2024’s Black Friday sales are up and running with Nintendo’s European Switch eShops featuring a large selection of discounted games — including many first-party Nintendo classics — that are discounted until the sale ends on Sunday 1st December 2024.
However, with over 2,000 games discounted, it can be hard to know where to start! Your wishlists are probably bulging with games already, but to help you find the best of the best, we’ve rounded up every game in the Nintendo’s European Black Friday sale that we’ve awarded 9/10 or higher.
Note. We’ve given sale prices in GBP followed by the percentage discount, but commensurate EUR savings can be found across European eShops.
And if the stated discounts aren’t enough for you, you can gain a further 5% discount by topping up with Switch eShop at Nintendo Life’s our store. You can’t say fairer than that!
So many great games feature in the sale, but let’s sort the wheat from the… erm, the really top-notch, golden wheat, in no particular order…
£41.99 (-30%)
It’s impossible to talk about everything that makes The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom so incredible, and making those discoveries yourselves is part of the magic.
It’s also impossible to overstate just how much there is to do in this Hyrule the second time around. Much like its predecessor, this will become your playground for several years, with a little sprinkling of that older Zelda fairy dust mixed into Breath of the Wild’s formula.
Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom is a glorious, triumphant sequel to one of the best video games of all time – absolute unfiltered bliss to lose yourself in for hundreds of hours.
£17.99 (-50%)
Shovel Knight was excellent in vanilla form, but Treasure Trove includes absolutely everything that developer Yacht Club has created for the game since its Kickstarter success back in 2013.
That includes the extra campaigns Plague of Shadows, Specter of Torment, and the more recent King of Cards, plus multiplayer brawler Showdown which further increases the attractiveness of an already incredibly compelling package.
These games are fantastic odes to the glory days of 8-bit(+) platforming, and having the complete Shovel Knight experience in one spot makes this a must-have for Switch owners – especially those who have so far failed to dig into this game and its add-ons. Strike the earth!
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£10.79 (-40%)
Persona 4 Golden remains a thoroughly enjoyable and engrossing RPG that, for the most part, has stood the test of time.
Although its visuals might be a bit dated, the gameplay and story presented here do more than enough to justify the purchase, while all the tweaks and additions that came with this ‘Golden’ edition round out most of the rougher edges from the initial PS2 release.
If you’re looking to give the Persona series a shot, Persona 5 Royal is a good place to start, but P4G is an excellent entry in the series and one that we would recommend you pick up when you can.
£11.51 (-10%)
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. Utterly sublime.
£17.99 (-50%)
Tetris is one of the greatest video games of all time, and Tetris Effect: Connected is perhaps the best iteration of the classic puzzler yet.
While this Switch port doesn’t offer a great deal over existing versions in terms of features, it delivers the one key ingredient that its rivals cannot: portability. Sure, some will argue that Tetris Effect: Connected’s unique brand of synesthesia only really comes alive when played on PSVR or an Oculus Quest headset, but we’d argue passionately that this game benefits far more from the ability to pick it up and play whenever, wherever.
Just as the Game Boy and Tetris combined to create an irresistible, world-conquering fusion back in 1989, Tetris Effect: Connected found the hardware that allowed it to truly shine, making this an utterly essential purchase for all Nintendo Switch owners. Don’t forget those headphones.
£33.29 (-33%)
Xenoblade Chronicles: Definitive Edition presents an already-excellent JRPG that’s been improved in nearly every conceivable way, short of a complete reimagining.
On top of the fantastic story, enjoyable combat, and incredible world design, Monolith Soft has included an entirely new epilogue story arc while polishing up nearly everything in the base game, from progression systems to visuals to UI design. Xenoblade Chronicles: Definitive Edition is easily one of the best RPGs on Switch, a console that’s not lacking in the role-playing department.
It goes without saying that if you were ever a fan of the original, or of RPGs in general, you absolutely must get this. This is the standard against which all RPGs should be judged.
£4.49 (-75%)
Mark of the Ninja: Remastered is an utterly stellar stealth game and it’s lost none of the magic that made the original such a critical darling. Strong art direction, an engaging story, well-paced open gameplay, and a slew of extra content all combine to make for a near-flawless experience that you certainly won’t want to miss out on.
We’d give this game a high recommendation to all Switch owners; it’s the best stealth game money can buy in the Switch library, and one of the best ones in any console library.
£33.29 (-33%)
Super Mario Maker 2 added more of everything: the Super Mario 3D World style, enemies, gizmos, power-ups, vertical levels, the Story Mode having an actual story, multiplayer, and more (including slopes, of course). The list of additions is truly massive.
There are a few small issues here and there — the online is still hilariously obtuse in a way only Nintendo could make it, and the slight awkwardness of button-based building is disappointing after how natural it felt on the Wii U GamePad — but they’re overwhelmingly dwarfed by the sheer joy and unbridled freedom on offer.
Free updates and tweaks to the formula evolved the experience over time, much like the original, with Ninji Speedruns and various new elements — like the ability to create world maps — added to this expansive, essential Mario toybox.
£4.49 (-75%)
Hyper Light Drifter: Special Edition puts Heart Machine’s obtuse yet engaging throwback where it belongs — in portable Nintendo form — and it makes for the definitive version.
With a handful of exclusive features, the game suddenly feels new and fresh – and with a silky smooth frame rate and every boss, secret and upgrade from the original here for you to experience, this is a wonderful addition to the Nintendo Switch’s bulging indie library.
£7.19 (-60%)
Unsighted combines some very familiar ideas: it’s a top-down, roguelite, sci-fi Metroidvania with a strong 16-bit aesthetic. Its time-is-ticking, post-apocalyptic scenario is brought to life by the enchanting palettes of its pixel art, making a world you want to explore, full of characters you want to know.
