Which Nintendo Switch game was the first to use the game engine called Snowdrop?

Mario + Rabbids Kingdom Battle was the first Nintendo Switch game to use Ubisoft’s Snowdrop game engine.

Ubisoft developed the tactical strategy game in collaboration with Nintendo and released it for Switch on August 29, 2017. The game combines characters from Nintendo’s Mario universe with Ubisoft’s Rabbids and presents turn-based battles on grid-based arenas.

Snowdrop was created by Ubisoft Massive and had previously powered Tom Clancy’s The Division. Its use in Kingdom Battle supported the game’s colorful environments, dynamic effects, and tactical battle presentation on Nintendo’s hybrid hardware.

The sequel, Mario + Rabbids Sparks of Hope, also used the Snowdrop engine, but it was released later in 2022. That makes the original Kingdom Battle the relevant first title, not the sequel. The game is also notable as one of the earliest major third-party collaborations involving Nintendo’s flagship characters on Switch.