Poll: Is The Nintendo Switch Online Expansion Pack Good Enough Value Yet?

If there was an option to buy it for a month ill consider but its a hard sell for me, but at least its getting a little better.

I'm going to still say no for us. I have to pay $80 because of the family plan and it's not worth it to me. I want to play some of those games on just my account but Nintendo won't let me just buy it for my account.

Haven’t signed up but considering. What’s actually holding me back is that I am already worrying about loosing access to all these games at some point in the future. I’d feel like I’d have to play them now so I don’t have to rush.

I don’t play online, prefer to buy DLC and not exactly hankering for the controllers, so the Retro Library is the only thing drawing me to it.

As much as old me would have rejected the option in the past, I am slowly looking more towards Everdrives.

I think it’s worth it if you’re a dedicated Nintendo fan since it’s primarily Nintendo’s own content that’s going to be used to incentivise people. However, piling random DLC onto it just isn’t attractive to me. Do you still need to make initial full priced purchase of the base game to even run it? Why not make a big Nintendo or third party game free for a month?

The expansion offers great value in its first year. Problem is once it gets to the point of renewal you’re essentially paying for access to a retro game library that you’ve already played to death. Sure there’s expansions for mario kart and animal crossing but again not everyone will have those specific games (although granted they sold a metric sh*t ton).
Problem would be solved by adding more consoles to the vc proposition at least one new console a year would do it

I don't even subscribe to the subscription, never mind the expansion pack.

It's way too expensive for what it is. If they made it cheaper or in some way added something huge to make the value better I'd get it

It’s good value for me. I separately bought the AC dlc but I’ve enjoyed the Mario kart courses and getting them part of the expansion pack. I’ve only ever played Mario 64 on a real N64, so the other library of N64 games there is worth it for me. The Megadrive collection is an afterthought, but a couple of games I’ve not got elsewhere help.

I’d really like to see Nintendo committing to adding GB/GBC/GBA games to the service, launching / with a good selection of games for each machine - and then maintaining it.

The newly added extra 5% bonus discount in gold coins helps to sell the service to me.

But it’s not there for me yet and I haven’t therefore bought it. Because the service is a bit messy in my opinion. I just have the normal NSO for cloud saving. For the expansion pack: Yes, you get to play a bunch of games but if you wait you get to play even more games for the same price. So I’m just waiting.

In my opinion: They should just throw in a lot more dlc stuff. Make it like game pass (games day 1) but just for all the dlc of Nintendo games (dlc when they release). Its clear what the service is for and Nintendo might sell more games that way.

I think it's extremely overpriced for what it is. I won't do it again.

I want them to add Gamecube games. Why isn't that an option in the poll?

When we had the Wii U VC we said why pay for all those games again. put them in a subscription. Now we say the selection of games is limited let us buy the games we want... Or we can do it like Sony that announces that you can either subscribe or buy the games without releasing any...

I don't think I will renew next month but mostly because I don't have time to play online atm. It seems like they stopped putting new games, excluding n64 games, I would love if they introduced more systems since they ran out of n64 games.

I’d be much happier with Nintendo Switch online if I weren’t paying for P2P servers. Splatoon 3 and Smash’s online reliability is laughable.

Considering that the Animal Crossing , Splatoon 2 and Mario Kart 8 Dx DLCs are tied to the subscription (you will not be able to play them in case you downgrade your subscription or cancel it), I still think this expansion is overpriced.

With a family plan, where we each chip in, its a great deal and I have no complaints.
Especially because of the Mario Kart booster course pass. I do hope for the GBA, though.

Basically, I understand why individuals would feel very wary about the price, but in a family plan its great, and a bargain.

It needs all Nintendo game libraries up to GameCube and gba, and they either need to make more dlc to put on the service (2-3 a year at least) or they need to put all dlc from before in the deal like smash bros and xenoblades dlc. Forgot to mention the game release speed needs to be upped drastically, it’s far too slow right now.

Purchase-able titles instead of subscription only. I've bought many of these games multiple times. If there was a chance to do so again and have ONE complete Nintendo system (or very close to it) I would buy them all over again. Till that day comes, my 3ds will be have a cherished spot in my backpack.

I wish I hadn't got the expansion I hardly play it. I've played them all before anyway I don't know what I was thinking. I'd love dk64 that would be nice on the go.

@Kanbolara universally accepted Nintendo is going to sell those piece meal in remastered $60 packages. But here’s an obscure NES game.

The subscription is still mostly a joke but I do like how it has approached DLC (giving the option between buying DLC and subscribing to the Expansion Pack). So what I'd like the most in the future is more DLC where you can choose to buy or subscribe and the ability to buy retro games individually without needing to subscribe.

The DLC inclusion is weird to me, since a) you have the option to buy it permanently, and b) it's worthless if you don't have the corresponding game. So to me, it's an about the N64 and Genesis games, and $50/year on top of the regular subscription isn't justified.

@Munchlax Each NES game would cost £5, each SNES and Genesis game would cost £8 and each N64 game would cost £10.

If you want more than three or four newly added games every year then the expansion pack is worth it.

Honestly it's the DLCs that are making it for me. I want to own a lot of these, but I love the idea of trying things I may not normally buy originally.

Even the way Nintendo allows the new Mario Kart tracks to be played online for free is pretty pro-consumer, by not segregating half the player base into different lobbies.

At its full price? No.

Splitting the cost with others via the family plan? Worth it for MK8D tracks and online.

Otherwise, the offerings are still disappointing.