Far from punishing, it leans more on the ‘lite’ than the ‘rogue’, letting fun prevail – as it will, thanks to the addictive rhythm of the controls, backed by punchy sounds. The cooperative multiplayer is icing on top of an already well-iced cake.
Combining flavours of Super Nintendo classics with modern playability, Unsighted is the game 1995 desperately wanted to make but just didn’t know how.
£1.80 (-33%)
This is an excellent port of a game that feels like it’s found a natural home on Switch thanks to a plethora of control options and the console’s natural facility with vertical orientation. Short of popping your 4K TV on its side, Switch offers the very best way to play Downwell.
Its roguelike structure and twitch platforming might not be for everyone, but you should really give it a chance. For our money, Downwell is a modern classic that should be in everyone’s collection; for the pocket change asking price, it’s a steal.
£11.69 (-35%)
What the Golf? is a sterling effort for Switch that has clearly had enormous amounts of love poured into it. Its aesthetic is a little bit indie-by-numbers but there’s so much to see and do here that’ll have you (and a friend) laughing out loud. It may not be the most difficult game in the world, but it’s damn good fun, even if you don’t like golf.
Especially if you don’t like golf, in fact.
£4.49 (-75%)
If you’re after a unique experience, Wandersong completely has you covered. The singing mechanic employed works perfectly, and while it may feel a bit too easy at times, the combination of the visuals, writing, and various gameplay objectives across a generous seven-act structure make for an incredibly compelling platforming experience that you’d do well to check out.
£33.29 (-33%)
Bundling the first and second entries in the trilogy, Bayonetta 2 shines brightest on Switch. It runs without a hitch at 60fps, looks incredible in both TV and tabletop modes, and offers an addictive free-flowing combat formula that sprinkles in platforming, light exploration and a ridiculous story to create something that you simply need to experience.
Comparatively, the original Bayonetta is starting to show her age, but that doesn’t stop this hyperactive melee/shooter action mashup from being one of the most rewarding and memorable cult hits of the previous generation.
£3.19 (-60%)
Quake returns in a feature-rich remaster that delicately updates the classic FPS, adding lots of optional bells and whistles, packing in a ton of content, and delivering the definitive way to play this 25-year-old masterpiece in the process.
There’s a wealth of online and co-op options here, a glorious new expansion to blast through from MachineGames, super slick performance in both docked and handheld modes and it’s all available at a cracking price point.
This really is a stellar port of one gaming’s true greats and an absolutely essential addition to your Switch library.
£33.29 (-33%)
Fire Emblem Engage is a stellar entry in this storied franchise, but it’s also one that takes a noticeably different stance than its most recent predecessor. It’s all about the combat this time around, at the expense of the relationships and romance that made Three Houses such a fan favourite, so if you’re looking for that social element here, you’re bound to be left feeling at least a tad disappointed.
However, for those jonesing to get down and dirty with some sweet turn-based tactical action — action that’s embedded in a satisfyingly OTT, beautifully presented anime narrative — this is a very fine example of the genre.
£8.24 (-66%)
When Unknown Worlds announced they were bringing Subnautica to Switch we were hugely excited, this is one of our all-time favourite games after all, but it was excitement tempered with a degree of scepticism as to how on earth they’d manage to cram the entire experience onto Switch in a properly playable manner.
As it turns out, we needn’t have worried as this is a super solid port that — besides a few loading stutters here and there and some scenery pop-in that’s present in every other version of the game — successfully delivers one of the very best open-world survival experiences on any platform to Nintendo’s hybrid console.
£33.29 (-33%)
Metroid Dread was a triumphant return for both Samus Aran and developer MercurySteam. This is a super-slick, hugely entertaining, and exquisitely designed entry in the Metroid franchise that plays better than anything we’ve seen from the series so far.
With a bunch of fantastic new abilities, super tense and enjoyable stealth sections, plenty of great big boss fights and a story that fans will definitely enjoy, we can’t really see how this one could have been improved.
Best Metroid game ever? There’ll likely be calls of recency bias, but there’s a very strong argument that 2D Metroid has never been better.
£3.29 (-70%)
Enter The Gungeon is a brilliantly tactile, endlessly replayable twin-stick roguelike that sits right up there with the very best indie games on Nintendo Switch. With satisfying combat, random levels, and an endless supply of inventive weapons, items and secrets, it’s always a total joy to play.
Yet another modern indie classic found a natural home on Nintendo’s console.
£3.74 (-75%)
Axiom Verge on Switch is truly an outstanding port of an outstanding game, no more and no less. We would strongly urge those of you who missed this game on other platforms to pick it up here; this is the full Axiom Verge experience and it’s available in a format that supports both handheld and home play.
For those of you who have played it before on other platforms, it’s ultimately a question of just how much you love this game. This is the exact same, excellent game that you’ve played before, so whether or not you want to buy it again is personal choice.
Regardless of which side you fall on, Axiom Verge is a fantastic example of how to do a Metroidvania right.
Also, Axiom Verge 2 is on sale for £8.09 (-50%).
£6.19 (-60%)
It may not last terribly long, but Jack Move manages to pack in all the important elements needed for an excellent cyberpunk JRPG adventure. The inventive battle system, enchanting world, and appealing graphics all come together to make for a perfectly paced, gripping, and memorable release that no RPG fan will want to miss out on, and that goes double for time-poor genre aficionados.
It’s not often that you see a JRPG that leans so hard into science fiction tropes, and Jack Move makes the most of every minute of its runtime. Highly recommended.
