Skyler Orton
Nintendo has been well known to do strange things. From insane peripherals to gimmicky motion controls Nintendo’s done it all. The Switch generation was a hotbed for these strange experiments so a few months after the Switch 2 came out let’s look back on the original system’s oddities.
5. 99 games
When Nintendo announced they were making essentially a Tetris battle royale nobody quite knew what to expect. Then it was released, and Tetris 99 ended up being a universally beloved online game that Nintendo immediately worked to replicate with other properties. Ever since then, Nintendo has put out new battle royales at a solid pace.
First we got the unfortunately short lived anniversary title Super Mario Bros 35 which everyone loved but, Nintendo being Nintendo, was only for a limited time. Then Pac-Man followed it up with its own iteration that was unfortunately shut down soon after release. The weirdest was when Nintendo brought F-Zero back from the dead for the fantastic F-Zero 99.
Whether they know it or not, Nintendo stumbled onto a winning formula making its properties into battle royales. I would love to see Nintendo continue this weird and wonderful formula with other games. My vote would be a WarioWare 99 which I think is the perfect fit for this formula. Or just bring back Super Mario Bros 35. Please.
4. Ring Fit Adventure
During the Wii era, everyone and their mother seemed to be into Wii Fit. During the Switch era, Nintendo decided to bring back fitness games but with a twist. Instead of a board, Players use a giant plastic ring and a leg strap to play a fitness action RPG.
This giant ring is ridiculously weird, but also the game it shipped with was a relatively large success. It was released only months before the pandemic when everyone was looking to exercise again and sales shot up. Nintendo’s weird gamble worked and, while it didn’t have the mainstream success of Wii Fit, gained a large cult following. I for one would love to see this experiment return.
3. Everybody 1-2-Switch!
As strange as every item on this list is, this is one that, while maybe not the weirdest, was definitely the worst business decision by far. Does anyone remember 1-2-Switch! the weird full priced tech demo that launched with the Switch? Well apparently Nintendo did since it got a strange sequel six years after the first one.
Instead of focusing on the quirks of the Switch’s hardware, this party game tries to almost be like a Jackbox game. Players can connect their phones to the console in order to participate in things like trivia, a UFO themed rhythm game and, uh… whatever Hip Bump is.
The most absurd part of this game is its branding. So much focus is put on a new mascot (a man in a tacky rubber horse mask) who was never featured in the first game. From bizarre marketing preview events to his presence in the game itself nobody ever quite figured out why he was in the game. Obviously it was a complete flop but man I’d love to see Nintendo try this again in the same way I would love Sony to make a sequel to Madame Web. It’s so bad it’s good.
2. Nintendo Labo
I understand what Nintendo wanted to do with the Labo. I really do. The idea of combining STEM crafts and Nintendo games is a very cool idea and, in a different world, might’ve been a huge success. Unfortunately this flopped for one big reason, no matter how good the cardboard is, charging $70 for a box of cardboard isn’t a good look.
Despite this, Labo did get a huge cult following. Those who picked it up found that the models were sturdy and the papercraft was fun to construct. The games may have been simple, but as a kids toy they were engaging enough for their purpose. The more complex kits like the vehicle and robot were interesting but all too flawed to make an impact. For example, the VR headset was too blurry to work and didn’t have a strap of some sort making it uncomfortable to play.
Overall, the Labo was in some ways incredibly innovative, and others a complete failure. This mixed bag of a product is Nintendo at their most… them and I wouldn’t have them any other way.
1. Jump Rope Challenge
When Nintendo shadow dropped Jump Rope Challenge there was one question on everyone’s mind. Who is this for? Why did they make this? Jump Rope Challenge is a virtual jump rope simulator using the Joy-Cons to simulate the experience of jump rope. It’s one of my favorite types of Nintendo products, a digital simulator for something you don’t really need to digitally simulate.
It markets itself as a fitness game to work out by doing fake jump ropes. However, it doesn’t really have any fitness game elements since the only fitness feature is a jump counter. The game is free, fortunately, but I mean you still need to have a console and controllers to basically jump in place. Obviously, not many of Nintendo’s resources went to this game, but the fact that it exists at all is so wonderfully weird. Plus I love the rabbit mascots of the game. They, alongside the general UI, give the game some much needed charm. But if you’re looking for a workout I would recommend just getting a jump rope.
What’d you think of Nintendo’s innovation this generation? More innovative? Less innovative? Let us know what’s your favorite Nintendo quirk of this gen.
