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Best Nintendo Switch games of 2021

The 22 best Nintendo Switch games released in 2021, ranked from 5,786 critic and player ratings.

The best Nintendo Switch game of 2021 is Disco Elysium: The Final Cut, with a critic score of 91/100 — updated November 2026.

How this ranking is built
  • Games are ranked on the aggregated critic score out of 100 imported from IGDB and Metacritic, never on Tier's own grades.
  • A game only enters the ranking with at least 80 external ratings, so a single enthusiastic review never outranks a proven classic.
  • Community grades from F to S are shown next to every game, and only stated as a fact above 5 Tier ratings.
  • Release window covered: 2021.
  • 22 games are listed on this page, carrying 5,786 ratings between them.
  • Rankings are recomputed hourly; this one was last rebuilt on 13 November 2026.

Top 22

Played them? Give your tier with the + next to each game. No account needed to try — create one to keep your tiers.

01 Disco Elysium: The Final Cut Disco Elysium: The Final Cut 2021 · 228 ratings Disco Elysium: The Final Cut is an enhanced edition of the original role-playing game developed and published by ZA/UM. It retains the core gameplay and narrative while adding full voice acting, new quests, additional endings, and other narrative revisions. 91 /100
02 Super Mario 3D World + Bowser’s Fury S Super Mario 3D World + Bowser’s Fury 2021 · 112 ratings · 3 Tier votes The Super Mario 3D World + Bowser’s Fury game features the same lively co-op gameplay, creative levels and power-ups as the original game, but with added improvements. In the Super Mario 3D World part of the game, characters move faster and the dash powers up more quickly. Both adventures support the newly added Snapshot Mode, pause the action to get the perfect shot, apply filters, and decorate with stamps! 91 /100
03 It Takes Two A It Takes Two 2021 · 1,178 ratings · 5 Tier votes · finished by 37% Embark on the craziest journey of your life in It Takes Two, a genre-bending platform adventure created purely for co-op. Invite a friend to join for free with Friend’s Pass and work together across a huge variety of gleefully disruptive gameplay challenges. Play as the clashing couple Cody and May, two humans turned into dolls by a magic spell. Together, trapped in a fantastical world where the unpredictable hides around every corner, they are reluctantly challenged with saving their fractured relationship. 90 /100
04 Disco Elysium: Final Cut C Disco Elysium: Final Cut 2021 · 669 ratings · 1 Tier vote · finished by 46% 90 /100
05 Monster Hunter Rise Monster Hunter Rise 2021 · 124 ratings · finished by 11% Rise to the challenge and join the hunt! In Monster Hunter Rise, the latest installment in the award-winning and top-selling Monster Hunter series, you’ll become a hunter, explore brand new maps and use a variety of weapons to take down fearsome monsters as part of an all-new storyline. 88 /100
06 Death's Door Death's Door 2021 · 192 ratings Death's Door is an action-adventure game developed by Acid Nerve and published by Devolver Digital. Released in 2021, it follows a crow reaper tasked with collecting souls in a mysterious, atmospheric world. The game features exploration, fast-paced combat, and puzzle-solving. 87 /100
07 Unpacking Unpacking 2021 · 246 ratings Unpacking is a zen puzzle game about the familiar experience of pulling possessions out of boxes and fitting them into a new home. Part block-fitting puzzle, part home decoration, you are invited to create a satisfying living space while learning clues about the life you’re unpacking. Over the course of eight house moves, you are given a chance to experience a sense of intimacy with a character you never see and a story you’re never told. 92 /100
08 Subnautica: Below Zero C Subnautica: Below Zero 2021 · 144 ratings · 2 Tier votes · finished by 15% Dive into a freezing underwater adventure on an alien planet. Below Zero is set two years after the original Subnautica. Return to Planet 4546B to uncover the truth behind a deadly cover-up. Survive by building habitats, crafting tools, & diving deeper into the world of Subnautica. 85 /100
09 Loop Hero Loop Hero 2021 · 159 ratings · finished by 10% The Lich has thrown the world into a timeless loop and plunged its inhabitants into never ending chaos. Wield an expanding deck of mystical cards to place enemies, buildings, and terrain along each unique expedition loop for the brave hero. 85 /100
10 Life is Strange: True Colors Life is Strange: True Colors 2021 · 229 ratings · finished by 32% Life is Strange is a series of award-winning and critically-acclaimed narrative adventure games. Discover a universe where everyday heroes wield supernatural powers, while dealing with real challenges, real relationships, and real emotions. It's our world... with a twist of the strange. No matter your choices, the experience will stay with you forever. Deep in the mountains of Colorado, you'll find Haven Springs, a small mining town filled with beauty and mystery. As Alex, you'll discover the shocking secrets behind your brother’s death in an emotional roller-coaster of an adventure, using your psychic power of Empathy to change fate and change lives. 84 /100
11 Unpacking Unpacking 2021 · 488 ratings · finished by 25% 84 /100
12 Metroid Dread Metroid Dread 2021 · 213 ratings 84 /100
13 Road 96 S Road 96 2021 · 146 ratings · 1 Tier vote · finished by 22% 83 /100
14 Inscryption Inscryption 2021 · 398 ratings · finished by 21% 82 /100
15 Little Nightmares II Little Nightmares II 2021 · 339 ratings · finished by 38% 82 /100
16 Alan Wake Remastered A Alan Wake Remastered 2021 · 151 ratings · 1 Tier vote 82 /100
17 Diablo II: Resurrected Diablo II: Resurrected 2021 · 153 ratings 80 /100
18 Doki Doki Literature Club Plus! Doki Doki Literature Club Plus! 2021 · 125 ratings 82 /100
19 Twelve Minutes Twelve Minutes 2021 · 221 ratings · finished by 37% 79 /100
20 Biomutant Biomutant 2021 · 81 ratings · finished by 10% 73 /100
21 Pokémon Brilliant Diamond, Shining Pearl C Pokémon Brilliant Diamond, Shining Pearl 2021 · 87 ratings · 1 Tier vote 73 /100
22 Pokémon Unite Pokémon Unite 2021 · 103 ratings 70 /100
Browse all the best Nintendo Switch games

Other years

Best Nintendo Switch games of 2025Best Nintendo Switch games of 2024Best Nintendo Switch games of 2023Best Nintendo Switch games of 2022Best Nintendo Switch games of 2020Best Nintendo Switch games of 2019Best Nintendo Switch games of 2018Best Nintendo Switch games of 2017

Same year, other platforms

Best PC games of 2021Best PlayStation 5 games of 2021Best Xbox Series X|S games of 2021Best Xbox One games of 2021Best PlayStation 4 games of 2021Best Linux games of 2021Best Android games of 2021Best Mac games of 2021Best iOS games of 2021

Nearby rankings

Best Nintendo Switch games of 2020Best Nintendo Switch games of 2022

Catalog statistics

Most abandoned gamesMost completed games

Frequently asked questions

What is the best Nintendo Switch game of 2021?

Disco Elysium: The Final Cut currently tops the ranking with a score of 91/100 across 228 ratings. Ranking updated November 2026.

How is this ranking built?

Games are ranked on their aggregated critic score out of 100, with a minimum vote threshold so a single glowing review never outranks a proven classic; the Tier community's own F-to-S grades are shown alongside each game.