Nintendo has confirmed its full Nintendo Gamescom 2026 lineup, and the headline entry isn't one of its own games. Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 4 will be playable at Nintendo's booth, marking the franchise's first appearance on Nintendo hardware in 13 years, since Call of Duty: Ghosts on Wii U in 2013. The franchise sat out the entire original Switch generation due to hardware limitations rather than any formal exclusion deal. Nine titles in total are confirmed playable when Gamescom opens August 26 through August 30 at the Koelnmesse in Cologne, Germany, where Nintendo of Europe will let attendees try its hybrid console at its Hall 9 booth.
Per Nintendo Everything and Nintendo Life, the confirmed lineup includes 007 First Light, Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 4, EA Sports FC 27, Metaphor: ReFantazio, Minecraft Dungeons 2, Nintendo Switch Sports Resort, Orbitals, the Pokemon Pokopia Expansion Pass, and Splatoon Raiders. Nintendo's announcement also included the phrase "and more," leaving room for additional reveals.
Modern Warfare 4's Switch 2 version is a native Switch build, not a cloud-streamed workaround, co-developed by Infinity Ward and Digital Legends. It supports Joy-Con 2 mouse controls and full cross-play with PS5, Xbox Series X, and PC. The COD playable demo fulfills a binding 10-year agreement guaranteeing Activision's FPS franchise day-and-date on Nintendo platforms with full feature parity, one of several third parties bringing native support to the booth. The campaign follows a vengeful Captain Price hunting those responsible for war on the Korean Peninsula. Modern Warfare 4 launches fully on October 23, 2026.
Nintendo Switch Sports Resort returns players to Wuhu Island for the first time since the Wii era, featuring 12 sports with Joy-Con 2 motion controls, making it one of the more accessible games at the booth. Its playable debut happened at San Diego Comic Con last month, making Gamescom the first major European opportunity for free play ahead of its October 22, 2026 launch, sold as one of the physical cartridges for $59.99 or a digital game file through the Nintendo eStore for $49.99, with a digital upgrade path for early adopters. Splatoon Raiders, out since July 23, gets a European showcase for players who missed launch, while the Pokemon Pokopia Expansion Pass highlights new diving content.
007 First Light needs more polish before release, with IO Interactive targeting late summer, though gameplay footage has not yet surfaced. Metaphor: ReFantazio arrives November 12, over two years after its 94 Metacritic debut. The arcade MC Dungeons sequel, Minecraft Dungeons 2, targets September 29 with Xbox Game Pass day one, building on an upcoming Minecraft update already rolling out to the base game. Separately, base Minecraft gets its own Switch 2 port on October 27th, complete with Vibrant Visuals graphics. Nintendo's stand also sits near Sega and Capcom booths, the latter showing Dragon's Dogma 2: Dark Arisen as playable for the first time, giving attendees a wider spread of digital games to try.
The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time remake, confirmed at a June 2026 Direct, still has no release window and is still awaiting its first full trailer, making Gamescom a logical venue for the OoT remake. FromSoftware's The Duskbloods begins its closed network test August 21, just before the show opens. A rumored Fire Emblem: Fortune's Weave showing has also circulated among fans.
The Switch 2's US price rises from $449.99 to $499.99 on September 1, making this a last chance to buy at the current rate, and the "Choose Your Game" bundle disappears August 31. With Sports Resort in October, Call of Duty in October, and Metaphor in November each carrying a confirmed release date, the highlight of the show for most attendees will come down to personal pick between sports, shooters, and RPGs. At least half of Nintendo's nine titles come from third parties, reflecting update work across this next gen of Nintendo hardware, a good time for undecided buyers to see the console's busiest season in person.
Nintendo of Europe confirmed the lineup via its official German language account, giving attendees a nice mix of games rather than a single-publisher showcase. Nintendo's main exclusive offering is hands-on access to all nine titles at its Hall 9 booth. Attending requires a general Gamescom ticket for the Koelnmesse, valid August 26 through 30, with no separate registration for Nintendo's demos. Nintendo hasn't confirmed its own livestream, but Opening Night Live streams free on YouTube, Twitch, and Steam on August 25. We've yet to see some Switch 2 versions, so that should change in mere weeks, and it isn't yet clear what else Nintendo might have in store, especially with the reveal landing the same week as Nintendo's latest financial data.
Nintendo's 2025 Gamescom booth featured playable builds of Metroid Prime 4: Beyond, Hollow Knight: Silksong, and Pokemon Legends: Z-A, all unreleased then. This year's lineup leans more third-party, headlined by Call of Duty, the latest entry in Activision's shooter series which made its playable debut last month at Comic Con, leaving the collection game wise a little uneven heading into the show, though Nintendo may still add unannounced titles before the show.
President Shuntaro Furukawa has told investors multiple unannounced Switch 2 games are coming this year, making Gamescom a natural stage for a release window on titles like Ocarina of Time or Duskbloods. No new console is expected, since the Switch 2 remains Nintendo's only active platform.
Emerson Gray · Editor
Editor
