A new report has shed light on the most played games on each current-gen platform, including PS5, Xbox Series X|S, PC and Nintendo Switch. Interestingly, the report shows that the top-ten most played titles in 2023 were dominated by older, live service games on PS5 and Xbox Series. EA Sports FC 24 and Modern Warfare 3 were the newest games on PS5, while Xbox exclusive Starfield appeared in the Microsoft console’s top-ten (alongside MW3 and FIFA 23). Other than that, the PS5 and Xbox Series X lists were dominated by games like Fortnite, Rocket League, Rainbow Six Siege, Roblox, Minecraft, Apex Legends, GTA 5, and Fall Guys. Considering the age of many of the games featured in the top-ten, it kind of makes you wonder why they bothered releasing the PS5 and Xbox Series X|S to begin with!
It’s a much different story on Nintendo Switch, which doesn’t feature quite so many older games.
According to the Newzoo report (via Kotaku), Fortnite, Minecraft and Fall Guys appear alongside Mario Kart 8 Deluxe, Super Smash Bros Ultimate and Animal Crossing New Horizons.
More recent games include Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom, Super Mario Bros. Wonder, Pokemon Scarlet and Violet, and Hogwarts Legacy.
With Nintendo fans playing more recent releases and exclusive games than their PS5 and Xbox counterparts, the upcoming Switch 2 is starting to feel like an essential upgrade.
There are some fantastic exclusives on PlayStation 5, although many of these games have started to appear on PC. Likewise, Microsoft’s new strategy is to make its games available on additional platforms, including PlayStation and Switch.
If the Switch 2 does indeed get future iterations of Call of Duty, not to mention more blockbuster Xbox games, and up-to-date versions of titles like EA Sports FC (coupled with the already excellent Nintendo exclusives), then it will be far more appealing than the PS5 and Xbox Series X|S.
If you don’t already own a current-gen console, then you might want to save your cash for the Switch 2, which is rumoured to launch in 2025.
Fans will be hoping for a Switch 2 announcement during the inevitable Nintendo Direct presentation in May/June.
So far all we have are rumours, such as the suggestion that Nintendo’s new console will launch with an impressive 12GB of RAM.
It’s also believed that the Nintendo Switch 2 will support Ray-tracing technology for superior lighting and shadows.
The bad news, however, is that the unannounced console will reportedly cost $399 at launch, which is $100 more than the price of the original Switch when it released in 2017.
Likewise, the Nintendo Switch 2 is said to have an LCD display, instead of a far superior OLED screen.
