Switch-Out Move

""SNAPUBAKURU!!!""

- Commentary on a FFA United Marvel vs. Capcom 2 tournament match

The Switch-Out Move switches the user or the target with their partner. Said partner may optionally employ a Dynamic Entry.

A common trope in Tag Team battles, where the entire match usually revolves around characters fighting one-on-one and tagging in/out with their partners as needed.

Anime and Manga

 * In Yu-Gi-Oh!, Yugi Mutou switches consciousnesses with Yami Yugi in this way, at least after little Yugi finds out about Yami. Whoever's soul is not using the body stays in the holding place in the brain. They tag in and out to switch. Their ability to do this comes in handy when fighting an opponent who can read their thoughts.
 * In Hunter X Hunter, this is the basis of Goreinu's abilities. He can summon two gorillas, a black one and a white one, both of whom can move about on their own. Goreinu can instantly switch locations with the black gorilla; he can cause someone else to switch locations with the white one.
 * One Piece: Luffy attempts this with Zoro, who is holding off Arlong. Unfortunately for the swordsman, Luffy's idea of a Switch-Out Move involves sending Zoro flying backwards about 100 feet in the air.

Comic Books

 * The first Marvel Universe Captain Marvel had this ability. His partner, Rick Jones, could send himself to the Negative Zone (and release Captain Marvel to take his place) by striking the Nega Bands on his wrists together over his head.

Tabletop Games

 * Castling in chess swaps the player's king with one of his rooks (although both the king's and rook's previous positions become vacant).
 * Some cards in Magic: The Gathering allow you to do so, such as the "Ninjutsu" mechanic, which allows you to trade one attacking creature for another in the middle of combat.
 * Yu-Gi-Oh!:
 * The Gladiator Beast archetype of monsters have the ability to tag-out by returning to the deck in exchange for a different Gladiator Beast. The second one that comes in ends up with a special ability it wouldn't have otherwise.
 * Beast Soul Swap lets you return a Beast-type on your field to the hand, allowing you to Special Summon another one with the same Level in its place.
 * The Pokémon Trading Card Game allows Pokémon to switch back to the Bench [a reserve area] after it attacks.
 * The most infamous card to do so among players is Dunsparce, which, for minimal Energy costs, inflicted Confusion and would retreat back, making it near impossible to defeat. Most subsequent cards based on Dunsparce have had an attack-and-retreat move since.

Video Games

 * A staple in Sonic the Hedgehog games' multiplayer races is a Teleporter Monitor that causes the racers to switch places when opened. This Monitor was introduced in Sonic the Hedgehog 2, and has also appeared in Sonic Advance 3 and Sonic Mania.
 * Certain items and events in the Mario Party games allow you to switch spaces with other players. Some do so with one specific character (such as the Warp Pipe), while others will shuffle everybody around (such as a number of Bowser events).
 * The Legend of Zelda: Oracle of Ages has a Hookshot variant (appropriately called the Switch Hook) that acts like this, causing Link and the target to switch places.
 * Pokémon: While combat in this series mostly revolves around one-on-one Tag Team matches, with swapping Pokemon being manual and taking that Trainer's turn, there are various moves that cause a Pokemon to be switched out. These provide additional effects over a normal tag-out and can potentially be used in situations where normal tag-outs are not possible.
 * Pokémon Red and Blue introduce Roar and Whirlwind, which force the opponent to switch out in a Trainer battle. This being Red and Blue, though, it only worked in the wild to end battles immediately, and wouldn't function "properly" in trainer battles until Pokémon Gold and Silver. Roar and Whirlwind also have decreased priority, allowing the opponent to potentially strike first before it hits; as of Generation III, the move will almost always go last in turn order. In competitive battling, moves like these are used to force a stat reset.
 * Gold and Silver introduces Baton Pass move, which switches to another Pokemon in the Trainer's party and additionally passes on the user's stat changes and adverse non-cardinal status (e.g. binding, infatuation, confusion, etc.) to the next Pokémon switched in.
 * Pokémon Diamond and Pearl introduces U-Turn, a move that attacks the opponent and then immediately switches the user out after. Healing Wish and Lunar Dance are "sacrifice" moves that trade dealing immense damage to the opponent for fully restoring the HP and curing Standard Status Effects of the next Pokémon sent in. Lunar Dance is Cresselia's Signature Move, and additionally restores the benefactor's PP as well.
 * Pokémon Black and White introduces many variations on this. Dragon Tail and Circle Throw inflict damage and force the opponent to switch out after being hit, while the Double Battle-exclusive Ally Switch exchanges the position of your two active Pokemon. Two new items are also added: the Escape Button is a one-use item causes the holder to switch out after being hit by an opponent's attack, and the Red Card item "ejects" whoever hits the holder by forcing them to switch out.
 * Shows up in wrestling games all the time, for one, as double-team moves.
 * The Capcom vs. Whatever series has these as a form of attack, and even allows for tag-team Hyper Combos that leaves the other character in afterward. Marvel vs. Capcom 2 and Marvel vs. Capcom 3 also have the "Snapback" command that forces your opponent to tag out if possible.
 * Tekken Tag Tournament lets everyone have one tag grapple to trade off with their partner using a generic stomp, along with coming in after a launcher for a nastier tag juggle that removed your "red" health. Characters also get partner-specific moves, such as King Irish Whipping an opponent to Armor King for a power slam.