Fans Rank a Switch Game as the Best Nintendo Title of All Time in New Poll
A new fan-driven ranking has crowned a Switch title as the best Nintendo game ever released, beating many of the most beloved video games of all time. Even though the fan poll chose The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild as the best release in the company's history, not everyone agrees with the narrow and debated choice. You can weigh in on the ranking below.
A Narrow Fan Vote Named The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild as the Best Nintendo Game of All Time
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In July 2025, Nintendo Life's team named The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild as their choice for the best Nintendo game ever, with input from the website's readers. In March 2026, Men's Journal covered that ranking and asked readers to weigh in on the decision by voting. The poll, which drew hundreds of votes, ended in a very narrow victory for The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild, crowning it the fans' pick for the best Nintendo game ever.
In the poll, readers could choose between the following six popular Nintendo games: The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild, The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time, Super Mario Galaxy, Pokémon HeartGold / SoulSilver, Super Metroid, or Super Mario World. Alternatively, they could have chosen Other if none of those titles were worthy of being called the best, in their opinion. Ultimately, that wasn't the top pick for the fans who weighed in as only 13% opted for the Other option.
The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild took the top spot with 31% of the votes, just edging out The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time, which received 29%. Of the specific video game choices, Super Mario Galaxy came in third place with 8%.
The Debate Over Nintendo’s Best Game Ever Rages On
The article that was based on Nintendo Life's ranking received several responses from readers. The top comment from Arnaz epitomized how detractors felt about the outlet choosing The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild. “I know I’m forever the odd one out, but BotW was a massive disappointment and to date, it is the only Switch game that I ever just gave away to a buddy because I didn’t even care to have it in my collection.” On the flip side, GinaBoBina0073 backed Nintendo Life’s pick. “I agree cause BOTW is my favorite game. Yes, I love the older LOZ games almost as much, but BOTW was a wonderful experience for me the first time I played it through.”
In the comment section, some readers offered alternative games they believed should be in the conversation about Nintendo’s best game. Some of the alternatives fans pushed for were The Legend of Zelda, The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom, The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time, Chrono Trigger, GoldenEye, Animal Crossing, Contra, and Tetris for the Game Boy. The NES title, The Legend of Zelda, being brought up as one of Nintendo's best games ever, is remarkable since it was released roughly 40 years ago.
The following poll mixes the fan poll's top choice with the most notable alternatives from the comments. Vote now on what you think is truly Nintendo's best game ever. If your favorite isn't listed, drop it in the comments.