Poll: Six Years On, Which Was Nintendo Switch's Best Year So Far?

@JimNorman No option to pick 2019?

A new 3D Mario game makes it an easy 2017 for me.

2017 has been unmatched.

You can’t beat Breath of the Wild, Mario Odyssey and Xenoblade 2 and that’s without mentioning the best version of MK8

2018 twice for no reason

I would like to vote 2019… Links Awakening and Luigi’s Mansion 3 are 2 of my top 3 Switch games.

Whilst the Switch effectively carried lockdown in 2020 with Animal Crossing and Xenoblade Chronicles I would put 2017 as the best. In that year we got for the Zelda, Mario, MK8DX, Splatoon 2, Xenoblade 2 etc. They were hitting it out of the park during that launch window.

2017 should go down in history as Nintendo's greatest year.

Either 2017 or 2019. I feel like 2017 had more big hitters with Breath of the Wild, Super Mario Odyssey, Mario Kart 8 Deluxe, Splatoon 2, and Xenoblade Chronicles 2 while 2019 had more variety. Luigi's Mansion 3, Link's Awakening, Astral Chain, Pokémon Sword/Shield, Super Mario Maker 2, and Fire Emblem Three Houses come to mind for 2019, which is an insane line-up.

2023 is definitely in with a good shout, already had FEE and Metroid Prime remastered. Throw Advance Wars, TOTK and Pikmin 4 in the mix and it becomes a great year, ten times better than the terrible 2022 shocker!

2017 by a country mile. And I don't even like Breath of the Wild.

I went for 2020 purely because of Lockdown and the Animal Crossing phenomenon. I wasn't personally surfing to New Horizons when it first came out, but I was well aware of how many were, and the impact of Lockdown left me so grateful that me and my kids could retreat to fantasy worlds and play a lot of Fortnite together. Switch just really came into its own at that point, selling more than ever that year, I think.

But 2017 was an outstanding year, and I only see the years that came since as building upon that - it's not like I stop playing my 2017 games because it's 2018...

So every year is better than the year before simply because I can't see the Switch as anything other than the cumulative behemoth that it's become.

So... tl;dr, my real answer is 2017, 2018, 2019, 2020, 2021, 2022, 2023 and beyond...

2022 was the best year… mostly because that’s when I got a Switch, so all prior years releases I got then. 😋

Don't know what year it came out because I didn't get a switch till 2020 but Astral chain was the only game I enjoyed most with Link's Awakening being second. So those two years.

For the switch itself? Tough choice. It hasn’t had a generally bad year at all. Even in 2020, cause animal crossing carried that console on its back haha! But I say 2017. Hot off the press, killer game lineup even early on, nothing like it ever made.

I'm going with 2019 with 2017 right behind it and 2022 at third place.

@Vexx234 Same year, 2019.

Apparently I am the only person who chose 2018. I think I enjoyed Pokémon Go Pikachu a bit too much. In all seriousness though… that’s the year Monster Hunter Generations Ultimate and Warframe launched on the Switch - two games that have consistently been on my most played games in my Nintendo year end review.

2022! Pokemon Legends, Kirby Forgotten Land, Pokemon S/V and MHR:Sunbreak was a phenomenal year for my personal gaming tastes.

2022 for me. No massive games along the lines of BotW, Mario Odyssey, or Smash, but I think it was the most consistently good year for the Switch when factoring in first party and third party titles. Just too much to play!

The 2017 year are when it first came out and BOTW helped fuel and drive Switch sales from there on. New models come that is how generation update works but 1st year is always the test of future stay power and gamers willingness to try something new and games can't be where they are without the Switch-carts don't play themslves.

Personally, I only got the Switch in 2018 so I have to nominate that as the best year as it's when I was introduced to all the great games.

Super Mario Odyssey is probably on par with SM64 for me up and there with the very best games ever made. And Zelda blew my mind when it came out. No one really knew what to expect but boy did they deliver!
2017 is the only answer here.

2017 was just an unbelievably nutty year for Nintendo

The must people voted for 2017. What 2017? No 2022. Breath of the wild no Pokemon Legends Arcues is better game for me. I liked so much that Pokemon game.

2017. Breath of the Wild, Splatoon 2, Mario Kart 8 Deluxe, Super Mario Odyssey and - a favourite in our house - Arms. It's not every year that a format has 3 1st-party games that are legitimate contenders for game of the year, regardless of format. Not to mention that BOTW is still rightly considered by many to be one of the best games ever made. Every year since has been playing for a silver medal.

