Summer is officially in full swing, and what better way to enjoy the warmer weather than with a good old eShop sale? Nintendo has kicked off its latest wave of discounts across the European eShop, and you've got until 2nd August to make the most of it. Of course, there are a lot of titles on sale, and it can be difficult to know where to start. That's where we come in!
Below, we have alphabetically listed every game in Nintendo's eShop Summer Sale that we scored a 9/10 or higher, accompanied by its original and discounted price. We've also included a personal pick from the swathes of 8/10s and below, because we just couldn't resist!
13 Sentinels: Aegis Rim (Switch) — £12.49 (-75% off)
13 Sentinels: Aegis Rim is a wonderful achievement for dynamic storytelling, as it puts forth a compelling and multifaceted narrative that’ll keep you guessing right up until the very end. This excellent story, combined with enjoyable combat portions, a striking art style, and some top-notch voice acting make for an experience that you shouldn't miss. It’s the kind of game that’ll have you wishing that you could play it again for the first time, just so all its best elements could be new again.
Absolum (Switch) — £16.86 (-25% off)
Absolum is an on-par experience to Vanillaware's Dragon’s Crown, but a superior game in terms of its key metrics. Its combat, collectible augmentations, and planning are exceptionally well-formulated, ensuring no run is ever quite the same, and its strategic options and play-styles are ever-deepening. It’s incredibly impressive in its reconstitution of arcade, role-playing, and roguelike formats, evolving them into something fresh and exciting.
If you don’t enjoy the idea of repetition and grind, you may not fall in love with its initial five hours, but the momentum for one-more-go becomes so compelling after a while that it’s impossible to relinquish the pad.
Ace Combat 7: Skies Unknown Deluxe Edition (Switch) — £19.99 (-60% off)
Ace Combat 7: Skies Unknown is the absolute pinnacle of the series and despite coming to Switch over five years after other platforms, this 'impossible' Switch conversion does very little to degrade the experience. Long-time franchise players and military aviation enthusiasts will be overwhelmed by the fan service at every turn, from craters on the ground to airplanes, liveries, callsigns, and emblems shouting out to previous entries. We understand the genre is uniquely niche, but if this is your first foray into the franchise, this conversion is a perfect gateway into this rich, revered series.
Aegis Defenders (Switch eShop) — £3.74 (-75% off)
Aegis Defenders is a fantastic game, brilliantly blending the tower defence and platforming genres in a unique way to produce a memorable and enjoyable experience. Lovable characters, interesting lore, plenty of secrets, engaging gameplay, and gorgeous presentation combine to make this a must-have for your Switch, a real gem on the eShop.
AI: The Somnium Files - nirvanA Initiative (Switch) — £8.74 (-75% off)
AI: The Somnium Files – nirvanA Initiative is one of the most interesting visual novels we’ve played through in a while. The murder mystery at its heart is brought to life by some great writing and quirky characters alongside the satisfyingly integrated, beautifully balanced Psync puzzle elements. Even with some minor control issues, there is a lot to love in this game, even if you never picked up the original. Highly recommended if you're even a little bit curious.
Alien: Isolation (Switch eShop) — £9.99 (-23% off)
Alien: Isolation is a survival horror masterpiece and straight-up one of the very best horror video games ever released. It's a nerve-wracking affair — a slow, methodical game of cat and mouse against a brilliantly clever recreation of one of cinema's most infamous killers — but if you're up to the task you'll find one of the most satisfying gameplay experiences in the genre. Feral Interactive has done a stellar job with this Switch port and the excellent motion controls and inclusion of all previously-released DLC only go to sweeten the deal.
Alwa's Legacy (Switch eShop) — £4.04 (-70% off)
Alwa’s Legacy is an excellent example of how to do a proper sequel; it takes everything that Alwa's Awakening did well and builds on it, adds in a few new ideas of its own, and corrects the issues that were previously present. It may be a little on the short side, but Alwa’s Legacy is the special sort of game that only comes around once in a great while, reminding you of the kind of quality that’s possible when a dedicated crew puts in the time to make a polished and tightly designed final product.
