Obviously, the first thing you’ll want to get for your new Nintendo Switch console is some games. Let me stand aside for a moment while you boot up the Nintendo eShop and find some of the best Nintendo Switch games. Top tip: start with Super Mario Odyssey if you want a superb solo adventure; it’s an absolute delight.
Now, after you’ve got yourself a game or two, consider taking a moment to think about accessories. The Nintendo Switch is an excellent console with a massive catalog of games. However, it is more than seven years old, and it’s begun to show its age. The good news is that over the years, third-party manufacturers have stepped up, making add-ons that improve virtually every aspect of Nintendo’s machine.
If you want to improve your console experience, from how games look on your television to how they feel in your hand, below you will find our recommendations on how to eke the most of your new Nintendo Switch. Some of them cost a lot less than a game and will improve every title you ever buy.
8BitDo Ultimate
While your new Nintendo Switch comes with a pair of Joy-Con controllers in the box, which lets you slot in the console’s controllers and use them like a gamepad, it’s no match for an actual pad. It may be more suitable for children, but clenching the Joy-Con grip in adult hands becomes uncomfortable over extended play sessions.
Happily, plenty of gamepads are available for the Nintendo Switch, and the official Nintendo Switch Pro Controller is great. However, when it comes to the best Nintendo Switch controllers, we recommend you go the unofficial route and choose the 8BitDo Ultimate Controller.
Roughly the same price as Nintendo’s official gamepad, the 8BitDo Ultimate feels better in your hands thanks to overall higher build quality. You can also remap the controller’s buttons and tweak your stick and trigger sensitivities using an app on your phone, including two back paddle buttons that aren’t featured on Nintendo’s pad, giving you that slight edge against other players.
MicroSD card
Unlike the PS5 and Xbox Series X, which boast hundreds of gigabytes of internal storage even in the cheapest models, the Nintendo Switch has a mere 32GB (or 64GB on Nintendo Switch OLED). While the console’s games are smaller, they’re not so small that you won’t fill up the drive with just a few installs. In some rare cases, such as The Witcher 3, the digital game file is actually larger than the console’s internal storage.
You can either stick to buying physical games, where only a small save file is stored on the console itself, and spend your time deleting games to clear space for new downloads, or, much more sensibly, pick up a MicroSD card. These tiny memory cards can store as much as 2TB of data depending on the model, potentially letting you install hundreds of games.
There is an officially licensed SanDisk microSDXC, which has a nice picture of that iconic Super Mario mushroom on it. However, almost any MicroSD card will do, and many are much cheaper than the officially licensed one.
Marseille mClassic
If you plan on playing your Nintendo Switch primarily in docked mode on your TV, a nifty piece of kit is the Marseille mClassic. By sending your console’s HDMI out through the device before going into your TV, the Marseille mClassic will upscale your Nintendo Switch’s resolution from 1080p up to 1440p.
Considering some games, such as The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild, run at a reduced 900p, that’s a significant increase in fidelity. While it won’t increase the game’s performance or graphical fidelity, using the Marseille mClassic is not unlike a mid-gen upgrade for your console, similar to the technical jump provided by the PS5 Pro.
More than just an upscale, the Marseille mClassic also adds anti-aliasing to Switch games and improves depth-of-field, making the image smoother and the foreground more distinct. It’s a really impressive device and something that increases the quality of every game in your library.
Nitro Deck
Going in the other direction, the Nitro Deck is perfect for anyone committed to Nintendo Switch gaming on the move. Fitted with programmable back buttons and a pair of thumbsticks that can’t develop the dreaded Joy-Con drift, CRKD’s Nitro Deck makes the Nintendo Switch more comfortable to play for long periods.
Even now, more than seven years after Nintendo Switch launched, its Joy-Con controllers can develop an annoying bug where your thumbstick incorrectly detects input, even when you’re not touching it. While there are methods for fixing Joy-Con drift on Nintendo Switch, none are foolproof. And simply replacing the controllers is pricey. So, moving to a device like the Nitro Deck can preserve your Joy-Con and save you a lot of money in the long run.
There are other deck options, but many connect the controls to the Switch via Bluetooth, which introduces lag. The Nitro Deck connects to the Switch via USB-C, which makes for a much faster connection.
Ring Fit Adventure
Now, I won’t try to tell you that Ring Fit Adventure is one of the best Nintendo Switch games. There are many more, better games on the Switch. Nintendo’s teams pump out an enviable number of world-class first-party titles – for just a handful of them, check out Super Mario Bros. Wonder, Metroid Dread, and The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom.
What Ring Fit Adventure is that the others aren’t is a way to both game and exercise at the same time. If you have any fitness goals for 2025, you can count Ring Fit Adventure as part of those plans.
As you play through Ring Fit Adventure’s (genuinely) fun RPG quest, you’ll run on the spot and do leg, chest, and arm exercises. At the other end of a play session, you will have worked up a sweat and find your muscles gently ache with the strain of a workout.
The Nintendo Switch has several fitness-focused games, such as the Fitness Boxing series, that make good use of the Joy-Cons, but for a workout you can’t get on other consoles, track down a copy of Ring Fit Adventure.
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Julian.benson@futurenet.com (Julian Benson)