@andyg1412 2023 is shaping up to be the best year in gaming across the whole industry regardless of platform.

The pandemic pushing a lot of projects back has given us a year with plenty of heavy hitters (certainly for Switch and PS5 anyway, I do not follow Xbox news)

Whichever year Hades came out. That game slaps.

2017 was a year filled with quality and quantity, Mario entered the stage with a brand new, globe trotting three dimensional outing, Splatoon 2 was a sequel many thought wouldn’t arrive until later, but due to the sequel’s immense popularity, we eventually got our hands on a third iteration, Splatoon 3.

Arms was a completely unexpected new Intellectual Property from the developers of Mario Kart 8, with excellent gameplay, stylistic visuals and a smooth frame rate while Xenoblade Chronicles ended the year containing a gorgeous looking game with a captivating story.

Doom 2016, ported by the talented Panic Button was the first time we seen a Doom game on a Nintendo home console in twenty years being the first time you could play a console quality Doom on a handheld ever since the original on Game Boy Advanced.

Rocket League was also developed by Panic Button and was the first and only Rocket League has ever been on a Handheld console while delivering 900p at 60fps on docked mode.

Even though 2017 was “the best” year for the Switch, I’m the only person that can agree that 2021 was the best year for the Nintendo Switch.

2019 for me. Pokemon Shield and Fire Emblem:Three Houses are two of my favourites. Luigi's Mansion 3 gets an honourable mention as well.

2022. Consistently excellent from beginning to end, and it introduced me to a couple of my new favorite games on the console, Xenoblade Chronicles 3 and Triangle Strategy. The Sunbreak expansion also allowed me to fall in love with MHR all over again. Not to mention Kirby, two pretty good Pokemon games, a new Mario + Rabbids, etc.

2017 really was magical. Nintendo went big, but they were also very simple, humble, and more importantly, they connected with the communities much more than they do now. The marketing was the most insane I have seen from Nintendo, and I don't believe they have been able to replicate that level of success, especially when COVID hit and ruined part of their Super Mario 35th plans.

2018 because Hollow Knight, Dark Souls, and Smash Bros all released that last year and are still the system defining games for me.

However, I believe 2023 will be the best year, based on Silksong, Tears of the Kingdom, Metroid Prime, and Pikmin 4.

I'd have to go for 2022. An extremely packed 1st party lineup including the return of Xenoblade and Mario Kart (Booster Course Pass was the first appearance of more Mario Kart tracks since April 2015). Meanwhile 3rd party support was at its peak with games like the Portal collection and Crisis Core.

2017 is going to be a tough year to beat for me personally. BotW and Mario Odyssey are a killer 1-2 combo, but then there was also Splatoon 2, MK8D, SteamWorld Heist and Dig 2, and Mario + Rabbids: Kingdom Battle.

Though I must admit, if TotK lives up to the hype and 1 or 2 other Nintendo games turn out to be great (Pikmin 4?? Maybe??), 2023 might finally be the year to beat 2017 in my book, or at least equal it.

The games I really like in Switch are Mario odyssey, pikmin 3, dk and ACNH
So... maybe 2020 good just because of ACNH.
I had more fun with the 3DS, best games.

Its a toss up between 2017 & 2022 for me. I think 2022 clinches the top spot with a brand new generation of Pokémon & Legends Arceus to top all that off Xenoblade Chronicles 3, Kirby and the Forgotten Land & Mario Kart 8 Deluxe DLC. 2017 was a great year for the Switch with Zelda & Mario Odyssey. 2019 is closely behind. I am surprised the article doesn't mention Pokémon Sword & Shield in 2019. The first proper mainline Pokémon games on the Switch.

Playing breath of the wild in the toilet back in 2017 was the spot🤪!!!

There truly has not been a 'bad year' in the way other consoles have had in the past.

The Switch's launch year was remarkable, ESPECIALLY hot off the heels of the Wii U, it was like night and day.

But I gotta say, 2018 was the year the Switch said "This was not a fluke. We're here to stay" and established itself as a heavy hitter for years to come.

Just looking through the listed releases and dang, Switch is a fantastic console. So many great games through the years

2017 is overrated. It was a great year for the games industry as a whole, but for Nintendo specifically, it was just "pretty good." I'm a hardcore Nintendo gamer, but my two favorite games of that year were the (then) PS4-exclusive Crash N. Sane Trilogy and Xbox-exclusive Cuphead. Super Mario Odyssey was far from my favorite 3D Mario, and while BotW was great at the time, it's not a game I have any desire to revisit in the near future because of how burned out I am from it.

