Nintendo Switch Sports Returns on Switch 2 with New Sports, Including Thumb Wrestling
Nintendo is diving back into the world of motion-control sports games with Nintendo Switch Sports Resort, marking the first entry in the series designed specifically for the Switch 2. This exciting title was unveiled during a recent Nintendo Direct and is set to launch on October 22.
Nintendo Switch Sports Resort takes inspiration from 2009’s Wii Sports Resort, whisking players away to the picturesque Wuhu Island. The game features 12 sports in total, with five making a comeback from 2022’s Switch Sports: tennis, volleyball, basketball, bowling, and golf. New additions include boxing, table tennis, archery, skateboarding, power cruising (think jetski), flying a prop plane, and even thumb wrestling. Plus, there’s a jump rope minigame. Skateboarding and thumb wrestling are fresh concepts that haven’t appeared in either Switch Sports or Wii Sports before.
The journey of Nintendo’s sports series began with 2006’s Wii Sports, a bundled title designed to showcase the motion-control capabilities of the Wii Remote. It featured tennis, baseball, golf, boxing, and the classic 10-pin bowling, quickly becoming a cultural phenomenon and selling over 82 million copies, securing its place among the top five best-selling games of all time.
While Nintendo hasn’t quite recaptured that level of widespread appeal since, the series has remained a reliable part of its lineup. In 2009, Wii Sports Resort introduced 10 new sports, including Frisbee, wakeboarding, and archery, while also bringing back bowling and golf. It sold 33 million copies. Wii Sports Club, a fragmented, free-to-play remake for Wii U, is best left in the past.
Nintendo Switch Sports featured volleyball, tennis, badminton, soccer, basketball, chambara, and bowling, but controversially delayed golf for a post-launch update. By the time it launched in 2022, many casual players had moved on, yet it still managed to sell over 18 million copies. It’s clear why Nintendo is revisiting this beloved franchise.
