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Switch 2 launch lineup predictions — what do you actually think Nintendo will show?

NintendoNerd

1 posts · Joined Jan 2026

Feb 6, 2026 275 views

Okay so the Switch 2 is real and it's coming and I have not been able to sleep properly since the Direct. Let's talk launch window games because I have thoughts and questions and a borderline unhealthy level of investment in this.

What we basically know: Mario Kart World is a launch title and it looks stunning. The Joy-Con magnetic attachment is wild and I have no idea what Nintendo has planned for it beyond what's been shown.

What I'm wondering:

1. Is there a new 3D Mario at launch or is Odyssey running in backwards compat our Mario fix for year one? Because if it's just Odyssey I will be fine but also slightly devastated.

2. Metroid Prime 4 has been in development since the universe was young. Switch 2 launch title? Please?

3. Does Breath of the Wild / Tears of the Kingdom get an upgrade patch or do we buy them again? I will buy them again. I shouldn't have to. Will I? Yes.

4. The new Donkey Kong game that got leaked — is that a launch title or a year one window? It looked incredible.

5. Are third party ports actually going to happen properly this time? The Switch 1 getting gimped versions of everything was embarrassing by year three.

What are you all expecting? And more importantly what are you hoping for that you know deep down Nintendo will never give you?

4 Replies

CasualGamerKat Feb 7, 2026

I think Metroid Prime 4 is the Switch 2 launch window title they hold back for a Nintendo Direct a month before release and we all collectively lose our minds. That's my prediction and I'm sticking to it.

On the backwards compat question — Nintendo will absolutely make you buy Tears of the Kingdom again in some enhanced form. They will call it a Director's Cut or a Definitive Edition and it will cost £60 and we will buy it. We always buy it. We are helpless.

XboxChief Feb 7, 2026

I genuinely hope the Switch 2 does well because competition is good for everyone and Nintendo first party games are legitimately excellent even if I am primarily an Xbox person. Mario Kart World looks like a proper generational leap for that franchise.

My question is about third party support. The Switch 1 got gimped ports for most of its life because the hardware couldn't keep up. Is the Switch 2 powerful enough that third parties will actually put full effort into it this time or are we going to be back to getting games two years late at half resolution?

PCMasterRace ↩ XboxChief Feb 8, 2026

The Switch 2 hardware is significantly more capable. Based on what's been shown it's roughly in the PS4/Xbox One ballpark which means third parties can port current-gen games without gutting them entirely. Not PS5 quality obviously but enough that you're getting the real game rather than a shadow of it.

The more interesting question to me is whether DLSS support actually works as well in handheld mode as Nintendo are claiming. If it does, the image quality gap between docked and handheld might finally close properly.

NintendoNerd Feb 9, 2026

To answer my own question that I couldn't stop myself from asking even in my own thread: I think we get Mario Kart World at launch, a new 3D Mario in the first six months (not Odyssey 2 — a new concept), and Metroid Prime 4 within the launch year. Donkey Kong is the wildcard — it could be launch or it could be the holiday title.

What I desperately want and will almost certainly not get: a new F-Zero. It has been 20 years. Nintendo please.