More N64 games. And please give us GameCube games, and I would finally buy it.

Not good enough. Plenty of room for improvement.

I’m considering starting a family plan with my best friend so we can play the original Mario Party games together. However, other than this, I still can’t justify paying for the service. I really do want to play the N64 games but $50 a year is just a bit too expensive.

I want to buy a few games and not sign up to the whole thing. I already have too many "pay monthly" subscriptions.

Not subscribing until I get an N64 controller, which likely means never.

I’d like to see some more filter options, in particular the SNES games getting a smoothing (just use the same as the scan line but remove the lines like the SNES Mini hack allows).

But once goldeneye comes out I will buy it and I’ll finally be able to use my N64 controller!

Add GB/GBC/GBA and some GCN games, then we'll talk.

Na. There's still nothing about it that's personally compelling for me. And I don't think it would take adding games or DLC or standard fare like that, but it would have to be something so unique that would make me want to subscribe.

I think its good value, if you're actually going to play the dlc packs included. I don't have splatoon 2, ACNH, or MK8DX, so for me its not worth buying. If they add one or two dlcs that I actually want, then i'll probably get it. Gameboy/GBA would be cool as well, I'd love to play some of the older pokemon games, but I think at least gameboy should be available without expansion pack.

It's hard to justify paying extra money for a service that frankly works better on third-party emulators. Nintendo has previously proven that they do have the resources to provide an emulator that does improve the game's quality outside of frame rate (looking at 3D All-Stars), but they are min-maxing the heck out of everything.

The DLC idea was cool in theory, but it hinges on that same mentality if renting vs buying games where you may be the type of person who wants to own it just in case if the random scenario that you do want to play it, or rent it because you know you won't revisit it.

I dont like subscription services. I prefer to own stuff. its like renting a game, u need to play it thru asap, I prefer to decide myself when I wanna play it, can be today or in a year...

"Let us know in the polls below, and leave a comment with your thoughts. You know, if you like."

(note: suggestion of a different version of this part of this article)

You could let us know in the polls section and the comments section below.

Saturn, Dreamcast and GameCube games please 😎

I pay for my entire family pass for 8 members. Most are under 20 years of age and show no interest in what the expansion pass offers in terms of slow drip games and dlc they already own. I am happy to pay for gamepass sub for myself as it offers way more than Nintendo are willing to give (even though it's more expensive I know). I just treat Nintendo online as something they have carelessly thrown out and, if they don't care enough to chase customers, I am content with what I have on switch without forking out their silly price point for such a lacklustre service.

@Fizza Similar experience but I have been able to play some but many I never had (family only had about 10 N64 games growing up). So having the opportunity to play pokemon puzzle league, kirby, winback, and of course go back and re-enjoy the zelda and mario games. So much fun.

Haven't played yet but also super pumped to play pilot wings.

I don't think it's bad value at all but as was already pointed out in earlier comments: the value greatly decreases after the first year. The updates to the service are just way too slow for that

As an online service I'd like to see them add an online feature so I can play games online without getting disconnected. (Also I'm using ethernet and really fast download/upload speeds but still get lag only on switch not pc) I liked the nes/snes games from the beginning even though we can't own them for life they are a good selection

I'm waiting until Mario Party 3 before I try this.

Easy no for me, NSO+ isn't worth it. Apart from a few games, the N64 library means nothing to me (I grew up in the GC/PS2 era so I have little fondness & nostalgia for those games). Pretty much the same goes for Sega Genesis. I don't have Animal Crossing/Splatoon 2/MK8 so I receive no value from those DLCs.

The service will finally feel like it has value to me once it adds a new console and I don't mind waiting until that day comes. GB/GBA and/or GC would strongly justify a purchase once they are added.

Not even close to justify the price

I was really enjoying the first several months of the Expansion Pass. Paper Mario, Banjo-Kazooie, Majora's Mask, and Kirby 64 were all worthwhile additions. But since like June, none of the games have really done anything for me. It's pretty much just been sports and puzzle games, which I don't find that exciting. I'm somewhat looking forward to Mario Party, but like...where's Smash Bros.? It's the most glaring omission so far. Also, Banjo-Tooie and Diddy Kong Racing. As far as SNES games go, there's still no sign of Super Mario RPG.

So yeah, it's time for me to renew my plan, but I'm not as enthusiastic about it as I was in previous years. I'm very excited about the continued Mario Kart 8 DLC, but that's about it. I really think Nintendo should have given us Game Boy titles this year--that would've made me content for the next year. But alas, they didn't do that.

I'm really hoping we eventually get GameCube and even Wii games as part or the service. But at the rate they're going, that probably won't happen till like 2027. I think there's a good chance the Splatoon 3 expansion will be included at no extra cost, which is good. But we need more.

Still not worth it.

But ask again after Goldeneye is added.

2023: GB/GBA games
2024: GameCube games
Make it happen, Nintendo, otherwise I will cancel my subscription

not at all, no nostalgia or urge to play a handful of 64 games at that price. and id rather buy any DLC benefits up front

I have cancelled my subscription so I guess that's my judgement on the service. But really I have 100+ games on my Switch as it is so I really don't have any time to play old games. If I can't find time for ALTTP or SMW there's no hope of me playing N64 games

It just needs way more classic content. I doubt GameCube will happen, but Game Boy / GBC / GBA? Those should definitely be on there. I'd take Virtual Boy as well, please. For Sega, Master System, Game Gear and Saturn would be fun. DS, maybe next generation.

