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The Best Nintendo Switch Games For Kids

Nintendo has always excelled at creating video game consoles for all ages, and the Switch is no different. Here are some of the best Nintendo Switch games that the whole family can enjoy.

Jordan Minor
 & Jordan Minor Principal Writer, Software

Our team tests, rates, and reviews more than 1,500 products each year to help you make better buying decisions and get more from technology.

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  • Fuze4 (for Nintendo Switch)
    unknown
    Best for Coding Students

    Fuze4 (for Nintendo Switch)

    3.5 Good

    Pros & Cons

      • Powerful text-based code editor
      • Affordable, one-time purchase
      • Lets you share 2D and 3D games and assets with other Fuze4 owners
      • Supports external keyboards
      • No visual language
      • Can’t export games to an online store
      • Tedious to type without a keyboard

    Bottom Line:

    Bottom Line:

    Fuze4 lets Nintendo Switch owners create impressive 2D and 3D games, but the learning curve is high for making games that are ultimately locked to the platform.

    Specs & Configurations

    3D Editing
    Community Marketplace / Gallery
    Platform Nintendo Switch
    Requires Some Coding
    Starting Price $19.99
    Learn More Fuze4 (for Nintendo Switch) Review
  • LEGO City Undercover

    LEGO City Undercover

    4.0 Excellent

    Pros & Cons

      • Tons of places to explore, puzzles to solve, and things to collect.
      • Great humor.
      • Excruciatingly long load times.

    Bottom Line:

    Bottom Line:

    Surprisingly great humor and enjoyable, if easy, action makes this open-world LEGO game one of the best titles yet for the Wii U, hampered only by some long load times.

    Specs & Configurations

    Product Category Games
    Product Games ESRB Rating E for Everybody
    Product Games Genre Action Games
    Product Games Platform Nintendo Wii U
    Product Price Type List
    Get It Now
    Learn More LEGO City Undercover (Nintendo Wii U) Review Review
  • Luigi's Mansion 3 - Nintendo Switch Standard Edition

    Luigi's Mansion 3 - Nintendo Switch Standard Edition

    Bottom Line:

    Bottom Line:

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    Learn More Luigi's Mansion 3 - Nintendo Switch Standard Edition Review
  • Mario Kart 8 Deluxe

    Mario Kart 8 Deluxe

    4.5 Outstanding

    Pros & Cons

      • Completely overhauled Battle Mode.
      • Tons of tracks, including DLC content.
      • Lots of local and online multiplayer options.
      • Some stuttering with four-player split-screen in testing.

    Bottom Line:

    Bottom Line:

    Mario Kart 8 Deluxe is the second must-buy game on the Nintendo Switch (after The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild), and it's the most comprehensive Mario Kart game to date.

    Specs & Configurations

    Product Category Nintendo Switch
    Product Price Type Direct
    Get It Now
    Learn More Mario Kart 8 Deluxe (for Nintendo Switch) Review Review
  • Marvel Ultimate Alliance 3

    Marvel Ultimate Alliance 3

    Bottom Line:

    Bottom Line:

    Get It Now
    Learn More Marvel Ultimate Alliance 3 Review
  • Minecraft

    Minecraft

    Bottom Line:

    Bottom Line:

    Get It Now
    Learn More Minecraft Review
  • Minecraft Dungeons

    Minecraft Dungeons

    Pros & Cons

      • Accessible take on an action-RPG
      • Runs well on new and aging hardware
      • Variety of items and abilities with radical new effects
      • Short length
      • Some bosses are annoying to fight alone

    Bottom Line:

    Bottom Line:

    Minecraft Dungeons takes the smash hit construction game into an action-packed new genre, but keeps the friendly aesthetic and accessibility kids love.
    Get It Now
    Learn More Minecraft Dungeons Review
  • Mr. Driller DrillLand

    Mr. Driller DrillLand

    Bottom Line:

    Bottom Line:

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    Learn More Mr. Driller DrillLand Review
  • New Super Lucky's Tale

    New Super Lucky's Tale

    Bottom Line:

    Bottom Line:

    Get It Now
    Learn More New Super Lucky's Tale Review
  • Ninjala

    Ninjala

    Bottom Line:

    Bottom Line:

    Learn More Ninjala Review
  • Nintendo Labo: VR Kit (for Nintendo Switch)
    Best for Nintendo Switch Owners

    Nintendo Labo: VR Kit (for Nintendo Switch)

    4.5 Outstanding

    Pros & Cons

      • Accessible, immersive VR experience for beginners.
      • Toy-Cons are clever and fun to build.
      • Toy-Con Garage VR lets you make your own games.
      • No way to share your Toy-Con Garage VR creations.
      • Switch screen is much grainier than nearly any other VR headset available.

    Bottom Line:

    Bottom Line:

    The Nintendo Labo VR Kit turns your Switch into a simple VR headset for playing a variety of mini games, including ones you can create yourself.

    Specs & Configurations

    Controls Joy-Cons
    Hardware Platform Nintendo Switch
    Motion Detection 3DOF
    Refresh Rate 60
    Resolution 1,280 by 720 (total)
    Software Platform Nintendo Labo
    Type Mobile
    Get It Now
    Learn More Nintendo Labo VR Kit Review Review
  • Roundguard

    Roundguard

    Bottom Line:

    Bottom Line:

    Learn More Roundguard Review
  • Snipperclips

    Snipperclips

    Bottom Line:

    Bottom Line:

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    Learn More Snipperclips Review
  • SpongeBob SquarePants: Battle for Bikini Bottom–Rehydrated

    SpongeBob SquarePants: Battle for Bikini Bottom–Rehydrated

    Bottom Line:

    Bottom Line:

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    Learn More SpongeBob SquarePants: Battle for Bikini Bottom–Rehydrated Review
  • Summer in Mara

    Summer in Mara

    Bottom Line:

    Bottom Line:

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    Learn More Summer in Mara Review
  • Super Mario Odyssey (for Nintendo Switch)

    Super Mario Odyssey (for Nintendo Switch)

    5.0 Exemplary

    Pros & Cons

      • Fun, varied gameplay.
      • Many kingdoms to explore and challenges to beat.
      • Capture mechanic adds exciting problem-solving elements.
      • Costumes and Snapshot mode are a blast.
      • Very limited multiplayer.

