After Zelda, Mario Kart, Pokken, and now Bayonetta, which Wii U games will end up on Nintendo Switch next? Here are the most (and least) likely suspects.
Nintendo hasn’t been shy about porting its Wii U games to Switch, and for good reason: Wii U had a few excellent games, but it was also the worst-selling home console in Nintendo’s history and so those games got in front of very few people. And, of course, Switch’s portability means that even if you’ve already played these games, you might double-dip for the best ones.
But not all Wii U games are created equal. There are a few that would seem like locks for a Switch port in 2018, some whose continued existence is questionable at best, and some that will almost surely never see light of day on the Switch.
Here’s how I see it breaking down. Note that this is not just a list of the best and worst Wii U games; I’m taking into account a variety of different factors.
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21 responses to “Wii U Games, Ranked By Probability Of Switch Ports”
Yes please for Tokyo Mirage Sessions, I picked it up ages ago, but it’s currently just sitting there as I try to only play one long game at a time, and I’m still only halfway through Persona 5. Making it mobile would change everything.
I just realised how few classic Nintendo games I actually want on the Switch, primarily because I don’t want to buy any overpriced controllers for couch multiplayer, which is always the best thing about Nintendo machines IMO. The WiiU never got a single game that made me want to buy one.
That could change REALLY quickly though once Gamecube controller support becomes an official thing. Does anyone with a WiiU know if Nintendo has made more of them available or if they’re easy to get these days? I’m sure I’ve got about 8 at home but I don’t know how many still work.
Mario Golf and new F-Zero please! I’d settle for BC support for the old ones.
I haven’t looked it up again, but I remember reading that native gamecube controller support through the USB adapter from Smash WiiU was patched in to the Switch. Having said that, I don’t imagine Nintendo would allow widespread use of this across its games. At the end of the day, they are a hardware company and controllers = dollars for Nintendo. Would be nice though.
The Gamecube controller works with all games, it’s just missing a few buttons so there are certain things you can’t do. It’s problematic in Breath of the Wild, but with the few buttons in Mario Odyssey, it’s plays pretty much perfectly.
Oh! Good to know. Cheers dude – might have to check it out.
Wouldn’t see myself using it for Zelda – motion aiming is simply too good.
Man, I didn’t realise how much I wanted DK: Tropical Freeze on the Switch until I saw it on this article. They have to do it – it’s a no brainer. I had a Wii U since launch and never bought that game. I would buy it day one on the Switch.
A Smash Bros with all the DLC included would make sense.
It won’t happen. If it was going to they would have announced it by now. The Switch will get a Smash game, but it’ll be a brand new Smash game, not a port of Smash 4.
That’s my prediction, anyway.
Yeah. I tend to agree that’s more likely. That said, Smash Bros is always a massive undertaking for HAL, so they might not be so keen to do another.
Captain toad being a slower puzzler would be such a good fit. Maybe skip the port and move on the Captain Toadette sequel!
But I don’t want games I ALREADY own for my new console…
That sucks for me. I shouldn’t be punished for supporting the Wii U.
They will also be making new games? It’s not like R&D 1 is stuck doing porting work…
I try to avoid the entitled gamer hyperbole, but you feel punished? Really?
Besides the punished bit which is excessive.
From wiki…
There are currently 560 games across these pages.
Exclusive = 57
Nintendo exclusive = 14
Multiplatform = 415
Exclusivity unknown = 4
That’s a heck of a lot of ports compared to new games. Not all multiplatform are ports but for a new system you would expect it to be dominated by new games.
All new systems cop a lot of ports in their first year. The switch has more than others, yes, but then the wii u was a colossal sales failure with some amazing games.
The PS4 had about 7 launch games (>30%) which were already on the PS3, and it took a LONG time to pick up a handful of defining exclusives (uncharted 4, bloodborne).
Besides, the new games were still being built while other teams handle ports. Nintendo has been outsourcing their port work for years, so you’re not being robbed of new games to expand the audience of the old ones.
That’s very true. Though from an outsiders view and I may be biased as I am not a Nintendo person, I see so many articles on ports coming to switch and not many on newer games that it comes across as more a portable emulator than a new machine.
The majority of newer games I have seen are extensions of existing franchises (yes they all do that to some degree) but where’s that ground breaking new fresh game.
I know right, I’m just so sick of having quality games shoved down my throat and on multiple platforms!
Of course you should. Now, back to your cage! *whi-CRACK*
so you dont want to play these same games on the toilet? I sure do
I owned a Wii-U, so there’s not much in it for me. But I think it would be good for all the exclusives to be ported over, at least digitally, to the Switch. There were some great games on the Wii-U that a lot of people didn’t get to play.
Windwaker on Switch PLEASE!
Paper Mario colour splash came out about 4 months before the switch did. I feel like this could be hidden gem that really needs to ported to the switch.
they already announced a bayonetta port