Compared to other subscription services, its really not at all attractive. While it will likely fade with time, I'm finding the upgraded PS+ to be overwhelmingly good value right now.

If you could sub for a month or two, the answer would be yes. At this point, the value has dried up, as there’s nearly nothing new being added.

The service needs bigger and more frequent content drops. A new «rom» game per month and some Mario kart courses every 4 months is as dry as it gets.

@Vil Agreed! GameCube games are a long shot. We’ve never had GC Virtual Console games. Just ports.

And the controls don’t map. They would have to require everyone to use GC controllers. Super Mario Sunshine had to modified just to get the control scheme to work with Switch.

Maybe they can design Switch 2 to be more GameCube compatible.

After 2 generations of virtual console, I'm not sure I'll ever like nso games. And that's why I'll be pleased to never give them money for the expansion.

@Vil And also right on GB/GBC/GBA. The Switch in handheld mode is a giant GBA. Why wouldn’t they want to leverage that???

I know they were celebrating Mario’s anniversary, but we didn’t get any console added that year. Should have been GB/GBC and/or GBA.

I don’t like the DLC so much as I want to own it anyway. I purchased Splatoon DLC before it was available on the service. I could see myself playing both ACNH and MK8D dlc for years and don’t want it tied to the service. As for the other stuff- I am not big on retro gaming so much. It might get more interesting with GameCube

Hard pass. There was barely enough value on the basic plan, the idea that we should pay $30 on too really rubbed me the wrong way. I’ll hopefully get a steam deck one day and run emulators for all the games I already own on 3ds and Wii U virtual console.

I’d be happy to pay Nintendo again, but this model that is both expensive and lacks any actual ownership ain’t it.

@Tandy255 Exactly. I'd rather have an official GameCube Mini that is built for them.

...I would give anything for a GameCube Mini. Anything.

NSO and the Expansion are only good value if you want everything they offer. If you only want parts they are very difficult to justify.

Personally I am still reeling from having pay just to play 2 games that I bought at retail online. I have no interest in playing SNES games that I played 30 years ago, so even the base service feels like a rip off to me.

Having a Steam Deck has further highlighted how far off the mark Nintendo are; Free online, free cloud saves, 14 day right to a refund on downloaded games, security of your games library into the future, the list goes on...

Only if they had an option to purchase the expansion pack WITHOUT all the dlc’s and at a reasonable price then I might consider getting it.

Purchased the expansion pass recently after hearing about the Mario Parties and Pokémon Stadiums coming to the service. Just one problem…you can’t use GameCube controllers.

The Z button is mapped to the one button pro controllers have but GameCube controllers do not - ZL. And since you can’t change the button mapping in game you’re pretty much sunk (still not sure how to do it systemwide but apparently even then the remap can be ignored by software).

I’ll sign up for this once I’m able to buy an N64 controller for MSRP, and not a moment sooner. Get your act together, Nintendo!

Every console on the service could use a bit more Konami/Hudson Soft love. Some Goemon and Bomberman games on the service could go a long way; Bomberman especially killed in on the N64 so it's a crime his 64-bit outings are still a no-show.

Not having Kirby's Dream Buffet come with the service was a huge missed opportunity, and the online scene for that game (most of the game really) died within weeks.

We need more consoles ASAP and I'm not just talkin GB/GB Color
but also GameCube,Wii,Dreamcast,and full modern games even if it's just indies or triple A support because in a world where Gamepass Ultimate exists this is unacceptable.

Add an option to get rid of that hideous UI, and then maybe

If there was an option to drop the mega drive app in favor of a Gameboy one it would be A1

I'm still hoping, albeit unrealisticly, for gamecube games.

I’m in a “family of 8” so we all just pay $10 a year. At that price it’s worth it to play N64 games and get free dlc

I still don’t feel compelled to buy it. Plenty of games out there (and in my backlog) that I just haven’t felt compelled to pay the extra price yet. Maybe someday.

I have the normal sub as a family plan, mainly for online features in ACNH, Pokemon Sword and Smash Ultimate. Will get the plus for a year when I have the time to dive into the extra content of the ACNH DLC and some of the N64 games. I have been enjoying the NES and SNES library as a bonus to the online services, but to stay permanently subscribed for the N64 libraries doesn't make sense to me.

@rockodoodle This was my thought process too. I play Mario Kart so often that I’m going to want those tracks forever, not just while I pay to play them. So in that respect, the expansion actually has less value to me since I’d be paying for access to DLC I already own.

I have a split family account of 7 people and at that point, its definitely worth it, especially since I missed playing Octo-Expansion and went back to play it through subscription.

But still, at the $65/year price, Nintendo can afford offering modern Switch games to the service.

With the DLCs it is much better. I dont care about retro games maybe besides a few N64 games

Gamecube please

Still waiting for the day when you don't pay twice for internet. Not interested in any of the other "benefits", the glorified rentals that they are.

It needs more retro consoles, to be nearing the point where a Switch successor is likely to be announced and not have Gamecube or Gameboy series titles included is maddening. I can accept Wii or xDS games not appearing as it has physical restraints but they should ahve rounded out the service by now. Maybe a few Saturn and Dreamcast games too but I accept that could be more difficult.

There was nothing wrong with the amazing Wii U Virtual Console library/store (in fact it was excellent) and that should have continued on Switch with existing purchases carried over. Nintendo have been borderline criminal in how it's made us pay, pay, repay, and then subscribe for it's retro collections. Probably displays Nintendo at their absolutely worst, and the expansion concept is frankly the biggest insult yet. I'm not even on the base NSO anymore, and I'm not missing it.

