Sparkle 2 is an easy game to overlook during what I like to call the eShop Renaissance, but for such a reasonable price you're getting hours of genuinely fun and addictive puzzle gameplay, complimented with a stellar - albeit repetitive - soundtrack. I was truly caught off guard by its quality, and I have a feeling you will be too.

Even if you don't have a penchant for pixel art or consider yourself a popular culture vulture, there's plenty to enjoy in Retro City Rampage DX. Take the 5-6 hour main story stages at your own pace while exploring all the little nooks and crannys of Theftropolis and you'll find a wealth of customization, add-ons, minigames and a variety of vehicles and weapons to try out. A thoroughly enjoyable and satisfying retro themed sandbox which will appeal to both fans of the 8 bit era and open world adventure games.

Sidebar Games have made a great take on the arcade golf game and added a story and RPG elements with great success! Golf Story is the best sports game on the Nintendo Switch, and arguably one of the best games available right now on the system. Whether you are a fan of golf or not, you need this game on your system!

Disgaea 5: Complete was like finding a hidden gem for me personally and even if you’re not normally a fan of tactical RPG’s, I highly recommend that you give it a try. Beautifully simple yet complex over time, Complete is a game worth owning.

Graceful Explosion Machine is arguably the go-to arcade game that every Switch owner should definitely consider buying. It mixes pleasing visuals with great gameplay to make it one of the best arcade shooters I've played. You can beat the four worlds in around four hours, but you will find yourself playing these over and over again as you chase down those high scores!

Death Squared is a great example of how the Nintendo Switch can bring players together. Hand a friend a Joy-Con and watch the hilarity ensue. Good fun as a single player experience but better with friends, Death Squared mixes challenge with humour in a way that makes it very reminiscent of Portal - and if that isn't reason enough to give this game a look, I don't know what is.

The Specter of Torment expansion really added to the game series with a better story and more fluid gameplay. Its not particularly long, but the fun, challenging, old-school platforming makes this a game worth playing. I would recommend buying the Treasure Trove edition with the original game and the two expansions and playing them in the order of release. It's a great package and Specter of Torment is the strongest of the set.

Snipperclips - Cut it out, together! is great fun for all the family. It may be a little on the short side, but with two or more people playing those hours will be both frantic and funny. Arguably the second best game of the Switch's launch, I cannot recommend this eShop title enough.

I confess that the fact that the game is not open world has "turn-me off" a little, but nothing that prevents you from enjoying what the game has to offer.

Boasting a unique premise that stands out from anything else in the genre, Toodee and Topdee is a challenging delight to play. Brimming with charm and with clear potential to build on its slight shortcomings, Toodee and Topdee are a duo I’d happily see again.

Yet another brilliant game from Kairosoft. Hot Springs Story offers players a slice of Japan, and with fun, interesting mechanics to keep your attention and strive to do well.

With its unique take on social deduction gameplay and its unexpected mix of visual novel and RPG, Gnosia delivers an experience that’s unlike any other. Despite being repetitive at times, its narrative engages up to the very last twist – which is extremely satisfactory.

Membrane is a physics-based psychedelic puzzle-plaformer that is great fun to play. Offering an interesting mechanic and gameplay that is challenging but never too tough, fans of the genre will be sure to enjoy this one!

Part roguelike, part card battler, and part turn-based RPG, Loop Hero is an addictive medieval descent where your lack of control actually adds to the sense of adventure. It takes a while to hit its stride but is worth it in the end.

Ghosts ‘n Goblins Resurrection is an extremely challenging game that leaves you feeling both frustrated and rewarded. Players who are familiar with the series will feel right at home with this one.

ChromaGun successfully utilises colour in unique and creative ways to provide an engaging experience that puzzle aficionados will relish. It could be a bit longer, but as it is, it's a very strong puzzle shooter.

Lost Words: Beyond the Page is a phenomenal experience, one that I’m not likely to forget anytime soon. The gameplay is simple but the narrative more than makes up for that. An incredibly relatable story that really had me lost for words.

Axiom Verge 2 doesn’t quite deliver the same thrill and nuance of its predecessor. There are great ideas at play and an engaging story if you can commit to it. But be prepared to come away slightly underwhelmed.

