The Highest-Rated Game of the Year is Now Playable on the Switch (And It’s Not Hades 2)

Shujinkou is currently the highest-rated new video game release of 2025, and it is now available to play on the Nintendo Switch. Even though Nintendo has released the Switch 2, it is still providing strong support for the original Switch console. This year has seen all kinds of big releases drop for the OG Switch, with Super Mario Galaxy 1 + 2 releasing just recently and games like Pokemon Legends: Z-A and Metroid Prime 4: Beyond on the horizon.

But because the Switch hardware is relatively weak, it unfortunately misses out on some games. Donkey Kong Bananza is a Switch 2 exclusive, for example, as will be the upcoming Hyrule Warriors: Age of Imprisonment and Kirby Air Riders. Many of the more-demanding third-party games skip the Switch entirely because the console simply can’t run the games properly, but it is still home to some of the better ones.

Shujinkou is Now on Switch

Hades 2 is one of the highest-rated new game releases of 2025, and it is currently console-exclusive to Switch and Switch 2. Even with its 93 overall rating, though, Hades 2 is not the highest-rated new game release of 2025 on the Switch. Just recently, 94-rated Shujinkou released for the Switch, making it the highest-rated game of the year playable on Nintendo’s home console/handheld hybrid. For those unfamiliar with the game, Shujinkou is a dungeon-crawler JRPG that doubles as a way to learn Japanese. Shujinkou has been praised for being a great eductional tool as well as a solid JRPG with challenging strategy gameplay. Those uninterested in the educational aspect can switch to an English-only mode and focus entirely on Shujinkou’s gameplay.

Shujinkou has a 94 overall rating based on 10 critic reviews that have been counted so far, making it the current highest-rated game of 2025 on review aggregate website OpenCritic. Now, it’s entirely possible Shujinkou’s review score will fluctuate if more people decide to review the game. It could go even higher, but it could also go lower and eventually dip below Hades 2 and other new games that were released in 2025.

Regardless, those looking for a new JRPG to play on the Switch may want to consider checking out Shujinkou. 10 reviews isn’t a ton, but the fact that 10 have been counted, and the game still has a 94 rating indicates that there are people that are really having a great time with it. It seems the game has hundreds of hours of content as well, so fans will certainly get their money’s worth if they decide to take the $29.99 plunge.