Nintendo has just announced the first batch of SNES and NES games coming to the Switch Online service. All up, we've got a total of four releases.
On SNES, we've got Telenet's 2D action-platformer from 1992, Psycho Dream. This game was also exclusive to the Japanese market. In addition to this, is Doomsday Warrior from the same year and company, and the third is Prehistorik Man - originally released in 1995 and developed by Titus France.
The sole NES offering for this month is Tecmo's Fire 'n Ice - perhaps better known as Soloman's Key 2 (technically a prequel) from 1992. Below is the full rundown about each game, courtesy of the official Nintendo press release:
Super NES
Psycho Dream – When Sayaka doesn’t return to reality after entering an immersive virtual world known as a D-Movie, the protagonists, Ryo and Maria, must progress through a terrifying fantasy game called Legend of the Fallen Capital to rescue her and bring her back to reality.
DOOMSDAY WARRIOR – It’s the Doomsday Warrior versus the Doom Squad! This action game features an evil sorcerer who has recruited seven warriors to take over Earth. But one of the Doom Squad has resisted the influence and now stands against the rest as the Doomsday Warrior!
Prehistorik Man – Sam the caveman’s quest to save his village begins! Sam lives in a village whose food is stolen by dinosaurs. To get more, Sam must collect bones, which he can then use to buy food. On his way, he’ll need to make use of a variety of weapons, vehicles and attacks, including shouting, to attack all on-screen foes. Can Sam reach the dinosaur graveyard and collect enough bones?
NES
Fire ’n Ice – As Dana, you have been chosen by the Queen of the Winter Fairies to bear the power of ice magic. With it, you must defend your home, Coolmint Island, from the wicked wizard Druidle and his flames!
Each of these titles will be released next week on 17th February. To access them, you'll need to have a Nintendo Switch Online membership. In related news, Japan will be receiving Shin Megami Tensei II this month. Learn more about this game in our other post.
You can check out the complete list of games available on Nintendo Switch Online here.
What do you think of this latest batch of SNES and NES Switch Online offerings? Leave a comment down below.
Comments 230
A riveting selection for sure.
I haven't played any of these games before, however, Psycho Dream looks interesting and Prehistorik Man seems like it could be a decent platformer, I'll definitely check them out.
Really glad Nintendo is putting so much effort into giving us more popular first party games on their online service
I supposed SM: RPG doesn't exist then. :')
Well it’s four games I’ve never played, let alone heard of, before.
I see Prehistorik Man, so Nintendo does have access to Interplay's back catalogue!
Why no Earthworm Jim?
I see that NSO is still a joke, cool...
So uhm. Why no Earthbound?
I get that people are disappointed at some of the lack of big names being released on the service of games they have probably played multiple times but I kind of like the releases of obscure games that I may not have tried in the past because when you get recommendations for games it's always the same handful.
Yeesh, I’ve been a somewhat tuned in gamer since the 80s and never heard of any of these. I don’t really mind obscure titles, though.
Just please make sure to give us Zombies Ate My Neighbors soon. 😄
I wonder if the Japanese NSO selections will differ again this time...
@Toy_Link I would like to see Clay fighter as well.
Probably time we get Gameboy games. I dunno if we'll get N64 next but there's at least wide selection of games among the 3 generations of Gameboy that would mean it would be awhile before we get to the forgotten meh titles.
Fire 'n Ice, also known both in Japan and internationally as "Solomon's Key 2".
I got excited for a second thinking that it was "Fire and Ice" which was released on Amiga and SEGA Master System back in the day (I grew up playing the DOS version).
I've wanted to try Fire 'N Ice for a long time. I'm a longtime fan of Solomon's Key, but have yet to ever experience this game.
I'd rather they put their time into developing more unique online games like Tetris 99 rather than porting ancient games with little to no value to anyone outside of a retro gaming niche interest.
