Nintendo Switch 2 Reviews: Racing Games

Here’s games in this category that I have reviewed so far on the Nintendo Switch 2, from best to worst. Note: If multiple games have the same score, they will be sorted alphabetically.

Racing Games

Game	Genre	Grade
Fast Fusion	Futuristic Racing	A
tl;dr Fast Fusion is a Futuristic Racing game that has an absolutely phenomenal presentation, truly excellent gameplay that improves upon an already great series, and a shockingly low $15 price tag that makes this game an absolute steal. It’s slim on content and the online multiplayer seems limited, but even with these flaws I think this is absolutely a game that should be in your Nintendo Switch 2 library.
Mario Kart World	Open World Kart Racer	A-
tl;dr Mario Kart World is Nintendo’s premier major family-friendly game to kick off the Nintendo Switch 2’s launch, and while it doesn’t make great use of the Open World format, and isn’t as impressive a leap over Mario Kart 8 as players may hope for… and oof, that $80 price tag is nasty… but despite these flaws, it is still a wildly-creative, extremely well-crafted, delightfully varied, and immensely fun Kart Racer. As long as you can get it at an affordable price, I highly recommend it.
Asphalt Legends – Nintendo Switch 2 Edition	Arcade Racing	B+
tl;dr Asphalt Legends is a Free-To-Play Arcade Racer that’s bogged down by all sorts of nasty microtransactions, which is a shame because the game underneath all of that is one of the best racing games on the Switch, and now one that looks even better on Nintendo Switch 2. I’d argue that the microtransactions can be worked around, and since the game is free to play, you should definitely at least give it a try – on balance, I’d argue that the game is definitely worth the hassle.
Sonic Racing: CrossWorlds – Nintendo Switch 2 Edition	Kart Racer	B+
tl;dr Sonic Racing: CrossWorlds is a family-friendly Kart Racer with a gimmick that each lap has players teleport to a different course. The course design here is wonderfully creative, the racing feels great, and the graphical performance on Nintendo Switch 2 is on par with or even better than some other modern platforms. But the frustration of far too many “bumper car” moments and nasty rubber-banding AI opponents suck a lot of the fun out of this game. This is still an enjoyable Kart Racing game, but its flaws keep it from being a truly great one.
Kirby Air Riders	Racing / Misc.	B-
tl;dr Kirby Air Riders is a Racing Game that’s a bit like a Kart Racer, but is largely unlike anything else out there, thanks largely to its odd one-button (or two-button, for a few things) control scheme. Unfortunately, it is the game’s stubborn adherence to these overly-simple controls that takes what would otherwise be a spectacular game with a gorgeous presentation and tons of content and leaves it feeling like a flawed shadow of what it could have been.
Arcade Archives 2 Aqua Jet	Watercraft Racing	C-
tl;dr Aqua Jet is an Arcade-style Watercraft Racing game that’s enjoyable to play, but sorely lacking in content and with no multiplayer mode, which makes it even harder to justify this nearly 30 year-old game’s bloated $15 price tag. Unless you’re starving for this sort of game or have nostalgia for its original release, skip this one.
Arcade Archives 2 Rave Racer	Arcade Racing	C-
tl;dr Rave Racer is a great Arcade-style Racing game in the Ridge Racer franchise, but it’s woefully lacking content, is missing the original release’s multiplayer, and at $15 for a game that’s 30 years old it seems horribly overpriced. This is a great game, but there just isn’t enough here to justify the price.
Arcade Archives 2 Ridge Racer	Arcade Racing	C-
tl;dr Ridge Racer is an incredible, iconic Arcade-style Racing game, but it’s woefully lacking content, has no multiplayer, and at $15 for a game that’s over 30 years old it seems horribly overpriced. This is a truly great game, but there just isn’t enough here to justify the price.

Driving Simulation Games

Game	Genre	Grade
SnowRunner	Open-World Driving Simulation	B-
tl;dr SnowRunner is an Open-World Simulation-style Driving Game that is a sequel to MudRunner, and improves on it quite a bit with its Open-World elements making the game’s punishing, slow-paced gameplay more rewarding. The Nintendo Switch 2 version is clearly improved over the Nintendo Switch version of the game, primarily with improved resolution, but it also takes up 3x as much storage space. Overall, SnowRunner is an extremely niche game that not everyone will enjoy, but those who this game speaks to will surely be delighted.

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