Nintendo Switch eShop Charts August 29 2026: Metal Gear Debuts

Image: nintendoeverything.com

Metal Gear arrives, but Tomodachi still owns the top slot

Metal Gear Solid: Master Collection Vol. 2 is the only clearly flagged new arrival in the latest Nintendo Switch eShop charts August 29 2026, and its debut lands in two very different places: No. 21 on Nintendo Everything’s All Games chart and No. 7 on the Download-Only Games chart. That split is the week’s most useful signal. A major legacy package can still cut through on Switch in late August, but it is entering a storefront where the overall best-seller list is crowded with Nintendo staples, Pokémon nostalgia, party games, and long-tail open-world favorites.

Nintendo Everything reports that Nintendo Switch releases have been slowing down, with Metal Gear Solid: Master Collection Vol. 2 standing out as the week’s visible console arrival. The outlet also notes that Tomodachi Life: Living the Dream remains at No. 1, describing the top spot as unchanged from the prior status quo. Since the published chart does not include unit sales, revenue, regional scope beyond the listed eShop chart, or price effects, the safest read is ranking movement rather than commercial scale. Still, the positions show where eShop attention is clustering at the end of August.

The All Games chart is still ruled by Nintendo’s broadest hits

Nintendo Everything’s All Games list starts with Tomodachi Life: Living the Dream at No. 1, followed by Super Smash Bros. Ultimate, Minecraft, Mario Kart 8 Deluxe, and Super Mario Party Jamboree. That top five tells a familiar Switch story: social play, evergreen multiplayer, and a sandbox game with enormous staying power are still leading the Nintendo eShop top games chart while newer or more specialized releases fight for visibility farther down.

The next tier keeps that broad-audience pattern intact. Pokemon FireRed sits at No. 6, Nintendo Switch Sports at No. 7, GTA: The Trilogy at No. 8, Pokemon Legends: Z-A at No. 9, and Rhythm Heaven Groove at No. 10. Animal Crossing: New Horizons, Pokemon LeafGreen, Pokemon Legends: Arceus, Super Mario Odyssey, and Super Mario Bros. Wonder then fill No. 11 through No. 15. The chart is not a clean snapshot of one genre trend. It is a storefront blend of comfort play, recognizable brands, family multiplayer, platforming craft, and RPG collecting.

Metal Gear Solid: Master Collection Vol. 2 arriving at No. 21 means it debuts behind The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom at No. 20 and ahead of Super Mario Galaxy + Super Mario Galaxy 2 at No. 22. That is a tough neighborhood. It is surrounded by games that have either deep Nintendo identity or long-running mainstream awareness, including New Super Mario Bros. U Deluxe, Pokemon Violet, MLB The Show 26, Red Dead Redemption, Pokemon Scarlet, Stardew Valley, Mario Party Superstars, and It Takes Two in the rest of the top 30.

Download-only players are chasing a different mix

The Download-Only Games chart has a sharper discovery flavor. According to Nintendo Everything, Pokemon FireRed and Pokemon LeafGreen take the top two positions there, with Stardew Valley at No. 3, Deltarune at No. 4, and Moonlight Peaks at No. 5. Super Mario Galaxy 2 appears at No. 6, just ahead of Metal Gear Solid: Master Collection Vol. 2 at No. 7.

For readers who use the download-only list to find smaller or digitally focused releases, the middle of the chart is especially lively. Disney Dreamlight Valley is No. 8, Minecraft Dungeons is No. 9, Super Mario Galaxy is No. 10, The Stanley Parable: Ultra Deluxe is No. 11, Nine Sols is No. 12, and Grounded is No. 13. Sonic Origins, Wobbly Life, The Jackbox Party Pack 3, Tiny Bookshop, Moss: The Forgotten Relic, Hollow Knight: Silksong, and Terraria follow from No. 14 through No. 20.

That matters for how readers should interpret Metal Gear’s debut. On the broader All Games list, it is one entry among blockbuster Nintendo names and mass-market regulars. On Download-Only, it breaks into the top ten immediately, sitting above several established digital performers. Nintendo Everything’s source text cuts off after No. 23 on the provided Download-Only list, so we can only report the visible positions with confidence.

Retro Pokémon is one of late August’s clearest drivers

The two Pokémon Game Boy Advance-era entries listed by Nintendo Everything are doing heavy work this week. Pokemon FireRed ranks No. 6 on All Games and No. 1 on Download-Only, while Pokemon LeafGreen ranks No. 12 on All Games and No. 2 on Download-Only. Without pricing, promotion, or platform-detail data in the source, there is no confirmed explanation for why they are placed this high. The rankings themselves, however, show that retro Pokémon interest is one of the strongest forces on the Switch eShop right now.

That influence extends beyond those two titles. Pokemon Legends: Z-A is No. 9 on All Games, Pokemon Legends: Arceus is No. 13, Pokemon Violet is No. 24, and Pokemon Scarlet is No. 27. On the all-games side, Pokémon occupies multiple layers of the chart, from top ten to back half. On the download-only side, FireRed and LeafGreen set the pace outright.

