New Nintendo Switch games: Hades and 2 other titles you can play today

Nintendo's September 17 Partner Showcase was the strongest yet, highlighting tons of interesting upcoming games for the system like Monster Hunter Rise, Monster Hunter Stories 2, Rune Factory 5, and Balan Wonderworld. But there are three games showcased during the presentation that went live Thursday as a total surprise. They're also some of the best games to come to the Switch in recent memory. So if you're in the market for a new game or two (or three), then these should definitely be on your radar.

Here are three exciting new games to consider purchasing on the Nintendo Switch eShop, starting Thursday, September 17, 2020.

3. Hades

A port of Hades was announced during Nintendo's August Indie World Showcase, but at the time, the release window was simply "Fall 2020." It turns out that the game's release was even sooner than that, as it dropped today after getting briefly featured in the partner showcase. For those that have never heard of Hades, it is the latest game from Bastion, Transistor, and Pyre developer Supergiant Games.

It follows the son of Hades, Zagreus, as he attempts to escape the underworld and evade the grasp of the titular Greek god. The game plays like your typical roguelike as players proceed through a series of procedurally placed rooms and get stronger with every death. It will even feature cross-saves with the PC version eventually, though this feature's inclusion was delayed, so it isn't there at launch.

2. The Long Dark

Another game available today that was briefly spotlighted in the Partner Showcase is The Long Dark from Hinterland Studio.

The Long Dark is an intense survival game where players must fight to live in the Canadian wilderness after a geomagnetic disaster causes their plane to crash.

The game features both a story mode as well as a strict survival mode with permadeath. The Switch port is a long time coming, as this game's journey started when it first hit Steam Early Access in September 2014. It got officially released across PC, PS4, and Xbox One in 2017, and is now also on Switch starting today.

3. Ori and the Will of the Wisps

The closer for September 17's Nintendo Direct Mini Partner Showcase was a Nintendo Switch port of Ori and the Will of the Wisps.

This is Metroidvania-style platformer from Moon Studios has players explore a large world as a guardian spirit named Ori. It was initially launched on PC and Xbox One in March 2020. Ori and the Will of the Wisps and its predecessor were published by Xbox. It's available via Xbox Game Pass on those systems and will receive an enhanced version for Xbox Series X later this year with a higher resolution and frame rate. But it also feels like a perfect fit for the Switch.

The first game in the series came to the Switch in 2018, so it makes sense that the same would happen to the sequel. There's also a Collector's Edition that'll ship in December 2020 that contains physical versions for both Ori games on Switch, a stained glass art piece, a guide to the flora and fauna in the game's world, an art card set, a glow-in-the-dark pin, and a digital copy of the game's soundtrack. It can be pre-ordered at iam8bit starting September 17 for $149.99.

Hades, The Long Dark, and Ori and the Will of the Wisps are available now on Nintendo Switch.