When Microsoft introduced Achievements with the Xbox 360 in 2005, followed by Sony’s Trophy system on the PS3, they reshaped gaming culture. These digital rewards became badges of honor, tracking everything from story milestones to grueling challenges.
Meanwhile, Nintendo has consistently sidestepped this trend, showing no interest in a system-wide achievement framework. With the Nintendo Switch 2, features like GameChat bring Nintendo closer to its competitors’ offerings, yet the absence of Achievements persists. Some see this as a missed opportunity, but I believe it’s a deliberate and brilliant choice.
By forgoing Achievements, Nintendo preserves the soul of the gaming experience, avoiding the pitfalls that have diluted their value on other platforms. Here’s why Nintendo’s decision is a win for gamers, not a loss.
Understanding the Appeal of Achievements
Achievements and Trophies undeniably boost engagement. They extend playtime, guide players to hidden content, and offer a sense of accomplishment—benefits for both players and publishers.
For many, these systems are a point of pride. I remember my Xbox 360 days, scouring for titles to hit 1000/1000 Gamerscore and exploiting GameStop’s 7-day return policy to inflate my score. The rush of seeing that number climb was addictive, and for some, Gamerscore or Platinum Trophies are digital medals, proof of dedication or skill.
Achievements can also add structure, encouraging players to explore challenges they might otherwise skip. For those who love the thrill of the chase, having the option is a plus. But my perspective shifted when I completely embraced Nintendo’s modern consoles, which lack those systems. Far from feeling as if it was lacking, gaming without Achievements felt liberating. I realized these systems often undermine the experiences they’re meant to enhance, and Nintendo’s choice to exclude them is a stand for quality over compulsion.
Grind Over Fun: The Trap of Filler Content
Not all game content is created equal. Open-world games, in particular, often suffer from uneven quality. While stand-outs like Elden Ring or The Witcher 3 deliver consistently engaging experiences, many titles pad their 15-30 hour core narratives with repetitive side quests, collectathons, or “filler” to stretch playtime to 60+ hours. Critics and players constantly complain about this approach, yet it persists. Why? Achievements incentivize it.
Trophies for climbing the top of 50 towers or clearing every outpost push players to slog through repetitive, unenjoyable content, all for a Platinum or 1000 Gamerscore. Without that external reward, would players engage? Doubtful. Metrics show players complete these tasks, so developers keep including them, knowing Achievements guarantee engagement. This creates a cycle: developers rely on low-effort content to trigger external rewards, and players feel compelled to endure it.
Nintendo’s decision to skip Achievements sidesteps this trap, encouraging developers to prioritize quality. Without trophies dangling overhead, players can skip tedious tasks and focus on what brings them joy.
No Pressure: Freedom to Play Your Way
Nintendo’s games brim with content, often including collectibles that could easily be tied to Achievements. Consider The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild with its 900 Korok Seeds or Super Mario Odyssey with 999 Power Moons.
These numbers are daunting, yet I never felt pressured to collect them all. Why? Nintendo doesn’t dangle a digital trinket, guilt-tripping me into completionism. I explored Hyrule and the Mushroom Kingdom at my own pace, savoring the journey without feeling I was “missing out” on anything.
Achievements can turn gaming into a checklist, fostering anxiety for completionists who feel obligated to 100% every title. This pressure rewards developers for padding games with excessive content, even if it’s subpar.
If players ignored unenjoyable tasks, developers would need to innovate, crafting richer experiences. By omitting Achievements, Nintendo empowers players to define their own goals, fostering a relaxed, player-driven experience that prioritizes fun over obligation.
Distractions and Trinkets: The Hollow Promise of Trophies
As someone who occasionally chases 100% completion in beloved games, I know the frustration of grinding through dull side content only to receive a lackluster reward. Too often, the payoff is negligible—some XP, a cosmetic item, or a weapon I’ll probably never use. When developers know a Platinum Trophy or 1000 Gamerscore is the real prize, they skimp on meaningful in-game rewards. A JPEG trophy for hours of tedium feels like a hollow consolation in the scheme of things.
Nintendo’s approach is different. Games like Kirby and the Forgotten Land and Super Mario 3D World feature bespoke Achievement-like systems tied to tangible in-game rewards from new characters to extra content. These objectives are tailored to the game’s world, ensuring players gain something valuable.
This avoids the disconnected nature of system-wide Achievements, which often break immersion from the in-game experience and feel like arbitrary checklists. Nintendo’s focus on intrinsic rewards preserves the magic of discovery, letting players engage with the game organically.
Diluted Achievements: When Trophies Lost Their Weight
Gone are the days when Achievements were true tests of skill, like beating Gears of War on Insane or conquering Call of Duty 4’s Mile High Club on Veteran. These were badges of honor, earned through grit and mastery. Today, many Achievements are trivial, requiring minimal effort or skill. Some games award trophies for basic actions like “start the game” or “complete the tutorial.”
Platinum Trophies, once symbols of ultimate dedication, often don’t even require engaging with all of a game’s content. This shift has diluted the prestige of Achievements, turning them into participation awards rather than markers of accomplishment.
Even worse, a subgenre of “trophy farm” games has emerged—cheap titles designed to deliver easy 1000/1000 Gamerscore or Platinum Trophies in minutes. These games, often priced low and devoid of meaningful content, exist solely to pad profiles. As a result, high Gamerscores or trophy counts are increasingly hollow, more reflective of wallet size than skill or commitment.
Developers have tailored Achievements to cater to this crowd, prioritizing accessibility over challenge to maximize engagement. This trend undermines the original purpose of Achievements, making them less about celebrating mastery and more about feeding compulsive collectors.
Nintendo’s refusal to adopt Achievements spares its ecosystem from this devaluation. By focusing on in-game rewards tied to meaningful challenges, Nintendo ensures that accomplishments feel earned and relevant to the game’s world. This approach respects players’ time and skill, avoiding the empty calorie rewards that plague other platforms.
Conclusion
Nintendo’s decision to exclude Achievements and Trophies from the Nintendo Switch 2 isn’t a misstep—it’s a deliberate stand for what makes its games special. By avoiding the grind, pressure, distractions, and dilution of system-wide trophy systems, Nintendo frees players to enjoy games on their own terms. It challenges developers to craft compelling content that stands on its own, not propped up by digital carrots.
While Achievements have their fans, their absence on the Switch 2 ensures Nintendo’s ecosystem remains a haven for unfiltered and unadulterated fun. In an industry obsessed with metrics and milestones, Nintendo continues to show that the true reward of gaming is the experience itself.