    Bottom Line:

    Bottom Line:

    Super Mario Odyssey isn't just the best Nintendo Switch game yet, it's the best Mario game since Super Mario Galaxy.

    Specs & Configurations

    Product Category Nintendo Switch
    Get It Now
    Learn More Super Mario Odyssey (for Nintendo Switch) Review Review
  • Super Smash Bros. Ultimate (for Nintendo Switch)

    Super Smash Bros. Ultimate (for Nintendo Switch)

    4.5 Outstanding

    Pros & Cons

      • The biggest roster yet.
      • Loads of content, spanning dozens of video game series.
      • Polished, satisfying gameplay with lots of variety.
      • Lacks proper online ranking tiers.
      • No online tournament mode.
      • Collectible spirits lack context and detail.

    Bottom Line:

    Bottom Line:

    Super Smash Bros. Ultimate for the Nintendo Switch earns its title, standing out as the most comprehensive Smash game to date.

    Specs & Configurations

    Product Category Nintendo Switch
    Product Price Type Direct
    Get It Now
    Learn More Super Smash Bros. Ultimate (for Nintendo Switch) Review
  • Yoshi's Crafted World

    Yoshi's Crafted World

    Bottom Line:

    Bottom Line:

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    Learn More Yoshi's Crafted World Review
The Best Nintendo Switch Games For Kids

Compare Specs

Select Up To 3Select Up To 2
Your Selections
Fuze4 (for Nintendo Switch)

LEGO City Undercover

LEGO City Undercover

Luigi's Mansion 3 - Nintendo Switch Standard Edition

Luigi's Mansion 3 - Nintendo Switch Standard Edition

Our Pick
Fuze4 (for Nintendo Switch)
Fuze4 (for Nintendo Switch)
LEGO City Undercover
LEGO City Undercover
Luigi's Mansion 3 - Nintendo Switch Standard Edition
Luigi's Mansion 3 - Nintendo Switch Standard Edition
Mario Kart 8 Deluxe
Mario Kart 8 Deluxe
Marvel Ultimate Alliance 3
Marvel Ultimate Alliance 3
Minecraft
Minecraft
Minecraft Dungeons
Minecraft Dungeons
Mr. Driller DrillLand
Mr. Driller DrillLand
New Super Lucky's Tale
New Super Lucky's Tale
Ninjala
Ninjala
Fuze4 (for Nintendo Switch)
Fuze4 (for Nintendo Switch)
LEGO City Undercover
LEGO City Undercover
Luigi's Mansion 3 - Nintendo Switch Standard Edition
Luigi's Mansion 3 - Nintendo Switch Standard Edition
Rating
3.5 Good
4.0 Excellent
4.5 Outstanding
3.5 Good
4.0 Excellent
Best For
Best for Coding Students
Best for Coding Students
Starting Price
$19.99$19.99
Requires Some Coding
Product Price Type
ListDirectList
Product Games Platform
Nintendo Wii UNintendo Wii U
Product Games Genre
Action GamesAction Games
Product Games ESRB Rating
E for EverybodyE for Everybody
Product Category
GamesNintendo SwitchGames
Platform
Nintendo SwitchNintendo Switch
Community Marketplace / Gallery
3D Editing

Buying Guide: The Best Nintendo Switch Games For Kids

More Gaming Goodness

None

No matter how old you are, there are plenty of great games to play on Nintendo Switch and other consoles. Check out these other lists.

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About Our Expert

Jordan Minor

Jordan Minor

Principal Writer, Software

My PCMag career began in 2013 as an intern. Now, I'm a senior writer, using the skills I acquired at Northwestern University to write about dating apps, meal kits, programming software, website builders, video streaming services, and video games. I was previously a senior editor at Geek.com and have written for The A.V. Club, Kotaku, and Paste Magazine. I'm the author of the gaming history book Video Game of the Year: A Year-by-Year Guide to the Best, Boldest, and Most Bizarre Games from Every Year Since 1977, and the reason everything you know about Street Sharks is a lie.

The Technology I Use

I use the newest Android and iOS smartphones for testing, but I currently use an iPhone 14 as my personal phone. I just hate that we gave up headphone jacks.

I've always favored gaming laptops over desktops. On that note, I have a 16-inch HP Envy with an Intel Core i9-13900H CPU and Nvidia GeForce RTX 4060 GPU. No matter what machine I’m working on, an alarming amount of my personal and professional life revolves around cloud-synced Google Drive files.

For food subscriptions, my household sticks with CookUnity and HelloFresh for meals. Video streaming is a bit more complicated. While there are too many services to list, we're subscribed to most of the major ones. These days, I find myself drawn to HBO Max's movies and shows, as well as Peacock's reality trash.

I've been a lifelong Nintendo fan, and I sincerely believe the Nintendo Switch will go down as one of the best gaming consoles of all time. It has an unbelievable library of new and old games from Nintendo and third-party companies. The handheld/console hybrid approach makes playing games so much more flexible, a legacy that continues with the Nintendo Switch 2 and Valve’s Steam Deck.

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