Animal Well (Switch eShop) — £14.69 (-30% off)
Developer Shared Memory's stated goal was “to craft complete experiences that will be playable long after the world loses its internet connection,” and screen after screen, Animal Well excels in delighting your eyes and giving your brain something to stew on. It’s a riposte against a culture of post-launch updates in favour of a meticulously crafted, singular vision with potentially years’ worth of discoveries baked in. By all indications, Animal Well delivers on that long-term promise and does so with a one-of-a-kind elegance.
Archvale (Switch eShop) — £5.99 (-50% off)
Archvale is a triumphant bullet-hell/RPG genre mashup. Although you could argue its similarity to one or two recent releases, it trumps the competition with incredibly slick combat, simple and satisfying progression, and varied environments and enemies. The difficulty ramps up heavily as you progress to the later levels, so the inability to change difficulty on the fly may prove a bit of an issue for some players. Push through, however, and you’ll find Archvale to be one of the most satisfying twin-stick games available right now.
Bad North (Switch eShop) — £2.69 (-80% off)
A slice of Viking strategic combat right out of the heart of Scandinavia’s indie development scene, Bad North was at the vanguard of a wave of smart yet intrinsically accessible real-time strategy titles. Swedish developer Plausible Concept calls it ‘micro-strategy’ and it's the perfect encapsulation of a minimalist approach that covers everything from unit management to the Monument Valley-style isometric art style. With enough enemy variance to convince you you’re playing an interactive episode of the Vikings TV show, this endlessly entertaining sea of bitesize battles will teach you to fear — and love — the sound of the oncoming horde.
Balatro (Switch eShop) — £10.23 (-20% off)
Balatro is a roguelike for gamers who don't like roguelikes... and then everybody else on top of that. It utterly nails what it sets out to do, providing an instantly accessible, satisfying, and addictive gameplay loop that anybody can grasp. It's an immensely enjoyable experience from the start, but as you get deeper in, there's really nothing else quite like it. Sublime.
Blazing Chrome (Switch eShop) — £3.82 (-75% off)
For those longing for a time when side-scrolling shooters ruled the roost, Blazing Chrome is exactly what you're looking for. Perfect for short sessions, its slick gameplay and old-school art direction make for an astonishingly fun game full of explosions, epic set pieces and spectacular boss battles. Its brutal difficulty may not be for everyone, but if you're up for the challenge, then get ready for one of the most accomplished 2D action titles in years.
Blue Prince (Switch 2) — £14.99 (-40% off)
If Blue Prince were only about finding Room 46 and nabbing your inheritance, it would be a neat little puzzler with some fun twists along the way. For those who dive in headfirst and keep track of everything else it throws at you, however, it is so much more than that. Rarely has a game made us feel more clever, more lost, and more elated the deeper into it we ventured, and still some question marks remain over its deeper mysteries. Minor technical drops and a lack of cross-save aside, this remains a superb achievement and one of the finest head scratchers we've had the pleasure of playing.
Botany Manor (Switch eShop) — £15.74 (-30% off)
It looks like The Witness and it plays a bit like StreetPass Garden, but Botany Manor blooms into something that's not only entirely its own, but also something quite special. Don't let its cosy aesthetics fool you — Botany Manor is packed with nicely challenging, well-designed puzzles, and isn't afraid to tackle heavy subjects, too.
Cast n Chill - Nintendo Switch 2 Edition (Switch 2) — £8.56 (-33% off)
The title says it all for this sedate little catch-'em-all fishing game. Also available on Switch 1, Cast n Chill is easily one of the nicest-looking games on either console, and one of the most effective uses of this retro pixel art style we've yet encountered. The devs have nailed little details such as the plop and pull of your float, the gentle rumble of your controller as you rake a spinner across a shoal of fish to attract them, and the weight and heft of everything, really. Oh, and you've got a dog with you to pet. With only two buttons controlling everything you do (and even an idle mode, if that's your thing), there's even a local co-op mode for a friend to join you in the same boat, so you can cast and chill together. Blissful.
