Feature: We Look To The Past To Predict Every First-Party ‘Switch 2’ Release Until 2029
Image: Nintendo LifeBy any measure, the Switch has been a rousing success. It has outsold and outlasted almost every gaming console ever made, but according to Nintendo president Shuntaro Furukawa, its days are now numbered.
Rumors aside, we donât know exactly what form the âSwitch successorâ will take, nor even what it will be called. But one thing we know for sure is that it will play games. And Nintendo will make a few of them. What do you say we make an educated guess about which games Nintendo makes, and when each one will launch?
Predicting ‘Switch 2′ Games – The Methodology
Predicting the future is tricky business, but as they say, âthe best predictor of future behavior is past behavior.â The key to understanding the Switch 2âs future, therefore, is to find trends and repeated behaviors over Nintendoâs prior seven generations’ worth of game-making. Thankfully, Nintendo has a long history and some remarkably consistent behavior to study.
To discover these trends, we need data. We begin by compiling a list of every game ever produced by Nintendo, and categorizing each title by generation, year of that generation, franchise (Mario, Zelda, Kirby, etc.), and type (mainline, spin-off, remake, etc.). Check out the full breakdown here.
Nintendo game releases per generation and type â Image: Nathan Lockard / Nintendo Life
Nintendo has a long history and some remarkably consistent behavior to study
With the raw data collected and categorized, our next step is to find patterns that will give us a window into Nintendoâs schemes. We should look for telling metrics, such as the average number of years between releases per franchise, the number of releases per year per console generation, the average generational year that each franchise receives a mainline release, and the number of releases per franchise per system by type. Many other patterns emerge, but you get the idea.
The end result of this number crunching is a predicted seven-year release schedule of ‘Switch 2’ games. And just for fun, letâs throw in a few naming possibilities and a dash of wishful thinking.
Switch 2âs predicted release schedule â Image: Nathan Lockard / Nintendo Life
A Few Trends to Remember
Beginning in the GameCube era, Nintendo has followed the pattern below. Keep these trends in mind as we explore each year of the Switch 2âs lifespan.
In Years 1 through 3, release one game per flagship franchise. Also, introduce a few new IP/franchises
In Years 4 and beyond, fill the calendar with releases in minor franchises and spinoffs from the flagships. Also, feed consumers with a steady stream of remakes and remasters, particularly during long, successful generations
Now then, letâs dive in!
Year One (2025) – ‘Super Mario Spacetime’
Image: Nintendo Life
There are three certainties in life: death, taxes, and a mainline Mario game during a Nintendo consoleâs first year. Mario kicks off Switch 2âs Year One in style with a bold, beautiful journey through his latest frontier – time itself. A fitting way to celebrate Super Mario Bros.’ 40th anniversary.
The rest of Switch 2âs inaugural outing should look something like this:
‘Donkey Kong Slaps’ – DK returns to the third dimension for a long-overdue DK64 apology tour. A decade has passed since weâve received a mainline DK title. Itâs time, and it will be glorious.
‘Nintendo Kart’ – For the past 32 years a Mario Kart game has been released in the first or second year of every Nintendo systemâs lifespan. This time around, new foes appear, as Mario Kart finally gets the Smash Bros. treatment it so desperately needs.
PokĂ©mon Legends: Z-A, ‘Mario Party 11’, Metroid Prime 4, ‘Xenoblade Chronicles 4’, Star Fox – Weâre either right on track or long overdue to receive new installments in each of these franchises.
‘Yoshi’s Fluffy Galaxy’ – Yoshi swallows a new army of enemies every three years or so, and by 2025 he will have been waiting almost twice that long between meals. Heâs gonna be hungry!
Zelda and Fire Emblem Remasters – With a new mainline Zelda title years away, this is the year when the long-rumored remaster of either Wind Waker or Twilight Princess finally hits. Either that, or an upscaled Breath of the Wild or Tears of the Kingdom. The Fire Emblem series is also due for a release and gets one when Genealogy of the Holy War is remade… as an action RPG.
Three new IPs – Early-gen new IPs are a reliable tradition for the big N, as anywhere from one-third to one-half of its new ideas are released in Year One. The number of these games has been dropping since the innovative years of the DS and Wii to the point where the Switch era saw Nintendoâs smallest number of new ideas ever.
Year Two (2026) ‘Super Smash Bros. Eternal’
Image: Nintendo Life
Smash has hit everywhere from Year One (GameCube) to Year Four (3DS) but as one of Nintendo’s biggest sellers, we think itâs a safe bet for this franchise to be the headliner for Year Two, just as it was for Switch.
Nintendoâs pipeline ramps up significantly this year. Major releases in Year Two should include:
‘Kirby’s Forgotten Again’ – Kirby and Yoshi rarely see launches in the same year, so with Yoshi appearing in Year One, itâs Kirbyâs turn to be remembered in this Forgotten Lands sequel.
‘Animal Crossing: Astronaut’ – AC is now a bonafide flagship for Nintendo, so it wonât wait until Year Four like last time. Animal Crossing blasts off toward uncharted yet cozy worlds.
