By now, many of you have put a good amount of time into Animal Crossing: New Horizons. You’ve paid off your mortgage, transformed into a weird tarantula collector, and are now at a point of playing the game just for an hour or two each day. Chances are you are wondering what else you can play on your Switch. For some of you, Animal Crossing is your first Switch game. For others, it’s just the latest in a long string of adventures you’ve taken on this amazing hybrid system. No matter which of these camps you fall into, the Game Informer staff is offering a handful of game suggestions you may like. The selection offered is a mix of the Switch’s most celebrated games, along with little gems that may not have gotten the respect they truly deserve. These are personal picks from each staff member they feel will make everyone’s current situation during the pandemic a little better.
We hope everyone is healthy and safe. We’d love to hear how things are going in the comments section below, and also would like your help in giving Switch owners choices for new games to play. List those games in the comments with a description of why people should be paying attention to them. We’re going to get through this tough time, and games that keep us inside and occupied in fun ways will help us get there. Without further delay, here are the games:
Divinity: Original Sin 2
Looking for something that will consume countless hours while sparking your creativity? Divinity: Original Sin 2 immerses you in a fantasy land that offers unparalleled opportunities for problem solving amidst tight tactical combat. Varying difficulty levels allow you to meander through the story if you wish or dive into punishing battles that will tax your mind, but the real key here is playing the game your way – whether that’s an element-slinging sorcerer, a burly brute, a summoner, a telekinetic wunderkind, or even someone who just loves to load as much trash into a barrel as possible and dump it on an enemy’s head. The sky’s the limit, and experimenting with all of the systems in Divinity: Original Sin 2 is likely to take priority over making headway in the game itself. Get lost in one of the best RPGs of the last decade by yourself or with a friend through online co-op – it’s one of the best adventures you’ll ever take, and you can do it from bed! – Daniel Tack
Sonic Mania Plus
With his major motion picture debut a big success and now available to watch at home, there’s a chance you may be looking to check out one of the Blue Blur’s recent games. While many of Sonic’s recent outings have fallen short of expectations, one game has garnered universal acclaim for its ability to pay homage to the past while innovating and modernizing: Sonic Mania. Created by a team of independent developers in conjunction with Sonic Team, Sonic Mania delivers old-school Sonic action that would look at home on a Genesis; you even play through several familiar stages, including Green Hill Zone, Chemical Plant Zone, and Flying Battery Zone. However, it’s more than just a stroll down memory lane as you not only get a collection of all-new zones, but the returning zones are remixed to the point they feel like new areas with familiar dressing. Pick up Sonic Mania Plus for an additional mode that adds new twists to the original game, as well as two new playable characters. – Brian Shea
Golf Story
Much like Animal Crossing: New Horizons, Golf Story is charming, violence free, and delivers enough humor and heart to keep a smile on your face on every fairway and green. You play as a golf prodigy who travels to Wellworn Grove to make a name for himself. As you show off your skills and compete in tournaments, the people of Wellworn also turn to you for help. You’ll assist them in digging up fossils (using your sand wedge), become a part of a war against molerats, and also throw down in a rap battle. You never really know what to expect from Golf Story next, other than it being well made and fun throughout. A three-click swing meter is put to good use to make the golfing challenging, and the courses push for precision. Sandtraps are the least of your worries, however, as Wellworn’s animals don’t necessarily like seeing your ball in their territory. Golf Story is unlike any other RPG out there, and should be a nice ray of light in a dark time. If you enjoy it as much as I did, there's good news for the future: developer SideBar Games is making a sequel called Sports Story for Switch. – Andrew Reiner
Super Smash Bros. Ultimate
I know, I know, this isn't exactly a deep cut, but hear me out: If you're one of those folks who have been pulled into Switch gaming thanks to New Horizons, you may not know that the Animal Crossing series has tiptoed around the Switch sidelines for quite a while now. There's a great level set in that world in Mario Kart 8 Deluxe, for instance, which has you tearing through town. I'm particularly fond of the Animal Crossing crossover in the Super Smash Bros. series. When you get tired of relaxing on your island, fire up Super Smash Bros. Ultimate and pick the Villager character. Then you can battle a host of other well-known game characters using familiar AC tools. My favorite? Growing a sapling into a mighty tree, which can then be knocked down in a walloping blow. Again, the majority of y'all are familiar with this one, but in the event that you aren't (or haven't gotten around to playing it for whatever reason), Super Smash Bros. Ultimate is a must play. – Jeff Cork
Into the Breach
People often say you should turn your brain off to enjoy certain things, but that hasn't been working for me lately. Sometimes I need to put my brain into overdrive, and Into The Breach is a great funnel for that mental energy. It's a perfectly built tactics game with punishing decision making, and it's endlessly replayable either in bite-sized pieces or by binging a massive campaign. The story elements are a compelling wrapping for this fight for humanity's survival, and I'll say this: It feels really good to save the world right now. – Leo Vader
Luigi’s Mansion 3
He may not be as famous as his brother, but Luigi has a certain charm that is hard to deny. This third edition in the series is easily its best, featuring a world filled with interactivity and challenge. As you battle your way through a haunted hotel with your trusty ghost vacuum at your side, you get to explore all types of crazy environments full of puzzles and pesky ghosts to capture. The controls can be a little persnickety, and the bosses can be a tad challenging, but I loved every minute of it. The game drips with that Nintendo magic, from the addition of Gooigi (a slime-based clone used to solve puzzles and also allows for co-op play) to the sea of tiny details throughout the world that make this game feel alive. Luigi’s Mansion 3 is a world you want to escape to, and a must-have for any Switch owner. - Andy McNamara