8 ideal last-minute gifts for gamers all across the spectrum

Nintendo Switch

Game: Super Smash Bros. Ultimate

Time to speak from a little personal experience here: Super Smash Bros. Ultimate is fantastic, whether your gamer is someone who plays frequently with others or who instead prefers a solo journey. Boasting a robust adventure mode, so many characters to unlock (but thankfully at a pace that’s reasonable, not punishingly long), and the classic matches, if your gamer doesn’t have Smash Ultimate already, it’s probably because they’re expecting to get it from someone for Christmas.

But it’s entirely possible that they do have it. In that case, try Octopath Traveler, which has all kinds of character on its own.

Accessory: Pro Controller / PowerA Enhanced Wireless Controller

Chances are that if your gaming enthusiast has a Switch and plays it often, they already have a Pro Controller, but two is usually better than one. It’s true in this case as well. However, Nintendo’s standard Pro Controller doesn’t have much in the way of personality, and the special designs for certain games aren’t much better.

PowerA, on the other hand, has launched its new line of wireless controllers, and yours truly had the chance to play around with a demo unit courtesy of the company. It definitely has a different weight than the regular Pro Controller, and the buttons feel slightly different, but all-in-all, it provides a great gaming experience — and plenty of color, too, including Super Mario and Legend of Zelda options. (Hey, I was able to unlock characters like Mewtwo in Smash Ultimate while using the demo unit, and I’m not a Smash pro so much as a big fan.)