Nintendo Video Game Recommendations
Hello everyone! It’s DJ Harrito again here to tell you about my personal recommendations for those who are looking to “engage” (haha get the reference?) with Nintendo games!
Quick note, this is all subjective so if you don’t agree with my opinions that’s completely fine! I’ve personally been playing Nintendo games since the DS came out. With that out of the way, here are some opinions on what I believe are the best ways to start gaming with a Nintendo Switch!
☆ Visual Novels ☆
Pantsu Hunter
If you want to have fun, laugh at some poorly translated game, and take nothing personally, I’d recommend playing, Pantsu Hunter. This game is a bit more risky in nature but for those who really need a laugh in hard times; this is it! The story revolves around a protagonist who works around Japan helping those who need help in any sort of way for money. His main motive however is love and his motivation to meet other women to fuel his secret hobby… Will the protagonist ever find his true love? This game has an 80’s anime aesthetic and is full of nostalgic references. The game is rated poorly by serious visual novel players but if you’d like to try it out yourself, I highly recommend it as it’s usually on sale on the Nintendo Switch eShop and is undoubtedly hilarious even when unintended.
Clannad
While Pantsu Hunter is funny and rough around the edges on purpose for fun, I cannot recommend enough playing Clannad for the Switch if you haven’t already. Major anime enthusiasts highly recommend it, including myself, as it is an emotional rollercoaster. It has characters that at first seem bizarre and unappealing but as you, the protagonist, slowly warm up to them they start showing their soft side. I didn’t discover this game until after playing Doki Doki Literature Club as I thought it was a horror visual novel at first. Even if you don’t enjoy visual novels; do try watching the anime. It’s an emotional roller coaster as even I cried during the most heartfelt moments in the most plot-twisting plot points. The music is very well composed as it is constantly playing in the background and adapts very well to its storytelling environment. Thank you to Jun Maeda, Shinji Orito, and Magome Togoshi for composing and arranging the most emotional music I’ve listened to for a while!
Danganronpa
Despair time is here! Do you like murder mysteries? Do you like solving them? Danganronpa is a must-play for those who love solving puzzles and problem-solving! Danganronpa is very plot heavy and sometimes even not paying attention can lead to a vital clue slipping through you. From the creators of Nine Hours, Nine Persons, Nine Lives, this game can be such fun to play solo or as a group with other people! You take on the role of a student, Makoto Naegi, who seeks to learn why he and fourteen other classmates are stuck in school with no escape. An animatronic bear shows up from nowhere and tells them about their situation. They’re stuck in a killing game. Will they make it out alive? Or will Naegi and friends have the most horrific time of their lives? Although this is the plot for the first Danganronpa game, it’s important to note that there are two other games aside from the first one and even an anime based on the visual novel. Danganronpa Decadence is available on the Nintendo Switch via the Nintendo eShop.
Ace Attorney
Ace Attorney is great. That’s all that’s needed to be said. Joking, obviously but this series is so fun as it manages to include wackiness, seriousness, and even heartfelt moments all in one. If you’d like to start, I’d definitely recommend either the Trilogy which includes all three first games, or the Ace Attorney Chronicles as it features two games in one. Ace Attorney Trilogy all take place around the early 2000s with Phoenix Wright as the protagonist with his trusty sidekick, Maya Fey. Everybody has their own various opinions about the three games, however, all fans agree that the music absolutely stands out as super fitting and sometimes even beyond superb as a main factor of the in-game environment. Each case varies in genre and characters. Sometimes you’ll get very heavy cases to solve and sometimes you’ll get very emotional cases to solve.
Meanwhile, Attorney Chronicles takes place way before Phoenix Wright was born. You play as Ryunosuke Naruhodo, who’s a young detective who travels to Europe to solve cases. While doing so, Ryunosuke discovers a dark truth hidden by his best friend. He and his apprentice, Susato Mikotoba attempt to solve the most complex of cases together while abroad. With the help of forensics expert, Herlock Sholms (yes they did name him that due to copyright reasons) and Iris Wilson, will they be able to solve everything life throws at them? Or will Ryunosuke uncover a truth he didn’t ever expect? The Ace Attorney series is available to purchase on the Nintendo eShop on the Nintendo Switch.
♡ JRPGS and Such ♡
I titled this section like this for a reason as I honestly don’t even know if some of these would be considered JRPGs. Anyways here are some recommendations I believe are strong for first-timers!
Fire Emblem
The game series is very long and if you’d like to start from the beginning then by all means, go for it! The series debuted in 1990 on the Nintendo Famicom and ever since then, it has continued to be a success even until today. In my previous article, I mentioned my opinion on Fire Emblem Engage; the most recent entry in the series. It’s a great place to start for beginners as it’s basically not really super complex. Fire Emblem is usually heavily story driven and requires you to move your characters like chess. The music is also very well made, especially in the most recent addition, however past games have super well-composed music and undoubtedly aged like fine wine. Even if you’re not interested in playing tactically like in Fire Emblem Engage, no need to worry! Fire Emblem also has a hack-and-slash format of a game titled, Fire Emblem Warriors! Granted, the first one isn’t that great, to be honest, but the most recent entry, Fire Emblem Warriors: Three Hopes, is super fun, and the music absolutely rocks! I even planned to have a show where I play only Fire Emblem music but then slowly realized that hardly any have lyrics… but anyways I highly recommend Three Hopes compared to the one simply titled Fire Emblem Warriors!
