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Back in 2022, Nintendo attempted to revive the fun and charm of the motion-controlled Wii Sports era, but it didn’t quite live up to that lofty goal. Now in 2026, Nintendo Switch Sports Resort takes another swing at that same difficult feat with a clear focus on “more.” More sports, more outfits, more modes, and more collectibles. That doesn’t always translate to a better package, with Sports Resort often feeling a wide ocean rather than a deep diving pool, but it more than makes up for it with a broad range of games ripe to bust out at the next big party. So while it may not clear the high bar set by the original Wii Sports in 2006, it still brings out the same child-like joy.
Nintendo Switch Sports Resort is a collection of 12 different sports minigames, ranging from highly competitive one-on-one Table Tennis to leisurely cruising in a prop plane around Wuhu Island where they all take place. The quality of each game varies drastically. Archery is a standout thanks to its unique use of the Joy-Con controllers, while a returning sport like Basketball is largely untouched and still feels too choreographed – it’s once again missing the freedom of movement and control I want so desperately from a potential party version.
The new sports can also be hit and miss. Power Cruising uses two Joy-Con held like you are gipping handlebars to simulate racing a jet ski, but those clunky controls don’t always work well, so it feels more like a gimmick rather than a fun sport. On the other hand (quite literally),Thumb Wrestling helps bring whimsy to the package. It’s extremely silly, but actually makes for some competitive matches – in my online sessions, I was pleasantly surprised with how strategy and tactics changed from match to match. Watching players develop new ways to trick and bait their opponents into getting caught in their trap was entertaining, and I found myself determined to never let anyone get the best of me.
Archery is easily the best sport offered in Sports Resort. With four different courses scattered around Wuhu Island, it feels the most well-thought out. I stretched out my arms in front of me, holding both Joy-Con perpendicular to the floor, then clicked the ZL button with my left hand and drew it back to my chest like I would draw a real bow. Using my right Joy-Con to aim at a distant target, it was satisfying every time I hit my mark. More challenging courses and hidden targets to find help flesh out Archery overall, which meant it provided hours of fun for my friends and I in a way many of the thinner options don’t.
Heated Rivalries
As you might expect, playing through Sports Resort by myself proved to be a bit lackluster, as it lacks the competitive spirit so intrinsic to the games it recreates. Island Crown, a new mode that has you climb the ranks in nine of the 12 sports, pushed me forward with a little bit of structure and challenge, but even then I found my enthusiasm waning before too long.
Its loose story has you defeat challengers in order to eventually face the island champion, who – depending on the sport – will either taunt or cheer you on after every victory. Upon defeating one of the island champions you’ll unlock a few more extra objectives in the given sport. Sometimes it’s an Island Legend looking for a fight, others it’s a gauntlet of challengers that need to be defeated without losing. It’s a decent distraction for those looking to casually play sports while your friends and family aren’t around to party, and that’s about it.
But when they are around, Sports Resort is easily the game I want to break out. So much of the joy of these games is heightened when folks in the room are cheering, yelling, and getting so into it you need to remind everyone to keep the Joy-Con wrist strap on. This has always been the spirit of the Nintendo Sports games, and Sports Resort is one of the best versions of it around when you’ve got the crew to play.
Recruiting my roommates to run through the sports on a Sunday afternoon was an eye-opening experience. Games like Volleyball – which I found to be incredibly boring during my time with Island Crown and casual single-player – became electric back and forth rallies that lit up the room. Exhausted cheers, disappointing sighs, and questionable calls made even some of the more mundane sports like Golf feel exhilarating.And quick, snappy menus make hopping between sports seamless as well, which kept everyone from zoning out between rounds.
Even leisure sports like Skateboarding quickly became heated competitions as we slammed our Joy-Con on the table in mouse mode, ready to race. Skateboarding is the only game in Sports Resort that takes advantage of this control scheme, effectively turning the Joy-Con into a mini Tech Deck. Intuitive controls like flicking your hand to the left or right did 360 pop shuv-its and quickly lifting the front it off the table produced an ollie. With multiple race courses, we ripped through each one attempting to best one another, constantly pushing for faster times as our rivalry grew.
My only real complaint about the local multiplayer is that games like Boxing and Power Cruising require participants to have two Joy-Con each, meaning you aren’t able to play those sports at all if you only have the single pair that came with the Switch 2. So if you’re planning on having folks over to box or ride Jet Skis, ask them to bring some extra controllers.
Serving Looks
When we needed to cool down, we hopped into the Sightseeing Tour mode, which allows you to zoom around Wuhu Island in search of points of interest marked with giant floating cameras. Collecting a camera marks it on your Sightseeing Log and gives you a little flavor about that part of the island. It’s a neat way to get a sense of how all of the sports fit together contextually in this space, and allows you to visit other islanders while they compete on the tennis courts, archery ranges, and more.
Between Archery rounds or Thumb Wrestling matches, I would routinely hop into my Prop Plane to fly around the island in search of more Sightseeing Logs. The five-minute timer makes it an excellent bit sized adventure that rewards you for exploring a different part of the island on each outing. Going off the beaten path proved fruitful every time, with plenty of secrets to find for those willing to be curious.
It would be really easy for Sports Resort to be nothing more than a series of menus as you bounce between sports, with no connective throughline to follow. Sightseeing Tour gives everything a sense of place, and strengthens the quirkiness found on the outskirts of it all. Blimps fly high in the sky, speedboats race into the distance, and plenty of characters can be found hanging in parts of the island you would never see by just playing the basic sports. Leisure sports also offer a free roam mode which allows you to explore to your hearts content.
That said, sports like Tennis, Basketball, Thumb Wrestling, and a few others have just one set location each, which does get old. I wish there was more variety in where they could be played across Wuhu Island, because it became unexciting to see the same background for my 30th Thumb Wrestling match – even if the Mii’s in the background were different from the match before.
If your friends are farther away, Sports Resort has online play with both casual and pro-league options. Casual uses a lobby system that allows multiple people to party up and play games together. If a two-player game is selected, you can even form multiple huddles in the same lobby, playing separate sports at the same time. However, there is no way to spectate someone else’s game, which is a bit of a let down. I would love to be able to watch friends play Tennis or take out their aggression in a Thumb Wrestling match.
Each sport also has special modes that change up the gameplay just enough to be fresh for a bit, but I didn’t find any of them exciting enough to return to time and time again. Bowling adds its classic obstacles to the lane, which require more creative strategies and fancy footwork to overcome, while Archery has four people compete for points on the same target, attempting to avoid an opponent’s section as you hit your own. These modes are a fun break, but don’t go much further beyond that.
Everything you do in Sports Resort also nets your Spocco Points, which can be spent at a rotating shop. The shop sells themed items in a set, and 1,000 Spocco will get you one item randomly pulled from that set. You won’t receive duplicates, but it is strange that you can’t just choose the items you want. Being forced into a random roll feels like it just artificially inflates the amount of Spocco needed to get what you want.
The customization is rather robust at least, with no shortage of fancy outfits, namecard titles, face paints, and so much more – you’ll unlock bevy of different options by playing Island Crown as well, ranging from leather studded gloves for Thumb Wrestling to unique volleyball attire. I was constantly gaining Spocco, and while it was a little tiresome to be frequently reminded to check out the shop as I earned points for miscellaneous things like shaking the Joy-Con 1,000 times, at least the rewards for doing so were neat.