2019 was just stellar from both a first- and third-party perspective. Super Mario Maker 2, Link's Awakening, SNES Online, A Hat in Time, Cuphead, Yoshi's Woolly World, Dragon Quest 11, Overwatch, Banjo and Hero in Smash, Crash Team Racing, Spyro Reignited Trilogy, Luigi's Mansion 3... it was nuts! There's probably a lot more I'm forgetting or just wasn't interested in that year.

2021 would come in second place, with gems like Metroid Dread, Sonic Colors Ultimate, Super Monkey Ball, Colors! Live, WarioWare, N64 Online, Bowser's Fury, Miitopia, and Crash 4. I was also very excited to get a new Mario Golf, although that game was admittedly a bust.

2018 was pretty barebones from a first-parry perspective, with Smash in December pretty much carrying the whole year. Kirby and Mario Tennis were lackluster, and then there was just a bunch of DLC. Great third-parties though, like Katamari, Okami, Little Nightmares, and Undertale. 2020 was just abysmal as someone who isn't really an Animal Crossing fan, but I understand there were real-world events to blame for that. It still doesn't excuse Nintendo's scumminess with limited-time releases.

2022 had a great start with an ambitious new 3D Kirby and Pokémon that took their respective series to new heights. But as someone who isn't a JRPG fan, the rest of the year was pretty meh. Sonic was good, though, and Pac-Man World was a fantastic surprise. But that was pretty much it. Not a big deal since I got a PS5 that year. I was more than content. About as good as 2017 was for Switch.

The first half of this year has already been stellar, so it has potential to be one of the best.

2019 because we got astral chain yoshi crafted world and luigi mansion, and mario maker, 2018 is probably the worst year, though 2020 was close second

I think we took 2017 for granted. We've been hoping subsequent years would top it since. 2023 will be a close second for me.

I think 2019 was the best, the Switch was in full swing, still felt new and high-tech, and had some good quality of life updates by then. The library was just peaking as well.

2017, easily. It had Zelda, Mario Kart, ARMS, Splatoon 2, and Mario Odyssey. Getting to experience the Switch for the first time and realizing how being able to “switch” turned out to be more revolutionary than I thought. Breath of the Wild was stunning, Mario Kart 8 was perfected, ARMS was an underrated gem, Splatoon 2 turned me into a Splatoon fan after I just merely enjoyed the first game, and Mario Odyssey was a delightful journey of a game full of surprises.

2017 was the year my love for gaming was rekindled and the flame is still stoked

The vote so far goes to show that 2017 was the best year and Nintendo have not really lived up to that year since.
However they could do it in 2023
MP Remastered
Kirby
BOTW 2
Pikmin 4
Now release a new 3d Mario or DK platform game for end of 2023 and then 2023 wins for me.

2017 easily. Good times

2019 for me. I'm normally a non-responder to ads, but the Links Awakening ads at the time lead me into purchasing my first console in over a decade. In addition to that game and the games mentioned above on the article, while a little buggy at launch, I absolutely loved Bloodstained. SOTN is pretty much GOAT for me and playing a new take on it for the first time in almost 20 years was amazing.

I dont know if getting two decent Nintendo games a year is enough to give any year a best year vote... Totally didnt mention any ports or indies that have released over the years since the majority of my switch library is made up of those, not gonna count mario sports or party games as main Nintendo games

And 2017 was not the best year... The switch library was lacking immensely... pretty much only had two games to play...even if they are the best games in both series, it wasn't until 2019 they started to beef up the eshop

2017 by far. Nothing beats having a new 3D Zelda game, a new 3D Mario game, a new Splatoon game, and an excellent Mario Kart port. That's some of Nintendo's biggest IPs all in one year. Insane that all of this released in the course of a year, I'm not sure Nintendo will ever have a lineup this good again.

Since I like 3rd party games by mostly than 1st party games, I think between year 2018 and 2019 was the best for me. Year after 2020 was going downhill.

2017 because Mario and Zelda.

I’m glad some people were happy with what they got in 2022, but it was completely devoid of traditional Nintendo franchises. I’m not a Pokémon fan, find Kirby games too simple, and don’t enjoy racing games. Played Splatoon 2 to death, but 3 really brings nothing new to the table to pull me back in. Xenoblade is alright though, I’ll grab 3 on sale at some point. 2022 really had zero for me from Nintendo. It was probably the switch’s worst year.

