It’s hard to believe, but we are just weeks away from the fifth anniversary of the launch of Nintendo Switch. In the years since that day, Switch has gone on to break sales records and become one of the most successful Nintendo consoles to date. Much of that is owed to its portability and stellar library, and each year of the console has given Nintendo fans something to brag about. Whether it’s the accomplishments of The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild or the perfectly timed release of Animal Crossing: New Horizons, Switch has always had something special to offer gamers. However, some years’ game lineups are more impressive than others, so let’s discuss how they compare and grade each year that Nintendo Switch has been on the market so far. We’re grading on a scale ranging from “F” to “S.”
2017 – Nintendo’s greatest comeback
Nintendo fans were unsure what to expect in the lead-up to the release of Switch. The failures of Wii U had made Nintendo fans anxious about the future of the company, but 2017 was the reassurance they needed. It started with Breath of the Wild, arguably one of the best system sellers any console has ever seen, and little more needs to be said about how it redefined the formula of Zelda and open-world games at large. Day one of the Switch also saw releases like 1-2 Switch, Arms, and Snipperclips. 1-2 Switch was a gimmicky showpiece for the Joy-Con, but Snipperclips provided a fun cooperative puzzle adventure and Arms found an audience in the fighting game community.
This was only the start of a year that saw consecutive monthly releases of impressive games. Fire Emblem Warriors put a Musou spin on the beloved series, while ports such as Pokkén Tournament DX and Mario Kart 8 Deluxe introduced those games to a whole new audience. Splatoon 2 comprehensively improved upon the first game, Xenoblade Chronicles 2 was an appropriately ambitious JRPG epic, and Ubisoft’s unlikely crossover Mario + Rabbids Kingdom Battle surprised everyone with a fantastic strategy take on the Mario franchise.
If this weren’t enough, Nintendo capped off the year with the outstanding Super Mario Odyssey. To release a mainline Zelda and Mario title in the same year is ludicrous, but to have both entries be among the best in their respective series was something else entirely.
Nintendo Switch grade in the year 2017: S
2018 – Second chances and smashing successes
It was always going to be hard to follow 2017, and Switch’s second year was understandably lighter. Experiments like Nintendo Labo …….
Source: https://www.nintendoenthusiast.com/grading-nintendo-switch-by-year-grade-2017-2021/