Dawn of the Monsters isn’t reinventing anything, but that lets it focus on what counts – punching big monsters in the mouth. If that sounds like fun to you, then you won’t be disappointed.

With an extremely well-polished repertoire of challenges and a stellar asynchronous multiplayer component, Brain vs. Brain makes for quite the return on Nintendo Switch to the Big Brain Academy, and at an enticing price point.

Garden Story is such a wholesome game and the more time you put into it, the more you will get out. Its adorable cast of characters and varied gameplay makes for a great ‘relaxation’ game, if that’s what you’re looking for.

Sakuna: Of Rice and Ruin is an extremely ambitious title that delivers on most aspects it sets out to. JRPG fans will love how in-depth this one is. If you want something that is vast and intriguing, this is a must-play.

It has its flaws, but there is absolutely no reason not to get on board with No More Heroes 3. It’s explosive, it’s sexy, it’s absurd, and it’s all created with a passion rarely seen outside of small-scale indie game development.

Party Golf has loads of modes to keep you busy, and offers loads of fun to bring you back. Gather some friends together and you'll have a bundle of fun, but it's also good fun playing against some CPUs. It's perhaps forgiven at not having some kind of story mode by the sheer depth of modes available - pick it up. I'm sure you'll have fun too.

Platforming fun for all the family, Max: The Curse of Brotherhood is one of the Switch's better takes on the genre. Its storytelling feels like a Disney Pixar movie, so if your youngster has had a Switch for Christmas, it shouldn't take much to get them on board.

Vostok Inc. takes the cookie clicker genre, often played with a fleeting attention span, and spins it into an experience that you can't put down. The amount of different spinning plates to consider when constructing your capitalist, galactic empire is a challenge that is only made more satisfying by the pleasing music, graphics and varying space combat. It's a great game.

Transcripted successfully blends two compelling genres together to create an experience like no other. It's somewhat held back by a rather lacklustre narrative, but the gameplay will keep you hooked for hours.

With Ironcast, Dreadbit mixes up some elements from other genres to make a match-three that is both entertaining and complex. Its permadeath system may hinder the experience for some players, but lots of fun will be reserved for those who persist.

Fire Emblem Warriors has an incredible amount of depth and an awful lot of content to whittle away your spare time. It is let down slightly by its weak story and repetitive nature but there is still a lot of enjoyment to be had. Fans of the series will no doubt get a kick out seeing their beloved characters in a new way and, whilst it might be a little daunting for some, newcomers will be rewarded if they have the time and patience to soak up everything the game has to offer.

TOEM is one of the many wholesome games available on Switch, but it is one that stands out thanks to its unique hand-drawn art style and enjoyable perspective mechanics. A short but sweet, frame-by-frame adventure.

Repetitive battles are The Banner Saga’s biggest issue, but they don’t stop the enjoyment from what is otherwise a fantastic experience. Strategy and fantasy enthusiasts should find a lot to enjoy here. Roll on part two!

Like a spiritual successor to Super Meat Boy, The End is Nigh takes form as a similar 2D side scrolling platform game. By adding an interconnected world to the mix, it encourages exploration, while still delivering that same hardcore and challenging experience.

Frogun draws you in with all the strength of the titular tongue-hooking grapple gun, combining 90’s low-poly nostalgic presentation with a fresh, novel gameplay premise. It’s a fairly short expedition, but well worth it when you factor in extra modes and collectibles.

Ys Origin serves up undeniably fun hack-and-slash action, with just enough lore to keep newcomers and series veterans alike satisfied. Although there is a healthy challenge and tons of replay value, staying inside of the same tower can get dull.

The blend of visual novel-esque storytelling combined with surprisingly deep RPG based combat result in an engaging and substantial fantasy adventure. A great execution of the old school choose your own adventure games and a perfect fit for the Switch.

A must-play for any fans of the long-running web series, Angry Video Game Nerd 1 & 2 Deluxe is also enough of a hardcore platforming challenge to interest fans of the genre looking for a tongue-in-cheek throwback to NES days.

Mario Party Superstars is N64 nostalgia remastered. Collect stars, stickers, and achievements while messing with your friends! With five updated game boards, and minigames from the N64 and GameCube eras, fans will be able to squeeze plenty of fun out of this one.

