49 of the Best Puzzle Games on Nintendo Switch (June 2020)

We all love a good puzzle game from time to time. But what with the Nintendo Switch having so many games released each and every week, it can be hard to find the true gems amongst the crowd. That’s why we’ve put together this list!

Update: This list has been updated as of June 26, 2020. If there are other puzzle games on Nintendo Switch that you believe deserve a place on this list, let us know by emailing us at team@switchaboo.com.

Automachef

Developed By Hermes Interactive
Published By Team17
Rating E
Players 1
Automachef is a puzzle simulator game that has you working alongside a not so subtle robot who is bent on world (fast food) domination. But running a fast food restaurant is hard work, which is why you need to automate the process by programming machines to do the job. Place these machines in the correct order whilst using as little energy and ingredients as possible.

Baba Is You

Developed By Hempuli
Published By Hempuli
Rating E
Players 1
Baba Is You is a grid-based 2D puzzle game developed by Arvi “Hempuli” Teikari as an expansion of his award-winning entry in the 2017 Nordic Game Jam. Manoeuvre text tiles around to form different sentences that inherently change the rules of the game (it’s hard to hard… watch the trailer). With an ingenious central premise free of unnecessary aesthetic fluff, this is a dense, challenging game that can rely on the quality of its own design to keep the player invested.

Battle Chef Brigade

Developed By Trinket Studios
Published By Adult Swim Games
Rating E10+
Players 1
Battle Chef Brigade is a beat ‘em up puzzle game set in the fantasy world of Victusia. Battle monsters, collect ingredients and bring them back to cook up a storm in order to best your opponents. Battle Chef Brigade is truly a unique gaming experience that (to my knowledge) has never been created before.

BOXBOY! + BOXGIRL!

Developed By HAL Laboratory
Published By Nintendo
Rating E
Players 1 – 2

The newest instalment of the BOXBOY series has landed on Nintendo Switch and this time, in HD. Play familiar levels filled with box puzzles and team up with a friend for some co-op fun. Once you’ve done them, you’ll also be introduced to Qudy, a rectangle shaped character that puts a whole new perspective on the series.

The Bridge

Developed By The Quantum Astrophysicists Guild
Published By The Quantum Astrophysicists Guild
Rating E
Players 1

The Bridge is a beautifully modest game that contains beautiful black and white shading aesthetics. This award winning indie darling has you manipulating the environments to have you guide the main character through them. The tone and presentation often says a lot about a game, and this cannot be more true than with The Bridge.

Captain Toad: Treasure Tracker

Developed By Nintendo
Published By Nintendo
Rating E
Players 1 – 2

In this bright and colourful puzzle game, Captain Toad must venture through rubik’s-cubelike levels to collect gems and get to the star at the end. As the captain’s backpack is a little too heavy for him, he is unable to jump, so use your wits and spin the camera around to find the best possible solution. The Nintendo Switch version of the game also features levels inspired from Super Mario Odyssey, as well as paid DLC that adds 18 new challenges for $5.99.

Color Zen

Developed By Cypronia / Large Animal
Published By Cypronia
Rating E
Players 1

Color Zen is a relaxing little puzzle game that requires you to moves shapes around in order to match the colours. The challenge, however, comes in needing to end the level with the same colour as the border, which becomes quite challenging as the game progresses. The game is free to download, containing 120 levels, with each additional pack only costing 99c each. So to unlock every level (which there are 460 in total), it would only cost you $2.97. Not bad…

Donut County

Developed By Ben Esposito
Published By Annapurna Interactive
Rating E
Players 1

Donut County is certainly a unique gaming experience. Mischievous raccoons are stealing trash with remote controlled holes which get bigger and bigger. The hole won’t give up until it has swallowed all of Donut County, and the residents demand to know why.

Dr Kawashima’s Brain Training

Developed By Nintendo
Published By Nintendo
Rating E
Players 1 – 2
Dr Kawashima has returned with brand new braining training challenges on the Nintendo Switch. Test your self-control, short-term memory and processing speed in order to determine your brain age, compete against friends in some brand new multiplayer modes or relax with some Sudoku and the Dr Mario styled Germ Buster. As old as this series may be, the Nintendo Switch iteration has given this series a whole new lease on life.