‘Super Mario Maker 3D’ – Yeah, the community beat it to the idea, but we think Nintendo got the hint.
Two new IPs appear, just as Wii Fit, Bayonetta (sort of), and Labo did during the Wii, Wii U, and Switch generations, respectively.
And the rest of the franchises that are on track for a 2026 installment:
‘Nintendo Fit Hula Hoop’ – It wouldnât be a Nintendo console without a gimmicky peripheral.
‘Fire Emblem Encounter’ – In 2026 weâre a year overdue for a new FE title. Intelligent Systems experiments with group-based units in its latest mainline release.
Spin-offs – Princess Zelda and 2D Luigi take starring roles in their own adventures. PokĂ©mon averages a new spin-off title every nine months, although this pace has started to slow. Nintendo will keep releasing them as long as Game Freak cranks them out.
Series Revivals – Wario Land and F-Zero franchises each make a glorious return to relevancy. Who needs new IPs when you can mine for gold in your own basement?
A handful of remakes and remasters appear. A Mario & Luigi game, the fifth generation of Pokémon (Black & White), and one or both Golden Sun titles get a new lease on life.
Year Three (2027) – 4 The Win
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The hits keep rolling in Year Three, as Nintendo checks off most of their remaining flagship franchises.
Luigiâs Mansion and Splatoon both learn to count to 4, with Marioâs brother taking on an entire ‘Ghost Town’, and ‘Splatoon 4’ adding a battle royale mode.
Kirby gets a new spin-off in the form of ‘Kirby Puzzle Panic’, a collection of original and remastered versions of the pink puffballâs past puzzlers (Dream Course, Avalanche, Block Ball, Star Stacker, Tilt ânâ Tumble).
The names for ‘PokĂ©mon Health and ‘Fitness’ make their theme perfectly clear, as Game Freak takes a slightly longer than usual development cycle before inviting us into the tenth generation.
‘A Link Between Worlds HD’ continues Nintendoâs annual tradition of Zelda releases.
Metroid fans are thrown a bone as remasters of Metroid Prime 2 & 3 Remastered are finally launched. [Oh, but I want them nowww! – Ed.]
Mario also rarely takes a year off, so Nintendo remasters and compiles Super Mario Galaxy 1 & 2.
Speaking of Mario, Nintendo turns its attention to his side series with the launch of ‘Paper Mario: Cardstock’ (which explores the exciting world of paperâs weights), ‘WarioWare: Greatest Hits’ (a minigame compilation, like 3DS’ Gold), and ‘Mario Golf: Fore!’ (see what we did there? We’re talking about the non-handheld, home console releases, of course).
Year Four (2028) – Dreadful Hunter
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After whetting their appetites a year earlier, Nintendo treats Metroid fans to a Metroid Dread sequel in ‘Metroid Hunter’, which sees Samus fully embracing her bounty hunter persona.
Having already released an evergreen title for each of its flagship franchises, Nintendo tends to get experimental and nostalgic in Year Four by focusing on minor series, ports, remakes, remasters, and spin-offs. Its annual output peaks with this yearâs slate:
Another round of Mario Party, Fire Emblem, and Xenoblade, plus one-and-done sequels like ‘Bayonett4’, ‘Mii2pia’, and ‘Princess Peach: Encore’.
New installments in long-dormant franchises, including ‘Punch-Out Max!’, ‘Golden Sun: Revival’, ‘Wave Race: Wake Up’, and ‘Kid Icarus: Solborne’, which follows the traditional Zelda formula but with punishing Souls-like combat.
‘Kamekâs Escape’ sees Baby Marioâs tormentor break good in a shmup spin-off, while Zeldaâs annual game is a long-desired ‘Zelda Maker’ (despite Aonumaâs concerns).
Also, Dr. Mario gets the 99 treatment.
Nintendo game releases per year of each generation â Image: Nathan Lockard / Nintendo Life
Years Five and Beyond (2029+) – The Next Generation
Year Five is where Nintendoâs output typically begins a steep decline as the developer focus shifts to new hardware. As is tradition, the âSwitch 2âsâ golden years will be filled with remasters, remakes, and minor franchises.
Mainline releases in series whose names have yet to be called. These will include âMario & Luigi: Pipe Upâ, âPikmin 5â, and âMario Tennis Rallyâ. We might even get another Pilotwings.
âKirbyâs Tall Talesâ (a 2D, folklore-themed affair), âWarioWare: Job Searchâ (Wario and crew explore various careers), and âFire Emblem Mutinyâ (a pirate-themed return to standard turn-based FE gameplay) ensure, as usual, that these series each receive multiple mainline sequels per generation.
Pokémon games keep on coming, with both a Legends sequel and a few spinoffs and remakes.
âSuper Mario 64 HDâ finally happens, and at least one more Mario spin-off shows up as well. Maybe a Captain Toad sequel?
The Zelda series gets a âMinish Cap HDâ remaster, and more importantly, a long-awaited sequel to Tears of the Kingdom that acts as the capstone to the Switch 2âs impressive but predictable library.
Image: Nintendo Life
How did we do? Does this prediction look accurate, or is it off-base? Drop a comment below, and let us know what you think.