Catherine: Full Body (Switch) — £8.99 (-80% off)
Catherine: Full Body is a fantastic revamp of a bona fide cult classic. With an excellent new character and several new endings slickly inserted into an already highly entertaining narrative – not to mention a slew of fun new modes – this is the definitive version of an outstanding game. If you've never played Catherine before, then you're in for an absolute treat, and if you have, we'd say there's enough new content here to make it worth diving in all over again.
Chicken Police - Paint it RED! (Switch eShop) — £5.99 (-67% off)
An extremely impressive first game from The Wild Gentlemen, Chicken Police - Paint it RED! is one of the best visual novel/adventure games we've played in a long, long time and one hell of an absorbing tale. It looks and runs great on the Switch, with only a couple of really minuscule interface issues which are easily ignored. At roughly eight or nine hours, the story is surprisingly lengthy, but we were never bored and wanted to investigate every little thing just to wring out more precious droplets of banter and fascination. Chicken Police is a polished, captivating experience and we're very excited for whatever's coming next from this team.
Chico and the Magic Orchards DX (Switch eShop) — £2.14 (-50% off)
Chico and the Magic Orchards DX is an excellent callback to simpler days, featuring authentic retro visuals, tight level design, and a surprising amount of variety for such a small package. It’ll only last you a couple of hours at most, but anyone who misses the days of the OG Game Boy will want to give this one a look. It’s lots of fun, plenty charming, and a great use of a fiver.
Chicory: A Colorful Tale (Switch eShop) — £8.54 (-50% off)
As an adventure game, Chicory: A Colorful Tale is quite sincerely up there with the very best of the genre. There’s plenty to see and do and a full completion run will probably take you 25-30 hours. The characters and their travails are rich and likeable, the game’s sense of humour is generally inspired, and it’s all very sweet without being sugary-twee and talking down to the player. It’s also an affecting little tearjerker that will definitely strike a chord if you make art, and almost certainly will even if you don’t – so long as you’re capable of pretty basic empathy. Chicory is simple to play but impressively long and complex, with perfect controls, performance and visuals.
Core Keeper (Switch) — £9.59 (-40% off)
Core Keeper is a wonderfully engaging and mysterious survival sandbox that is tough to put down once it gets its hooks in you. An expertly judged progression curve, tons of secrets and unlockables, and excellent presentation all come together to make this one an easy recommendation for anyone looking for a great new survival game. If you’ve had your fill of stalwarts like Minecraft or Terraria and are looking for the next great game to scratch that itch, look no further.
Cuphead (Switch eShop) — £11.89 (-30% off)
Cuphead was an absolute masterpiece when it originally launched on Xbox One and nothing was sacrificed in its move to the Switch. A run-and-gun boss battler dressed up like a 1930s Fleischer or Disney animated short, it’s the same visually jaw-dropping, aurally delightful, knuckle-whiteningly difficult game it was on Microsoft’s console and the Switch’s library is all the better for its presence. Its focus on intense boss battles won’t be to everyone’s tastes, but as long as you know what you’re getting yourself into, we can’t recommend it enough. Just look at it! And the Delicious Last Course is the icing on the cake.
Danganronpa V3: Killing Harmony Anniversary Edition (Switch eShop) — £8.09 (-70% off)
It's difficult to get across exactly why Danganronpa V3: Killing Harmony is so good without spoiling vast swathes of it, so we'll keep it simple. You'll come into the game baffled as to what the writers were thinking with some of these characters, and walk away loving each and every one of them. There isn't a single moment of slack throughout the whole 40-hour playtime, it has the most extensive post-game of any title in the series, and one of the best endings to any game ever made. Go in blind and we promise you'll be in for the ride of your life.
Dicefolk (Switch eShop) — £5.39 (-60% off)
An attractive art style, strong comedic writing, and a clever strategic twist on the creature-collecting genre make Dicefolk an easy recommendation. Its dice-based combat system adds a layer of unpredictability that keeps each encounter fresh, and the sheer variety of creatures to collect and synergise means there's plenty of depth to sink your teeth into. If you're a fan of Slay the Spire or Monster Sanctuary, this one's a no-brainer at this price.
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