Old school for Nintendo Switch — top best games in the Old school genre

Tomb Raider 1-3 Remastered - a game in the Old school genre

Action, Adventure, Third-person view, Exploration, Old school

Game released: Nintendo Switch → 14 February 2024

Players: 8.7/10

Metacritic: 74/100

Remasters of the original Lara Croft games. The collection includes Tomb Raider I + The Unfinished Business Expansion, Tomb Raider II + The Gold Mask Expansion and...

Mina the Hollower

Arcade, Action, Adventure, Horror, Platformer, Top-down view, Mysticism / Supernatural, Fantasy, Old school

Game released: Nintendo Switch → 29 May 2026

Players: 10/10

Metacritic: 91/100

The game takes you to a dark gothic world where a cursed island hides behind a thick curtain of darkness. The main character is the agile and fearless Mina, who is...

LOVE

Platformer, Indie, Side view, Arcade, Old school

Game released: Nintendo Switch → 14 February 2019

A minimalist game with a retro aesthetic and an emphasis on challenge without being unfair. The game features an innovative revival system, 16 levels and an...

Empty Shell

Shooter, Top-down view, Roguelike, Old school

Game released: Nintendo Switch → 12 March 2024

A dynamic shooter with black and white pixel graphics and randomly generated locations. The main character is one of the volunteers who explores a secret industrial...

Contra: Operation Galuga

Action, Arcade, Side view, Shooter, Platformer, Cooperative (co-op), Online, Old school

Game released: Nintendo Switch → 12 March 2024

Players: 7.4/10

Metacritic: 72/100

Reimagining of the original side-scrolling shooter Contra from 1987. The game includes new levels, enemies, game mechanics, and a weapon system. The story mode...

Tomb Raider 4-6 Remastered

Action, Adventure, Third-person view, Exploration, Old school, Collection

Game released: Nintendo Switch → 14 February 2025

VGTimes: 5.3/10

Players: 8.5/10

Metacritic: 66/100

Remasters of the original Lara Croft games. The collection includes Tomb Raider: The Last Revelation, Tomb Raider: Chronicles and Tomb Raider: The Angel of...

Chained Echoes

Role-playing game, Side view, Turn-based, Indie, Japanese role-playing game, Exploration, Old school

Game released: Nintendo Switch → 8 December 2022

Players: 10/10

Metacritic: 89/100

Old school RPG with turn-based combat. Events take place in a colorful fantasy world on the continent of Valandis. A group of heroes embark on a dangerous journey...

Marvel Cosmic Invasion

Arcade, Adventure, Comics, Beat them all, Side view, Cooperative (co-op), Old school

Game released: Nintendo Switch → 1 December 2025

Players: 7.7/10

Metacritic: 82/100

Classic arcade action in the Marvel universe with pixel graphics and exciting command gameplay. Annigilus leads his deadly army and only the greatest heroes are...

Warhammer 40,000: Boltgun

Action, Shooter, Futurism (Future), First-person view, Warhammer 40K, Demons, Fantasy, Old school

Game released: Nintendo Switch → 23 May 2023

Players: 8.7/10

Metacritic: 77/100

Old-school shooter in the Warhammer 40K universe, inspired by classic gory games from the '90s, such as DOOM (1993) and Serious Sam: The Second Encounter. The...

Little Orpheus

Action, Indie, Adventure, Puzzle, Platformer, Science fiction, Side view, Old school

Game released: Nintendo Switch → 13 September 2022

Players: 8.3/10

Metacritic: 68/100

Little Orpheus is an adventure platformer with puzzle and action elements in the science fiction genre. 1962 NASA is trying to land a man on the moon. Meanwhile, in...

Dawnfolk

Action, Adventure, Puzzle, Casual game, City Building, Fantasy, Old school

Game released: Nintendo Switch → 7 October 2025

Metacritic: 83/100

A fantasy strategy game about a kingdom consumed by all-encompassing darkness. As the ruler, you must restore the devastated lands, manage resources, and build...

Nightmare Reaper

Shooter, First-person view, Roguelike, Old school, Mysticism / Supernatural

Game released: Nintendo Switch → 18 May 2023

Players: 3.2/10

Metacritic: 73/100

An old-school bloody shooter featuring a brutal mix of modern and classic 2.5D shooters. The game has open levels with crowds of enemies, secrets and treasures, 80...

WRATH: Aeon of Ruin

Shooter, First-person view, Old school

Game released: Nintendo Switch → 25 April 2024

Players: 7.6/10

Metacritic: 72/100

A classic shooter designed to become the spiritual successor to cult games — Doom, Quake, Duke Nukem, Blood, Unreal and Hexen. The plot tells the story of a...

