Top Nintendo Switch games — Family-friendly titles had the most monthly active users in January 2023
The Nintendo Switch console has a unique position in the gaming industry. While consoles like the PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X feature many core games with more mature themes, the Switch stands out for its variety of casual games built to delight casual gamers and multiplayer families.
In January 2023, Newzoo’s Game Performance Monitor revealed that family-friendly titles performed amazingly in terms of monthly active users (MAU), highlighting this market positioning in action. Let’s dive into the top Nintendo Switch games and what publishers, developers, and brands can take away from these trends.
The top 10 Nintendo Switch games by MAU included Fortnite and Minecraft
In January, Fortnite was the most-played game on the Switch, also topping the charts on the PlayStation 4 and 5. Fall Guys also earned a top ranking, outperforming its popularity on other platforms, including PC.
The remaining games in the top 10 were almost all exclusive to Nintendo. These titles included Pokémon Scarlet/Violet (#2), Mario Kart 8 (#5), Animal Crossing: New Horizons (#7), and Nintendo Switch Sports (#9). This makes Epic Games’ achievement with Fortnite and Fall Guys that much more significant.
Simulation games also proved very popular on the Switch, with three titles making it into the top 10. The indie title Stardew Valley ranked in the top 10, which is quite significant as it’s often less likely to find an indie title in the top 10 or 20 rankings on other platforms.
One comparison to highlight between the Switch’s top 10 MAU rankings and those of PlayStation, Xbox, and PC is that only two games on the Nintendo list were shooting titles or heavily featured the mechanic. Seven out of the top 10 games on other platforms featured some form of shooting. This highlights how the Switch champions family-friendly titles across many genres.
Compared to PlayStation and Xbox, the top 20 Nintendo Switch games represented more genres
You’ll see a unique genre split if you look at how many games per genre made it into the top 20 games by monthly active users (MAU) on the Nintendo Switch and competing platforms.
Games like Fortnite, Fall Guys, and Rocket League performed well across the Switch, PlayStation, and Xbox. Beyond these hit titles, though, the popularity of different genres varied wildly across different console audiences.
On the Nintendo side of these rankings, only one shooter title prevailed by MAU, while five were featured in PlayStation and Xbox’s rankings. There were similar deviations between sports and battle royale games, with far more of these titles topping the charts for PlayStation and Xbox than for the Switch. Overall, there was more variety in how many genres had top-performing games on the Switch. While platformer, simulation, and role-playing games all had three or four MAU powerhouses, every genre covered had at least one game top the charts.
Keep track of the top Nintendo Switch games with Newzoo’s Game Performance Monitor
Being able to track title-level performance is crucial for game developers and publishers hoping to delight the unique audience that Nintendo has cultivated.
Our Game Performance Monitor now has Nintendo Switch engagement and revenue data, making it that much easier to compare title-level engagement between the major consoles. This year, we’ll release updates on the top Nintendo Switch games and other essential trends, so stay tuned.
For more information on how Newzoo can help your company level up in the PC and console space, contact us at questions@newzoo.com or start exploring our extensive games data resource, custom research, and consulting services to unlock limitless data and insights on games, gamers, and the games market.