With a strong sense of style and smart, methodical gameplay, West Of Dead delivers a game that carefully balances brutal difficulty with a true blast of fun. While you’ll die often, you’ll always be excited to dive back in.

Outlined by its lovecraftian narrative themes and gloomy 2D art style, Darkest Dungeon breaks standard RPG conventions to deliver a challenging adventure about everlasting physical and psychological scars. With the overlapping affliction system and deep turn-based combat, every run becomes a tense thrive for survival.

Radical Rabbit Stew borrows ingredients from a few other video games to boil up a 16-bit nostalgia hit, featuring a solid (if not overly long) arcade puzzle single-player campaign, a chaotic multiplayer offering, and a level editor. Delicious.

Haven is an incredibly zen and cathartic experience that has a genuine human relationship at its core, with combat that expertly manages to match the airy flow of the overall gameplay. It sets an incredibly high bar for quality.

Remembered perhaps even more fondly than The Phantom Menace itself by some fans, Star Wars Episode I: Racer is as fun as you recall. While some difficulty issues can arise, Aspyr has done a fantastic job bringing that exhilarating, break-neck speed action back to Nintendo hardware.

Although it pays strict homage to a bygone era of first-person dungeon crawlers, almost to a fault, Legends of Amberland: The Forgotten Crown still feels fresh and exciting. The experience almost seems tailor-made for the Nintendo Switch.

Calling Fire Emblem Warriors: Three Hopes a Musou almost feels like a disservice. It is a game that recontextualizes the most interesting elements from the Fire Emblem series into a new experience that is equal parts familiar and unique.

Strategy and board game fans seeking a mixture of challenge, quirkiness, and randomly-generated excitement will find that in Curious Expedition. Although its simple presentation and unforgiving nature may turn off some, it’s a well-rounded, replayable experience.

Pocket Rumble is a delightful fighting game boasting tight gameplay and lovely visuals. Its brutal difficulty is a bit at odds with the simplified control scheme, but as with anything, perseverance breeds excellence.

Carefully curating a couch coop title that is unique and inventive can be difficult. SMG Studio has done just that. Moving Out may be challenging and occasionally unforgiving, however, it is an altogether charming and enjoyable gaming experience when played with friends.

With its unusual mixture of a dystopian narrative, a minimalist art style, and a 2D platforming gameplay, Ministry of Broadcast delivers a unique experience that feels truly cinematic – despite some annoying difficult spikes.

A captivating puzzler with enchanting visuals and a soothing orchestral soundtrack, Kenshō is a fantastic breath of fresh air. Though its gameplay is simplistic, Kenshō's tale of restoration and exploration will hook you in and keep you playing until the very end. Just be prepared to give the later levels a fair few tries, as the difficulty curve is one to watch out for.

Atelier Ryza 2: Lost Legends & the Secret Fairy is a delightful entry into the Nintendo Switch’s catalogue of sprawling JRPG adventures. Its character, world and story won’t fail to charm you.

Deemo excels in every aspect for a game of its genre. On the surface it may seem like any other rhythm game, however its musical accuracy combined with a stellar and diverse song selection makes it an incredibly captivating experience - it even has an emotional story! The premium package will seem a lot to those not into the genre, but it's an easy recommendation for anyone who is.

Littlewood will charm the pants off you with its delightful world and characters, but mechanically feels like the lite version of more established management sims out there. Providing that’s what you’re looking for, you can’t go wrong with this little gem.

Castlevania Advance Collection is exactly the jolt of excitement Konami’s classic series of gothic action-platformers needs to succeed. All games featured look and play great, with newly installed quality-of-life features making them more accessible.

As part of a wave of sports sims to be hitting the Switch right now, it's once again a great time to be a sports fan who just plays Nintendo systems, like me. Just like FIFA, WWE and the like, NBA's absence has been sorely felt by Nintendo fans, so you ought to go out and add this stellar entry to your shelves.

Rainbows, toilets & unicorns is a fun, albeit challenging, shoot ’em up experience. If you enjoy toilet humour, destroying pop-culture icons, and the cuteness of unicorns, then this is the game for you!

The Tropico series was long overdue on Nintendo systems, and Tropico 6 is a stellar example. While it’s a little overcomplicated and unexplained in places, it’s a super deep and satisfying experience. No recount needed here.