Would like to see the service change. Would like to see dlc for modern games, and old games that has gone through a makeover.

It really needs to just release Gameboy and GBA titles already. Gamecube too. Like that's really what I'm dying to play rather than SNES games I've multiple ways to play already and N64 is good but well it never a deep catalogue

I love the easy access to N64 games and the Mario Kart DLC, but its value is becoming increasingly questionable.

No! I’ll buy this when it’s a Disney+ style service with at least every 1st party Nintendo game that’s more than 10 years old, and a huge collection of 3rd party classics.

It’s not that they can’t, it’s just that they insist on taking their ‘consumers’ for idiots with this slow drip of releases. They probably think they should try to keep us interested for a longer time, but a service like this is completely useless if it offers Clu Clu Land but not Final Fantasy 5.

I’d even be happy to pay a little bit more for a yearly subscription.

I don't like the rental-only concept. I wish that, like Game Pass, you could also buy the games you most like.

That being said, I've spent hundreds of hours across the NES, SNES, Genesis, and N64 apps, discovered several new favorites, and finally 100% completed many old favorites. So, as they say, I've certainly "gotten my money's worth."

I’m still waiting for Rare games, GCN and Wii games, also DLCs, events and more. Compared to what Microsoft and Sony have been offering for years, Nintendo service feels like as scarce

The DLC access makes it worth a mint.

@Fizza

Exactly. This doesn't get said enough, but the value of NSO isn't necessarily nostalgia, it's easy access to games that, in many cases, are entirely new to me. Sure, it was great to replay Ocarina of Time (three times!) but the real enjoyment came from those first-time playthroughs: Beyond Oasis, Sin & Punishment, A Link to the Past, Zelda 1986, Mario 3, Kirby's Adventure, Wave Race 64, Alien Soldier... All of these are among my favorite games now.

My renew is due. But I give it and the normal service a little bit of a break. At least until Mario kart wave 3 and Mario party

It is still just a rental. There is nothing cheap in it. And you don´t save any money on DLC.

It is a rental. If you stop paying, it is all gone. Instantly. The DLC is not free as you pay each month for it and depending on the amount of stuff you actually use you may pay even more than a real buy of the DLC would have cost you.

If the service is gone. Everything will be gone, because you own nothing. It is a time limited rental.

What I hope for this service:

• TurboGrafx-16/PC Engine - Nintendo Switch Online for Expansion Pack subscribers
• includes DLC for TETRIS 99, Luigi’s Mansion 3, PAC-MAN 99, and Splatoon 3
• Game Boy | Game Boy Color - Nintendo Switch Online for Base NSO subscribers
• Game Boy Advance - Nintendo Switch Online
  for Base NSO subscribers
• Nintendo GameCube - Nintendo Switch Online for Expansion Pack subscribers

would leave a list of games: but that made this too long to be posted all at once; so I opted for a Twitlonger instead:
http://www.twitlonger.com/show/n_1ss5n23

As someone mentioned, it's just too expensive if you've got the family plan. My wife just wants to play Splatoon with me, she's zero interest in playing any of the virtual console games

There's a metric ton of games still unreleased, and believe it or not, I'm most concerned about NES and SNES. I couldn't possibly name out all the games that "could" or "should" come, but I can mention a few I'm surprised haven't been added (with consideration to some of already surprising games like Journey to Silius and Vice Project Doom)

NES
StarTropics II: Zoda's Revenge
Golf (must be related to Iwata that it's not already there)
Powerblade I
Powerblade II
Shatterhand
Adventures of Bayou Billy
Kung Fu
The Guardian Legend
The Battle of Olympus

SNES
Lagoon
Lufia and the Fortress of Doom
Lufia II: Rise of the Sinistrals
Soul Blazer
Illusion of Gaia
Terranigma (please?)
Secret of Evermore (SE, do what you must, please, Square USA or not, it's still your game)

N64
Mega Man 64
Hybrid Heaven
Mischief Makers

Just a sample of games, but I'd like to see more effort for NES and SNES. Rare surprises are welcome too. Lastly, I have zero issues with GB/GBA games releasing.

I don't see the price as an issue at all. It's a cheap service compared to every other subscription service we all have going out every month.

I don't understand the frustration at the content release either. I disagree with this idea that Nintendo should release dozens of games at the same time. Perhaps this is a generational thing, but I do not want 50 N64 games at the same time. I can see the frustration of not getting a game you want... and I see the frustration of not knowing what game is coming up... but seriously? This is coming from the same people that spend £100s on loot boxes that also don't give you what you want when you want it!

I like the mystery and surprise of what will come next. Banjo Kazooie was a great surprise. GoldenEye, though a terribly kept secret lol, was a great surprise.

Anyway, it keeps getting better every month, so simply join when you feel the offer is right. Or, join for 3 months, play it all, and then wait another year for your next batch?!

I do this with my TV now. I get BT Sport when the champions league starts. I toss it out when it stops. I get Netflix when a series I want to watch comes out. Then I cancel it and wait until something else.

There is no need to get things day one anymore. Banjo Kazooie 6 months ago or Banjo Kazooie in 6 months time. Who cares?! Get it when you're ready.

50 N64 games all at once. We all know you'll play each one for about 10 minutes and that's all you'll do. This model means we actually play the games properly - or at least I am. I played Pilotwings for 8 hours. If it released alongside a load of other N64 games there's no way I'd have done that.

