Nintendo Switch Sports Resort Review: The Best Wii Sports Successor Yet

This Nintendo Switch Sports Resort review starts with the obvious question: does anyone still need a Wii Sports in 2026? After two decades of motion-control party games, the answer turns out to be yes, as long as it is this good. Nintendo's return to Wuhu Island is the most polished, most complete entry the series has ever produced, and it finally gives the Switch 2 the family-room showpiece it has been missing.

The headline numbers tell a solid story. The game sits at 79 on Metacritic, a big jump over the 72 that 2022's Nintendo Switch Sports managed, and right in line with the beloved Wii Sports Resort's 80. GameSpot and Nintendo Life both handed it 9/10. Our own verdict lands a touch below the most enthusiastic reviews: this is a great party game with a couple of genuinely annoying caveats, and the caveats are worth knowing before you spend $49.99.

Switch Sports Resort review: the sports that shine

Twelve sports is the headline, and the quality spread is better than any previous entry. The classics are back and they feel better than ever: Bowling, Tennis, Basketball, Boxing, and Archery all benefit from the Joy-Con 2's improved motion sensing, which reviewers consistently call the best the series has had since the Wii era. The standout new addition is Skateboarding, played with the Joy-Con 2 laid flat in mouse mode: pull back to gather speed, flick to jump, tilt to steer. It sounds like a gimmick and plays like the future of the franchise.

The other genuinely new idea is the Leisure Sports trio, a set of activities built around exploring an open-world Wuhu Island rather than competing in arenas. Power Cruising, Prop Plane flights, and skateboarding across the resort turn the island itself into the game, and the Sightseeing Tour (collecting Spocco Photos at scenic spots) is the kind of low-stakes joy Nintendo does better than anyone.

Structure, at last

The biggest complaint about Nintendo Switch Sports was that it felt like a strong core waiting for the rest of the game to show up. Resort fixes that. Island Crown is a proper solo tournament mode with progression, the Friend Lobby supports up to eight players across systems, and online play splits sensibly into Casual matches and a ranked Pro League. Customization is deeper too, with Sportsmates and Miis getting far more options.

At 10.3 GB it is a full, finished package, and the $529.99 Switch 2 bundle (console, game, and three months of Nintendo Switch Online) is actually decent value if you are still on the fence about the hardware.

Where it stumbles

Now the caveats. Online multiplayer requires Nintendo Switch Online, which is a paywalled feature in a $49.99 game, and some critics rightly flagged it as a sore point. A handful of the 12 sports are thinner than the headline number suggests: Thumb Wrestling is fun for an evening and not much more, and a couple of the returning events feel closer to novelties than full sports.

The platform question matters too. This is a Switch 2 exclusive with no upgrade path from the original Switch Sports, which runs on Switch 2 through backward compatibility. If you own the old game and the old console, Resort is a full-price purchase on top of new hardware, and nothing here will convert you if motion-control party games have never clicked.

Switch Sports Resort review: the verdict

Nintendo Switch Sports Resort is the series at its best: sharper classics, a real single-player backbone in Island Crown, and an island worth exploring between matches. The online paywall and a few thin sports keep it from perfection, but as the game you boot up when the cousins arrive, it is close to essential. For Switch 2 owners who host game nights, this is the easiest recommendation of the year.

Score: 8.0/10. Great. The best party-sports package Nintendo has made, held back by a paywalled online mode and a few filler sports.

Looking for more Switch 2 coverage? See our Monster Hunter Wilds Switch 2 demo breakdown, the It Takes Two Switch 2 cross-play update, and our best Switch 2 docks roundup.