I just dont get nintendo. If snes games were available to buy, i would have had half a dozen by now on my switch. Im thankful ive kept my wiiu, have most of them on that, (as well as N64 games, gba, wii etc)
Simpsons Hit & Run is next, or may I be struck by lightning. Come stand next to me under a tree.
I just want Zoda's Revenge: StarTropics II, and the NES and SNES versions of Yoshi's Cookie, it's not like I'm asking for Earthbound or SMB RPG.
@SeantheDon29 my thoughts exactly. They are so cash rich just strike up some decent licensing deals let’s goooo.
I just want Super Mario RPG and Secret of Mana, it's all I ask for
@Caryslan More support for Clay Fighter please!
NINJA APPROVED
They need to hurry up and get the Final Fantasy games on there. Then we'll be in business.
Ufff ... starting 2021 strong ... :/
Fire 'n Ice looks good, and Prehistorik Man looks like it could be all right, but this is still probably the weakest set of games so far. Ah, well.
This is them making a statement.
Maybe by the end of Nintendo's next generation console we'll have gameboy games smh
No Shin Megami Tensei 2 in the West, I see.
Nintendo once again amazing us with their vast library of games...
@BloodNinja Finally, someone else with good taste!
Well I guess no gameboy advance games. Any body got any good ROMs I can use?
Fire & Ice is one of those magical games on the NES that really feel like an SNES game. The music is some of my favorite chiptune jams, and it even has a CUSTOME LEVEL BUILDER. Way ahead of its time.
Whats funny is that I never realized it was a sequel of Solomon's Key until that one popped up on the NSO.
Fantastic game. Everyone should give it a try
Nothing worth renewing my subscription for.
Doomsday Warrior is garbage but the other three are decent titles. May give em a try again.
Again the issue with these is that someone has to be willing to license them. Doesn’t excuse Nintendo properties, but everyone else that thinks their IP has value is not licensing but releasing collections.
@roboshort more than likely won't get released since it never really got an official English translation.
@Malcrash Secret of Mana more than likely will not get released as it is already available for purchase as part of the Collection of Mana.
I recall empty promise quotes like the following, and laugh:
"With this in mind, we are currently planning ways to boost the appeal of the service on a yearly basis... It is very important to our future business and we are giving it our all."
@Zenszulu itd probably be okay if releases were more frequent but it sometimes becomes a things of 'we waited for this?'
Inevitably many of us cant help but both compare to feel disappointed at how much better VC was on the Wii and I genuinely miss the selection on the Wii U. The Switch feels like the perfect console to have had am expansive library of retro games (both in hardware and success.
@SeantheDon29 Clay Fighter is CRIMINALLY underrated, and it should be considered a crime against humanity that there isn't some modern version of it. I wanna see punchy clay physics, gosh darn it!!
NINJA APPROVED
I didn't think Disney would be so much further ahead then nintendo, but here we are. Disney finally wised up and got rid of the awful Disney Vault and came up with a pretty stellar offering of their entire legacy of films.
In a world of streaming services, on demand content, especially on demand content that people are nostalgic for is the best business strategy. That's just where the market is right now.
@Teksetter I thought I was the only one....bless you for asking for ZAMN, my favorite game ever
Would've been less embarrassing if they skipped an update for this month
@DarkScythe13 Amen
@Angelic_Lapras_King i’m assuming we’ll never get N64 if they don’t wanna pay for Goldeneye, Perfect Dark, Banjo, and Tony Hawk.....as well as already have Mario 64 in the All Stars
What are these bro...
This makes the ***** on my internet so worth it.
@DarkScythe13 while I agree the selection and release time frames hasn't been great as for third party games of the bigger release that probably comes from the fact that publishers like Capcom, Konami and Square Enix would rather release their big games now as part of their own collection now or in a one off deal for some plug and play things and mini consoles. So that leaves main Nintendo's own games as the only big release that get released and they have had to find other partners to release games with over time.