Etherborn

Developed By Ben Esposito
Published By Annapurna Interactive
Rating E
Players 1
Etherborn is a 3D puzzle platformer with many twists and turns… literally. The laws of gravity shifts as you continue to traverse it, with mind-bending puzzles and platforming challenges. Do this whilst questioning ones own existence, constantly making your way up The Endless Tree and following the faceless voice that beckons you.

The Forgotten Land

Developed By Rokaplay
Published By Rokaplay
Rating E
Players 1
There’s a wealth of games that take the classic Bejeweled format and run with it, and many of them get lost in the crowd as generic clones with little on offer; The Forgotten Land is not amongst them, with its charming rustic aesthetic and engaging progression system keeping things fresh.

Fractured Minds

Developed By Emily M Games
Published By Wired Productions
Rating E
Players 1
Mental illness, in all its various shapes, is a topic that is becoming more openly discussed today and with Fractured Minds, the message continues. Developed single-handedly by 17 year old Emily Mitchell, Fractured Minds delves into the dread and anguish that one with General Anxiety Disorder may experience in their daily lives. It’s a confronting tale, but it’s one that needs to be shared more often.

The Gardens Between

Developed By The Voxel Agents
Published By The Voxel Agents
Rating E
Players 1

The Gardens Between is a puzzle game that allows you to manipulate time. The aim is to work with the two characters, bringing the lantern with the light inside up spiral mountains to the end goal. You don’t actually control the characters, rather you fast forward and rewind the scenario, interacting with objects in order to alter their path.

Golf Peaks

Developed By Afterburn
Published By 7Levels
Rating E
Players 1

Golf Peaks takes a unique puzzle spin on the mini golf genre. The idea of getting the ball into the whole is very much the same, but Golf Peaks requires you to choose from a set of numbered cards to strategically move around a square-based course.

Gorogoa

Developed By Buried Signal
Published By Annapurna Interactive
Rating E
Players 1

Gorogoa is an artistic puzzle game that is laid out on a square with four images. The player must delve deeper into each image to find connections with each other. Guide the young boy across various religious and spiritual themes in a 20th century European setting.

Hook

Developed By Rainbow Train
Published By Rainbow Train
Rating E
Players 1
Hook is a very simple puzzle game that requires you to retract all of the lines to complete a level. However, this is easier said than done. The lines must be retracted in specific orders as one line’s path may be blocked by another. The game starts off easy, but quickly becomes a head-scratching brain-twister as the levels become more complex.

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Human: Fall Flat

Developed By No Brakes Games
Published By Curve Digital
Rating E
Players 1 – 2

Human Fall Flat is a physics-based 3D puzzle platformer that has you battling against real world physics in order to solve puzzles. Use what’s around you to your advantage and remember that there is no limit but your imagination. Human: Fall Flat can also be played in co-op, but beware that an extra set of hands may become a hindrance.

Human Resource Machine

Developed By Tomorrow Corporation
Published By Tomorrow Corporation
Rating E10+
Players 1

Human Resource Machine is a curious little puzzle game set in an office building. Solve puzzles using simple programming that may teach you a thing or two. The wit and charm of this game, coupled with its unique premise, makes it one that certainly stands out among the rest.

Keep Talking and Nobody Explodes

Developed By Steel Crate Games
Published By Steel Crate Games
Rating E10+
Players 1 – 4

Got some friends, a Switch and some time to kill? Well, why not disarm a bomb together? One player holds the Switch in handheld mode and describes the bomb whilst others help them to disarm via the instruction manual that can be accessed on any phone, tablet or laptop. But be quick, that timer won’t stop ticking!

KINE

Developed By Gwen Frey
Published By Chump Squad
Rating E
Players 1

KINE is a game about big dreams and bigger puzzles getting in your way. Play as Euler, Quat and Roo on a mission to form a band and make their names known across this wacky world. Each character takes the shape of a cube and your job is to roll them around each level and make it to the end. Trust me, it’s not as easy as it sounds.