@IronMan30 All about that Deckbeard life...

I'd say 2017. The way they turned everything around after the Wii U was phenomenal - and without following the graphics arms race approach which literally only appeals to a pocketful of people, they enticed lapsed gamers and people who don't even play games to grab a Switch.

1. 2017
2. 2020 (Only Because of ACNH)

For me, so far, it has definitely been 2017. The one-two punch of Breath of the Wild and Super Mario Odyssey has yet to be matched. 2023 is looking pretty darn good, though, with Metroid Prime Remastered, Advance Wars Re-Boot Camp, Pikmin 4, and Tears of the Kingdom.

2021 = OLED is great.

The Switch has had an amazingly good 6 years, if you ask me. I haven't had this much fun with a Nintendo system since the NES, and NEVER have I bought as many games for a single platform. That said, it's hard for me to pick a single greatest year. I'm leaning toward 2017 but can't count out 2022 because of coveted ports that made it to Switch, like 13 Sentinels, No Man's Sky, and Persona 5 Royal!

I'm putting together an excel list of every physical Switch game I've purchased (I buy almost exclusively physical). I'm going to hold off voting in this poll until I can finish entering release dates for each title - that will give me some clarity on how much I bought each year and help me quantify the joy.

How does one answer this question lol? I finished Xenoblade Chronicles 3 this year, catching up on some backlog and Metroid Prime Remastered arrived today. With Pikmin 4 and Zelda on the Horizon and who knows what, then this year I suppose. But all previous years had great games I was playing. Dying Light was a highlight for me. I fell in love with A Ghost of a Tale. hmm...2017 was one of the best years for Nintendo first party for sure. And if I don't get around to playing Zelda until next year, then does that mean next year is in with a shout. I dunno. I play stuff at my own pace, in my own time and just appreciate the library hollistically. And it's steller, innit! Yeah...I'm boring.

I'm not the gamer I used to be, but I really don't have a favorite year. Each year had a game or 2 that I was looking forward to. If anything, this year has been my favorite so far because of one game. Metroid Prime and Metroid Fusion with the possibility of Metroid Zero Mission. Then you have Tears of the Kingdom.
Hands down the switch has been my favorite console considering it has most if not all the games I love from the past to present.

2017 or 2022? 2017 had botw, mk8dx, m+r kingdom battle, Mario Odyssey, AND SONIC MANIA. That's a great year. But 2022 had Kirby, mhr sunbreak, switch sports, Splatoon 3, sonic frontiers, sparks of hope, and portal collection. Darn impossible choice. I literally can't choose. Dang it Nintendo. Edit: how could I have forgotten Stanley parable? Shame on me.

Kind of sad to say that the first year was still the best year 😮‍💨

There are a ton of good switch games, but still WAY too many Wii U ports and not enough original titles. BotW wasn't an exclusive title. Even Smash Ultimate in some ways feels like Smash 4.5.

Sometimes I feel like the Switch was mostly Nintendo's (successful) attempt at rectifying their financial losses from the Wii U. I'm hoping their next console is mostly unique releases instead of ports

@Cyrax77 Man, I'm really trying w the LA remake. I just vastly prefer the OG game.

@Bigmanfan that's easy. The one that didn't have Sonic Frontiers.

@msvt This comment would look GREAT on my OLED!

My favorite year was either 2017 or 2019. I also really enjoyed 2021. And the first half of this year is packed... I seem to like the odd year for some reason lol.

2017 was an incredible year for gaming all around, and the Switch was a big part of that.

@LikelySatan oof. Not a sonic frontiers fan? To be honest, I can totally understand.

I know 2017 will probably get the most votes but for me personally, the only games I loved were Xenoblade 2, Splatoon 2, and Mario Kart 8 Deluxe (I enjoyed botw and odyssey but not to the same level).

2019 might be my pick. Dragon Quest XI, Fire Emblem Three Houses, Luigi's Mansion 3, The Witcher 3, Astral Chain, Mario Maker 2, and a boatload of final fantasy games (haven't played any of them until they came to switch).

2022 would be a close second with Xenoblade 3, Splatoon 3, Kirby and the Forgotten land, and Triangle Strategy being my favorites. Plus this year finally brought us the persona games! (Still going through persona 5 lol).