Fire n Ice is a fun puzzler. I’ve always wanted to try out Psycho Dream, never got a US release.
@Caryslan I'd love a full clay fighter remake on modern engines
@Darknyht No, the issue is "why do we just have NES and SNES games after all this time"? No reason why Nintendo can't release their first pary GB, N64, GBA, or GC games available at this point even if they have licensing issues with third party stuff.
I wonder if the Japanese NSO selections will differ again this time...
@Teksetter Differ? You mean, something like, getting Shin Megami Tensei, Famicom Wars, or FE: Mystery of the Emblem?
I too appreciate the chance to sample games I've never heard of. Even so, I hope that the lack of Earthbound games, or Game Boy titles, has a good explanation. I once thought that the DKC games were being held back to coincide with a new announcement, but then...
This is a weak selection this time.
Woof, they're really scraping the bottom of the barrel now. All the same, I still don't see why everyone gets upset over this service. It certainly could be MUCH better (I'd love to see some GBA games up) but the existing SNES collection alone justifies the $20 a year for me.
Another month, another round of “I’ve never heard of these games so they obviously suck” complaints.
I like having access to games I've never played and never heard of. The reality is I'll probably not play any of these to completion, but they'll be good to have a go on.
LOL... what is all this crap? I haven't even seen them on rom sites before. I mean... yeah, interesting... but this is kind of the bottom of the barrel.
I like this focus on games that nobody's thought much about in the last 20-30 years. It's like finding new old stuff.
@SwitchVogel I think you're in the minority. $20 a year for a bunch of 30 year old games that could practically run on a calculator isn't generally considered a good deal. Especially when they're games we've played multiple times already. This feels like $5 worth of labor for a $20 price tag.
@GannonBanned The Wii/Wii U had around 20-25 N64 games among them without Rare bar DK64 which they own. There's plenty to stretch out among a year or so before we get to the forgettable stuff new to the service like these offerings.
To Nintendo's credit, it's great to see them add games that never made it to Wii/WiiU/3DS VC. Instead of rebuilding the same old library. But I always thought a subscription service would at least have all the first-party games.
It's like Disney+ not having The Spirit of Mickey, or the recent Spidey films.
I imagine them not doing Earthbound since it was priced higher on VC, it's too valuable in Nintendo's eyes to be released on the service.
We go weeks at a time, even months sometimes without anything added to this service. And this is all we get?
I'm seriously done defending this. I still think it's very cheap but I also now think you get what you pay for! Barely updated and underwhelming!
Nintendo is worse than Disney when it comes to sitting on a back catalogue of wonderful software they could easily re-release and profit off of, and don't.
Maybe they are saving them for the next "Wii U"... Lame.
@AlienX I agree. They gonna do a Mother Collection at some point. Which is fine with me.
@Malcrash SquareEnix isn't going to put that up on the service. They are already selling it as part of the Mana collection for switch
Garbage. Screw you Nintendo. Guess I will just have to give you $60 this Friday for SMW3D + BOWSER'S FURY!!!
@SuperRetro64 Super Mario RPG is not part of the Mana Collection.
Oh dear Lord. This is surely the bottom of the barrel.
@BanjoPickles it's not about having somewhat obscure games. It's about Nintendo having no reason to not just dump most notable games on the platform at no extra cost to them. There's no reason they can't drop hundreds of games, both well known and obscure all at once
@Toy_Link
Earthworm Jim's devs were actually Shiny entertainment. Interplay acquired Shiny for a time, and so their only hand in it was publishing the game. Atari then aquired Shiny in 2002, and then sold it again in 2006 to Foundation 9, where Shiny merged with The Collective to become the studio now known as Double Helix Games.
So anyway, what I'm getting at is that repeated transfer of ownership probably has something to do with why we haven't seen re-releases from the Earthworm Jim series, and why we might not ever see the one that was being developed exclusively for the Amico.
