Nintendo envisions more than NES games for Switch Online

Nintendo envisions more than NES games for Switch Online

Since the launch of the Nintendo Switch Online service in 2018, fans have been demanding an expanded online offering, primarily for retro gaming. Judging by this year's Nintendo shareholders' meeting, it looks like we got what we asked for. As reported by NintendoLife, Nintendo President Shuntaro Furukawa has confirmed to shareholders that the company plans to offer more Nintendo Entertainment System (NES) games on its online platform: "At this time, we are unable to provide new information about the future classic hardware, among others, but we plan to provide an extension to the online service currently provided by the Famicom (NES) software, as well as other methods. We also recognize that there are opinions that want to play the older titles." In addition to copies of cloud security and the ability to play competitively against other gamers from around the world, Switch Online's 10 million subscribers have access to a retro gaming emulator for the Nintendo Entertainment System (NES). ), two or three new games added every month. Unsurprisingly, many gamers, including ourselves, were wondering when the service would be extended to titles on other retro consoles like the SNES, Nintendo 64, or even GameCube.

Late to emulate

Furukawa's comments show a willingness to add more retro titles in the future, and we'd be very surprised if Nintendo didn't include them at a certain point - if it has a catalog to attract more subscribers, why not use it? But Nintendo has added NES games sparingly, and it seems the team is in no hurry to get more deals on Switch Online. What's interesting about these comments is the suggestion that Nintendo could use "other methods of providing" retro titles, outside of the current NES emulator. Furukawa may refer to the NES Classic Mini or SNES Classic Mini: Old Nintendo consoles are updated with a selection of games preloaded on the hardware. We were hoping for an N64 Classic Mini, and Nintendo may plan to release more of these mini consoles before offering more software to Switch Online subscribers. The ball is in Nintendo's camp, and we just hope we don't have to wait too long.