Game Of The Year 2024 – Nintendo Life Staff Awards
We’ve got a whopping 27 on the list this year, a testament to the huge variety of experiences on Switch. You’ll find a list of honourable mentions at the bottom, too.
NL staff key: Alana Hagues (AH), Alex Olney (AO), Felix Sanchez (FS), Gavin Lane (GL), Jim Norman (JN), Liam Doolan (LD), Ollie Reynolds (OR), PJ O’Reilly (PJ)
You know, I kind of hate Balatro for making me love it so much. I don’t have time for these sorts of crazy-intense relationships anymore. It’s too much commitment. But here we are, with a crazy amount of hours down the toilet to this amazingly addictive blend of card game (which I’m not even a huge fan of) and video game elements that super-power your deck. It’s easy to get into, incredibly moreish — don’t stress if, like me, you’re put off by card rules — and it’s also got a very unique and weird vibe about it, so once you’ve clicked with it…well…RIP and all that. PJ
One moment I found myself curious about the furore. The next, I’m swept up in its hypnotic music, quirky collection of jokers, and picking the Wheel of Fortune every time it pops up. What do you mean “Nope!”? It means “Nope, you’re never putting this game down.” AH
Of all the puzzling, platforming, and sword-swinging I’ve done this year, nothing compared to the moment I discovered how to change the order of Jokers. Talk about finally seeing the Matrix. JN
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2024 couldn’t give me anything else that made me laugh nearly as much as Thank Goodness You’re Here. I’ve never played a game that made my face ache, but I had to take a break halfway through this one after a particularly crude joke with a fish left me with tears in my eyes. It’s an absolute gem of British comedy and a definite must-play (just steer clear if your mum’s within earshot). JN
It’s been one of the really big gutters of the year in gaming news, that the team behind this incredible outing for the PoP has been disbanded. Where’s the point in it all when you serve up one of the great side-scrolling platformers — and maybe just the best Prince of Persia game yet — to turn around and be told it didn’t do well enough?
This is a dazzling game, a smart, exciting and hugely addictive effort that looks, sounds, and plays like an absolute dream. PJ
I relish a good retro-inspired challenge, and Volgarr 2 provides it in spades. A minor issue with the UI has since been patched out, and the optional ‘Undead Mode’ makes this an approachable action-platforming jaunt for newcomers. Sublime. OR
You know, I actually prefer Echoes of Wisdom to Tears of the Kingdom. Is that controversial? I don’t think so. This is just more my speed, more my cup of tea, when it comes to Zelda. And as much as I adore the bigger outings, after Breath of the Wild, I’m more than happy to settle into something a little less overwhelming. At least for now. PJ
Zelda fans have waited almost 40 years to play as the princess in her own mainline adventure and now they finally can in Echoes of Wisdom. Thank you, Nintendo. LD
The core of this game might be 25 years old, but my goodness has it not aged a day. The complexities, the simplicities, the unbridled creativity available to the player – it’s the king of management sims today, just as it was at the turn of the millennium. AO
This beautifully written, colourful game reminded me of StreetPass Garden so much that it snuck into my top five. Much like that 3DS novelty, it taught me diddly-squat about actual botany, but exploring the grounds, solving its puzzles, and absorbing the narrative (which follows an intelligent protagonist navigating Victorian BS) was a highlight of the year. GL
I played through Botany Manor in one evening and had no regrets when I wrapped it up. It’s a delightful little puzzler that mixes just the right amount of head-scratching evidence deduction and chilled exploration, all while drip-feeding a pertinent story. Cheering at the sight of a bound book wasn’t on my 2024 bingo card, but here we are. JN
Dragon Quest III HD-2D Remake is another HD-2D masterpiece that’s an absolute must-play for any Dragon Quest fan out there. It also comes with all the modern enhancements and QoL improvements to make the adventure more accessible than ever before. Now bring Dragon Quest 1 & 2 HD-2D Remake in 2025! LD
It takes great skill to maintain tension and dread throughout the duration of an entire game; even if it does only last a few hours. For its debut title, however, Cozy Game Pals effortlessly tells an engaging story packed with scares and intriguing puzzles. Don’t wait until Halloween for this; play it now. OR
I’ve said a lot about Unicorn Overlord already, so I’ll keep this brief – if you love strategy RPGs, you’ll find an extremely moreish game that rewards tinkering. If you don’t you should still try it out; it’s on the easier side, it encourages experimentation and exploration, and it’s beautiful. Switch is the perfect place to play it, too. So get on it. AH