Ninja Gaiden: Ragebound

Indie, Platformer, Side view, Old school

Game released: Nintendo Switch → 31 July 2025

Players: 10/10

Metacritic: 85/100

Pixel game from the Ninja Gaiden series. Ryu Hayabusa goes to America, where he must fulfill the will of his father. At this time, an army of demons penetrates the...

THERMOCLINE

Role-playing game, Adventure, Horror, Turn-based, Indie, Free game, Dungeons, Old school

Game in development: Nintendo Switch → 2027

A grim psychological horror set on the frozen surface of a dead planet, where an icy storm is just one of many threats. As the sole survivor among abandoned...

Slave Zero X

Side view, Beat them all, Platformer, Action, Futurism (Future), Old school

Game released: Nintendo Switch → 21 February 2024

Players: 9.5/10

Metacritic: 69/100

This is a prequel to the original Slave Zero, released in 1999. The game's events take place five years before the events shown in the first part. Megacity S1-9...

Killing Time: Resurrected

Shooter, First-person view, Old school, Horror, Adventure

Game released: Nintendo Switch → 18 October 2024

Players: 10/10

Re-release of Killing Time with updated graphics. The game takes place in the early 1930s. An Egyptology student finds himself in a mysterious mansion where some...

Gravity Circuit 2

Action, Adventure, Platformer, Beat them all, Side view, Old school

Game in development: Nintendo Switch → 2027

A dynamic action-platformer focused on fast-paced combat and style choices. At the center of the story are two heroes with completely different approaches to...

Star Wars: Dark Forces Remaster

Shooter, Action, First-person view, Star Wars, Old school

Game released: Nintendo Switch → 28 February 2024

Players: 8.9/10

Metacritic: 80/100

Remaster Star Wars: Dark Forces from Nightdive Studios, featuring enhanced graphics and updated gameplay. The original game narrated the early adventures of Kyle...

Bloodshed

Shooter, First-person view, Roguelike, Fantasy, Old school, Demons

Game released: Nintendo Switch → 23 October 2025

Players: 6.8/10

The main character battles endless waves of enemies and confronts an ominous cult whose members want to resurrect an ancient deity to bring about the apocalypse...

Prison City

Side view, Platformer, Action, Science fiction, Old school

Game released: Nintendo Switch → 16 November 2023

Players: 8.2/10

The events of the game take place in 1997. The city of Detroit has become an impenetrable mega-prison. One day, a group of terrorist hackers seized control of this...

New Joe & Mac - Caveman Ninja

Side view, Platformer, Arcade, Cooperative (co-op), Old school

Game released: Nintendo Switch → 2 December 2022

Remake of the classic platformer Joe & Mac: Caveman Ninja from 1991. One night, people from one tribe stole all the women from another tribe. Cro-Magnons Joe...

Old School Rally

Arcade, Racing, Sports game, Old school

Game released: Nintendo Switch → 3 December 2025

An old school racing game inspired by the original PlayStation. Old School Rally offers fast-paced, arcade-style gameplay with an emphasis on driving skills and...

Slaps And Beans

Action, Adventure, Arcade, Indie, Cooperative (co-op), Old school

Game released: Nintendo Switch → 24 July 2018

Metacritic: 63/100

Slaps And Beans is a retro-style game about Terence Hill and Bud Spencer, Italian actors who together made many action-packed comedies and spaghetti westerns...

Shovel Knight Dig

Arcade, Platformer, Roguelike, Side view, Fantasy, Old school, Medieval era, Procedural generation

Game released: Nintendo Switch → 23 September 2022

Players: 7.1/10

Metacritic: 83/100

A fast-paced action platformer with roguelike elements set in the Shovel Knight universe. Shovel Knight embarks on a new adventure, digging ever deeper in search of...

GEX Trilogy

Collection, Action, Platformer, Comedy, Old school, Adventure, Third-person view

Game released: Nintendo Switch → 16 June 2025

Players: 10/10

Metacritic: 67/100

A collection of three cult platformers about a chatty gecko named Gex. The games combine satirical humor, pop culture references, and crazy levels inspired by TV...

Lords of Exile

Side view, Platformer, Arcade, Fantasy, Old school

Game released: Nintendo Switch → 14 February 2024

Players: 7/10

In ancient times, as a result of the war in the Far East, the lands of Exilia were captured by creatures of the night and samurai. In this brutal conflict, only a...

