Nintendo Life Names Its Best eShop Games of July 2026
Go-Go Town, The Mermaid Mask, and a third title took the top spots in Nintendo Life's monthly eShop Selects awards for July 2026, with five games total clearing the publication's 7/10 threshold.
Five Games Made the Cut This Month
Nintendo Life has wrapped up its monthly eShop Selects feature for July 2026, and the results are in. According to the feature written by Gavin Lane, five Switch games cleared the publication’s 7/10 scoring threshold and were eligible for the monthly vote, which is restricted to eShop-only releases without physical editions. Writers and contributors then voted for their top three, with medals assigned to the top finishers.
Two games earned honorable mentions without cracking the podium: Moss: The Forgotten Relic, a Switch 1 and 2 release that scored a 7/10, and Turnip Mountain, a Switch 1 title that also landed at 7/10. The publication also gave brief nods to Gecko Gods and D-topia, both of which scored a 6/10 and were described as explicitly “Not Bad.”
One notable absence: Jurassic World Evolution 2. Nintendo Life reported that review code for the eShop-only release arrived too late to be considered for July’s awards. Whether it would have made the grade will have to wait for a future review.
Bronze Goes to Go-Go Town
Taking third place is Go-Go Town, developed and published by Prideful Sloth and released on both Switch 1 and 2 on July 16 in the US (July 15 in the UK and EU). The game scored a 7/10 in Nintendo Life’s review.
The premise puts players in the mayor’s chair, tasked with turning a patch of nothing into a thriving island town. On paper, that sounds like familiar territory. The reviewer, identified as Michelle, found it to be something a bit more layered. “As the town morphs from fledgling fields to monstrous metropolis, its needs grow, and with it, your serotonin and stress levels,” she wrote, according to the feature. She also flagged echoes of SimCity, the Two Point series, Overcooked, Animal Crossing, and the collect-and-build loop of Pokopia. That is quite a cocktail, and apparently it works.
Silver for The Mermaid Mask
SFB Games claimed the silver medal with The Mermaid Mask, a Switch 1 and 2 release that scored an 8/10. The game launched July 16 in both the US and UK/EU regions.
For anyone unfamiliar with SFB’s resume, the studio has credits that include Snipperclips and Crow Country. The Mermaid Mask is the fourth entry in the Detective Grimoire series and a follow-up to 2019’s Tangle Tower, as reported by Nintendo Life. The feature notes that the Switch 2 version adds Mouse Mode, a feature that fits naturally with a point-and-click style adventure.
The Detective Grimoire series has built a quiet, loyal following over the years, and an 8/10 from Nintendo Life suggests The Mermaid Mask is a strong continuation of that run.
A Busy End-of-Year Looms
Lane’s writeup frames July as something of a calm before the storm, noting that the busy end-of-year release calendar is already starting to peek over the horizon as August begins. For eShop hunters, though, July delivered some genuinely solid options across both Switch generations.
The monthly Selects format has long served as a useful filter for players who want to know which digital-only releases are worth their time without wading through every new listing themselves. With Jurassic World Evolution 2 still pending review, there may be a late addition worth watching for whenever that coverage goes live.
What criteria does Nintendo Life use for its eShop Selects awards?
According to Nintendo Life, eligible games must score at least 7/10 in the publication's reviews and must not have a physical release, including Game-Key Cards, at the time they launch.
What is Go-Go Town about?
Go-Go Town, developed and published by Prideful Sloth, has players overseeing the development of an island paradise as mayor. Nintendo Life's reviewer described it as blending city-building with a mix of SimCity, the Two Point series, Overcooked, and Animal Crossing influences.
Is The Mermaid Mask connected to earlier games?
Yes. According to Nintendo Life, The Mermaid Mask is the fourth entry in the Detective Grimoire series from SFB Games and a follow-up to 2019's Tangle Tower.
Why was Jurassic World Evolution 2 left out of July's eShop Selects?
Nintendo Life noted that the review code for the eShop-only Jurassic World Evolution 2 arrived too late for the game to be considered in the July 2026 awards.