Games Inbox: Which Nintendo game is best in 2026?

Fire Emblem: Fortune’s Weave – one of the best games of 2026 The Wednesday letters page tries to decide which Nintendo game is the best of the year, while one reader worries about his Xbox Series X giving up on him. Games Inbox is a roundup of our readers’ letters, comments, and opinions. If you want to join the discussion yourself, email email Second best With Nintendo Switch Sports Resort out this week, that seems to be Nintendo’s lot for the year, apart from Zelda: Ocarina Of Time and The Duskbloods.

I honestly can’t believe, at this point in the year, that The Duskbloods is still actually going to make it out there — unless it ends up as free-to-play or something equally odd — but even then it feels almost impossible. Clearly, Zelda is going to be the most popular game, and probably the best too, but my question is: if you rule that out, what comes next? It’s been a slow start, but this has still turned into a decent year for Nintendo.

Not a classic, perhaps, but definitely a stronger second year for the Switch 2 than the Switch 1 managed. As far as I can tell, the main contenders are Pokémon Pokopia, Yoshi And The Mysterious Book, Star Fox, and Fire Emblem: Fortune’s Weave. I’ve played all of them except Yoshi, and they’ve all seemed well received, though I suppose you could argue whether a Pokémon game really counts as a Nintendo title in the strictest sense.

My vote goes to Fortune’s Weave. I wasn’t planning to buy it until I saw the positive reviews, but I’m very glad I did. There is an absurd amount of content in it, and I’m still nowhere near done with everything even now — and they’re bringing out DLC as well?!

Hopefully 2027 ends up being as much of an improvement over this year as 2026 was over 2025. Eggers Want GTA 6 news? Sign up for the GameCentral newsletter for the latest GTA 6 news, reviews of new games worth playing, and exclusive analysis of the week’s biggest stories.

GC: Along with The Duskbloods, there are still Nintendo Switch 2 Editions of Pikmin 4 and Xenoblade Chronicles 3 to come, but that’s everything left for the rest of the year. Unbeatable graphics That GTA 6 trailer recreated with GTA 5 graphics was really clever. Fans’ creativity never stops impressing me.

It definitely drives home just how much graphics have improved, although I don’t think that’s something anyone has really criticised. There’s no doubt that GTA 6 will have the best graphics ever, and I’d expect that to remain the case for a long time. I agree with the readers who think the PlayStation 5 is about as far as consoles are likely to go for the foreseeable future, with the PlayStation 6 probably ending up as an expensive extra that most people won’t bother with.

For me, the real question is whether any other games can catch up before then. Joss Fine idea I’m really glad to see how well the Star Wars games are doing, and that Lucasfilm seems ready to build on that success and the lessons it has learned. I’d love Bungie to make a Battlefront game, though it sounds like that may not be the direction they’re heading in, but at least they considered it.

I really hope they make a modern version of Empire At War soon, and I’d love to see a graphic adventure too, like someone suggested before, but I’m not sure who would be the right team for that. Maybe Double Fine? They seem to be going through a rough patch lately.

Still, the next big thing is probably Star Jedi 3, which I’m very much looking forward to. Crossfire Email your comments to: email Don’t break I live in constant fear that either my Xbox Series X or PlayStation 5 is going to break down. At their current RRP of £670 and £570, I simply can’t see myself replacing either one.

What baffles me most is the Xbox Series X price. I know Microsoft doesn’t want to sell the machine at a loss, but surely they can’t be shifting more than about five a month at this stage. If they dropped it to £570 to match the PlayStation 5, it’s not like it wouldn’t start selling much better, so would it really hurt them?

At the very least, it would make it look as if they were still in the market, instead of quietly backing out. The worrying part is that console prices seem likely to stay ridiculous for years, and that will put a serious strain on the industry and on the kinds of games that get made for a long time to come. That’s especially concerning when the last couple of years haven’t exactly been healthy for the industry anyway.

Every studio feels like it’s one badly performing game away from closure. It feels like we’re slowly watching the industry fall apart, with the same old cash cows left as the only games being made. Irve77 PS: I know GC aren’t fans, but I’ve really enjoyed Gears Of War: E-Day.

It’s an easy 8 for me, and Horde Siege is a smart evolution of Horde mode that I think deserves more credit. PPS: I hope Sony doesn’t follow Microsoft and limit streaming hours, because that makes the PlayStation Portal a very useful part of the household, and time restrictions would completely cut the legs out from under it. GC: Microsoft’s reasoning is thought to be that they don’t currently have the capacity to make many Xbox Series X consoles, so there’s little point reducing the price for the small number of people who still want one.

Mario Sports I just read your review of the new Nintendo Switch Sports game, and it left me wondering why they don’t simply include classic Nintendo characters instead of generic avatars. It seems like such an easy win, and it would add a bit of extra appeal to a game that doesn’t seem very interesting beyond being a short-lived distraction. I can’t imagine there’s much of an audience for it as it stands.

Chris GC: Wii Sports has always been about Miis, and Nintendo already has a separate line of Mario sports games for tennis, golf, and more. Despite what you might think, Nintendo Switch Sports sold over 18 million copies in 2022, making it the 11th best-selling game on the Switch. There are more people than you’d expect who just want a straightforward, no-frills sports game they can enjoy with their family.

