The number of amazing indies releasing on Switch seems to be showing no signs of slowing down, and last month had a truly wonderful selection of delights to explore.
These awards aim to celebrate the best of Nintendo's digital store, giving some love and attention to the games that could so easily be missed in the Switch's ever-growing library.
So, let's get started. Here are the best Switch eShop games of September 2020!
Honourable Mentions:
While these titles didn't quite make our top three this month, they're still certainly worth checking out.
- Alwa's Legacy | Review: 9/10
- Moero Crystal H | Review: 9/10
- MO:Astray | Review: 9/10
- Undead Darlings ~no cure for love~ | Review: 8/10
- Kirby Fighters 2 | Review: 8/10
- RollerCoaster Tycoon 3: Complete Edition | Review: 8/10
- Othercide | Review: 8/10
- Super Punch Patrol | Review: 8/10
- Fight Crab | Review: 8/10
- Minoria | Review: 8/10
- Paradise Killer | Review: 8/10
- Spinch | Review: 8/10
- OkunoKA Madness | Review: 8/10
- Hotshot Racing | Review: 8/10
3. Rebel Galaxy Outlaw (Switch eShop)
Taking third spot this month is Rebel Galaxy Outlaw, a wonderful space-sim action game full of excellent combat, lots of side missions, and a cracking soundtrack. In our review, we said "Rebel Galaxy Outlaw is a wonderfully well-realised and stylish slice of space-sim action set in a satisfyingly seedy galaxy full of untrustworthy scum and illegal activity," – do you really need to hear any more?
The story might not be all that much to shout home about, but the dogfighting action, minigames, and robust upgrade system make this a joy to play through.
2. Ori and the Will of the Wisps (Switch eShop)
In second place we have the stunningly gorgeous Ori and the Will of the Wisps, a title which outshines its predecessor in almost every way.
It was a nice surprise to hear that the game was coming to Switch, and an even nicer surprise when we discovered that it runs at 60 frames-per-second on Nintendo's portable machine. This action-adventure platformer adds more customisation options, a greater focus on combat. and a better-developed story than the original, leading us to describe the game as "a must-buy for anyone even the slightest bit interested" in our review. Play it – you won't be disappointed.
1. Hades (Switch eShop)
In first place this month, however, is a game that's taken the Switch indie scene by storm: Hades.
For the second month in a row, we found ourselves awarding an eShop title with a rare 10/10 score. From the same team who gave us the likes of Bastion, Transistor and Pyre, Hades is a fantastic roguelite journey through the netherworld that's absolutely worth your time. Here's a snippet of what we had to say:
"Hades is a sublime mix of satisfyingly gritty and flexible combat, a wonderfully vibrant art style and genuinely fun and engaging narrative. Supergiant Games has an excellent track record thus far but this really does feel its finest hour, a rip-roaring rampage through the underworld that's arrived here on Switch in a port that's nigh-on perfect."
Addictive combat, an excellent narrative, and a wonderful art style. A must-play.
Please note that some external links on this page are affiliate links, which means if you click them and make a purchase we may receive a small percentage of the sale. Please read our FTC Disclosure for more information.
< Nintendo Life eShop Selects - August 2020
How we decide our eShop Selects top three: As we reach the end of every month, the Nintendo Life staff vote on their favourite titles from a list of games selected by the editorial team. To qualify for this list, these games must have been released primarily as a digital Nintendo Switch eShop title in that particular month, and must have been reviewed on Nintendo Life; we select the qualifying games based on their review scores.
Staff are then asked to vote for three games that they think deserve to sit right at the very top of that list; first choice gets 3 points, second choice gets 2 points, and third choice gets 1 point. These votes are then tallied to create a top three list, with the overall winner taking that month's top prize.
Comments 26
Been a good month! Probably Hades (I've not played the others in the list), but I've cooled on it fairly quickly. Popped it on God mode so at least I'll stand a chance of seeing the story through.
Just got to the last boss of Hades for the second time. This time I'm gonna beat him!
Hades is above Ori? Really? Wow. I still have to try Hades, but Ori 2 is already one of my favourite titles in the console. A brilliant game.
Because of Alwa's Legacy's review I bought Alwa's Awakening and wasn't disappointed. Took me 14hrs for 100% - great little gem! Especially for 7€ can't wait for Alwa's Legacy!
I can vouch for Hades, a great month with Ori too.
Rivals of Aether. Been playing it online and having a blast!
Hades is clear #1 this month for me. I started playing it less than two weeks ago but I've put in 75+ hours already and have been having an absolute blast. Not only is it my favourite game of September but it's my favourite game of 2020.
Honorable mention to MO:Astray which is the best 2D platformer I've played since Celeste. Really enjoyed it.
Alwa's Legacy is probably the new one I want the most, the 3 top picks all went on the wish list. This week I got 198X and Dragon Quest XI, it was too tempting at the knockdown price.
Voted for Hades and have been playing it on the Switch. But why isn't Spiritfarer even listed? Doesn't it meet the criteria? Hades and Spiritfarer (on the Xbox) were the games I've played the most recently.
@carlosmaestre Spiritfarer came out in August. It was #2 in the August article.
Seems like the past two months have been really great for indies. Possibly the best couple of months since the Switch’s launch?
@BenAV oh, thanks. Sorry for the oversight. I jumped a few weeks later and really started playing after the first update (because it was a mess in co-op)
Actually turned out to be a solid month!
@BenAV
Yeah man, you're sounding a lot like me. I remember seeing it before in an Indi direct or something, but I didn't think too much about it honestly and just kind of forgot about it. Then I just saw it in the shop, impulse purchased, and man... easily some of the best money I've spent in a long time. Phenomenal game and better than most of the big budget AAA mehness & garbage that people were going crazy over this year in my opinion. GET. HADES!
Great month it would seem. Out of the top 3 and the honorary mentions, I think I ended up downloading 8 and still have one on the wishlist!
Waiting on physicals of Hades (it has to get one, right?) and Ori
I’m lucky enough to have gotten to play Ori 2 on Gamepass - simply fantastic game! Nice surprise to see it on Switch! After all the glowing reviews I’m going to eventually pick up Hades- I liked Bastion and Transistor. So it seems like an inevitable purchase.
Agree with the top spot whole heartedly
Cannot believe Alwa’s Legacy isn’t being scooped up. The first was solid and the second looks to be even better.
The indie goodness just keeps coming! I’ll probably get the Ori games physically, and will hold off and wish for a Rogue Galaxy physical release too.
I am torn with Hades - I’m thinking it will be a lot like Enter the Gungeon or Dead Cells in that a physical cart will hinder me because I’ll want to dip in & out of it a little each day while maining other games, like how I play ACNH.
I wish more publishers would give away a digital download code together with your preorder of a physical game, like what LRG did with Carrion. That was such a classy move!
Too many people sleeping on Rebel Galaxy and Hotshot Racing. What an amazing month for gaming though. Look at all the gems listed. Crazy.
Easily RCT3 for me. One of my all time favorite games on a portable.
Downloaded Hades in the weekend, pretty much took over my weekend. I downloaded it after dying again in Dead Cells. Hades is actually so good that it devalues Dead Cells.
It's awesome to have both Ori titles available. Two of the best games I've ever played
I wanna play Alwa's Legacy too. The first one is a really good game
@PhilKenSebben A lot of people are saying good things about Hotshot Racing. It's one of the next game I'm gonna get for sure
I only bought one so it must be Hotshot Racing.
Show Comments
Leave A Comment
Hold on there, you need to login to post a comment...