The second holiday season of the Nintendo Switch is here and it’s a time to reflect on which games offered the most entertainment and joy this year of 2018. Gamers have the option of not needing to wait to be home to play their game. Being in the middle of an critical boss fight or on the verge of discovering a new dungeon is easier to enjoy knowing the freedom of continuing on and off the television screen is possible. The versatile portability combined with the “split” joy-con controllers makes the Nintendo Switch an amazing gaming console to have for yourself and the family. These two features are what easily make the Switch my personal favorite console of the 21st century. These four games are the titles I’m not only thankful for, but thrilled to write about.
Overcooked 2 / Team 17 Digital Limited
The second game in the Overcooked series contains all the frustration, challenge and cooking a player would ever want in a single game. The sequel to the original contains more recipes including pizza, cakes, hamburgers and more. The added bonus of unlocking new characters, stages and recipes makes continuing playing Overcooked 2 more enjoyable the longer you play. Players are tasked with taking their food truck to new locations and cooking for the good people of the world. Of course, it’s not that simple. Lots of distractions and disruptions await in each stage.
Friends can easily join in the frustration of having only three minutes to prep, cook and serve delectable dishes. Arguments and tempers will surly rise with the chaos of the kitchen. Throwing ingredients across platforms so your partner can chop or cook them is hilarious, especially when considering how much gets thrown overboard into lava, swamps, water and the sky. My favorite feature is sharing joy-cons with friends and family while watching them assume this seemingly cute game beat them down. It proves that looks are deceiving in the gaming world.
Hyrule Warriors Definitive Edition / Nintendo
Despite being previously released on the Wii U and 3DS, Hyrule Warriors is one of the Switch games Legend of Zelda fans can appreciate being ported. Traveling through multiple stories, revisiting worlds within the Hylian universe and meeting beloved old friends while being introduced to new warriors is a perfect game for LoZ fans. Adventuring through dimensions and timelines of previous games while unraveling a complete story makes Hyrule Warriors a complete experience.
The main idea behind the battles is simple. Hundreds of enemies gather together to attack the player and their army and it’s up to the player to decide where they are needed most on the battlefield. Sending fellow characters to particularly troublesome areas and keeping an eye on which spot the enemy is overpowering makes Hyrule Warriors feel like an intense 3-D chess game. I love the challenge of setting up characters on the field and transferring my playable character among them to become victorious. The game feels like a battle puzzle growing more intense the deeper I progress into the story. The Definitive Edition only available on the Switch, includes all of the previous DLC and a few new characters and weapons. For those who skipped out on the previous versions, I highly recommend it especially while waiting for the next Legend of Zelda game to be announced.
YS VIII Lacrimosa of Dana / Falcom
Lacrimosa of Dana is the most to have been released on the Nintendo Switch this year. The beautifully illustrated backgrounds and robust characters combined with an intriguing storyline made Lacrimosa a gem. Despite being part of a series, this game has no problem standing alone as it’s own complete story. Adol, a self-proclaimed adventurer, is trapped on an island with his fellow castaways after their ship sinks into the sea. All the castaways must work together to survive on once-assumed mythical island and escape back to their homes.
This J-RPG is a portal for the adventurer in every RPG gamer. Discovering ancient creatures and learning of Dana’s past from centuries before the main story is phenomenal to experience on the Switch. A large plus side to playing it on the Nintendo console is having the choice to play it in handheld mode or docked. From fighting off dinosaurs and solving a few mysteries to working on building an entire village and rescuing maidens, Lacrimosa of Dana is packed with several adventures waiting to be journeyed. Falcom produced a gorgeously rich game that truly satisfies the crave for adventure and a thrilling story.
Pokemon Let’s Go Pikachu & Eevee / Nintendo
The year 2018 will be forever remembered in the minds of Pokemon Trainers as the year a Pokemon game was released for a home console. Whether or not trainers consider the game a “true” Pokemon game is still up to debate. Still, it can not be denied that Let’s Go is exciting. It’s also the very first time a Poke Ball controller was created and released allowing players to immerse themselves further into the Pokemon world. “Throwing” the controller and capturing the wild Pokemon makes the game seem more real than ever before.
This element makes the story and gameplay more special and memorable. The chibi style of characters and the larger than life saturated color pallet gives Let’s Go a child-friendly visual appeal. It’s something that I appreciate to have around Christmas time. A time when we want to be reminded of our childhoods. Exploring Kanto in such a way on a television screen and in handheld makes it all the more special. I absolutely love the concept of having a constant partner pokemon with your character throughout the entire game. This element makes the story and gameplay more special and memorable. Choosing which edition is the difficult part. I spend many weeks determining which one I truly wanted more. You will have to wait for my full review to learn which edition I ended up choosing!
Let us know what your top 4 Nintendo Switch games of 2018 are in the comment section below!
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