Fire Emblem: Fortune’s Weave – one of the best games of 2026 The Wednesday letters page tries to decide which Nintendo game is the best of the year, while another reader worries about his Xbox Series X giving up on him. Games Inbox is a collection of our readers’ letters, comments, and opinions. If you’d like to join the discussion, email email **Second best** With Nintendo Switch Sports Resort out this week, that’s it for Nintendo this year, aside from Zelda: Ocarina Of Time and The Duskbloods.

At this point in the year, I honestly can’t believe The Duskbloods is still actually due to come out – unless it ends up being free-to-play or something equally strange, but even then it feels almost impossible. Of course, Zelda is going to be the most popular game, and probably the best too, but if you set that aside, what comes next? After a slow start, this has turned into a pretty decent year for Nintendo.

It’s not a classic by any means, but it’s been a much stronger second year for the Switch 2 than the Switch 1 had. As far as I can tell, the main contenders are Pokémon Pokopia, Yoshi And The Mysterious Book, Star Fox, and Fire Emblem: Fortune’s Weave. I’ve played all of them except Yoshi, and they all seem to have been well received, though I suppose you could debate whether a Pokémon game counts as a true Nintendo title.

My vote goes to Fortune’s Weave. I wasn’t planning to buy it until I saw the reviews, but I’m very glad I did. There’s an insane amount of content in it, and even now I’m nowhere near done with everything it has to offer – and they’re making DLC for it too?!

Hopefully 2027 ends up being a much bigger improvement on this year than 2026 was on 2025. Eggers Want GTA 6 news? Sign up to the GameCentral newsletter for the latest GTA 6 news, reviews of new games you should play, and exclusive analysis of the biggest stories of the week.

GC: Along with The Duskbloods, there are still Nintendo Switch 2 Editions of Pikmin 4 and Xenoblade Chronicles 3 to come, but that’s everything left for the rest of the year. **Unbeatable graphics** That GTA 6 trailer made using GTA 5 graphics was really clever. Fans’ creativity never fails to impress me.

It definitely highlights how much graphics have improved, although I don’t think that’s something anyone has ever really complained about. There’s no doubt GTA 6 will have the best graphics ever, and I’d expect it to stay that way for a very long time. I agree with the readers who say the PlayStation 5 is probably as far as consoles are going to go for the foreseeable future, with the PlayStation 6 ending up as an expensive extra that most people won’t bother with.

For me, the real question is whether any other games can catch up in the meantime. Joss **Fine idea** I’m really pleased to see how well the Star Wars games are doing, and that Lucasfilm seems ready to build on that success and apply the lessons learned. I’d love Bungie to make a Battlefront game, although it sounds like that may not be the direction they’re taking.

Still, at least they considered it. I really hope they make a modern version of Empire At War soon, and I’d also love a graphic adventure, like someone mentioned before, though I’m not sure who would be best suited to make it. Maybe Double Fine?

They seem to be having a rough time lately. Still, the next big thing is probably Star Jedi 3, which I’m very much looking forward to. Crossfire Email your comments to: email **Don’t break** I live in constant fear of either my Xbox Series X or my PlayStation 5 breaking down.

At the current prices of £670 and £570, I just can’t see myself replacing either of them. But the Xbox Series X price is especially baffling. I know Microsoft don’t want to sell the machine at a loss, but surely they can’t be selling more than about five a month at this point.

If they dropped the price to £570 to match the PlayStation 5, it’s not as if they wouldn’t suddenly start flying off the shelves – so would it really hurt them? At the very least, it would create the impression that they’re still in the market, rather than quietly giving up. The worrying part is that console prices are likely to stay ridiculous for years, and that could put a real stranglehold on the industry and on the games being made for a long time.

That’s especially concerning when the industry hasn’t exactly been in great shape over the last couple of years anyway. Every studio seems to be just one badly selling game away from shutting down. It feels like we’re slowly watching the industry collapse, leaving only the same old cash cows as the games that get released.

Irve77 PS: I know GC aren’t fans, but I’ve really enjoyed Gears Of War: E-Day. It’s an easy 8 for me, and Horde Siege is a nice evolution of Horde mode that I think deserves more credit. PPS: I do hope Sony doesn’t follow Microsoft and restrict streaming hours, because the PlayStation Portal makes a really useful addition to the household, and time limits would completely undercut that.

GC: The thinking behind Microsoft’s decision is reportedly that they don’t have the capacity to manufacture many Xbox Series X consoles right now, so there’s no point lowering the price for the small number of people who actually want one. **Don’t miss gaming news! Add us as a Preferred Source** As a loyal GameCentral reader, we want to make sure you never miss our articles when searching for gaming stories.

We cover all the latest video game news, reviews, previews, and interviews, along with a lively community of highly engaged readers. Click the button below and tick The Agency to make sure you see our stories first in Google Search. Add us as a Preferred Source GameCentral has been delivering unique games news and reviews for over a decade **Mario Sports** I just read your review of the new Nintendo Switch Sports game, and it left me wondering why they don’t just include classic Nintendo characters instead of generic avatars.

It seems like such an easy win, and it would add some extra appeal to a game that feels pretty uninteresting as anything more than a quick distraction. I can’t imagine there’s much of an audience for it as it stands. Chris GC: Wii Sports has always focused on Miis, and Nintendo already has a separate line of Mario sports games for tennis, golf, and more.

Despite what you might assume, Nintendo Switch Sports sold over 18 million copies in 2022, making it the 11th most successful game on the Switch. More people than you’d think want a simple, straightforward sports game they can enjoy with their family.