Topic: The Nintendo Switch Online Subscription Service Thread

Nintendo Switch Online is good only if you want to play online multiplayer. They have a good collection of NES and SNES games, but I think only some nostalgic will try them as some of them have really old graphics and also there are a lot of new games on the market place (we lack only the time to play them all).
On the other hand the service isn’t that expensive.

On Xbox and PS, they have an additional service (paid) that gives you access to dozens of AAA titles which can be downloaded and played. For example, I am using Xbox One and you get three free games a month (no conditions) with the normal Xbox Live subscription and if you opt for Game Pass (the additional paid service), you get access to dozens of games like Red Dead Redemption, BioShock Collection, Halo, Mortal Kombat, etc.

Maybe Nintendo needs to implement something like that? You get the classic games with the normal subscription, but an added cost could get you access to current games. I have a Switch (someone sent it to me), but I'm debating whether I want to hook it up or not. About the only games I would want to play today would be the Starfox series (I guess only SNES 1 & 2 are available) and Mario Kart. Given the unreal demand for these consoles, I'm torn between just selling it to someone (at the MSRP - not going to try and rip people off) or play around with it. My daughter has the Lite version, but I'm not sure if she would want to play together, etc.

I've been playing A Link To The Past these past few weeks. Over the years I think I've started a playthrough over 10 times now, but his will be the first time that I'm actually able to finish it. I must admit that I probably wouldn't have been able to do so without internet guides and the rewind function.

One annoying thing: I am missing one heart piece. I've double checked all locations, but I can't figure out which one I've missed I'm 99% percent sure that I've picked up the 'random' ones. The treasure field I did at the end when I was completing the hearts and the chest game I played again ~60 times just to be sure. (even though I'm quite positive that I already picked up the right chest in the beginning of the game).

@toiletduck
It's such an awesome game, and I've been playing back through it slowly (I'm in the dark world water dungeon right now). Close second favorite Zelda right after Ocarina for me. I still have my SUPER old game guide from the 90s - it's in rough shape, but yea, it's been so long that I'll definitely need to use it to get all the heart pieces.

I've been finding it kind of amusing how I've been so used to contemporary "open world" games that every time I open the world map I'm looking for more icons: heart pieces I've found, symbols for shops, etc. lol It's like I've been trained to expect those things, but it's refreshing to go back to a game that gives you relatively little on your map.

@rallydefault yeah I totally recognize that! I've been wanting to put marks on my map all the time, lol!

I may pick up OOT on my 3DS next. Haven't played that machine in a while and I've never really tried OOT. I've never played it in the old days and now I have a hard time getting used to the static camera in 3D. I guess I'll get over that after a few hours so who knows...

@Ninfan I just expect them to raise the price over time, just like other gaming companies have. There is no reason to charge for the privilege of having your console connect to your internet connection. The fact that we have accepted this as normal is troubling, but nothing new.

@DonnyH you were saying in you comments about PlayStation and Xbox giving games for free with there online service. Do Sony give free ps1games and do Xbox give away any original Xbox games.

@BlueGhost I think we're paying to use Nintendo's servers. I think a server is around a 10 story building. 20 euro a year is a good price to use them.

@Ninfan

The way it works is this - X Box Live gives you three free games a month (you do not get to choose, it's just whatever they provide). Additionally, with their Game Pass service, you get access to tons of games and that does include several original X Box titles. Playstation offers a similar service as well where you get a few free games per month and then you can also pay for their Playstation Now service which gives you access to tons of games including older PS1 titles, etc. You pay extra for both services on top of the usual monthly membership, but it's worth it in my opinion.

@DonnyH i have PS4 but i never got into it much. did you say that they give ps1 games sometimes , does that mean i can get PS1 game as digital download , but not in software form?

It will be in software form and will be a digital download.

@Ninfan Use them for what? The vast majority of online games are peer-to-peer, meaning you are connected to other consoles and not going through a server. Large scale games, like MMOs, use servers, but the majority of games with 8 or less players at a time are P2P.
@Blueghost pretty well nailed it here, we're paying for the privilege of connecting the system to the internet (plus whatever extra 'features' are provided, like Tetris99 or the NES/SNES or whatever the other 2 give like free games and whatnot).

@La-weejee Sorry I ment to say can I get them digital download on PS5

@Cotillion Knowing Nintendo's typical MO, they're charging us roughly what MicroSoft is charging them for the backbone services and infrastructure, plus a profit margin factored across their expected number of users.

That said, I am disappointed with the slow development of the infrastructure. Nintendo has been behind the curve on web-integration since GCN days, and, though I appreciate the approach of offering a library of games available for subscribers, the inconsistency of releases and generational restrictions is disappointing.

XBOX & Playstation, despite the quality of their 'free' games, are consistent on a monthly basis of providing new content and recency of their titles. Both companies are providing games up to 2 generations back, on their service.

Nintendo's hap-hazard approach to releases, and lack of more recent support (N64, GCN, GB, GBA, etc.) when they have a much richer backlog of platforms than their competitors AND proven porting ability as witnessed via previous virtual consoles is very disappointing. That said, at $20/year it's no enough for me to throw a hissy fit over, just leave a sour taste in my mouth.

I'm sure having a curated Nintendo handheld and console catalog via the service alone would warrant a tier-upgrade for most people ($30-50/year?).

I have been torn about getting Game Pass. It really looks like an awesome deal. Problem is that I really cannot play it much by family uses that TV. I just got an iPad and Apple Arcade is only $5 a month. I don’t care for tablet gaming, but that is so cheap and might at least serve as a way to sample games before I take the plunge on the Switch. Same deal with Game Pass.

IMO, Nintendo should explore offering more games with a few developers, even make some of their own games like they have on 3ds like Pocket Jockey, Rusty’s Baseball, Tank Game, Street Pass etc. and charge a bit more.

I need a little help. I've been google searching forever about the Family plan. I bought a second Switch for my sister's house. I created a 2nd individual account for that Switch and I want to invite that account as a family member on my main account so they can get online features. There's kids there and I have to create a user on the second Switch for each one. Will additional users be able to use the online features like cloud saves and multiplayer? Does each user need to be linked to a Nintendo account? I'm confused, Thank you!

I subscribe to Nintendo Online for Tetris 99.

I just wanna say I'm so pumped for Donkey Kong Country finally coming to Online. I even got the SNES controller from the Nintendo store (finally in stock!)

@Loonatic You'll need to make a family group and add those you wish to add to it. Each one needs a Nintendo Account, as well. After you make a family group, it's only a matter of knowing the person's email associated with with their Nintendo Account, then adding it. They will have to watch for an email from Nintendo though, so they can get in your family group. You can do all that on Nintendo's website.

Once you get a family membership, everyone in your family group, including you, will indeed have access to the online multiplayer and cloud saves. Hope this helped.

I'd like Nintendo to add cheats to the NES and SNES games. But the cheats would only be used to improve the quality of life for the player by making the games better, fairer and more enjoyable than they were originally. Those games that are already fair and enjoyable won't receive many cheats whereas known bad games will receive a lot. You don't need an artificial increase of lives in Donkey Kong Country, so you won't get any, but the Rock Monsters in the Stop N Go Station stage are annoying, so there would be a cheat to make them asleep longer.

And no, save states and rewinding a game doesn't always improve the quality, fairness and enjoyability of a game which is why I think these cheats should be added. But again, its only for the games that need them without breaking the game or making it way too easy. Not for the games that don't need them. Because harsh health, time limits, limited ammo, lives and continues are just not fun.

Who knows, with the cheats added, a frustrating bad game could turn into an genuinely good game.