Killer Queen Black is a near-perfect collation of individual elements that, when combined, make for an engaging, intense multiplayer experience.

Fans of twin-stick shooters will find a great deal to love with Rime: Ultimate Edition thanks to its solid mechanics and fun platform sections. Its difficulty skirts on the edge of sadism, but persevere and you'll keep coming back for more.

At a first glance, Downwell doesn’t catch the eye; it’s a simplistic game with a minimalistic art style, and basic mechanics. But it becomes compelling due to its slick controls and synergistic elements.

Bomb Chicken offers simple and enjoyable gameplay wrapped within excellently designed puzzle-platforming levels that offer a unique experience worth your time.

The Adventure Pals is a charming platformer that players both young and old can enjoy. With a great sense of humour and a beautiful cartoon-y artstyle - Massive Monster's latest will surely bring a smile to your face!

Astronite is a 1-bit Metriodvania with a touch of inspiration from the Souls franchise. The pairing of the simple controls with the difficult gameplay create a delightful 2D challenge that will keep you going at it until the bitter end.

Overall, Citizen Sleeper is a fantastic game, with many quirky characters to meet and interesting stories to get engrossed in. If you are into tabletop RPGs and are looking for an easy-to-play substitute, this is the game for you.

Crash Team Racing Nitro-Fueled achieves the same highs as the N. Sane Trilogy in its revitalisation of another Naughty Dog classic, and goes one step further by modernising the racer with an online component that has a clear road-ahead. With the same experience as other consoles – aside from some visuals tweaks – and more DLC in the pipeline, it’s a worthy alternative to Mario Kart 8 Deluxe.

A worthy sequel in every regard, Rogue Legacy 2 improves almost every single element that made the original Cellar Door Games title so appealing. Even its slow progression system is easy to stomach when everything along the way is so fun and entertaining.

Ninja Striker! is a fun retro inspired title that offers a unique gameplay system focused on speed and combos that is worth your time.

At a first glance, Cosmic Star Heroine is a throwback to the JRPGs of the past. With a superb pixel-art style, deep combat system and fast-paced narrative, it becomes much more than a mere homage.

The World Ends With You: Final Remix is a must for new players who are looking for a deep, rewarding JRPG. If you've played the game on Nintendo DS, however, you may find the gameplay options presented in this port a bit of a downgrade from the original.

MouseCraft‘s simple aesthetic and generic name hide a polished and enjoyable puzzler underneath. The eighty levels will provide you with more than a few hours of puzzle-solving pleasure and an absolute abundance of lightbulb moments.

Operencia: The Stolen Sun is the best example of a grid-based dungeon crawler on the Switch right now. Despite some fiddly controls on this port, the solid combat, exploration, puzzling, and strong writing make it a hefty recommendation for genre fans.

With its minimalistic pixel art style and superb soundtrack, Risk of Rain delivers a roguelike experience in which you're constantly measuring your risks and going after higher rewards.

Super Magbot rewards perseverance. Initially the challenge is daunting, but when the rhythm clicks, you’ll be darting back and forth with a grin. The retro visuals are matched with a refreshingly unique control system to create a tough but addictive journey.

Aqua Kitty UDX is a very strong arcade shooter that displays sharp gameplay and addictive game modes. It's not particularly original, but if you're one for chasing high scores, you'll have a blast, particularly if you bring a friend along for the ride.

It’s a puzzle platformer with the core mechanic being that you can’t jump. Through it’s unashamed cute demeanour there is a deep, challenging game that is sometimes frustrating yet overall satisfying and hugely enjoyable.

Deep Sky Derelicts serves up joyful space exploration, with an unbeatable comic book art style and a cast of memorable NPCs to meet. Barring the overwhelming item system and tutorial text, the experience is seamless and rewarding.

A Monster’s Expedition shakes up the puzzling genre with an enormous map, combining tiny individual puzzles with an empowering sense of exploration. Gorgeous graphics and witty writing mean it mostly succeeds, let down only slightly when its ambitious scale becomes daunting.

Boyfriend Dungeon‘s unlikely mix of dating sim and dungeon crawler charms more than it irks, letting you romance your way through many a dungeon. Is it over too quickly? Yes, but this heartfelt summer vacation is fun while it lasts.