Overall I don't think I hated any year from the switch. In fact, every year has produced a favorite switch game of mine.

This is going to be unpopular, but 2020 is my pick. It didn’t have a lot, but almost every first party game released I loved and still replay to this day. Can’t say that about the other years.

2017 for Mario Odyssey of course

I got so much mileage out of Three Houses and my two Solitaire games that I chose 2019. Untitled Goose Game and What Remains of Edith Finch were also great additions. (Honorable Mentions: Ni No Kuni and Super Mario Bros. 2.)

@LikelySatan

I understand, but I have not played the OG version before the remake. So that’s why I prefer the remake I guess

It’s 2017, not contest. Pretty much every year has been fantastic for the switch but having a new 3D Zelda and a new 3D Mario, and both being phenomenal in the same year, alongside everything else released? That’s insane.

@Buizel Totally agreed with you.

I voted 2023 because:

1. Metroid Prime Remastered is one of the best games on Switch.

2. I predict Tears of the Kingdom will be one of the best games on Switch.

3. I hope Metroid Prime Remastered's release is a sign that Metroid Prime 4 will be out by Christmas and that it, too, will be one of the best games on Switch.

Other than that, yeah, 2017 it is.

I really, REALLY want to vote 2017 simply because BotW was an absolute masterpiece, but I’m going to vote for 2021. It brought Metroid Dread and the OLED model. Also, after years, 3D all stars made me finally sit down and beat Galaxy. But 2017 is such a close second with BotW and MK8D.

2017 would be the clear winner, but the console was lacking the critical mass of indies that would eventually make it so appealing (to me), so 2018 got my vote…

I voted 2017 for Zelda, Mario, Sonic Mania and Doom (2016). I rate 2022 as a very close second for Xenoblade Chronicles 3 among other great games that year.

2020 has been my favorite year thus far.

Despite the pandemic roaming about, 2020 was the year that I felt excelled the most on Switch, bringing a sublime balance of both first-party and third-party (and indie) games for me. I've long waited for another mainline Animal Crossing game since Animal Crossing: New Leaf and luckily, those seven years of waiting resulted in Animal Crossing: New Horizons not only became my new favorite Animal Crossing game after the Game Cube game, but my new favorite Switch game after Dragon Quest Builders 2 of last year. Then there was also the sublime Mega Man Zero/ZX Legacy Collection, the US release of Pop'n TwinBee, my favorite versions of Sonic the Hedgehog 2 (prior to Sonic Origins) and Puyo Puyo Tsu via Sega Ages, another good Puyo Puyo and Tetris game Puyo Puyo Tetris 2 since Puyo Puyo Tetris from 2017, a surprisingly good "shovelware" title Clubhouse Games: 51 Worldwide Classics, the digital release of Super Mario All Stars at last, an unexpected but good Super Smash Bros alternative Kirby Fighters 2...hoo man, I could go on.

The only "duds" for me that year were Paper Mario: The Origami King and Super Mario 3D All Stars, but those games were more "okay" than bad for me and I felt that they could've been much better in the end.

I would semi-invert this and then just say that the Switch hasn't had a bad year. Best is going to be rather subjective on which games you played. Nintendo has done a rather good job managing the 1st party release schedule; which was one of the key points they targeted for the system. I might just got with 2017 since I'm still playing MKD8, and not just because of the new DLC waves. I'd have to say most all years were rather strong given key title releases.

@Bigmanfan I said I'd buy a 3D Sonic game if they tried something new, so I picked it up. It felt like they bought some assets and plugged them into "Open.Environment4CE.23S," if you know what I mean. Just disparate jungle gyms strewn about generic play fields broken up by Boost zones clipped from (bad) previous games.
...I don't like Boost Sonic.
Anyway, I'd like to stay positive and echo the whole "Frontiers is a solid base to start from" line I keep reading, but I don't believe that. Sonic Team is like Gamefreak. No incentive to make better games, since the fans will buy them anyway. But hey, if fans are happy, no reason for me to complain.

BotW... even if you don't like it, you can't deny it was a grand slam opener for the Switch

Have a feeling 2023 will be remembered as its best year.

Yo 2021 was the best. New metroid, banana mania, new mario, warioware, mario party, etc. Tons of amazing games released that year.

I have VR Labo and its so cool. It works with Super Smash Bros Ultimate very good. And the way its set saying no batteries required makes it a budget VR head set. I wish Nintendo would do more with VR Labo as much as Sony is doing with PSVR and now they are on PSVR2. I want more games working with VR Labo so I can use it more.

