Today marks the one-year anniversary of the release of the Nintendo Switch. Geez, time sure does fly, doesn’t it?
And what a year it was. I’d say it was the best first year that any video game console has ever had! Switch launched with what is probably the best Zelda ever, and probably the second best launch game ever (sorry Link, but Super Mario World was a thing that happened). After that, it just kept coming with major releases: Mario Kart 8 Deluxe, Skyrim, Splatoon 2, ARMs, Mario + Rabbids: Kingdom Battle, Xenoblade Chronicles 2, Bayonetta 2, Pokken Tournament Deluxe, and the sublime Super Mario Odyssey.
Sure, some people like to point out that a number of those games are re-releases (as if that’s some kind of sin), but the fact of the matter is that’s a lot of big releases; and besides, the ones that were ports tended to be enhanced versions of their respective games (Mario Kart 8 on the Wii U was already the best Mario Kart, but the Deluxe edition made it one of the best Nintendo games ever). And let’s not forget the many indie games both new and old that have made residence on Nintendo’s hybrid system.
This has all helped the Nintendo Switch become a great success story, which is all the sweeter for the Big N considering the commercial failure of (the secretly pretty-darn good) Wii U. Nintendo’s fortunes have seemingly turned a complete 180, akin to what happened between the GameCube and the original Wii.
Here’s hoping that the Switch’s second year proves to be a repeat of its first. As it is, it already ranks as one of Nintendo’s best consoles.
Happy birthday, you little console/handheld thing, you!
Wizard Dojo 