Elsie

Platformer, Roguelike, Side view, Action, Futurism (Future), Old school, Combat robots

Game released: Nintendo Switch → 10 September 2024

A fast-paced platformer with vibrant pixel art and an emphasis on fast-paced combat and acrobatic moves. The player takes on the role of Elsie, a brave heroine who...

#DRIVE Rally

Racing, Sports game, Indie, Old school

Game in development: Nintendo Switch → 18 June 2026

Players: 5.5/10

Metacritic: 63/100

A stylish racing game dedicated to the motorsport era of the 90s. Players can get behind the wheel of legendary rally cars including Das Holzwagen, The Doggo and...

PO'ed: Definitive Edition

Old school, Shooter, First-person view, Space

Game released: Nintendo Switch → 16 May 2024

An updated version of the 1995 retro space shooter, inspired by the cult Doom and Quake. The main character of the game is a crew member of the military starship...

Anarkade

Action, Platformer, Side view, Online, Fighting, Old school, Comedy, Futurism (Future)

Game released: Nintendo Switch → 24 September 2024

A multiplayer shooter with pixel graphics and intense battles in the style of platformers. To defeat opponents, players use a variety of tricks and an arsenal of...

Clock Tower: Rewind

Adventure, Side view, Mysticism / Supernatural, Exploration, Old school, Gothic, Survival horror

Game released: Nintendo Switch → 29 October 2024

Metacritic: 68/100

Re-release of the 16-bit horror [url=https://vgtimes.ru/games/clock-tower-1997/] Clock Tower[ /url]. The game tells the story of orphan Jennifer. She ended up in...

ANIMAL WELL

Metroidvania, Action, Side view, Platformer, Old school, Puzzle

Game released: Nintendo Switch → 9 May 2024

Players: 8.5/10

Metacritic: 89/100

An old school metroidvania with a focus on exploration and puzzle solving that will require the player to think outside the box to achieve results. In the game you...

River City Girls Zero

Arcade, Side view, Fighting, Anime / Manga, Music game, Adventure, Cooperative (co-op), Old school

Game released: Nintendo Switch → 14 February 2022

Metacritic: 68/100

River City Girls Zero is a cooperative Beat 'em up action game with 16-bit graphics, which tells the story of four characters: Kunio, Riki, Misako and Kyoko. In the...

Castlevania Dominus Collection

Action, Adventure, Old school, Platformer, Collection, Metroidvania, Fantasy

Game released: Nintendo Switch → 27 August 2024

Players: 6/10

Metacritic: 91/100

A collection of classic Castlevania games, including Castlevania: Dawn of Sorrow, Castlevania: Portrait of Ruin and Castlevania: Order of Ecclesia, previously...

Quake 2 - Enhanced Edition

Shooter, First-person view, Science fiction, Online, Old school

Game released: Nintendo Switch → 10 August 2023

Players: 10/10

Metacritic: 87/100

Humanity is embroiled in a war with the Strogg, a hostile alien race that has attacked Earth. In response, people decided to strike the Strogg planet. The attack...

System Shock 2: 25th Anniversary Remaster

Cyberpunk, Adventure, Futurism (Future), Shooter, First-person view, Horror, Science fiction, Role-playing game, Old school

Game released: Nintendo Switch → 10 July 2025

VGTimes: 8.0/10

Players: 10/10

Metacritic: 79/100

Remaster of the role-playing shooter System Shock 2 from 1999. The game's action takes place in the distant future on a spaceship. The main character is an...

Double Dragon Gaiden: Rise Of The Dragons

Side view, Arcade, Platformer, Old school

Game released: Nintendo Switch → 27 July 2023

Metacritic: 72/100

The game takes place in the 90s in New York, which survived a nuclear war. The streets are filled with looters and bandits fighting for power. The main characters...

Neon Inferno

Arcade, Action, Shooter, Platformer, Futurism (Future), Cyberpunk, Side view, Cooperative (co-op), Old school

Game released: Nintendo Switch → 20 November 2025

Metacritic: 74/100

Old-school cyberpunk action that combines elements of a side-scroller and a "target" type shooter, where the action unfolds simultaneously on multiple planes of the...

Scott Pilgrim EX

Action, Adventure, Platformer, Beat them all, Side view, Cooperative (co-op), Old school

Game released: Nintendo Switch → 3 March 2026

Metacritic: 75/100

An action adventure based on the comic book series of the same name and made in the format of a pixel beat-em-up. Players have to save Toronto from chaos caused by...

Old school

Best Games in the Old school genre for Nintendo Switch