The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild

Developed By Nintendo
Published By Nintendo
Rating E10+
Players 1

Now yes, Breath of the Wild is commonly seen as an action/adventure game, but the Legend of Zelda series is also widely renowned for its puzzles. There are a total of 120 shrines that contain physics-based puzzles and over 900 Korok Seeds to collect by solving small tasks (or lifting a rock). Couple all that with a sprawling open world and 97 on Metacritic making this one a no-brainer.

Little Inferno

Developed By Tomorrow Corporation
Published By Tomorrow Corporation
Rating T
Players 1

This critically-acclaimed puzzle game has you setting fire to anything you can get your hands on. Taking place almost exclusively in front of a fireplace, burn objects, collect money and use that money to buy stuff. It may sound basic, but Little Inferno packs more into it than you’d initially expect. The best way to understand it is to play it.

The Low Road

Developed By XGen Studios
Published By XGen Studios
Rating E10+
Players 1

Spy agencies in the 1970s were filled with danger and mystery, but when Noomi Kovaks is fresh out of spy school and lands a job at a spy agency that won’t let her out to the field, she takes matters into her own hands. Featuring over 32,000 words of fully voice-acted dialogue, The Low Road is filled with interesting characters and fantastic plot development. Use your wit to solve some branching dialogue puzzles in order to get the truth out of some wacky characters.

LUMINES REMASTERED

Developed By Resonair
Published By Enhance
Rating E
Players 1 – 2

LUMINES REMASTERED is a classic indie that has been remastered for the Nintendo Switch. The blocks contain two separate colours and you want to align your next block so that you can match them up in order to score big combos. Sounds easy? Well, don’t get ahead of yourself! LUMINES REMASTERED offers challenging but addictive gameplay, perfect for any puzzle fans or anyone just needing to kill ten minutes on the train.

Mars Power Industries

Developed By 7A Games
Published By SONKA
Rating E
Players 1
Mars Power Industries is described as a feel good resource management game. Humans are beginning to colonise on Mars and your job is to set up power plants in order to bring power and resources to thrive and survive. With calm and minimalist music to lay on top, Mars Power Industries may well be the perfect way to relax after a long day on the ol’ mine.

Mimpi Dreams

Developed By Dreadlocks
Published By Dreadlocks
Rating E
Players 1
Mimpi is a lazy dog. He likes to sleep a lot but in his dreams, he can be whatever he wants to be and go wherever he wants to go. In his dreams, Mimpi can be the star of the show, the hero of the narrative, collecting dog bones and solving puzzles. Where does this lead to you might ask? Well back to his own bed, of course!

Minesweeper Genius

Developed By Level 77
Published By Blowfish Studios
Rating E
Players 1
Minesweeper Genius is the next evolution for Minesweeping. While the gameplay is similar enough that Minesweeper veterans will ease into it, it provides difficult, calculating puzzles that are satisfying to complete. If you’re looking for a simple puzzle game that caters bitesized play sessions, Minesweeper Genius may be for you.

Mom Hid My Game!

Developed By Kemco
Published By Kemco
Rating E
Players 1

But mooooooom! Did your mom every hide your game when you were suppose to be doing homework? Mine did… and I always got in trouble for trying to find it (which I never did). But now, I can, and so can you!

Murder by Numbers

Developed By Mediatonic
Published By The Irregular Corporation
Rating T
Players 1

What do you get when you combine Phoenix Wright: Ace Attorney with Picross? One heck of a puzzle game, that’s what! Set in 1996 LA, play as Honor Mizrahi, an actor currently down on her luck, as she teams up with a sentient Robot named SCOUT in order to clear her name and solve the murder of her recently ex-boss. On top of that, the music is also composed by former Phoenix Wright: Ace Attorney composer Masakazu Sugimori, so you know you’re in good hands!

