The GKIS Guide to Family-Friendly Nintendo Switch Games

Spending time together and sharing experiences is extremely important when it comes to developing close family bonds and a sense of connectedness. While many of us think of playing board and card games to develop connectedness, many children would disagree. These days, they would generally rather play video games than spend time with their parents. While we at GKIS recommend that real-world activities should be prioritized, video games can be utilized both as a reward and a convenient way of connecting with your child. You don’t have to wait for connection until you’ve found time to plan a lavish camping trip. For every day, a video game could be just what Dr. B ordered. Today’s GKIS article covers the pros and cons of the Nintendo Switch, recommendations for games to play as a family, suggestions for appropriate games that your kid can play alone and unsupervised, and some brief tips to keep your kids safe and connected when it comes to gaming.

What is the Nintendo Switch?

The Nintendo Switch is a video game system that was launched in 2017. The Switch is unique in that it is considered a hybrid system where the console itself can work as a tablet and the controllers can attach to the sides to be used as a portable game system. It is extremely popular and has sold over 89 million consoles worldwide.[1]

The Pros and Cons of the Nintendo Switch

Pros

The biggest advantage of the Nintendo Switch is its portability. Unlike the PlayStation and Xbox consoles, the Switch can be taken on long trips and utilized just about anywhere. Also, Nintendo heavily markets its console to families and children. Many of the games are family-friendly, perfect for family game night or for your children to play by themselves. Another big bonus is the price-point. At $299, which is at the low end for current generation consoles. In comparison, new PlayStation and Xbox consoles sell for about $1000.

Cons

The Nintendo Switch is not as technologically advanced as the current PlayStation or Xbox consoles. The graphics are not as jaw-droppingly realistic and the processing speed is not as quick. Yet, the differences are not so great that they will affect the overall gaming experience.

Nintendo Switch Games to Play as a Family

Playing video games as a family could be a great, interactive way to connect with your children. The Connected Family Course gives expert advice and strategies to create a connected home environment without having to disconnect from the internet. Here are 3 fantastic choices for Nintendo Switch multiplayer games.

Mario Kart 8 Deluxe
Super Mario Party
Super Smash Brothers Ultimate

Mario Kart 8 Deluxe

Mario Kart is an iconic series that has been around since the early 1990s, and they have not changed the formula that much. The reason that they haven’t changed the formula is because it works! It is ridiculously fun to race against your family and friends as your favorite Nintendo characters. Plus, there is a luck-based element to the game that evens out the playing field for younger less experienced players. It doesn’t matter how good someone is if they can get knocked out of first place when someone else gets the perfect power-up.

This game has an ESRB rating of “E.” meaning it has been approved for all age groups or “everyone.” Up to 4 players can play on a single Nintendo Switch. But if you have two consoles, there can be a total of 8 players at once. This is perfect for slumber parties, holidays, and other occasions where you might have a bunch of kids at home. We think this game is well designed, and the controls are intuitive making it just as fun for the parents as it is for the kids.

Super Mario Party

Super Mario Party is the ultimate family party game. Four people can play Super Mario Party on a single Nintendo Switch console. The great thing about Super Mario Party is the diversity of gameplay and modes of play. Players can play board games consisting of mini-games, which are short games that usually last under a minute. There is a total of 80 minigames that are chosen at random as characters move around the board. Because each minigame is short, kids don’t get bored easily.

On Super Mario Party, everyone competes against each other, as teams, or you can all play on the same team against the computer. Super Mario Party has an ESRB rating of E so it has been deemed appropriate for children of all age groups. This game is also great for parties and family game nights.

Super Smash Brothers Ultimate

Super Smash Brothers Ultimate can get extremely competitive, but we think it is crazy fun to play together. This game is a fighting game where everyone picks their favorite Nintendo character from a large selection of choices. The point of the game is to knock out the other players’ characters. The best part is that each character has a unique set of moves and plays completely differently than the others, so strategies for winning are almost endless.

Super Smash Brothers Ultimate has an ESRB rating of E10, so it has been approved for everyone ages 10 and up. It may not be appropriate for young children due to the cartoonish violence. As far as fighting games go, this is one of the most family-friendly options out there.

Nintendo Switch Games Your Kids Can Play Alone

There are many Nintendo Switch games to choose from. However, many have excessive violence, sexual themes, drugs, and other material that you don’t want your kids to be exposed to. If you are looking for a game for a younger child, it can be difficult to find something age-appropriate. Here are 3 games to kids can play on their own.

Luigi’s Mansion
The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild
Splatoon 2

Luigi’s Mansion

Luigi’s Mansion is a fantastic single-player game that is great for all age groups and has an ESRB rating of E for Everyone. In Luigi’s Mansion, you wander around a haunted hotel sucking up goofy ghosts with a vacuum cleaner. Although there are ghosts, we don’t think they are very scary. It has a story mode made for a single player but could be played by two players (with one player playing as Luigi’s doppelganger, Gooigi). There are other online multiplayer modes to play as well.

The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild

We at GKIS think Breath of the Wild is one of the best single-player Nintendo Switch games out there. In this game, your character explores an expansive and elaborately detailed world filled with almost never-ending things to do and places to explore.

This game has an ESRB rating of E10 for everyone age 10 and up due to the violence against animated monsters. The violence is very mild when compared to other games, and there is no blood or guts. For a single-player game, it has an incredible amount of replay value due to the vast number of things to do in its virtual world.

Splatoon 2

Splatoon is Nintendo’s answer to shooter-type games where none of the characters get hurt. In Splatoon 2, you play as human/squid hybrid characters and run around spraying each other with ink. Splatoon is probably the safest series of games to choose from if your kids are trying to get you to buy them a shooter.

Splatoon 2 has been rated E10 (for everyone 10 and up) due to cartoon violence, even though you are basically hitting each other’s squid characters with ink bombs, paint guns, and paint rollers. As a warning, even though Splatoon has taken out the blood and guts it still involves cartoonish gunplay. Though it is a single-player game, up to 10 players can play at the same time in one location. The downside is that each player needs their own Nintendo Switch console to play together, which would be expensive.

How To Keep Your Kids Safe Playing Video Games

Research the games before buying them
Check the ESRB ratings
Play with your children or check in on them
Talk to your children and maintain a close family bond.

To stay in the know about how to keep your kids and teens safe online, check out the Screen Safety Essentials Course. Through weekly coaching videos and other valuable resources, this program will keep you in the loop with ways to keep your family connected and safe while engaging with the internet, social media, video games, and more. The goal of this course is to provide families with the knowledge and tools to help prevent digital injury before it occurs.