A better question would be, what was the Switch's best year outside of 2017? I think I would say 2020.

no year will be able to top 2017 as Nintendo Switch best year, 2022 come closer to it.

@LikelySatan yeah, the visuals are not really good, but it doesn't really matter to me. The reason I and many others love it is for the controls. Zooming through those islands at insane speeds just feels incredible. But I understand your opinion completely. However, don't blame gamefreak or sonic team if their games are unfinished. Blame the higher ups who give impossible deadlines while having no idea how game design works. Blame Sega and the Pokemon company.

The wow factor of having a game like BOTW available to play handheld is hard to beat.

I'd never enjoyed Zelda games or rpgs before and very nearly game it a miss but it became my favourite game of all time.

I have had a switch since day one and the voting proves to me what I have said all along this swtich generation.
Take out the 3rd and more importantly 2nd party studio games and the remakes etc.
And Nintendo in-house AAA games have been few and far between and they should have stepped up more.

2019, because it was the year I bought my switch.

That first year hit so many targets. It's just hard to compare. Even the release of ARMS was exciting as it was new IP. I know the first year of the Switch Pro/2 will be very similar. I have a feeling 2024 will be amazing.

@Dezzy70 I've had a Switch since day one and got every Nintendo console when they were current. The Switch is still my favorite system ever. I have a PS5 and several other consoles and barely play them. Saying "ignore all of these exclusives from all of these developers" is pretty asinine, lol.

2017 remains unmatched and it’s not even close.

@LikelySatan
I know what you mean and the Switch does end up being my most played console.
I just feel we could have had more from Nintendo in house studios AAA wise.
we might get a nice surprise for the end of this year with a new AAA Mario or DK platform game.

I can’t pick honestly. My backlog is embarrassingly huge and Switch is my largest game library (hit 600 games recently). I am so glad to be a gamer right now.

2017 is not just the best year for the switch, but also the best year in Nintendo history

At launch in 2017 there wasn't much I wanted to play. In 2022 I had and (still have) a huge backlog of games that came out that year that were great games that I wanted to play. 2022 best year IMHO.

I went with 2019. So many good games, from The Legend of Zelda: Link's Awakening to Luigi's Mansion 3, and Super Mario Maker 2 pretty much saved my life during the first half of the school year. Shoutout to 2018, though, when two of the best indie games I've ever played came out (take a guess at which two they are).

All and all, most years have been great.

I'm disqualifying Breath of the Wild because it's not a Switch game it's a Wii U port so my personal favourite Switch game is Fire Emblem Three Houses

@NintendoByNature except for 2018 and 2020 they sucked

@Ryu_Niiyama THIS POSITIVITY MUST NOT STAND

It's not event fair to compare 2017 with the rest of the years. Honestly the real debate is what's in second place. For me, that would easily go to 2022, last year was so good and filled with absolutely amazing games from Arceus to Xenoblade (ironically no Zelda last year unless you count re-releases on NSO). The rankings after that go: 2018, 2020, 2019, 2021. But there hasn't been a bad year for the console in my opinion and I've bought/played multiple fantastic AAA games and indie games each year. Even 2020, a year where people consider to be the Switch's weakest, had awesome hitters for me such as Xenoblade 1 DE and Zelda Age of Calamity. 2023 is already shaping up to be fantastic too with Zelda, Xenoblade 3's expansion, and a fantastic port of the best Kirby game, plus a lot of Metroid love.

2017 is filled with boundless amounts of pure enjoyment, and not just the big hitters, there are a TON of killer smaller titles. Whoever said it's not fair to compare 2017 to any other year is totally accurate!! It's beyond anything I expected or anticipated!!

I picked 2017, but there hasn’t been a year that I haven’t eaten well. The Switch has been Nintendo’s most consistent generation in terms of quality and quantity of content. Let’s see if the can stick the landing. 2023 is getting off to a great start.

All good years really but yeah 2017 is just to star studded

I would say 2017 was the highlight. If Nintendo releases another huge title at end of 2023, with the new Zelda this year, 2023 will be the best year. Otherwise 2017 would be the one

@KBuckley27
Yeah you gotta be kidding with that one.

I think 2022 edged out 2017 overall for me. 2017 was fantastic though and it's probably the best 1st year of any system. Honestly, I don't think the Switch had a bad year. 2018 and 2020 were not as exciting as the others, but still had plenty of games.

