Best Games for Nintendo Switch
I’m going to recommend several games and give you my thoughts on them from a Christian perspective but first…I’m a closet gamer. I only talk about it with people under the age of fifteen and it’s not like I’m trying to YouTube about it or anything. The only reason I’m writing about it here is because video games helped me through a very difficult time in my life and I’m tired of them being seen as an unintelligent hobby and there’s no reason to exclude them from the lives of our children any more than any other electronic device. To the contrary, I’ve actually learned quite a bit from some of my games.
Video games get a bad rap because people think they’re a waste of time but they’ll spend all day watching soap operas or binge watching reality TV shows on Netflix. It’s the same thing and we all need a way to unwind that won’t bother anyone else and doesn’t break the budget so I play video games. Yes, I’m a woman in my 40’s. Yes, I probably play more than my teenage daughter does. But I’ve found a lot of positives to playing video games.
Why Video Games Are The Best Way to Waste Your Free Time
You can’t eat and play video games. I lost a lot of weight because of this. Watching TV and eating are synonymous. Some of us can’t do one without the other, but video game controllers are way too expensive to get greasy with potato chip fingers.
Once you have the system, games can be super cheap entertainment. The Nintendo e-shop routinely has games under $5 that are pretty good. A few of my favorite games were $2.99 or less.
The rating system for Nintendo games is more strict than with movies. If I don’t want language in my video games I’ll stick to an “E” rating, but I know what I’m getting into if I purchase a “T” rated game. When I go on Prime or Netflix it’s really difficult to search for a list of PG or PG13 movies. If you can find the list you mess up the search when you try to narrow it down in any way. So frustrating. Check out the Nintendo game rating system here.
Video games are for when you want to unwind alone… or when you want to hang out with friends… or when you want to compete with strangers. You can do this with fast internet or completely offline with couch co-op games. I’ve done all three and each way is a totally different experience, not at all like watching TV by yourself or with friends or strangers. My daughter and I have had so much fun playing games together, especially the games where we have to work together and learn to communicate well to win.
You can actually get exercise with some video games. Have you ever tried walking on the treadmill while watching a movie? Compare that with doing Zumba or Just Dance on the Nintendo Switch and it’s no contest. Video games are way more exercise and way more fun.
Games take way longer than a movie. There’s a reason that people like to watch every episode of a TV show in order. Because we’re too lazy to shop around for something new to watch all the time. I have over 100 hours in my current video game and I’m nowhere near finishing it. (And I only paid $2.99 for it.) You can search online to see how long it takes the average player to finish a game before buying it.
There’s more of a sense of accomplishment when you finish a video game than when you finish watching a series. It’s like you’re looking around for your completion certificate or something.
Nintendo games are way better than apps because apps are usually full of annoying ads. There are a few Nintendo games that are using the free model and I avoid them completely. I want an uninterrupted playing experience, preferably offline, that I’ll gladly pay upfront for, thank you very much.
I won’t say that Nintendo games are better than reading books but they’re very different. You all know I run a deals-type blog for Christian Kindle books at www.ChristianBookFinds.com and I love to read but what you may not know is that I rarely read fiction anymore. I love non-fiction books and I know I’m in the minority here but for me, video games are a better fictional experience because I get to make choices about what my character sees and does. Some games even have rich fictional storylines just like in books.
Video games fit your lifestyle. I play video games to unwind and right now I only have time for that right before bed. A lot of games are designed in bite-sized pieces that work sort of like a timer so you don’t overspend your free time. Then there are games that are designed to work well with free pockets of time throughout the day, like Animal Crossing, where you can visit in the morning and check out the shops and then drop back in for a few minutes later in the day to see if turnip prices have gone up, and when you really have a lot of free time you can redesign your island.
I was going to make it an even ten things but I just remembered one of the biggest benefits I’ve found to playing video games. Not only do I save money by getting cheap entertainment but video games actually help me save money. Real money. Like in my budget. This was a very exciting discovery for me. If you have a shopping addiction or the need to collect things then video games could replace shopping online for you and your brain might not even know the difference.