@COVIDberry
(Regarding Japanese NSO releases)
Differ? You mean, something like, getting Shin Megami Tensei, Famicom Wars, or FE: Mystery of the Emblem?
Yes, big-name games like those that land on Japan’s NSO but skip the US/Euro NSO service are precisely why I’m curious (and why I created a Japanese eShop account so I can get).
I love having access to both regions, for while I live in the US, I’m fairly fluent in Japanese and don’t mind the lack of translation.
So when the latest batch of US NSO games underwhelms, I always hold out hope for Japan 😄
I had Prehistorik Man on DSiware. The game was alright. Seemed competent, I think there were some frustrating level design aspects involved, but it’s tough to remember. There were some real technical issues (freezing/crashing/audio glitches) with the DSi version though, alongside some bad hit detection that put me off on it, but I really liked how loose the controls were. Maybe I’ll check it out now that it’s on Switch.
@Teksetter
I've said it many times and I'll say it many more: Zeke/Julie for Smash Bros. I'd love to see a ZAMN stage, there's some great music to pick from, and with the variety of their weapons, their moveset could be really unique. Weed wackers, throwing soda, squirt guns, a trampoline for the UpB
@Zenszulu theres a few considerations here though. Yes granted things have changed. Many media platform's are deadset on ramming the subscriptions down our throats rather than letting us buy what we want. Its also true that many companies would prefer to throw their own compilations onto multiple consoles.
However i dont give Nintendo a free pass on this either. They made very clear themselves that they were in support of the current model and while we cant know for sure, I doubt they had any intentions on approaching or promoting anything better either (whether it was possible to court other companies on it or not), preferring to promote it as is alongside their new online membership scheme.
I try to give credit where credit is due with Nintendo but this appears to be one of those features that are essentially an after thought. As a business decision there may not be sufficient motivation for them to care beyond what theyre currently doing. But it (imo) sucks nevertheless for us gamers and for the gamer experience.
@DarkScythe13 yes such a miss opportunity
Still no Mother/Earthbound games. Mark my words, there is some sort of trilogy release in the works.
By now it seems pretty unlikely ever seeing any high profile non first party titles on this service. Even if there are no other plans in the works for them, Earthworm Jim and Clay Fighter are properties that were big enough that they wouldn’t just add them to a lineup of free to play titles. I don’t know enough about Prehistorik Man to dismiss it outright, but it sure looks like it wasn’t the first thing we needed on a roster that already has Joe & Mac.
There are more NIntendo titles they could mine, but I expect only the most obscure games and nothing featuring licensed characters or basically anything the owners of would prefer to sell, even if they’re not trying to sell it currently.
@Jimsbo The money to be part of such a service likely doesn't compare to individual rereleases or compilations. Look at the recent Contra, Castlevania, Mana, Saga, and Mega Man compilation releases. Clearly this is the route that most major oldschool high-profile third party titles would prefer to go down especially if they are a series, and as a fan of those game, I think I prefer it too.
What even are these games? Where's EarthBound or Super Mario RPG? Where is literally any other system in Nintendo's history? I sound ungrateful, but as a customer this really sucks.
Exec 1: Fans want Earthbound and Super Mario RPG on the service.
Exec 2: Nah, give them Prehistorik Man and Psycho Dream instead.
<both walk away laughing>
So excited for Psycho Dream! Such a rare cartridge and always wanted to play, looks kindof like a co-op Strider.
@NinjaWaddleDee Earthbound/Mother Trilogy has to be in the works, I'd bet money on it at this point.
I love having access to both regions, for while I live in the US, I’m fairly fluent in Japanese and don’t mind the lack of translation.
@Teksetter Your linguistic éliteness is enviable and an example to us all. (I would follow you, but I am acquiring another language at present.) Perhaps Atlus feels that only those who comprehend the language of the Yamato race are worthy to submit themselves to the trials of SMT II.
The sensei is truly wise.