I finally took the plunge this week, purely for Wave Race and Pilotwings.
I wish I could get a refund on the MK booster pack as I’ve kinda paid twice 🤦‍♂️
Still though, I think it’s OK value. This becomes a definite with the family plan!

Maybe if they had a matchmaker for those multiplayer games.

For me no, still not worth it.
If the library grew faster (nes, snes, n64, sega and gameboy (all versions) then yes.

Already got it and had beat every games on it now (NES, Super NES, Sega Genesis, and N64). They really need to ramp up more games for all platforms and need to add more platforms to the service: Turbo Grafx-16, SMS, Sega Dreamcast, Sega Saturn, MSX, Game Boy, GBC, GBA, GameCube, and Atari 2600 would be nice. Also add the ability to purchase these games as an option would be great too.

@Eagly The Switch can run Mario Sunshine, but they had to modify it to get the controls to work.

I go half-and-half on it with someone and I think it's worth $40 but if I were doing it solo there's zero chance I'd spend the full amount on it.

The ability to buy games on the classic games apps ala Virtual Console and not need to subscribe.

GameCube games will continue to be remasters and ports (🤞Chibi-Robo!)

Even the long rumored Metroid Prime port will probably be the Wii version of the game.

The Expansion has value but it’s overpriced. I just paid $180 for 3 years of Gamepass which has immense value. The slow drip release of games isn’t very enticing. The MK8 tracks are a nice add but overall there’s just not enough overall value, not to mention the online multiplayer aspect is near non existent. The retro games are great but that wears off quickly. As of right now I can’t justify renewing it for next year.

@Dr_Luigi

Did u manage to renew your Gamepass for the 3 year max?

I want a TRUE ONLINE SERVICE. I don´t care about "gba games", "snes games", n64 games" and any games.

I really care about ONLINE QUALITY while i play my games online.

Steam >>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>> NSO (and it´s free!!!)

Nintendo could be like that: (Since your online is P2P, like the old Dreamcast)

• ONLY play online = FREE
• Play online + SNES + NES games? = Put a price $
• Play online + N64 or whatever more = Put a price $$

observation: Dreamcast online was free.

@belmont

"I don't think I will renew next month but mostly because I don't have time to play online atm."

"atm."?

It’s worth it if you need the DLC, however I like all those games and would rather own the dlc

I am stuck contemplating upgrading my subscription for 007 and getting as much fun out of the N64 library as I can for a year before going back to the basic plan. It’s really lame that Xbox players get to own this game, while we’re stuck renting it in perpetuity. Am I to reward that?

I don’t know how many titles/consoles would have to be added before I see the extra price as reasonable, but I couldn’t care less about the free access DLC. If I like the base game, it’s worth it to me too spend the $20 bucks to own the bonus material. I already have the Splatoon 2/Mario Kart/Animal Crossing DLC, so these perks add no value for me.

Honestly the expansion pack is not really worth it. For me the N64 games are nearly unplayable due to the inability to remap the controls, and it isn't worth fighting to purchase a special controller to play them. The library adds are mostly things that do not appeal nor are they at a rate worth the cost. The DLC is nice if you are purchasing every Nintendo release, but Animal Crossing is the only one I have been able to use (and it really wasn't that great).

Anyone who voted anything better than pityful is a drone.

just don't make it a requirement to play online

I subbed to NSO after my PS Plus expired, and Sony put the price up. As I'm mainly gaming portable these days, and really enjoy retro games, the NSO was the better option for me at the moment.

I use all the retro collections a fair bit, and realised half the time with PlayStation, if there was a big game I wanted to play, I'd probably already bought it. As I own a Lite and OLED, the cloud saves are also really handy, though they should probably be available without a sub, really. I also think the retro games should be availble for purchase as an option.

@KevynOnVideo xbox gamers are getting the best deal regardless. Nintendo's online multiplayer is awful. It's shocking to think just how superior Wii U was online.

I think the service is pretty good so far but would like to see them add full multiplayer/online Switch games to the service now. The Switch Mario Tennis, Golf, Strikers & Party games would be a great start. That Kirby fall-guys type game also. I dont really get why those games are still being pushed as full stand-alone releases

Not enough systems to be worth the money, especially not enough home consoles. Really needs GC and maybe even Wii to really be worth it (and yes I know that probably won't happen this gen, but that's where we need to be for this price point to be worth it).

I have 4 dependents in my family account, so for all 5 of us to have access for a year, I would say the $85 is worth it.

It does make me sad to think my daughters, say 5-6 years from now, might want to go back to their Happy Home creations in ACNH. Who knows if the service will even exist then? There could be a Thanos snap that disintegrates all that playtime.

I truly hope there is a seamless continuity with the Switch successor, so the current Switch model lives on somewhat in the next gen.

The ability to buy individual games cause I really don't want all the crap.

For the annual price of £34.99 I get to play all my favourite games from my childhood, AND more are coming in the future. I know it's not for everyone, but it was great value for me from day one, as I was too young for the NES and SNES, and getting those in addition to N64 and Megadrive has been a blast!

Really my main complaint is the same its been before and that is there is no option to buy the games.

With things like the dlc you can purchase them on their own but unfortunately cannot do the same with the retro games.

Not worth it at all. N64 games and genesis are maybe only worth a ten dollar increase from the base package. And the DLC’s look like a good offering on the surface, but they fall flat. They do this for two reasons:

1. They are essentially rentals. In total, each DLC offered is $70 combined if bought separately. But you have these forever, and can play them whenever you would like. With the expansion pack, you pay just ten dollars less, for essentially a one year rental of them. And that price will quickly rise after a few years of the service.

