You play sports with your whole body in Nintendo Switch Sports. Instead of pressing buttons to hit the ball, you swing a racket, bowl, serve or kick with a Joy-Con controller, and the console reads that motion, so timing and angle matter more than fast button presses. The original came out on Nintendo Switch in April 2022 and now includes eight sports, including tennis, volleyball, bowling, soccer, badminton and Chambara sword fights. Its follow-up, Nintendo Switch Sports Resort, launched on Nintendo Switch 2 on October 22, 2026, with 12 sports set on Wuhu Island.
A session usually starts with picking a sport and a mode. You can practice against computer opponents, play with up to three friends on the same console, or go online to face players elsewhere. Online play needs a paid Nintendo Switch Online membership. In Switch Sports Resort, you can also skate, power cruise or fly a prop plane around Wuhu Island between matches, searching for hidden hibiscus flowers.
What you work toward depends on the game. In the original, every online match earns points, win or lose, and those points unlock random items like hairstyles, rackets and face paint. Playing online matches of a sport in Play Globally unlocks that sport's Pro League, a ranked mode where you climb against players of similar skill. In Switch Sports Resort, playing any sport in any mode earns Spocco Points for the Item Center, and Island Crown gives you an offline ladder toward each sport's champion and the tougher Island Legends beyond.
- Developer
- Nintendo
- Publisher
- Nintendo
- Release
- Nintendo Switch Sports (Nintendo Switch): 2022-04-29 · Nintendo Switch Sports Resort (Nintendo Switch 2): 2026-10-22
- Platforms
- Nintendo Switch, Nintendo Switch 2
Nintendo Switch Sports gameplay tips
- Tennis in Switch Sports: Twist the Joy-Con as you swing to add top-spin or back-spin, because spin changes how the ball travels and keeps your opponent guessing.
- Volleyball in Switch Sports: Jump a little before your teammate sets the ball so you meet it in the air. Meeting it there is how you get a fast spike.
- Chambara in Switch Sports: Try all three sword types before picking a favorite. The Sword has the strongest single strike, the Charge Sword unleashes Charge Strikes after you guard, and the Twin Swords have a spinning move, so each suits a different style of fight.
- Badminton in Switch Sports: Swing gently downward as the shuttlecock starts to fall to smash, and hold ZR while you swing for a drop shot. Mixing the two keeps your opponent guessing.
- Any competitive sport in Switch Sports Resort: Start with Island Crown in any sport you're new to. Its offline ladder gets harder one opponent at a time, so you learn the controls before facing people online.