Skip to main content

Crunchyroll is finally coming to Nintendo Switch

Anime streaming service Crunchyroll is now available on the Nintendo Switch.

Crunchyroll announced this morning that its new app, downloadable on the Switch, will give viewers full access to tens of thousands of anime episodes. The Crunchyroll app has been available for a long time on competing consoles, smart TVs, and other streaming-capable devices. The Switch is notorious for its lack of streaming apps and non-gaming entertainment options compared to Microsoft and Sony’s consoles.

Crunchyroll Now on Nintendo Switch!

Crunchyroll’s Unreal Engine-powered app joins fellow anime streaming service Funimation, which has been available on the Switch since late 2020. Crunchyroll aims to differentiate itself by becoming the first streaming app to offer offline viewing on the Switch. Though the company does offer a subscription service that removes ads and allows viewers to watch episodes as they premiere in Japan, those without a subscription can still watch episodes with ads.

Recommended Videos

Even with the addition of Crunchyroll, the Switch’s variety of streaming and entertainment apps doesn’t hold a candle to that of Xbox and PlayStation. Prior to Crunchyroll’s release, Switch players could choose from a paltry five video streaming services: Funimation, Hulu, Twitch, YouTube, and Pokémon TV, which streams episodes of the Pokémon anime. Those who use a Switch as their primary entertainment device can’t access Netflix, YouTube TV, Peacock, HBO, or many other major streaming services.

While the inclusion of Crunchyroll brings some hope for the future of non-gaming entertainment on the Switch, Nintendo has historically focused on games over all else, so don’t expect the console to suddenly become a go-to streaming platform. Unless they’re an anime die-hard, most Switch owners are better off using a different console or a device like a Roku or Chromecast to enjoy movies and TV.

Emily Morrow
Former Digital Trends Contributor
Emily Morrow is a games journalist and narrative designer who has written for a variety of online publications. If she’s…
All cross-platform games (PS5, Xbox Series X, PS4, Xbox One, Switch, PC)
Two squads of heroes clash in an Overwatch 2 trailer.

Cross-platform support is becoming more important in the world of video games. Multiplayer hits like Call of Duty: Warzone 2.0 and Fortnite have pushed crossplay into the limelight, and now most AAA multiplayer games release with at least partial cross-platform support. Finding every cross-platform game is no easy feat, though, so we did the hard work to bring you a comprehensive list of games that support crossplay.

Unfortunately, there aren't any rules when it comes to crossplay, so each game handles the feature a little differently. To make matters more confusing, certain backward-compatible games on the PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X still support crossplay on the most recent hardware, even if there isn't an official release for that hardware.

Read more
Palworld is coming to mobile despite Nintendo lawsuit
A Tocotoco in Palworld.

Palworld will continue its global dominance thanks to a new partnership with PUBG: Battlegrounds publisher Krafton, which hopes to bring the popular survival game to mobile.

Krafton announced the deal on Wednesday, saying that it wouldn't be just porting the game to mobile. Rather, it will be reinterpreting it for mobile platforms through a licensing agreement. PUBG Studios, a subsidiary of Krafton that is the main team behind PUBG: Battlegrounds, will be handling development.

Read more
Another Nintendo Switch emulator has shut down
A Nintendo Switch with a list of cloud saves on the display.

Another day, another Nintendo console emulator that has ceased operations. A developer at Switch emulator Ryujinx announced on its Discord that it's shutting down.

The message, shared to X (formerly Twitter) by video game news aggregator Wario64, says that the lead developer on the project, known as "gdkchan," was contacted by Nintendo and told to "stop working on the project, remove the organization and all related assets he's in control of." Nintendo also offered some sort of agreement, although the terms are unknown.

Read more