As an indie and platformer watcher, I read that as a storefront visibility challenge as much as a fandom signal. When two older Pokémon entries can command the top two download-only positions, every smaller game below them has to earn attention in a very compressed space. Stardew Valley at No. 3, Deltarune at No. 4, Moonlight Peaks at No. 5, Nine Sols at No. 12, Tiny Bookshop at No. 17, Hollow Knight: Silksong at No. 19, and Terraria at No. 20 show that players are still finding intimate, systems-driven, and craft-forward games. They are doing it under the shadow of one of Nintendo’s strongest brands.

Small games still have real chart presence

The late-August download chart is not only about franchise gravity. Stardew Valley holding No. 3 on Download-Only and No. 28 on All Games is a useful contrast. In the larger chart, it sits near the bottom of the top 30. In the download-only environment, it is behind only Pokemon FireRed and Pokemon LeafGreen. That difference suggests the download-only chart remains the better place to track the Switch audience’s appetite for slower, systems-rich games that thrive without the same kind of boxed-retail footprint.

Deltarune at No. 4 also stands out, as does Moonlight Peaks at No. 5. Nine Sols at No. 12 gives the list a sharper action-platforming edge, while Tiny Bookshop at No. 17 represents the softer, cozy discovery side of the eShop. Hollow Knight: Silksong at No. 19 and Terraria at No. 20 keep the lower top 20 anchored in games associated with precision, persistence, exploration, and player-driven mastery.

None of the provided sources gives discounts, review scores for these entries, or player-count data tied to the chart, so it would be overreaching to assign causes. What the chart can support is simpler and still valuable: download-only Switch players are not clustering around a single kind of game. They are moving between retro Pokémon, farming and life sims, narrative oddities, action-heavy indies, party packs, survival crafting, and legacy collections.

Switch 2 charts show a different August rhythm

The broader Nintendo storefront picture looks different when compared with Nintendo Everything’s earlier Switch 2 eShop charts from August. On August 2, the outlet reported Splatoon Raiders at No. 1 on the Switch 2 All Games chart, with Xenoblade Chronicles 2 Upgrade Pack at No. 2 and Xenoblade Chronicles 2: Nintendo Switch 2 Edition at No. 5. It also noted that Final Fantasy 14 was near launch and sitting at No. 6 during its pre-load period.

One week later, on August 9, Nintendo Everything reported that Lies of P, Final Fantasy 14, and Big Walk had all launched on Switch 2 and appeared near the top of that platform’s chart. Splatoon Raiders still held No. 1, while Lies of P was No. 2, Final Fantasy 14 was No. 3, Pokemon Pokopia was No. 4, Mario Kart World was No. 5, and Big Walk was No. 6. The same August 9 source also identified pre-load activity for Madden NFL 27 at No. 7, Duskfade at No. 20, and The Elder Scrolls 4: Oblivion Remastered Deluxe Edition at No. 25.

That comparison is useful because the August 29 Switch chart is not behaving like those Switch 2 eShop charts. The Switch 2 lists in the provided sources are defined by platform editions, upgrade packs, pre-loads, and fresh launches. The Switch chart for August 29 is steadier, with Tomodachi Life: Living the Dream at No. 1 again and Metal Gear Solid: Master Collection Vol. 2 entering below a thick block of older leaders. For players searching Switch 2 eShop charts, the current evidence from the supplied sources is earlier in August, not a new August 29 Switch 2 list.

How to read this week’s eShop rankings before buying

The practical takeaway is to treat the August 29 chart as a discovery guide, not a sales report. Nintendo Everything provides rankings, and those rankings show relative eShop placement for the week. They do not confirm copies sold, revenue, discounts, file sizes, performance quality, or whether a game is climbing because of a promotion. If you are considering Metal Gear Solid: Master Collection Vol. 2, the confirmed chart fact is that it has debuted at No. 21 overall and No. 7 on Download-Only. Whether it rises next week is explicitly unresolved in Nintendo Everything’s report.

If you want the safest mainstream bets, the All Games chart points toward Tomodachi Life: Living the Dream, Super Smash Bros. Ultimate, Minecraft, Mario Kart 8 Deluxe, and Super Mario Party Jamboree as the current Switch eShop best sellers at the very top. If you want a download-first queue with more texture, the Download-Only list is the richer map: Pokemon FireRed, Pokemon LeafGreen, Stardew Valley, Deltarune, Moonlight Peaks, Super Mario Galaxy 2, and Metal Gear Solid: Master Collection Vol. 2 form the current top seven.

The late-August Switch eShop is quiet in release volume but not in player interest. The chart is being pulled in several directions at once: social Nintendo games at the top, retro Pokémon dominating download-only demand, indies holding meaningful space, and Metal Gear testing how much room a legacy collection can carve out during a slower Switch week.