Literally give me N64 games and GBA games. Not even joking, I'll buy the ones I want for 10 to 15 bucks a piece. Just anything but this awful selection every month.
@duffmmann Nah, Nintendo hate money. They'd rather release a Wii U game and a Pokemon spin off for the first half of the year.
@NinjaWaddleDee You say that like both those releases aren't going to print Nintendo money.
Frankly for as beloved and strong a fanbase as Mother/Earthbound has gotten over the years, I'm certain that New Pokemon Snap would still greatly outsell a Mother/Earthbound Trilogy release. All the same, I still think such a trilogy release is in the cards for the Switch at some point here.
@GannonBanned
U R not alone - ZAMN has got to be beloved by many. Such a fun game, that nailed the cheesy drive-in sci-fi movie vibe. And that music!!
@Classic603
You are absolutely right! Smash needs more weird kids on the block like Zeke and Julie! One can dream, I suppose... 😄
I grew up with the Sega Channel, which was also flooded with obscure titles, so I'm more than down for these games that I never heard of.
I actually like that we get more obscure games. Its why I collect SNES games, cause the output was SO random, its just a fun time playing random games I find at flea markets
Realistically the only high profile games I think the services are reasonably missing are Super Mario RPG and StarTropics II: Zoda's Revenge.
The services will never see the likes of Mega Man, Contra, Castlevania, Final Fantasy, Mana, SaGa, most Namco games, etc. Because it's more profitable for the devs of these beloved series to instead release separate collections as they have.
And while I'd love for the EarthBound games, as I've said a few times here, I think that series is like the others listed above and will be receiving it's own trilogy release on the Switch at some point.
So with that in mind, I dunno what more there is to ask for.... Mario Paint? Mario and Wario? Yoshi Safari? Duck Hunt? You see a pattern with these other games? They relied on peripherals that aren't so great to recreate with what the Switch has to offer. Yeah, Duck Hunt on Wii U worked well enough with a Wiimote, but it's a pale imitation of an actual light gun on a CRT. I'm not holding my breath on lightgun or mouse based title making their way to such services.
As others have said... WHERE TF IS SUPER MARIO RPG
@COVIDberry
Whoa I hope I didn’t come off as seeming elite! I’m just extremely lucky to have had the opportunity to live in Japan and learn their language a bit.
I certainly am no sensei, but “senpai” is probably ok given my age 😅
Good luck with your studies!
Never heard of any of them so I will give them a shot.
Please just add earthbound, that and Super Mario RPG are the only games I want. Besides Chrono Trigger which probably wont ever get on there since you can buy it on steam.
All I need is mario rpg
Move on to other consoles already
@Teksetter Please don't mind me. I'm a little upset with Atlus.
I consider éliteness to be a positive attribute (coupled with humility). And I do respect those who can master languages as disparate as English and Japanese, truly. (And... the games you've access to!) I've just started my third playthrough of Skyrim in my third language, but all three are closely related, so I am somewhat envious.
I had never heard of any of these
I've been wanting to play Psycho Dream for a while, and recently started looking into that one a bit more. Cool to see that they've made it available this way.
I'll definitely give these a go since I have been playing through every game released on the NSO service. Recently finished Peacekeepers. It was all right and the poor translation sure made me laugh. Currently working on DKC3 which I am enjoying very much. I have sunk a lot of hours into these games and usually when I am getting close to finishing off all the games they add more.
@Hero-of-WiiU I have to think that a Game Boy channel is in the works next. They've done 2 classic consoles, next would make sense to do a classic handheld to further lean into the Switch's hybrid nature. And a Game Boy channel could be all encompassing: GB, GBC, and GBA. I bet we'll see it at some point.
In the past I would have thought an N64 channel would be in the works too, but I'm pretty doubtful now that Mario 64 is already on the system but you have to pay to own it. It'd be a bit of a slap in the face to those that paid $60 for 3D All Stars, where a third of that, $20 would reasonably be applied to Mario 64 alone. And then one day it's suddenly just free to all Online subscribers? (Cuz you'd HAVE to put Mario 64 on such a service) That's the major thing I think that gives me doubts on an N64 channel at this point.
