Best Modern Nintendo Switch Platformers

PUZZLE

Key Takeaways

  • Crash Bandicoot N. Sane Trilogy offers a modern take on classic platforming with challenging gameplay.
  • Fez on Nintendo Switch is a clever puzzle platformer that showcases unique gameplay mechanics.
  • New Super Lucky’s Tale on Switch provides a colorful and competent 3D platforming experience with charming characters.

It’s fair to say that platformers were the very first titles many gamers got their start playing video games with, especially on Nintendo consoles. Mario started as a simple jumping plumber and has turned into a gaming icon for a reason, after all. But with so many other genres competing, it can be harder to find the really good platformers these days. Or at least, it would be without a little assistance.


Best Modern Nintendo Switch Platformers

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There’s been some incredibly compelling platformers released in recent years, including some revitalized classics of well-known series. Here are some of the very best platformers available on the Nintendo Switch.

Though all of these titles are available on Nintendo Switch, the majority aren’t Nintendo games or Switch exclusives.

10 Crash Bandicoot N. Sane Trilogy

A Whirlwind Of Retro Energy Brought To Modern Consoles

Crash Bandicoot N Sane Trilogy Crash being chased by a polar bear

Thanks to the wonder of remakes, Crash Bandicoot N. Sane Trilogy was indeed a modern release, even though it was based on the bones of a classic video game series for the PlayStation. This wild collection features three intense platformers in one bundle, and even if you grew up with the games, you’ll have your work cut out for you.


Whether you’re running from enemies, spinning through boxes, fighting Cortex’s contraptions or dodging death traps, you’ll have unrelenting mayhem to survive in both 2D and 3D sections. With a glorious new coat of paint and a few new modern conveniences thrown in, it let gamers old and new revel in the retro gameplay, though many likely lamented how hardcore the platforming in this particular collection proved to be.

9 Fez

A Clever Puzzle Platformer You Never Expected On Nintendo Switch

Fez character stands before large green statue

Fez game

It’s probably fair to say many never expected to see Fez on a Nintendo console. From the initial release, there was almost a decade before it made the jump. Once it did, though, Nintendo fans got to see why this puzzle platformer got all the hype and recognition it’s since received. This is a truly clever game, with a mind-bending and fourth-wall-breaking plot.


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Manipulating the environment to switch from 2D to 3D made for a truly unique adventure, and one that was well suited to a portable experience. Non-linear exploration through massive levels made for a very compelling puzzle platformer in your quest to find the broken down cubes. This is a game that will constantly test your attention to small details and have you returning to areas as you explore.

8 Runner3

Keep On Running In This Absurd Adventure

Runner3 protagonist performs a leaping kick

Five years after Runner2: Future Legend of Rhythm Alien graced the Wii U, Switch fans got to play the sequel, Runner3. While lacking a snazzy subtitle, it made up for it with challenging, rhythm-based platforming that’ll make your hands sweat. Every level is broken into tons of challenging segments, with the good Commander constantly running, dodging and jumping to the beat.


One of the most special things about the game is how delightfully absurd the entire experience was. There are branching paths, Hero Quests and even newfangled Retro Challenges to contend with. Despite how demanding the levels can be, Runner3 is still fair, and appeals to a diversity of skill types. A perfect starting point for those looking to learn the ropes of the genre.

7 Grapple Dog

Grappling With A Challenging Adventure Full Of Charm

Grapple Dog protagonist hangs from block against snowy backdrop

One of the very first of the Super Rare Originals published by Super Rare Games, Grapple Dog showed the potential of the titles that would follow. A candy-coated, darling adventure with an entertaining premise, over the top boss fights and neat grapple-based maneuvering, Grapple Dog was so engaging it even managed to get a sequel.


Not only does Grapple Dog include exhilarating physics, there’s great replay value for completionists as well as some amazing boss battles. A wonderful game that thrives off the nostalgia of the SNES era while still managing to remain current and relevant in the platformer genre.

6 New Super Lucky’s Tale

The N64 Era Lives On In This Colorful Quest

New Super Lucky's Tale Lucky approached by menacing machine

The platformer genre is littered with amazing 2D adventures, but it’s sometimes harder to find a really well-made, balanced 3D platformer. There was a lot of experimentation in the N64 era, with mixed results, but those games at least showed there was potential. Then a little fox named Lucky showed how it’s done properly in New Super Lucky’s Tale.