2017 is when the stars aligned, and is the reason why we're here today. Probably an accident.

2017 for sure.

But you have to remember it was by design.
Most consoles don't have their strongest year as their first.
But Nintendo purposefully held back games from the Wii U so they could have a stack of quality releases for the Switch. They needed it to be successful.

While I'm glad it paid off, I can't deny that part of me is still bitter that the Wii U had to be killed for the Switch to take off big.

A lot are praising 2022 (my pick) and yet without mentioning Nier Automata, the two TMNT games, Portal Collection, Live a Live, or Bayonetta 3.

I didn't notice anyone mentioning Octopath Traveler, Captain Toad, Ikaruga, Undertale, or Bayonetta 1 & 2 for 2018 either, and Switch Online being started.

2017 was somewhat tarnished by 1-2 Switch, let's not forget, but it also had Snipperclips.

Say, to Nintendolife staffs, where is the article about "Today is 6th Anniversary of Nintendo Switch" like last year ?

ACNH was a (lockdown aided) system seller and made the Switch a phenomenon outside of the usual gamer community in a way Nintendo hadn't really enjoyed since the original Wii. That's primarily why I chose 2020.
Looking back, I guess there wasn't a ton of big releases compared to other years, but I got my Switch toward the end of 2019, so 2020 was my first full year with the system, so I'm also sentimental for that reason. Aside from the hundreds of hours I put into AC (now thousands) the Super Mario 35th anniversary releases (RIP), the Splatfest encores in Splatoon 2 were special events for me in a year I rarely left my home.

2023+ because you can enjoy it all now!

Wasn't 2017 the only year where the Switch eShop had any kind of curation going on? Been a free-for-all since then and the store's getting to be a bit impenetrable. These days a game really needs to have an article about it catch my eye here, because I probably won't feel like scrolling sluggishly through the new releases every week.

My favorite Nintendo franchises are Zelda and Mario. BotW and Mario Odyssey came out in 2017, so this is my favorite year. Also, life was far less expensive and less complicated back then. Good times.

The years after and up until now, I mostly enjoy indies and remakes/remasters of older games.

It was difficult to choose between 2021:s No More Heroes 3, Monster Hunter Rise, Shin Megami Tensei V, Metroid Dread and Warioware, and 2022:s Bayonetta 3, Kirby, Nier and Xenoblade Chronicles 3. Had to go with 2021 in the end, but man, those two years have been fantastic!

In total, I'd rank them 2021, 2022, 2017, 2018, 2019, 2023 (so far), 2020.

Objectively it must be 2017. Mario Odyssey, Zelda and Mario Kart. I voted 2021 due to Metroid Dread and other years needed attention.

2017 was the best year, objectively, but 2022 brought Splatoon 3, as well as Kirby and the Forgotten Land and Xenoblade 3, so that takes the cake for me. 2020 gets serious props for ACNH, Pikmin 3, and Kingdom Hearts: Melody of memory, so that's a close second imo

Every year had its highs and lows but 2017 wins easily

I was still playing my 3DS up until 2021, so I would say 2022 would be the best year for me. We got Xenoblade 3, PLA, Mario+Rabbids, Triangle Strategy, and more. Most of the other years have been great too, and 2023 has already been great.

It wasn't necessarily when the best games came out, but I, like many, spent SO much time in 2020 playing Switch. It might not have produced the best games, but 2020 stands out as the year that the Switch really helped my state of mental well-being.

I’d rank the years like this:
6. 2020
5. 2018
4. 2022
3. 2021
2. 2019
1. 2017

2017 best year so far for the moment !

Looks like I'm in the majority pick for 2017.

2019 was my favorite year, loved Marvel Ultimate Alliance 3. And Fire Emblem and Luigi's Mansion were nothing to sneeze at.

I only bought a Switch in 2021 (very late to the party, I know), so while there were definitely some bangers from 2017 (namely The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild, Super Mario Odyssey, and Mario + Rabbids Kingdom Battle), when I look at my collection of 30+ games played, I have to say that either 2021 or 2022 brought me the most joy.

