In wonderful Manhattan, New York, Nintendo opened its doors for a robust Holiday Preview event. Showcasing a massive array of games arriving on Nintendo Switch 2, I walked the floor and took in all the sights. Nintendo’s sophomore run for Switch 2 has been strong, following releases like Minecraft Dungeons II. However, the year is far from over.
As I entered the Holiday Preview, I was immediately reminded that Nintendo has plenty more titles on deck to round out 2026. Families and Nintendo fans can look forward to many new games and refreshed classics. Personally, I walked the floor and got excited about the reasons I’ll be picking up my Nintendo Switch 2 over the next few months. For the past few weeks, I’ve had tunnel vision playing through Fire Emblem: Fortune’s Weave on the Nintendo Switch 2. However, my trip has made me realize the options I’ll soon have to balance.
The biggest highlight of the event was my first opportunity to go hands-on with Nintendo Switch Sports Resort—no better way to acclimate to the game than a brisk round of Bowling. There, I got to test the 100-pin mode, which makes its grand return to the series. If you’ve been following the series since the Wii days, like myself, you know exactly what to expect. For newcomers, strap in, literally. Using a Joy-Con 2 controller, I stepped up to the lane and began my first of what I imagine will become many rounds of Bowling. In Nintendo Switch Sports Resort, you bowl by holding the ZL/ZR buttons on the Joy-Con 2 controller, swinging your arm like you would at your local bowling alley and aiming for a perfect strike. Once I got comfortable with the motion controls, I started experimenting with moving my Mii characters left and right to position myself better. This mode really opens up when I use the face buttons to create an arc in my pitches. I put a bit of a curve into my release, hoping to clean up any remaining pins. Bowling has always been my favourite mini-game in these Sports titles, and the 100-pin mode is a fun additive version.
One major focal point for me is being reminded to pick up Pokémon Pokopia again after sinking 50+ hours into it earlier this year. Although its Bubbly Basin DLC has already been released, it’s been burning a hole in my backlog since August. Once I got my hands on the controller and dove back in, I felt at home again. Playing a vertical slice of Bubbly Basin, Popplio welcomed me into the underwater biome and encouraged me to seek out the Pokémon Center that required repairs. I searched through the underwater caves and came across Crawdaunt, adding a new friend to my Pokédex. Although it was a short 15-minute demo, it was encouragement enough for me to load up Pokémon Pokopia this weekend.
October marks the long-awaited return of Call of Duty on a Nintendo console with the release of Modern Warfare 4. As a die-hard fanatic of the franchise, I was beside myself playing a full-fledged franchise entry on the Nintendo Switch 2. Throughout my short demo, five other players and I loaded into Gunfight for a heated 3v3 skirmish. For the uninitiated, Gunfight pits two teams of three into a series of single-life rounds. With randomized loadouts, my team and I ran through the adaptive Kill Block map. Since it’s been 13 years since Call of Duty launched on Nintendo hardware, I was initially skeptical about the performance I’d get.
As for character textures and visuals, there are some compromises when playing on Nintendo Switch 2. Character models and environments have jagged edges and look a little less detailed than elsewhere. That said, load times between rounds were speedy, and the latency (or lack thereof) was exceptional for the competitive shooter. Using the Nintendo Switch 2 Pro Controller, I found myself a capable teammate, holding my own during the intensive rounds when every shot mattered. It’s a marvel to consider Nintendo Switch 2 players will finally get a chance to unpack the first Call of Duty title in over a decade. In October, the game is launching with a campaign, rounding out the Modern Warfare storyline. A multiplayer suite and DMZ extraction mode will also be available.
The Holiday Preview also featured other notable gameslikee Starfo,x which recently dropped its first major post-launch update. Following its release on Nintendo Switch 2, the game now supports four-player local split-screen in Battle Mode so a group of friends or family can have a blast together on the couch. The game also adds three new stages: Katina, Sector X, and Venom. Although Star Fox has never been my cup of tea, I have to tip my hat to Nintendo for delivering more content for nostalgia-hungry players.
Minecraft is finally coming to Nintendo Switch 2 on October 27th. Available with a paid upgrade path, the Nintendo Switch 2 version includes a Vibrant Visuals refresh, introducing a new graphics spread with enhanced lighting, shadows, and water reflections. Adding even more Nintendo goodies, this updated version introduces the Super Mario Mash-Up Pack. This incorporates custom Mario-themed skins, music, and locations like Delfino Plaza and Peach’s Castle. There was something objectively neat about seeing the Super Mario World logo built in Minecraft. Fresh off a playthrough of Minecraft Dungeons II, I was enamoured by the updates being made to the core Minecraft experience on Nintendo Switch 2.
The second year of Nintendo Switch 2 is already off to a great start. With one especially high-profile title on the way, The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time, there’s plenty to be playing in the meantime. Between Nintendo Switch Sports Resort, the Minecraft update on Nintendo Switch 2, and Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 4, my console will get a lot of use over the remaining weeks of 2026.
