Curious about the best trading games on Nintendo Switch? Check out our list which features plenty of mercantile to wile away the hours.
Trade route strategy games are some of the most fulfilling games you can play. I have fond memories of playing games like Sid Meier’s Pirates! and Patrician 1 & 2 when I was in college. If you’re curious about some of the best trading games on Nintendo Switch, read on. Many of these games follow a basic format, but some of them bring unique twists to the table.
Silk
Silk features the largest world you can explore in any trading game on the Nintendo Switch. It’s designed to be a merchant caravan simulator, re-creating some of the struggles of helping a party find their way over thousands of miles of distance from the Roman town of Antioch to the Far East.
You’ll hire advisors along the way whose skills will guide you on your path. Some of the decisions you’ll face will be harsh ones–especially if you ignore one aspect of the caravan in favor of another for too many turns. The game is set up like exploring a 3D game board with thousands of miles to venture.
Merchant of the Skies
A fantastical trading game about exploring a world laden with Sky posts and building supply chain infrastructure for many of the characters you’ll meet. The controls for Switch are a little wonky but they aren’t hard to master. The cute pixel art just adds another point to this game’s unique charm.
The game itself is set in a fantastical world of airships and islands so if you hate the history setting of most trading games–this is a solid choice. It feels very similar to playing older trading games like Tradewinds from the late 90s but with a much better interface and pixel art aesthetic to enjoy.
Space Warlord Organ Trading Simulator
The need to sell resources to another person is the raw, driving need behind capitalism, right? So what happens when you want to satisfy that terrible, terrible urge by being as unscrupulous as possible? That’s where Space Warlord Organ Trading Simulator comes in. These are space organs that you as a massive warlord are trading on the black market.
Who needs to worry about pesky things like where these organs came from, or if those bodies can survive without them. The concerns of the bottom of the supply chain doesn’t impact you, you trickle down Reaganomics loving warlord, you. Be terrible, make money. Simple as, mate.
Time on Frog Island
Want a relaxing life Sim RPG that also includes plenty of trading with residents to progress the story? Check out Time on Frog Island. Ask the local residents for the items you need and solve puzzles to finish your boat. Run faster, jump higher, fall slower, anything is possible when holding the right items.
Port Royale 4
Port Royale 4 is a decent port of a PC game that simulates the Golden Age of Piracy in the Caribbean. Act as a merchant trading goods between different ports to make a profit. Or commission a letter of marque from a sovereign nation to engage in legal piracy. Or fore swear any loyalty to the countries and fly the Jolly Roger to become an infamous pirate.
Neo Atlas 1469
Play a game focused on creating an accurate map of the trade routes you take—kind of like a Marco Polo simulator. As you hear rumors and reports gathered from around the world, your map creation skills become more accurate. The final map you end up with may be wildly different than what we know in reality. Neo Atlas 1469 was originally a Nintendo 3DS game before it was ported to Nintendo Switch.
Of Mice & Sand
Take control of a convoy of mice who are traveling across a desert. Travel between settlements, trading so you can upgrade the desert convoy by adding more rooms. The game itself draws inspiration from games like FTL and Fallout Shelter. You’re moving along a set path with dangerous behind you, while managing a mobile colony of mice with needs.
Moonlighter
Become a merchant by day and then jump into the dungeons at night to find new artifacts and equipment to sell to the townsfolk in Moonlighter. Delve deeper and unlock the secrets of the dungeon as you sell items to finance your future expeditions in the shop by day. Sometimes you’ll find something incredibly rare that will make the whole run worth it. Much of the dungeon gameplay feels inspired by room-based roguelites like The Binding of Isaac.
Sunless Sea
Explore the Unterzee in the world of Fallen London by becoming a submarine captain. Explore a vast cavern filled with Victorian England inspired weirdness. You will lose multiple captains as you explore, so don’t get too attached. You can also unlock exclusive items in the Fallen London browser game. Love this and want more of the same narrative-driven mix of story-telling and trading? Check out Sunless Skies which is a sequel to Sunless Sea.
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