Ugh. Since I need to say more: double ugh.
I kind a like these obscure games. Fire and ice is the sequel to Solomons key. I loved Solomons key as a child. I’ve beat that game and spend millions and millions and millions and millions and millions and millions of hours playing that one. I think I’m going to love fire and ice. I never played it.
@duffmmann Not saying they won't give Nintendo a boatload of money. But it's still quite dry in terms of first party releases.
@NinjaWaddleDee Well yeah, but they haven't had a Direct or anything like that in quite some time. Don't be surprised if the year ends up being filled with quality releases, lots of buzz lately that BOTW2 is coming out sooner than we may have been anticipating. Nothing confirmed yet, but I wouldn't be shocked to see that one out before the Fall.
Sounds good to me 💯
I'm in my own little Retro phase right now. Replaying Sonic Mania to get all the Chaos Emeralds, and Speed Running The Legend of Zelda + A Link to the Past (because I'm a Beast) 😎
The only virtual title I’ve found to be remotely playable so far is Mario Picross.
Maybe one day we’ll see N64, Gamecube, or GBA virtual consoles.
The selection proves that intentional droughts are part of their game plan. They have no intention of living up the idea of having all their devs working on a single platform now or having a subscription service for their massive library of retro games, no instead they will keep slowly churning out games and increasingly relying on limited availability tactics to increase sales, this also meant that this subscription had to shift from monthly to completely random with a completely random selection of games that 99% of their users haven’t heard of.
Yeah, and they're all bottom tier garbage. Sorry, but if Nintendo keeps this crap up, I'm unsubscribing. Stop giving us these damn obscure games, NOA. Ugh.
I wish people would stop complaining. These games are absolute gems.
@Low Psycho Dream was planned to be released as Dream Probe. But EGM gave it like 5/10 ratings.
Though they said the same thing about Mr. Gimmick too. So who knows.
I've heard Psycho Dream is a game better for its atmosphere than its gameplay. But maybe that can be said of Telenet games in general.
The other game, Doomsday Warrior, was the one SNES game their US subsidiary, Renovation, managed to actually release. (they also left behind an action-RPG that was supposedly decent, known as Neugier or something, or Journey Home: Quest for the Throne as the US version would've been known if it actually released.)
@mikegamer Oh, are you deciding they are all bottom-tier garbage because you have played them before? Or are you just upset because they're not giving you what you want?
Meanwhile, Gamepass and PS Now subscribers get to play good games.
@KingMike Keep defending their bad choices.
This is why people download and emulate Nintendo’s ROMs. I feel bad for anyone who doesn’t.
@SuperWeird This is why people download and emulate Nintendo’s ROMs. I feel bad for anyone who doesn’t.
The worst is when people say 'I have been waiting to play this 30 year old SNES game'.
Then why didn't you download a rom and an emulator?
@Angelic_Lapras_King This year would be the perfect time for GameBoy/GameBoy Color games with the anniversaries of series like Metroid, DK, Zelda, & of course Pokémon all having great games for them.
Well, at least I've heard of Fire ’n Ice....
Everything they try with classic titles pales in comparison to the Wii's VC in its heyday
I like that they're giving us some titles we never got on Wii/Wii U VC. That said, I wish they'd more frequently mix some big name games in with the lesser known ones.
Nintendo’s long-term goal is to have all of their classic games on one service. But they feel it makes sense to release regular titles over time to keep people engaged and new people subscribing.
In other words, be patient. If there’s stuff on there you like, keep subscribing. If there isn’t and you don’t need online play, unsubscribe until there is. But those games you’re all waiting for will come
Never played any of these. Will give them a go.
Never heard of any of these games, so I may as well give them a try.