2. You need to own all the games that offer DLC. If you don’t then you are paying money for content that you can’t use. For example, I don’t own splatoon 2. So the Octo expansion is worthless to me. But I still have to pay the same price as everyone else does, even though I can’t use some of the content. Now imagine if you didn’t own Animal crossing, Splatoon 2, and Mario Kart. You would be paying a premium price for a drip feed of N64 games, because the price is artificially increased from DLC.

It's worth to me at $50, considering everything you get.

As for additional content, definitely some more N64 games such the rest of Rare's titles. They should definitely add the Gameboy family too.

May bite when Pokemon Stadium games drop just because of memories with online multiplayer there. DK64 may also persuade me for similar reason. Would definitely bite if Smash64 or GameCube games dropped. I still have my Wii hooked up and have several games from N64 and other consoles there via virtual console — you know, from when we could buy them from Nintendo to keep.

I got mine free by stacking 3 years of NSO (for science). Once the year runs out I’m going to see if I can do it again by topping off my regular NSO as it currently doesn’t mention it again when I look at my account. So far I’m enjoying some Sega Genesis games that I’d never have played unless I forked out the cash for physical or hooked up my mini.

@Mario500 At the moment!

Idk..I signed up for a year....I think it's expired by now but I doubt I'll re-subscribe. I already own the full North American N64 library on cartridge. I have no real need for the service anyway and most of the best games for the console are on Xbox now (or will be aka GoldenEye).

It's not bad value now....but for someone like me who's game time is relatively limited anyway....I'm good.

The double gold coins convinced me to get it this time. If they put the vouchers back in America's Pak or at least keep this double coins, I would keep renewing for the foreseeable future.

But without means of making part of the upfront cost back, there's not enough content for me yet. I don't play retro games enough for the rental price to be worth it, but if the library was large enough that most of the times I feel like playing a retro game I actually can, then I'm fine paying the $50 rental every year. GB family would make a big difference here.

The DLCs were a nice addition, and could be a "no-brainer" if I wanted the DLC, but only if I was convinced I would keep renewing for other reasons.

Get Gamecube games on there and subscriptions will go through the roof!

Throw in GBC/GBA and maybe even GameCube games (highly doubtful) and I'd be sold.

Since there wasn't an option to say this in the polls I'll say it here: it's still definitely not worth the price. For me, it's not even close.

I really with the old NSO still had good support... seems like ages since we got any NES or SNES games

Wish there were some 64DD games on there too

@jrt87 This is a really good point. I use those vouchers regularly. There must be a link between those saying NSO isn't worth it and buying physical games, because if you buy digital games and you don't have NSO then not using those vouchers is just plain silly.

We're a strange bunch really... collecting our games for some rainy day. I often wonder how many games I will have to play for this fabled day when I retire from work. More than I will have time to play, no doubt!

I would say that the Expansion Pack would have more value if members were the only people who could buy the N64 controllers, allowing them to actually play some of those games. My brother ended up paying a greasy scalper for two of them, and I'm buying one off of him, but it's ridiculous that it even got to this point.

It was always a good deal. It’s literally insane that anyone complains. It’s cheaper than everything else by a mile. Sorry that Mother 3 for virtual boy isn’t included.

Only worth it if you're in a family plan with 7 others, which brings it down to USD$9.99 per person per annum.

Until Nintendo can get their act together and have the n64 controllers for sale. I’ll be keeping my money. It’s not worth paying lousy scalpers. Nintendo’s loss.

I wish someone at Nintendo would read this article and especially the comments. But Nintendo no longer cares about what gamers actually want. They just care about finding “clever” and easy ways to milk gamers out of their money. This expansion pack offers so very little for the price, but yet people subscribe anyway, and because the sales are robust enough, Nintendo does not care to make it more inviting with the things most people want, such as GameBoy/Color/Advance games. Sigh.

Emu? Later. Anne bear Nick.

The Nintendo Switch Online needs dedicated messaging that's not tied to a mobile phone app. I get that in the past, creepy guys were sending child p*rn back with Swap note and miiverse, but it's basically been a decade since. Nintendo needs to double down and get with the times.

The most use I've had with it is with the Mario Kart Booster Pass and popping in for some N64 gaming whenever I'm ignoring my massive backlog. It's a family plan, so the other people in it may be using it more.

I feel any shortcomings I have with the expansion have to do more with my inability to make use of it more due to time constraints than with the service itself. With that in mind, I may need to rethink about renewing next year.

2021- No Ninja Hideaway
2022- Ninja Hideaway
Definitely an improvement 😌

Now bring it back in Tour along with Vancouver Velocity MKT devs!

Also cheaper options would be better

I just want to buy individual games, that are permanently installed on my system. I’ll pay - and quite a lot more than the sub model. I’d easily pay $10+ for Metroid fusion on its own, locked to my system, no internet required. But without any of the key GBA games - why would I bother?

I can play a better version of Mario 64 on the anniversary disc (with galaxy) and Zelda’s I have the lovely remasters on 3DS. Why haven’t these come over instead of the 64 originals?

Sorry forgot to add - no one gives a flying f*** about genesis games that have been emulated on every system I’ve owned for the past decade. These should just be free.

Nope, still a total ripoff to RENT games for $50 a year that can be emulated at higher quality on a toaster.