Everything about the game was approachable, from the way you can manipulate the camera to the cutesy aesthetic. It’s one of the only platformers with a deadly dance battle against a boss, as well as desert ruins that’d put Indiana Jones to shame. This is an incredibly cute and competent adventure that nails the fundamentals in three dimensions.

5 Cuphead

Bullet Hell and Platforming With an Undeniable Visual Hook

Cuphead battles grimacing vehicle-like boss

In many ways, Studio MDHR did the unthinkable. They took the aesthetic of classic Disney’s Steamboat Willie and married it with a heady mixture of bullet hell and platformer. Thus was born Cuphead, a game that by many metrics really shouldn’t have worked, but turned out to be marvelous fun.


Cuphead Baroness Von Bon Bon boss battle gameplay

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While this is a game that is utterly uncompromising, it’s also one that echoes the design of series like Contra, wherein learning the patterns is the path to success. Your loadout is also key as you fight to win back your soul from the Devil himself in some unforgettable boss battles. Sure, you’ll get repeatedly destroyed in the interim, but when you finally turn it around and succeed, the taste of success will prove incredibly sweet.

4 Horace

Learn, Laugh, And Love As A Noble Robot

Horace floating above spiky surface

Though many enjoy platformers solely because of the gameplay, there’s something to be said about a platformer that can make you truly care about its characters and narrative. Horace is absolutely one of those platformers, and tells the story of a robot learning what it means to be alive.


It’s a constantly inventive adventure with a ton of heart, and some really challenging hazards to surmount. You’ll defy (and get punished by) gravity, defeat angry mecha, and more. Throw in a huge world to explore and a lovingly told narrative, and this is a truly heartfelt and worthy platformer about so much more than just gameplay alone.

3 Shovel Knight

You’ll Dig This Love Letter To Old School Platforming

Shovel Knight looking over shadowy castle landscape

It’s a simple thing for a crowdfunded project to fall short of the estimation of its backers. It’s much rarer for them to exceed all expectations, which is exactly what Shovel Knight managed to do. Not only did this quirky adventure from Yacht Club Games stylistically tap into the nostalgia of games past, it managed to utilize a stunning soundtrack and several modern conveniences.


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Everything about the platforming is tight, reminiscent of classics like DuckTales and Mega Man but also showcasing plenty of style all its own. Bouncing off bubbles, digging through dirt and swatting foes with your shovel all felt deliberate and utterly precise. The cherry on top was the selection of relics that switched up how you play, as well as some diabolical achievements and fierce boss battles against The Order of No Quarter.

2 Celeste

Make It To The Summit In This Emotional Platformer

Celeste Madeline crosses hazardous platforms in the wind

While Horace managed to showcase something of what’s possible when a platformer marries gameplay with a captivating story, Celeste took that formula a couple steps further. It’s a deeply personal and emotional story about fighting your negative feelings about yourself, deftly paralleled by a story about surmounting a massive and unrelenting mountain peak.


There’s a sense of dread as you try and make your way up the vertical expanse of the mountain, facing deathly falls and threats both realistic and mythological in nature. The game loves death traps, and you’ll become well acquainted with spikes and an array of other hazards as you muster your stamina to climb sheer surfaces. You’ll think areas are completely impossible to beat, die repeatedly, and then suddenly realize the way forward. The wonderful Celeste is a platformer about perseverance, and you’ll want to plant your flag at the summit.

1 Super Mario Bros. Wonder

Wildly Creative Times For Mario And Friends

Super Mario Bros. Wonder Yoshis leaping over missiles


Ultimately, a platformer lives or dies by its gameplay mechanics. With that in mind, there aren’t many series that nail the fundamentals as effectively as the Super Mario games. Super Mario Bros. Wonder not only managed to impress with tight platforming, but it also proved to be incredibly creative and wildly original, even for a Mario game.

A clear example of that creativity is the absurd transformation mechanic, seeing Mario and friends do things such as turning into massive elephants or drilling through rock with their hats. Every stage has something new to throw at you, and when the levels shift unexpectedly, you’ll know something fun is around the corner, from stampedes of bulls to singing Piranha Plants. Add in intriguing multiplayer mechanics, tons of playable characters and a stunning world to explore, and this proved itself one of the best platformers in quite a while.

Split feature image with Shovel Knight, Little Nightmares, and Super Meat Boy

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