With Pokémon no longer positioned as the big end-of-year release, you start looking at what could fill the gap on Switch 2, and the list of possibilities gets interesting fast.
You likely expected Pokémon Winds and Waves to launch at the end of 2026. That already would have been a longer gap than usual between major Pokémon generations. In recent cycles, you have typically seen around three years between new entries, so a late 2026 release would have stretched that to four. Now that the game is targeting 2027, the wait grows even longer.
From a quality standpoint, that is not necessarily bad news. More development time usually means a better game overall and a smoother launch. If you care about stability and refinement, the delay can be viewed as a positive in itself. The bigger impact, though, hits Nintendo’s broader calendar. Pokémon is often the holiday anchor. If it is no longer filling that slot, something else has to.
Nintendo does not approach the holiday season lightly. Historically, you see multiple releases packed into a tight window at the end of the year. Even just last year, major titles such as Mario Galaxy 1 + 2, Pokémon Legends: Z-A, Hyrule Warriors: Age of Imprisonment, Kirby Air Riders, and Metroid Prime 4: Beyond all launched within roughly nine weeks of each other. That kind of dense schedule is not unusual for Nintendo.
With Pokémon now out of the 2026 holiday picture, you naturally start asking what replaces it.
One popular theory is that Nintendo is stepping aside because Grand Theft Auto 6 is launching later in the year. That line of thinking does not really match Nintendo’s history. Nintendo tends to operate on its own wavelength. The company’s strategy is not built around directly competing with every other release. It focuses on its own ecosystem and audience.
There is also the reality that Grand Theft Auto 6 is unlikely to launch day-and-date on Switch 2. A port later on is possible, but given the long development timeline and Rockstar’s usual pattern with Nintendo platforms, a simultaneous release feels unlikely. That makes it hard to believe Nintendo would simply avoid the holiday season because of GTA 6. From a business standpoint, leaving Switch 2 without major titles during its second holiday would make little sense.
If Pokémon is not the tentpole release, the most obvious candidate to step in is a new 3D Mario. Historically, Nintendo almost always delivers a mainline Mario early in a console’s life cycle, often by the first or second holiday season. That pattern is consistent enough that it is hard to ignore. With a Mario movie releasing in April and the franchise celebrating a milestone anniversary, the timing lines up well for a major Mario push.
The hardware angle is another talking point.
Switch 2 requires a real showcase game, something designed to highlight the capabilities of the new system. A new 3D Mario created with the Switch 2 in mind could serve as the platform’s definitive visual and technical statement, even though titles like Mario Kart World and Donkey Kong Bonanza may have begun as Nintendo Switch projects.
Even if 3D Mario becomes the big holiday headline, Nintendo rarely relies on a single release. Looking at the rest of the known schedule, you can already map out a steady flow of titles. Yoshi’s Mysterious Book is expected in the spring. Splatoon Raiders fits neatly into a summer window. Fire Emblem: Fortune Weave could occupy mid-year. Titles like The Dusk Bloods and Rhythm Heaven can round out late summer or early fall.
Nintendo typically publishes more than a dozen games a year, which means multiple months often see two releases. Even under a conservative assumption of one first-party game per month, there are still open slots in 2026 that need to be filled. With Pokémon no longer taking one of those key positions, at least one additional major project feels almost guaranteed.
That is where the rumors of a new Monolith Soft project gain traction.
When you imagine a year that already includes a new 3D Mario and a mainline Pokémon, adding a major Monolith Soft title can seem crowded. Remove Pokémon from the equation, and suddenly that project feels far more plausible for the same year. Whether it is a brand-new IP or something like Xenoblade Chronicles 2: Definitive Edition, the calendar now has room.
It is important to separate small upgrades from full projects. A Switch 2 Edition enhancement for Xenoblade Chronicles X would not count as the kind of major release people have been expecting. The long-running speculation about a larger Monolith Soft effort suggests something more ambitious. If that title is ready to be shown, 2026 now looks like a viable landing spot.
Another strong candidate is Luigi’s Mansion 4. Next Level Games has been quiet for a while, and Luigi’s Mansion 3 was a significant success. Pairing a new Luigi’s Mansion with a 3D Mario in the same holiday season could create a powerful one-two punch. Even though both sit within the broader Mario universe, they serve different audiences and styles. Luigi’s Mansion has also served as a visual showcase, which would help highlight Switch 2’s capabilities.
Beyond Mario and Monolith Soft, there is the Zelda anniversary factor.
Anniversary years often bring at least some form of celebration, even if it is not a full new 3D entry. Nintendo has previously used milestone moments to reveal teasers, demos, and early looks at the franchise’s future. A smaller 2D Zelda release combined with a teaser for the next big 3D Zelda on Switch 2 feels plausible, even if the full game arrives later.
The delay of Pokémon changes the way people talk about Nintendo’s 2026 lineup as a whole. You may have thought that Pokémon would be the big hit of the holiday season, but now you think that 3D Mario is the most likely alternative. You can probably picture Luigi’s Mansion 4, a Monolith Soft project, and maybe even some Zelda-related news filling out the calendar around it.
The one thing that becomes increasingly clear is that Nintendo will need to address these plans sooner rather than later. A general Nintendo Direct outlining the post-spring roadmap feels overdue. With Pokémon Winds and Waves now slated for 2027, the spotlight shifts squarely onto what Switch 2 will offer in the near term. If history is any guide, that spotlight will not remain empty for long.