It’s not going to win any innovation awards, but Stela is a beautiful audiovisual experience that should be a serious consideration for collections, particularly for fans of genre favourites like INSIDE and Little Nightmares.

As a challenging indie title which offers a good chunk of replayability, NeuroVoider is certainly worth some of your time. Know before you make the purchase that you're going to be shooting, shooting and more shooting, though, and you should be able to take advantage of it in quick bursts thanks to its pick-up-and-play nature. It's not a cheap one at £12.99, but it's an indie game you ought to give a chance.

Tangle Tower is a pleasure to play. An interesting story, well-crafted gameplay, and a brilliantly diverse cast of characters marred only by small faults here and there still make it an easy recommandation for adventure game fans.

This sci-fi adventure is steeped in lore and brought to life by an unmatched art style and fabulous soundtrack. Sinless is held back only by its lack of meaningful decisions for the player, and its relatively short length.

Dezatopia provides intense, adrenaline-pumped gameplay with intelligent combat tactics and plenty of replayability. Supported by vibrant visuals and a blistering soundtrack, it’s a killer title worth the attention of any genre fan.

Fledgling Heroes takes the blueprint of what a colourful side-scroller should be and runs with, polishing the core flapping mechanic so that it’s always fun and bundling in some creative extras.

King of Seas is an ambitious and peaceful game. It’s perfect for pick up and play gameplay, let down only by numerous glitches and lack of voice acting. If you want to be a pirate on Switch, this is the game.

Mega Man Legacy Collection 2 contains a good selection of titles from the series' later years. It's not quite up there with the first compilation because two of the four titles available here may not be to everybody's taste. However, if you're looking for a complete history of the core series, it's a fantastic companion piece to the first compilation.

The Book of Unwritten Tales 2 is a laugh-filled adventure game that’ll have you chuckling away at its parody of the fantasy genre. It might sometimes stay too faithful to its point-and-click forebears, but its world and characters are utterly charming.

Cris Tales is a fantastic JRPG that blends enough traditional mechanics with new ideas to keep it feeling fresh and innovative. It features an engrossing world you’ll long for more hours to explore and absorb.

Shin’en has once again provided a tight and well-polished experience that looks the part, too. The Touryst would be a masterpiece if it wasn’t for the shortness, but the time you do spend with it is memorable and great fun.

The Legend of Evil is a fantastic indie title to sink your teeth into. With gorgeous graphics, an upbeat soundtrack and some very, very challenging levels, there is plenty of content to keep you entertained. Some levels may take a few tries to successfully overcome, but the feeling of satisfaction at slaughtering the masses cannot be beaten.

Part-roguelike, part-RPG, part Peggle, Roundguard is all fun. Its strategic-yet-unpredictable gameplay will keep you hooked, and with modifiers, randomised levels and even completely different classes making each run different, you won’t get bored easily.

Cuphead’s exquisite visuals and jazzy soundtrack perfectly transfers over to Switch, though you’ll need to be up for the challenge to appreciate most of its rewards. Most importantly, this game may be the start of a beautiful friendship between Nintendo and Microsoft.

Eastward may not be perfect, but it doesn’t need to be. The creativity on display is fantastic, and the gameplay is fun and varied. It’s an adventure you won’t be quick to forget.

Persona 4 Golden is an incredible RPG that is both wacky and intense. The twist in the different genres helps to keep you engrossed, and the story will keep you playing hours after the sun has gone down. This is the Persona game to play.

A wealth of complex systems can be overwhelming, but Samurai Warriors 5 combines an engaging gameplay loop with exciting mechanics to deliver an action-packed game that provides countless hours of fun.

RUNNER is still a rhythm game: the chiptune music is still just as strong, and you jump, duck, and kick to the beat in order to progress.

There may be little original content in this adventure, but Cathedral collates a lot of classic gaming principles to wrap them up successfully in a retro-inspired Metroidvania tale. There’s plenty of ground to explore. Can you handle one more knight?

Mail Mole is platforming action in its purest form. Considerably cute, moderately challenging, with gameplay aspects that will keep both newbies and hardcore gamers happy.

Button City is an adorable little adventure-arcade game that is both lighthearted and heartfelt, with an amazing soundtrack, a lovable cast of characters, and a story with all the feels. It’s a worthy addition to any Switch library.