Hell, NSO isn't even worth it with how bad their online..ahem.."service" is.

Just bring back the vc. I'd buy mario 3 for the 700th time, but I won't pay for it monthly.

The N64 controllers are easy to get if you really want them. I have bought 1 on three seperate occasions (I deliberately didn't buy multiple) and whilst they do sell out the same day, it's not like trying to get a PS5. Set an alert and you will be able to buy one.

Considering the covid impact continues to impact stock, I actually think Nintendo have done a pretty good job with the stock. The challenge with the N64 was always going to be the fact people could want as many as 4 of the controllers. That's a difficult demand to meet even without the impact of covid.

As for all the talk about Gameboy games. If that's what you need in order to get the Expansion, then carry on waiting I guess? It'll come at some point. Again, I don't agree at all with the crazy demands that Nintendo need to launch all their consoles and dozens of games all at once. If Switch and Switch 2 are here for another decade, I'd rather have these additional systems spread out over time.

This reminds me of everyone demanding WW and TP when we have TotK less than a year away. When May comes along and TotK launches, we will begin the long, long, long wait for the next new 3D Zelda. We're talking, likely, 4 or 5 years minimum. I for one am happy to wait and have TP and WW arrive in 2024 and 2025 to help fill that gap.

It's the same with NSO and Expansion. Nintendo is playing a long game with it. It's the right approach.

To me it's worth it. I have four kids and we all have switches, I used Christmas money to buy it, so I didn't really pay for it anyways. But even if I used my own money, it's definitely worth it for the games, DLC and other stuff. To get the DLC for all of us it would be more than the family plan price, hence why I got it.

On Gamepass there are at least ten new games each month. Not 25 year old games but recent games.

Then there are hundreds of titles from Xbox, 360, One and Series X. It allows you to buy one month at a time and while slightly more expensive than the expansion pack, the difference is night and day.

While Goldeneye is the main upcoming attraction for expansion pack, its just one of hundreds of classics we get including most of Rare's back catalogue.

Unless Nintendo bring Gameboy Advance and Gamecube together with a promise to release at least 5 games a month, it's just not approaching the type of value it should offer.

We need Nintendo to stop using the Disney Vault model and to start using the Disney+ model.

The elephant in the room is that there's a low ceiling for how good the N64 offerings can be given that the N64 had arguably the worst library of any Nintendo console. 1 in 6 games was a racing game, and you only need so many of those. Many high profile Nintendo releases already returned on 3DS or SM3D Allstars. Recreating the local 4 player experiences we remember requires $200 of extra controllers that aren't in stock. Sports games don't age well, and that's what a lot of the rest of its third party games were.

There are some highlights, but we're unlikely to get Perfect Dark, Mischief Makers, Space Station Silicon Valley, MK Trilogy, KI Gold, Blast Corps, Tony Hawk, etc.

Funny thing is, if I could buy any of those games, I wouldve been happy to purchase and own.
But as for subscription, for me it really leaves alot to be desired, and just don't find it worth paying.
At least on xbox game pass there are tons of games, old and new, and, you can buy them if you wish!

Add an option to pay a few bucks each to own games that are on the service and I’m cool with it. I like having access to everything they give us-fun trying out games I’ve never played before and all that, and I don’t think the price is too bad, but I’d really like to know that I’ll have my favorite games after the service ends-especially since they sold us these expensive controllers that don’t really have any other use.

@Tandy255 I don't think GCN is going to happen for the NSO. When Nintendo finally remembers GCN games, they will be sold as spruced up remastered versions at a $60 price tag. Nintendo thinks modernizing control schemes and adding widescreen support justifies selling 20-year old games for the same price as modern ones.

I would love a Snes games collection on a physical cartridge.

I don't really care to revisit the N64 outside a few games, and most of the Genesis games I own somewhere else.

So, the Expansion Pack is not a good value to me right now.

When they add Game Boy Advance games, maybe my opinion will change.

NSO as a whole is pretty lackluster. Paying for P2P is pretty much a joke, but at least that's only $20. Asking people to pay the same amount as playstation or Xbox for the expansion pack is ridiculous. With the others, you get online servers which greatly improves the quality of online. You also get free current-gen games as opposed to some 20-25 year old games

2 expensive for what they have on there so far, I’m glad my brother is paying for it instead of me 😀

I cancelled my subscription. Really only waiting for new Zelda & Windwaker. Not even goldeneye will get me to sign up for anything Nintendo. Do better/fair on your pricing seeing how anything we play never belongs to us. Staying physical till all this bu@#s*#t is sorted out 😎

I would never waste my hard earned money on these ancient games. Sure I’ll spend $20 on the minimum, but I don’t see anything worth it. N64 and Sega genesis. Whoopie Doo sounds like a bunch of monkey vomit to me. Give me some game cube games. Give me some game boy advance games. Give me some Variety.

Basically 4 years later and the service is still heavily mediocre, especially compared to the other services.

• Online quality is not improved in the slightest it's just a paywall
• No basic features like messaging, invites, party system, and native voice chat that doesn't require booting up that god awful app
• Most of the "free" virtual console games featured in the service are either ones that have been resold for over a decade or just shovelware that you won't play for more than 5 minutes in a lifetime session. Not to mention the libraries are updated at a snails pace with basically 1 or 2 games every couple months or even more, and even then they aren't worth waiting for.
• Sales and trials aren't frequent nearly enough as the other services. Also the "free" games provided like tetris 99 are way too few and far between some of them just flat out expire after a date like Mario 99. The only notable ones at the top of my head are Tetris 99 and Pacman

Literally the only positive thing about the service is the price and thats been used as a scapegoat to defend this mediocre service for years. The online expansion is $30 extra making it $50 a years for inferior emulation and a even smaller library of games with the same slow rate of updating.