PAN-PAN

Developed By Spelkraft
Published By Circle
Rating E10+
Players 1
PAN-PAN is a little indie game developed by Spelkraft and released on the Nintendo Eshop late in 2017. The game is a top down puzzle / adventure where the player solves a variety of different and clever environmental puzzles in the aim of building a broken spaceship. What makes this game so great is all the subtle things that add to the player’s experience. Not only that but the game has some top notch puzzles which are very well designed and a joy to solve.

Picross S/S2/S3/S4

Published By Jupiter Corporation
Rating E
Players 1-2

Everybody loves Picross! If you’ve never heard of Picross before, then it’s time you sell that rock you’ve been living under and use that money to buy Picross S and/or Picross S2! This numbered puzzle game is perfect for quick play sessions on the go and when you win, you reveal a pixelated picture that will make you squint just so you can make out what it is.

Piczle Lines DX

Developed By Score Studios
Published By Rainy Frog
Rating E
Players 1

Piczle Lines DX is a cute little puzzle game that has you connecting number together by all sorts of means. Play in docked mode with a controller or utilise the touch screen to suit your preferences. Start drawing those lines in Story Mode, which contains over 100 levels, and continue playing in Puzzle Mode with over 200 puzzles. And if you want MORE, you can buy Piczle Lines DX 500 More Puzzles for just $9.99 which contains, well… you get the idea. That’s a lot of puzzles!

Pikuniku

Developed By Sectordub
Published By Devolver Digital
Rating E
Players 1 – 2

Pikuniku is a physics-based puzzle-platformer that takes place in a happy world riddled with sinister plots. As a red blob with legs, talk to interesting characters, undertake strange requests and explore a colourful world full of charm and personality.

Pix the Cat

Developed By Playdigious
Published By Playdigious
Rating E
Players 1 – 4
You may be able to argue that Pix the Cat is more of an arcade game and whilst I wouldn’t disagree, it certainly contains some puzzle elements – especially in its Laboratory and Nostalgia modes. Pix the Cat is an arcade puzzle game akin to classics of the genre. Manoeuvre Pix the Cat through top-down levels to collect eggs and guide the hatched ducklings to safety. However, there are many obstacles and hazards to overcome, including your own conga-line of ducklings behind you. Think Snake meets Pac-Man.

Puyo Puyo Tetris

Developed By SEGA
Published By SEGA
Rating E10+
Players 1 – 4

Two of the most recognisable puzzle games have joined forces to give an experience like no other. Puyo Puyo Tetris is complete with a story mode in addition to many multiplayer modes, so it is perfect for any situation. You always know you’re going to have a good time when Tetris is involved.

Robots Under Attack!

Developed By Dmytro Derybas
Published By Dmytro Derybas
Rating E
Players 1
Robots Under Attack! is an arrow shooting puzzle game that gives you only a small amount of ammunition in order to shoot them, crush them, blow them up and more. With a variety of different arrows to choose from, each with their own unique properties, there’s never a dull moment when robots are under attack. Packed with 100 levels, Robots Under Attack! is designed for quick pickup and play, making it a perfect fit on Nintendo Switch.

She Remembered Caterpillars

Developed By Jumpsuit Entertainment
Published By Ysbryd Games
Rating E
Players 1

She Remembered Caterpillars is a colour matching puzzle game set in a post-apocalyptic world. The gameplay is through provoking and the aesthetics are mesmerising, bringing forth a charm that will leave you in awe.

Snipperclips Plus: Cut it Out, Together!

Developed By SFB Games
Published By Nintendo
Rating E
Players 1 – 4

When Snipperclips was announced to launch alongside the Nintendo Switch, media and fans instantly fell in love with its concept. Play with friends and family to cut each other into various shapes to solve physics-based puzzles, or let out your frustration on one another in the dojo. This game is fun for everyone.

Squidgies Takeover

Developed By GiantMargarita
Published By GiantMargarita
Rating E
Players 1
Squidgies Takeover is a physics-based puzzle game where you’re tasked with guiding cute little blobs to warp holes so that they can escape their Momma’s tentacles and find new planets to inhabit. Use seven different power-ups to transform Squidgies in order to guide the others to freedom and unlock more levels. However don’t get too attached, not every Squidgy will have a fairy tale ending.

