In my several reviews of Switch 2 exclusives, I've pointed out that a lot of them seemed like really bad ideas at first but ended up not only being great but also much deeper than I previously expected. Nintendo Switch Sports Resort just released and it's the next Switch 2 game to follow in that same pattern. Being the followup to the disappointing and content-lacking Nintendo Switch Sports, no one thought it would do much to recapture the charm and breadth of the original Wii Sports duology, but it actually did. Switch Sports Resort has probably the most consistently high quality roster of sports in the series, each boasting a variety of modes to keep things fresh. There's much more single-player content with a new rank-based campaign, iconic Resort modes like Archery and Island Flyover got expanded on, the gacha system is much less unforgiving, the Sportsmates look a lot nicer and the Miis get more of a presence, and the whole game is filled with easter eggs towards not just the rest of the Wii series but EPD4's entire catalog. And I can't understate just how much content is in this thing, I've played for over 15 hours so far and I still feel like I've barely scratched the surface of all that there is to do.
This isn't gonna be a review of Nintendo Switch Sports Resort, though. Because more than anything, this game has really got me thinking about Nintendo's design philosophy for a lot of their Switch 2 exclusives. It's been over a year since the Switch 2 released and I'm already noticing a few common trends across its first-party titles. The most obvious one is that, unlike a lot of Switch 1 games, all of these exclusives are not only complete at launch but bursting at the seams with content. This is most noticeable with the sports titles like Nintendo Switch Sports Resort, Kirby Air Riders, and Mario Tennis Fever, but it can also apply to the beefy postgames of games like Yoshi & The Mysterious Book, Splatoon Raiders, and Pokemon Pokopia. Oh and don't even get me started on the 100+ hour Fire Emblem: Fortune's Weave which is somehow still getting a DLC with four more story paths. In an era filled to the brim with live service models, microtransactions, and games missing critical features at launch, it's nice to see Nintendo not really do any of that. As a matter of fact, they've even explicitly stated when some games like Kirby Air Riders and Splatoon Raiders aren't getting any updates which I find extremely admirable.
In addition, something I've quickly noticed about Switch 2 era Nintendo is their growing interest in creating virtual hangout spaces. This is something that they were already started to dip their toes into in the late Switch 1 between Pokemon Scarlet/Violet, Super Mario Bros Wonder, and their secret online playtest from 2024, but it became particularly apparent during the Switch 2. Let me list off some examples. Mario Kart World has its Free Roam mode which not only serves as a way for to explore the open world, practice shortcuts, and take a breather between races, but it's also where you wait for online matches as you goof off with the other racers. Nintendo Switch Sports Resort similarly lets you freely roam Wuhu Island with multiple players just for the hell of it. Kirby Air Riders has a online lobby system called the Paddock where you can literally run around as your racer of choice and hang out with your buddies. Pokemon Pokopia has tons of multiplayer features like an online Cloud Island that serves as a blank slate for you and your friends to build whatever you want. And I could go on and on by mentioning the DK Island hub in Emerald Rush, Drag X Drive's park system, Bellabel Park's entire existence, Splatoon Raiders letting you go on raids in co-op, and this can even apply to the games Nintendo has been publishing like Orbitals and Duskbloods.
If this was just a few games following this philosophy, I'd be more willing to chalk it up as a coincidence, but it's gotta be a pattern at this point, right? These games want you to spend time hanging out in their worlds, whether it's alone or with friends, and it's not too hard to figure out why this is. One of the Switch 2's big selling points is Gamechat after all, and you know how much Nintendo loves making the most out of their own tech. And you know what? I actually really like this design philosophy. I used to love goofing off and exploring around in, say, the Lego games as a kid, and I also loved the social elements of the Wii U era like Miiverse. Over the past few years, it feels like I've been so focused on playing every game I wanted to that I stopped letting them sit with me. I'd beat a game and then immediately move on to the next one. Since I owned the Switch 2 and discovered its library, I've rediscovered the joys of just hanging around in a game, especially after a busy day of work. Games like Mario Kart World, Kirby Air Riders, Pokemon Pokopia, and more recently Nintendo Switch Sports Resort have all entered my regular gaming rotation for if I want something more low stakes or if I'm not in the mood to commit to a full playthrough, and I've easily put the most hours into them out of any of the exclusives so far.
That's not to say we're lacking for hardcore adventure games on Switch 2 like Donkey Kong Bananza, Fire Emblem: Fortune's Weave, and the upcoming Metroid Ravenous and Kirby & The World Beyond, though. If anything this just solidifies that this console really just has something for everyone. It's a library filled with games that just feel complete, filled with a bevy of game modes, character customization, offline and online support, and tons of content to chip away at for years to come. But they also lack a lot of what I don't particularly like in games such as exhausting content updates, aggressive microtransactions, and stress-inducing battle passes. In the current gaming landscape, it really does feel like such a breath of fresh air. Despite it all, the Switch 2 has been such an exciting and surprising console to follow, and it reminded me of just how fun it can be to fully mine a new game for everything it has to offer.
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