2021 was all about catch up: in addition to playing a wide variety of previous year Wii U ports (Bayonetta 2, Captain Toad: Treasure Tracker) or entries that came out in the intervening years (i.e. Luigi's Mansion 3, Link's Awakening, Paper Mario: The Origami King), I got to play the vast majority of 3D Mario's thanks to 3D All Stars and 3D World + Bowser's Fury, while also being introduced to Metroid Dread, Xenoblade Chronicles, Skyward Sword, Sonic Colors, and Bravely Default II. All in all, a solid year with a lot of my favorites (Skyward Sword, Link's Awakening, and Super Mario Galaxy all being in my top ten).

2022 I am still playing games from and frankly, it has yet to disappoint. The year got off to a very good start for me (and a lot of folks, I'm sure) with Pokémon Legends Arceus, followed by Kirby and the Forgotten Land, which after playing Star Allies (still a decent game, btw) I wasn't sure how much enthusiasm I would have for until I saw the trailer with Mouthful Mode. I would dearly have loved to play Xenoblade Chronicles 3, but I had just finished the first and am only now approaching the second.

The middle of the year was sort of bare, but then October arrived and along came a little game called Bayonetta 3. After that, the hits kept coming for me with Mario + Rabbids Sparks of Hope, Sonic Frontiers, NieR:Automata, and most recently Lego Star Wars: The Skywalker Saga. I would quite easily put Arceus, Kirby, and Xeno in my top ten, with Sparks of Hope not far behind (as I'm still playing Bayo I'm not comfortable ranking it just yet).

So it's a toss up. I will say that 2021 had Metroid Dread and Skyward Sword, both of which are real contenders for my absolute favorite games on the Switch, while I would only maybe pick Arceus from 2022, so I guess I'd have to give 2021 a very slight edge.

I'm long done choosing, really. Switch simply HASN'T had a year without something absolutely nuts that could have made the year by itself. And the fandom will bark at them all anyway. I mean, if some can "argue" the year of Xenoblade 3, Rune Factory 5, No Man's Sky, NieR Automata and the perennially portbegged Persona 5 (to name a few!) was "a bad one" with a straight face, then what is there to say?😏😆

Switch remains a superb gaming platform with a progressively superb library. Rather than try picking favourites among the previous years, I'll just raise a glass for yet another exciting one. Which, given the already announced slate, 2023 is already shaping up to be.🍷

If anything, this proves how few new games the Switch have had.

@JohnnyMind
Thanks for reaching out and sure, I’ll be happy to at you when I finally vote. It might take a long time before I can find and enter all these release dates, though. NL here has a quite informative list, but it seems to lack all the short-run physical games I’ve bought so many of, from LRG, SLG, SRG, Fangamer, etc. The research is a fun distraction during lunch breaks at work. 😄

I think in terms of purchases, 2022 has got to be the year when I shopped most. Filling out that DATE ORDERED column in excel will be a real challenge later!

2017 gave me such a hope for future Switch titles. Odyssey & BOTW had me thinking that Nintendo were going back to making the grand single player adventures I really loved from them, almost giving the vibe of their crazy experimental Gamecube days. But with the exception of Luigi's Mansion 3 & the wonderful Bowser's Fury, everything else has just felt like a side dish, low effort, or the same old same old. I wish they'd aim a little higher in the future, make the big epic adventure games we know they can.
But that's just me😁

@JohnnyMind I'm playing dx rn. Wonderful game. I wish the remake let me use original sounds and to flip from one graphics style to the other, but I know that would be pretty much impossible without changing a lot. I also prefer the world as tiles. Works better.

Honestly never a bad year for me. I'm proud to say I've been playing Switch since day one. I would rank each year as follows:

1. 2017
2.2019
3.2022
4.2021
5.2020
6.2018

Just can't beat Super Mario Odyssey, Breath of the Wild and Xenoblade Chronicles 2, those games alone, not to mention all the other great Switch games that year, make for one of the best years in gaming ever. It's very rare to see that many quality releases on a single platform in a year, and the fact that they were all exclusives is mind blowing.

2022 has the Booster Course Pass, so I pick 2022

Oh man, this is a tough one, but if I had to pick, I would go with the majority and say either 2017 or 2019. Having said that, 2023 is looking to be a good year as well, just based on what we know is coming out this year, however, only time will tell.

I’m surprised at how many people voted 2017. Sure, it brought most of the heavy hitters, but 2020 was the most impactful for me, a middle schooler in lockdown with only Animal Crossing to keep me entertained.

It was 2018 for me since that's when I actually got the system and all of the games from 2017 were already there for the picking then after that, every year a Metroid game has dropped, so 2021 and 2023 if they also cap it off with ToTK AND Prime 4.