This one is right up there with your Octopath Traveler 2s and your Triangle Strategies. You know that rarefied sort of turn-based RPG effort that just nails everything and leaves you begging for more? Well, this is that. Unicorn Overlord blew me away earlier in the year, and I demand to see it further up more GOTY listings. *shakes fist at own reflection* PJ
2024 turned out a great year for puzzlers on Switch, but I had expected World of Goo 2 and Lorelei to be bloody good; Can of Wormholes came out of nowhere. The work of the wonderfully named solo dev Munted Finger, it’s an elegant, layered puzzler that fully explores every idea it presents. Equal parts mind-bending and silly, it’s one of the best things I’ve played all year. GL
Super Mario Party Jamboree is the best Mario Party yet! A sublime main party mode, with seven great boards, 110+ minigames total, and a bunch of other modes like Koopathlon, and Bowser’s Kaboom Squad. There’s just so much to dig into, and the perfect choice for a game if you have some friends or family for a visit. FS
I don’t usually put compilations on my list, but Castlevania Dominus Collection was a dream. Three of my favourite DS games somehow made the near-perfect jump from dual screens. All three of these games are excellent in their own right and stand up to the best in the genre even today. AH
The opportunity to fill in gap in your personal gaming history is always welcome, and Wizardry was one such gap for me. Digital Eclipse did its usual excellent work at presenting this classic in the best possible light, and by all accounts they’ve gone back in since launch and added even more great stuff. I’m looking forward to dipping back into this one over the holidays. GL
It’s truly rare to see a game that nails the genuine look that’s pitched in the initial concept art stage. However, with Neva, I’d hang up nearly any frame of animation and praise it all day. It’s truly a sight to behold and a satisfyingly snappy adventure to play, too. ZG
When I was playing through Sonic X Shadow Generations, I couldn’t stop thinking about the similarities Shadow’s add-on kind of had to Bowser’s Fury (and that’s only a good thing). This add-on makes an already exciting package filled with all sorts of Sonic nostalgia even better and does a fantastic job honouring Shadow’s legacy in his big year. LD
Pentiment is a unique and fascinating game. It takes place in the Middle Ages and the art style, music, and even the fonts are all in line with what you would expect when you hear ‘medieval’ and ‘video game’. This is a great port of a game that’s a work of art — it’s very clear that a lot of love and care went into it. FS
Digital Eclipse cracked straight on with another fine entry in its Gold Master Series, giving an excellent overview of an iconic dev. Serving up a spicy collection from Minter’s catalogue in a convenient package, with several sides of context to get the most out of them, this is essential for anyone interested in the history of the medium. Best enjoyed with a curry and a good brew. GL
A love letter to classic survival horror, Crow Country lets you loose in an abandoned theme park that’s filled to the brim with locked doors, horrifying creatures and plenty of puzzles that (almost) always made the necessary backtracking a rewarding endeavour for me. What’s here gameplay-wise isn’t necessarily new, but a solid hint system, well-designed maps and little jabs at the genre kept me chugging along while curled up under a blanket with the lights out. ZG
Paying homage to classic survival horror is so difficult. You’ve got to get all of the genre’s weird little quirks in there, but do so in a way that doesn’t feel immediately outdated and awful. Few manage to nail it, but Crow Country is one of them. If you spent the ’90s scrambling for weird little keys and awkwardly shooting zombies, this is for you. OR
We’ve seen some licensing miracles over the years, but Marvel vs. Capcom Fighting Collection might just beat ’em all. Capcom is taking us for a ride here (in a good way) with a decade of fighting game evolution. Honestly, I think a lot of fans would have been more than satisfied with a simple re-release of MvC2: New Age of Heroes on modern platforms, but this collection goes above and beyond. LD
A late addition to my top five. Simogo (Year Walk, Sayonara Wild Hearts) takes a fairly standard escape room — well, escape mansion — formula and laces it with Lynchian horror and French New Wave cinema style to create something truly unique.
It’s a game you absolutely need a pen and paper to scribble notes on as you play and, despite its quirks (the lack of a ‘back’ button in menus wound me up no end), its laser focus on a singular vision makes it an experience you’ll never forget. GL