Sushi Striker: The Way of Sushido

Developed By Nintendo
Published By Nintendo
Rating E
Players 1 – 2

Sushi Striker: The Way of Sushido takes color-matching gameplay and throws it into a world that is still recovering from the effects of the Sushi War. In addition to its stellar gameplay, Sushi Striker boasts a high production value that will initially surprise you. It’s a shame that this game doesn’t get as much recognition as it deserves.

The Talos Principle: Deluxe Edition

Developed By Croteam
Published By Devolver Digital
Rating T
Players 1
The Talos Principle is a first-person puzzle game that has you play as a robot tasked with solving complex puzzles in simulated worlds that have been brought to ruin. It is an ingenious masterpiece that simply must be played by any puzzle game enthusiast. Learn more about the civilisations that came before you and progress by using your mind to look at puzzles in a way that you may never have before.

Tetris 99

Developed By ARIKA
Published By Nintendo
Rating E
Players 1

Have you ever played a battle royale game and thought to yourself, “I wonder what else they could do with this formula”? Well, someone did; enter: Tetris 99! This game remains tried and true to the classic Tetris formula whilst pitting you against 98 opponents, performing combos and throwing garbage at each other in order to be the last player standing. You won’t realise how good/bad you are at Tetris until you play it like this.

Treasure Stack

Developed By PIXELAKES
Published By PIXELAKES
Rating E
Players 1 – 4
Treasure Stack is a columns-like puzzle game that borrows mechanics from classics like Wario’s Woods. Complete with special abilities, colourful pixelated graphics and fantastic personality.

Tumblestone

Developed By The Quantum Astrophysicists Guild
Published By The Quantum Astrophysicists Guild
Rating E
Players 1 – 4

Tumblestone is a fantastic option if you’re looking for a single purchase PACKED full of content. Match up colours in an extensive story mode that is full of personality or compete with friends in local and online multiplayer.

Untitled Goose Game

Developed By House House
Published By Panic
Rating E
Players 1
Ever wanted to be a mischievous goose and just be annoying? No? Well, now you can! From Australian developers House House, Untitled Goose Game is a wacky adventure of a goose that is simply out to cause as much mayhem as possible. It’s a simple concept, but it’s one that has resonated with fans and now we get to see whether the game speaks (honks) for itself.

When Ski Lifts Go Wrong

Developed By Hugecalf Studios
Published By Curve Digital
Rating T
Players 1

When Ski Lifts Go Wrong is a bridge building physics-based puzzle game that requires you to keep skiers and riders alive (unless you want a good laugh). Nintendo highlighted When Ski Lifts Go Wrong in a Nindies Showcase and for good reason.

The World Next Door

Developed By Rose City Games
Published By VIZ Media
Rating T
Players 1

The World Next Door combines fast-paced puzzle action with visual novel storytelling. Trapped in a parallel world, this indie has a personality all to its own, with adrenaline-pumping gameplay to match. Announced during a Nindies Showcase, The World Next Door is definitely not one to scroll past.

World of Goo

Developed By 2D Boy
Published By Tomorrow Corporation
Rating E
Players 1 – 2

World of Goo is another prime example of the genius that comes from Tomorrow Corporation. Use many blobs of goo to construct bridges and many other structures in order to complete a slew of creative levels.

Yono and the Celestial Elephants

Developed By Neckbolt
Published By Plug In Digital
Rating E
Players 1

Yono and the Celestial Elephants is an adorable puzzle/adventure game with loveable characters and charming visuals. In this world, elephants are divine creatures that are born from the stars once per millennium to protect the world. Yono has been sent down in order to bring peace to the land, solving one puzzle at a time with the use of your trunk.

What are your favourite puzzle games on Nintendo Switch? Let us know in the Comments section below. Also remember that if there are other puzzle games on Nintendo Switch that you believe deserve a place on this list, let us know by emailing us at team@switchaboo.com.