Honestly I would just separate the virtual console games from the online and in turn reduce the yearly cost. The benefits are few and far between and honestly convoluted if we're bringing up the app.
Online has not been improvement in the slightest after all these years and I don't expect it to be anytime soon.

I voted "Not bad", which it is if you play plenty retro titles. I mostly take a passing interest in them.

My main resentment is forced into this subscription model to access retro titles, instead of outright purchasing them. While it might be "$50 per year" for access to dozens of games, you need to keep paying that every year, so it costs $250 for 5 years to play, perhaps, 5 or 10 titles that only interest you. That's a rip off!

Improvements could be be more DLC because, reality is, we play Switch mostly for newer games. Adding more retro titles, while also a good idea, would be of minimal interest so won't really add to the value. It's more a marketing point.

they should make all of the retro games available to all subscribers. and, they should sell virtual console games, too. and as @moistnado said, they should also release compilations of snes games et al. all of the above, at once. I see no conflict.

Short answer: No.

I have had the expansion pass for a year now, it expires in 5 days, and I am going to let it expire. A mediocre list of N64 games is basically all it comes down to, and I got a far better list of N64 games to choose from on my Wii U. They failed to make the N64 controller accessible, they failed to give it any other real incentive, and it's just a joke of a subscription. I honestly just oppose the entire concept of it by now. They will have to make the N64 controller readily available and give it a far better list of games for me to reconsider it.

@6thHorizon Yup, I am moving on to Steam Deck as my primary handheld platform going forward for the most part. Switch still has it's place with me as a more simple handheld that I got a ton of software on, but Nintendo's online services are just a joke.

It's such a slooow sparking drip-feed! I want to play Golden Sun and Luigi's Mansion and Eternal Darkness and Animal Crossing and Rythm Heaven and Wario Ware and Baten Kaitos but at this rate I'd be quicker to buy a retro handheld and just pirate them!
I'm not condoning piracy but I've waited for YEARS now for Switch catch up to the Wii U.

Honestly I don’t even think regular NSO is worth it yet, the online is rarely functional and there are few big games that really even need it.

The expansion pack has become a better value than a year ago, but the pace at which new games are released for N64 is way too slow. I want Donkey Kong 64 and Banjo Tooie!

I really want them to put more DLC. Botw, Xenoblade 2, 3, Luigi’s Mansion, etc. I hadn’t played Octo Expansion until it was added, and I loved it.

The library would be fine if it was about buying games that you get to keep. If they want me to subscribe for the ability to play for as long as I keep adding money, the library would need to be much bigger, with more systems.

Ultimately it's all down to the individuals preference I suppose. If you like playing retro games then of course it is. If you don't then not really. I personally love all things Nintendo so to have the option of playing retro games on the go is a big bonus for me. I do feel they should be adding more games at a quicker rate though. Hopefully the more people support the service the sooner we will have Gameboy/Colour/GBA and Gamecube games added.

With the Steam deck now easily doing emulation so well I am not sure this is worth it anymore as I can't buy these old games and am only really renting them. I'd rather there still be an option to buy them, but I don't think Nintendo is ever going to do it. The roll out of games is very slow too, but I do like the options for the games and their presentation, so I am often conflicted.

Nope. Still not worth it.

I would buy the expansion pack now, but I'd rather wait if they ever announce GameCube or Wii support to the library

I still hate the thought of renting videogames instead of owning so this subscription thing is not appealing to me in any sense. I would maybe consider this if the price for this service was waaaaay less than it is now.
This is still the worst service of all the mayor services out there imo.

Still useless if you don't have any games they have dlc for.

I haven't signed up and I don't really see anything ever happening that could justify paying such a high price every month. I really just want to be able to buy N64 games individually like on every system since the Wii. I don't want to pay a whole bunch of money monthly to keep what I should be able to purchase individually.

Considering the N64 controllers are always sold out and being sold at outrageous prices by scalpers, maybe add an update for controller mapping on the N64 emulator so the N64 games can play smoother with a modern day pro controller 🤷🏻‍♂️

I think that, weirdly enough, a lot of it's value comes from a pretty big flaw in how the system handles dlc licenses. If they'd actually FIX that flaw, it might devalue the higher tier.

The flaw I'm referring to is how you have to "check in" online any time you want to play a game with DLC. If the system can't ping a server to verify you own the DLC every single time you start the associated application, then the DLC doesn't work. This can literally break your saves in some games, it borders on infuriating.

The 'Plus Expansion' DLCs still require the same license check in the background, but it makes a little more sense in some contexts, because it's part of an ONLINE pass, and you don't specifically have to purchase those DLCs outright. It's still annoying, but it seems justified in the case of an online subscription. If they actually fixed the way DLC in general works on the platform, or at least alleviated it to either check in ALL your DLC when the system starts up, or perhaps only require you to check in the DLC every few times/days you access it, that would make it a lot more attractive to just buy things like the Mario Kart pass or the Animal Crossing DLC, and be done with it. But I suspect they may be intentionally keeping it that way so that the +EP method doesn't seem annoying in contrast.

Love it! Its 100% worth it!!

It became worth every penny the moment they added Banjo-Kazooie! All they need to do is add GameCube games, and it will be perfect!