I don’t know if this is true for everyone but for me I’ve found that the satisfaction of buying something can be obtained with virtual money. In Animal Crossing the currency is bells, in Zelda it’s rupees. Making “money” in these games is hard (and fun) work and letting go of it is often as difficult as spending real money. The games I play have stores where you can buy clothes, weapons, and house decorations for your character. Some are very rare and expensive and finally being able to purchase them after a long time is just as much a thrill as the real thing. And I’m not junking up the house with stuff I don’t need. (Please note: I never play games where I need to exchange real money for virtual money, that totally defeats the purpose for me.)
So, now you know why I like to play Nintendo games, and why I shouldn’t be ashamed of it. This is my list of favorite Nintendo games.
My Favorite One Player Nintendo Games
Zelda - Breath of the Wild
One of the most awesome games for Nintendo Switch. It’s worth buying the system to get to play this game. Very well made and while it does have combat it’s not gore and most of the enemies are monsters, not people. This is an open world game, meaning you’re free to explore and try to do anything you want. There’s a list of objectives but it’s up to the player if and when you want to complete them. This was the first game I played with a combat element and it terrified me but now that I’ve gotten used to it I feel comfortable playing other combat games and don’t have that newbie mindset where I thought I wasn’t knowledgeable enough about video games to play.
Breath of the Wild has tons of thought provoking puzzles, several of which I needed to cheat and go online to finish. It also has lots of fun leads to follow when you talk to the characters you meet along the way. It’s an exploration game and some of the places you’ll visit are truly beautiful. I suggest learning how to snap screenshots on your Switch before you even begin because it’s really fun to look back on some of your best game highlights. It’s also like a big treasure hunt because there are these cute little critters called Koroks hiding everywhere and treasure chests and even mini-games to find. Because it’s open world you choose what you do and if you want to just run around and pick mushrooms all day you can as there’s no rush for anything.
Some people rush through the game to “win” but for me I don’t care if I ever finish because there’s so much to do and it’s fun to just hang out in Hyrule. You can also purchase the DLC if you get bored and have a bunch more to do. I purchased it toward the beginning of the game and I’ve played it twice. I will probably play it all over again one day.
The only things I’ve found in the game you might want to know about before buying is that they have angel statues and you go to them and click to “pray.” Then the statue glows and grants you a reward. When you finish a shrine (puzzles) a monk appears (they look almost skeletal, really) and they give you an orb you can give to the angel statue. Sometimes you’ll find other small shrines set up in the game and you can place an offering if you want to reveal a korok. There’s also a male character that acts a little feminine and dresses in pink but you don’t see him much.
Zelda - Tears of the Kingdom (This is the sequel to Breath of the Wild.)
This one is my daughter’s favorite. She and my husband bought it for me for Mother’s day and I’ve only got to play it twice. She took it over but I’m not done with the first game so I’m okay with it. The biggest difference I can see in the two games is that the first has more of a medieval feel, even though the story world had a lot of advanced technology and lost the use of it and in the sequel the machinery you get to make and play with is pretty advanced.
My Time at Portia
Quickly becoming a favorite of mine. It’s a game where you compete to become the best builder in town. If you like games that are open to do whatever you want but have a good set of objectives to follow if you want this is a great game. Some of the objectives teach you how to do things in the game. One of them is that you must go on a date with Merlin. Merlin is a woman and the first time I played the game I tried going out with her as a female character and it was too weird for me. I never completed the quest and the second time I played I didn’t even bother with that quest. It’s been the only one like it and it hasn’t affected the game at all to ignore it. In the game’s defense, it’s marketed with the male to be the main character and I can see that they were forcing it because they wanted to show you how playdates work. You can go on playdates with males or females but it won’t turn romantic until you declare your intentions by giving them a certain gift.
In this game you can marry and even have children. The choices for potential husbands are absolutely hilarious and it’s part of why I like the game so much. I’m over 100 hours in and still don’t have a boyfriend yet, but I’ve got my eye on Oaks, a thin but sweet character that was raised by a bear. It’s kind of a game of its own to figure out what each character would like as a gift to get relationship points.
The sequel to this game was released recently and it’s called My Time at Sandrock. I got it for Christmas but I’m in no big hurry to start it even though I’m really excited to play it.