Persona Series
Woah who could have seen this coming, Persona the series makes my list of great games to play for first-timers! Similar to Fire Emblem, you can pick any game up as all vary on the plot. The only thing you miss out on from playing them would be small references from other titles. Still, you the player will understand the mechanics and they work similarly to each other despite the other titles varying on tasks you can do. It takes some adapting but you’d get the gist of it really quickly. The story is also very well written and the music is very appealing as each game varies on music and always manages to keep players jamming out while playing. If you’d ask me, “What’s a good place to start?” Well, I’d definitely say Persona 4 as it’s my personal favorite but if you’d like to start from the beginning, I recommend Persona 3. The reason many fans play 3-4-5 and avoid talking about persona one and two would be due to the controversial topics discussed in them. Understandably, I wouldn’t really recommend playing them as they really didn’t age super well but one game, Persona 2, does have queer characters that are pretty fun so if you’d like to engulf yourself in the environment that is Persona 2, go ahead! Similar to Fire Emblem, Persona also has a spin-off game titled Persona 5 Strikers that’s a hack-and-slash game that is very fast pace and engaging! Lastly, there is also a fighting game spin-off titled Persona 4 Arena Ultimax. As a huge Persona 4 fan, I definitely recommend it as it is a fighting game that is super fun and includes most, if not all, of the Persona 4 cast. The Persona series is available to purchase on the Nintendo eShop via the Nintendo Switch.
◇ Other fun games to play! ◇
Splatoon 3
I’m going to be honest, I was VERY hesitant at first when playing Splatoon. I first discovered Splatoon during the lockdown in the 2020 Pandemic. I didn’t want to spend money on a game that seemed to have no fan base because, for those of you who didn’t know, Splatoon 2 was completely done with new content. However, due to COVID dominating the world for such a long time, Nintendo released an event where players can vote on a team and decide whether they would use a Super Star or a Super Mushroom. Players had the opportunity to pick a side and vote via Splatoon and participate in the in-game festival in order to gain points for their team. It was then and there when I decided to purchase the game and it turned out to be very fun! Since then, Splatoon 3 was released a year later and was received with a lot of praise. Aside from my heavy dislike for first player shooters, Splatoon was different in that players have to paint in order to win, unlike normal first-person shooters. The more paint used to dominate the field, the better your team’s score goes up. Although doing activities such as K.O.ing opponents are still in the game, it still boils down to who paints more. I definitely like this approach as I tend to be an awful shooter but with this game, my aim doesn’t matter as much. I’m not a competitive person but there are various competitive game modes available for those talented folks who enjoy a first-person shooter over painting! Splatoon 3 is available to purchase on the Nintendo eShop via Nintendo Switch.
Super Smash Bros. Ultimate
Do I need to say more? Looking for a party game where you want to spend time with friends? Look no further than Super Smash Brothers Ultimate! This game includes a wide array of characters from various titles such as Villager from Animal Crossing, Solid Snake from Metal Gear Solid and even Wii Fit Trainer from the Yoga series on the Nintendo Wii! This game is perfect for those who want to mess around and even for those who are playing competitively with others! I’m not trying to sound professional, but I used to be a well-refined player myself in high school! However once college rolled around, I stopped playing and pursued to play Splatoon 3 instead! Test your fighting abilities in Super Smash Brothers Ultimate, do you have what it takes? Smash is available on the Nintendo Switch eShop for players to purchase.
Honorable Mention:
Pokemon
Pokemon is such a fun series, anyone can play from any game and be so hooked! Have you ever felt like having virtual pets would be nice? Pokemon is the answer! But on a real note, Pokemon is a lot of people’s childhood so I felt that I didn’t really need to go in-depth with this title so I put it on as an honorable mention. For those unknown to the Pokémon world and such, there are many people who love the game with a passion. The goal of the game is simple, become the champion of your region! It’s not always your main goal though, you can be many other things aside from a champion such as a beauty expert in the Pokemon world, become a cooking expert or even complete your Pokedex! There are various Pokemon games available to purchase on the Nintendo Switch eShop to both purchase and play for free via Nintendo Switch Online.
And that’s it! There’s my list of games that can help you get started with playing on the Nintendo Switch! I’m not the best person when it comes to explaining but hopefully, you get the idea of where I came from when writing this blog! Oh and I forgot to mention that Nintendo Switch Online is necessary for some games such as Splatoon 3 but aside from that most if not all can be played offline especially the visual novels! Take care and stay tuned to my radio segment, “Kingdom Beats” in the future!