that snazzy Zelda edition was released, but I would have been perfectly content with my original launch device had that not existed. Nintendo’s designers made a mostly comfortable and aesthetically pleasing device that did everything I could have hoped for. It was pure magic seeing games seamlessly switch from TV to handheld back in 2017 and while some of that sheen is gone, I still appreciate how effortless it is. I also love being able to take literally any game with me on the go, which completely transformed my various train trips.
Looking back over the history of Nintendo, you can make a strong argument that the Switch is the company’s best console ever. It offers a mixture of almost everything its other devices had while also pushing forward into something unexplored in 2017 (and is now a big trend in PC gaming). The Switch is a device that will go down as one of the best to ever do it and if that means its final year is quiet, I think that’s fine. The console has earned a subtle retirement.
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Written by Peter Glagowski
Peter has been a freelance gaming and film critic for over seven years. His passion for Nintendo is only matched by the size of his collection.