Harvestella
Harvestella is a really neat game because it combines farming, strong storyline quests, and combat in a beautiful game. It is rated “T” for teen and there is some language. I think at one time one of the characters had laughed at someone who believed in God. I haven’t got to the end of it so I can’t comment on anything else that could be potentially offensive.
Animal Crossing New Horizons
Don’t discount this game because it has cartoon characters on the front. There are probably more adults playing this game than kids. The theme of this game is creating your perfect island getaway. It’s a collecting and decorating game more than anything else but it’s so much more than that.
Things to look out for: The update brought a new area where you can buy more things and one of them is Katrina, a fortune teller cat. I don’t get into things that are dark like that and you don’t actually have to use or even unlock Katrina’s booth if you don’t want to but she does often acknowledge that her powers may (or may not) work. I personally don’t find her offensive because of this but there are a few objects you can choose to buy or may be given to you by the game that are similarly dark in nature, one of them being the magic circle flooring and the fortune-telling set. Both of these things give me the creeps and I simply avoid them. If you are given something you don’t want you can throw it in a trash can or give it away but be warned if you give something to one of your villagers they will display it proudly in their house and the only consistent way to get rid of it is to finish the DLC.
Art: You can collect art pieces for your museum that are based on real works of art. This includes the statue of David, a naked man. Look up Animal Crossing New Horizons art if you want to see every art piece. There are fake pieces and there are real pieces that are just like the originals. I’ve learned a lot about art by playing Animal Crossing and feel way more cultured (lol) but it’s something to be aware of if you’re buying the game for young children.
Just so you know, there are several types of things to collect in Animal Crossing, including bugs, fish, and dinosaur fossils, with descriptions of each that teach real facts. Some of the fossils may mention dates like millions of years old as well.
Zumba
I really like the concept of Just Dance but I think Zumba is better. It’s a little more dated than Just Dance but as a Christian I don’t want all the questionable lyrics getting stuck in my head. I don’t know any Spanish so when there are lyrics on Zumba I don’t know what they are most of the time. For Just Dance I need to subscribe to the yearly add-on to get more songs so I can find some old stuff from the 80’s and 90’s that are more acceptable. And those songs are great.
Another reason Zumba is better is because I don’t know how to dance and I’m doing this for exercise. Zumba is more repetitious and will work both sides of your body equally. Neither game actually breaks down steps to teach you how to dance and I don’t know why. That would be awesome. But dancing along to music and being graded for how well you do is fun anyway.
Yes, Your Grace
This game has some mild language and one of the biggest parts of the storyline is the decision to marry off your underaged daughters for political gain. If you can get past that it’s an interesting game. It’s got a retro feel to it and it’s mostly a reading type game where you make decisions on who you (as the king) will help and who you will disappoint, since you only have resources to help some of the people who come to you. It’s a resources game where you are trying to build up your kingdom to survive an upcoming war. I’ve played it two or three times and not won it yet. I enjoyed this type of game enough to look around for more of them.
Our Favorite Co-op Nintendo Games
Pikmin 3 Deluxe - Playing the main game is super cool but our favorite part was the Bingo side game. We get very competitive on that one!
Unravel 2 - Super emotional storyline and the art is beautiful. You really have to work together on this one.
Mario Kart - Fun to play together or with strangers.
Splatoon 3 - Quick games that are fun to play together or with strangers.
Kirby’s Return to Dreamland Deluxe - 2D game that’s fast paced and fun for two people.
Sweet Bakery Tycoon - This is a game where you work together to make restaurant type orders and you must be quick!
Luigi’s Mansion - Spooky fun! Work together exploring the floors of a haunted mansion and suck up ghosts in a vacuum.
Lego Worlds - Open world game where anything can happen.
We have way more Nintendo games than I realized but most of them I paid very little for and the ones that were expensive were almost always worth the hefty price tag because of how many hours we played them, the time we spent together, and the replay ability. We often buy our pricey games in cartridge so we can give them away when we’re finished with them. I hope this list can help you find a new favorite or that maybe you’ll give video games a fair shake for yourself or your kids when they ask for a game system.
