8 Franchises With The Most Playable Games On The Nintendo Switch, Ranked

Key Takeaways

• The Nintendo Switch brings classic game franchises like Resident Evil, Legend of Zelda, and Street Fighter to a new audience.
• Various remasters, ports, and cloud technology allow older titles from franchises to be played on the Switch.
• The Switch offers an extensive library of old titles for fans of Resident Evil, Tetris, and Final Fantasy.

While the video game industry’s constant drive forward is commendable on so many levels, many fans of the medium have long pined for consistent ways to play the best games of decades past. Because of this, many companies have re-released their classic game lineups. This can not only harvest some revenue from their long-thought-gone series, but can also help gauge interest in possible future titles.

As such, many long-running franchises are bringing a torrent of their older installments a new home on Nintendo’s hybrid console. From quintessential horror classics and puzzle-genre staples to Nintendo’s own back-catalog, the Nintendo Switch’s huge success and hybrid nature have brought many long-running titles to the platform.

8 Resident Evil

From Tank-Controlled Originals To Cloud-Based Ports

Nintendo has usually sought to portray itself as a family-friendly home for gaming. However, the continued success of Capcom’s classic horror series is undeniable, as almost all of its mainline entries are playable on Nintendo’s hybrid console.

Through the compilation efforts of remasters such as the Origins and Revelations Collections, along with standalone ports, Resident Evil titles from Zero to 6 are playable natively on the console. Beyond this, through creative use of cloud technology, Capcom has ported the eighth-generation powerhouse original and remake titles to the Switch. This has culminated in the largest library of Resident Evil installments available on a Nintendo system to date.

7 The Legend of Zelda

More Than 35 Years Of Hylian Hero Adventures

With the unparalleled commercial and critical success of The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild and Tears of the Kingdom, alongside the release of Echoes of Wisdom, the Nintendo Switch has been home to a multitude of original Zelda titles.

However, reaching into The Legend of Zelda‘s past installments, it’s clear that Nintendo has not forgotten about the adventure series’ nearly 40 years of titles. Through remakes such as 2019’s Link’s Awakening and the extensive use of the Nintendo Switch Online library of software, Nintendo has brought almost every Zelda title, from the 1986 original to 1998’s Ocarina of Time, to the hybrid console.

6 Street Fighter

Nearly 20 Releases Over 30 Years

• Year Original Title Released: 1987
• Number of Titles On Switch: Fifteen (15)
• Genre: Fighting

Unlike most video game franchises with many installments, Street Fighter‘s ballooning quantity of titles comes from a long history of incremental changes in arcades, which were reflected in individual titles. From roster shakeups to gameplay tweaks, each variation is different, despite what may be thought at first glance.

As such, Capcom’s series-specific titles like Street Fighter: 30th Anniversary Collection and Ultra Street Fighter II: The Final Challengers bring multiple individual past installments to the Nintendo Switch. Beyond these, Capcom has also included titles such as Street Fighter Alpha 3: Upper in their compilation Capcom Fighting Collection.

5 Tetris

The Quintessential Falling-Block Puzzler In Multiple Forms

• Year Original Title Released: 1984
• Genre: Puzzle
• Titles On Switch: 17

Even without legacy titles, the Nintendo Switch is home to a wholly unique spin on the Tetris puzzle formula with its exclusive battle royale take, Tetris 99. Bolstered by individual releases of the puzzle-crossover Puyo Puyo Tetris series, the visually dynamic Tetris Effect: Connected, and the Nintendo Switch Online service’s presentation of the original NES and Game Boy Tetris titles, the Nintendo Switch is a tetromino fan’s paradise.

Add Arika’s Tetris: The Grand Master and Tetris Forever‘s more than 15 different installments of the series, and the hybrid console is a one-stop shop for the falling-block genre lover.

4 Final Fantasy

The Genre-Defining RPG Series In (Almost) All Its Glory

• Titles On Switch: Nineteen 19

Since its 1987 release, Square Enix’s Final Fantasy series has been regaling role-playing game fans across hardware and genre shifts. The loss of the series to the PlayStation in the fifth console generation was a hemorrhaging blow to the Nintendo 64. However, he Nintendo Switch has, at long last, brought much of the franchise’s fabled catalog to Nintendo hardware once again.

From the Pixel Remaster re-releases of the classic 2D titles, to individual ports of many of the series’ 3D installments, even modern Final Fantasy adventures are available in some form. At long last, Nintendo players can play the title that famously made the jump to Sony hardware: Final Fantasy 7.

3 Castlevania

Multiple Releases On Multiple Consoles Congregate On Switch

• Year Original Title Released: 1986
• Genre: Action-Platformer, Metroidvania
• Titles On Switch: 19

Castlevania is not only a series of titles with a storied history of titles as old as some of Nintendo’s first-party franchises. It is also an action-platformer with an intrinsic connection to Nintendo hardware.

Originally exclusive to Nintendo’s 8-bit hardware, the 1986 inaugural Castlevaniatitle is just one of the multitude of titles available on the Nintendo Switch. Through Konami’s own Anniversary, Advance, and Dominus Collections (alongside Nintendo’s subscription service and EShop), nearly 20 Castlevania titles are playable on the hybrid console.

2 Super Mario

Nintendo’s Plumber Mascot’s Own Platforming Adventures

Gaming’s most famous platforming plumber is Nintendo’s beloved brand mascot, and Super Mario Odyssey was a pseudo-launch title for the Switch itself. It’s no surprise that the Mario series has as many installments on the console as it does.

Discounting the seemingly innumerable amount of subseries and sports titles Mario spends his time in, Mario still holds a high spot on the Nintendo Switch, with most of its past titles available on the console. Expanded ports of more contemporary titles, such as Super Mario 3D World + Bowser’s Fury and New Super Mario Bros. U: Deluxe, have bolstered the Switch’s Mario library. However, the Nintendo Switch Online library and Super Mario 3D All-Stars collection have given players the ability to play almost every previous 2D and 3D Mario game to date.

1 Mega Man

The Blue Bomber Is Back, With More Than 30 Titles On Switch

• Year Original Title Released: 1987
• Genre: Various
• Titles On Switch: 35

While Capcom may have found great success in porting their hugely successful Resident Evil and Street Fighter franchises to the Nintendo Switch system, the gargantuan amount of Mega Man games on the hybrid console is unparalleled. Titles range from individual gamesplaced within its Capcom Arcade Stadium series to curated collections of seemingly almost all avenues that the Mega Man series has gone down. The Blue Bomber’s library has found unprecedented scale on the Switch.

While the classic 8-bit and 16-bit titles are presented through the Mega Man Legacy Collection 1 + 2, the X and Battle Network installments find representation through their own Mega Man X Legacy Collection 1 + 2 and Mega Man Battle Network Legacy Collection titles. Beyond that, Capcom has also provided Switch owners with new adventures through the NSO ports of Mega Man 1-5 on the Game Boy, and the 2018 release of Mega Man 11.