I recognize some of those box covers of these games. Probably saw them at a Blockbuster or some other rental store back in the day. Nothing here that catches my interest but I’ll try em out once they hit.
I’d rather just buy the games individually and play them long term with no strings and upgrade our past purchases on vc to switch.
@Teksetter yes, I would love Zombies ate my neighbors, it is such a great game!
@Zenszulu Actually Secret of Mana more than likely could still see a release on NSO even if the collection is out there. Puyo Puyo 2 is on NSO even though Puyo Puyo Tsu is already on the eShop, same for Wild Guns. While Wild Guns Reloaded is at the eShop, the original Wild Guns is available on NSO. Secret of Mana on a collection doesn't rule out its possibility for NSO, it only depends if Square Enix wants the game there or not.
@shoeses well, we won't get the mainline Pokémon games for free. Spin offs like Pinball and TCG sure, but I reckon they'd make us shell out £9 for Red, Blue and Yellow onwards each again like on 3DS. XD
@ComradeThom They're not porting anything, these are ROMs running in an emulator, someone needed to get clearance to add them to the service, that's about it.
Would it be too much to ask for them to sponsor an indie developer or three to make some exclusives to then put on this service?
@ReikoMortis I do want it, I need it; it is somewhat disappointing not to have them
the firemen from Human entertainment was great.
also it seems jrpg games are hard to get for snes online, wich is a bummer.
nintendo should only release great games, and the ones that where great but unknown, not budget games where no store could not get rid of. are they irritating us? or are they looking for abondonware only
Still no mother 1 and 2 and no Mario RPG...
@ferryb001
wich is an insult. what is it with nintendo and these mother games anyway.
i rather see the store back, and download these games for 1,- each. this is just nonsence, waiting 3 months and then these games lol.
PS plus subscribers get Control: Ultimate Edition and we get Prehistorik Man a crap prehistorik game. Dont feel fair
@Toy_Link I'm curious who owns the rights today.
Microsoft owns Interplay nowadays, but is called InXile.
The Interplay IP's were probably sold to someone else ages ago.
@Bolt_Strike once again why give for free what people obviously pay $40 - 60 for? We have shown Nintendo we will pay for re-releases and remakes, multiple times. So why leave the money on the table?
@dimi Ha in a few years from now Control: Ultimate Edition will be as forgettable as Prehistorik Man anyways.
I have a feeling in April the service is going to change significantly. I think Nintendo will change the offerings.
Doomsday Warrior sounds so good!! But its appears to be some awful fighting game.
I wish McDonaldland (M.C. Kids) would get a release, but less than 0% chance of that happening.
There's more chance of a GBC and GBA service coming out
Dammit, still no Lufia 2
I've been whealmed in some way.
The Snes catalogue has sooo many amazing games, yet we get drip fed this!!! When Snes online was announced I was so excited but it has been hugely underwhelming.
I removed my comment about keeping an open mind having watched the footage of the games. :-/ Can't deal with any more shoddy generic beat em ups with awful movements on this service. They're actually starting to make the SNES look like a crap console. NES lineup is better.
Feels like Nintendo is trolling us sometimes! And they're not even updating it monthly anymore.
The caveman game looks potentially good though.
Still a great selection of games across both systems, and it's an addition to the online service anyway. so the updates are welcome.
Wtf is this *****
Oh, I've spent SO MUCH TIME on Prehistorik on the PC as a kid. That game was lots of good fun.
Wow, did they just draw names out of a hat when they picked these?
I had Prehistorik Man as a kid and I found it quite enjoyable actually. It's a pretty fun platformer but pretty hard. And that's coming from someone who usually doesn't like the caveman aesthetic, to the point that I didn't even enjoy the Super Mario World cartoons that much.
Ugh. This is getting long in the tooth. I'd gladly pay for some select games. NSO is crap with or without infrequent NES and SNES games. I gladly pay for it AND on top of that pay 1-3 dollars for old games I CAN CHOOSE.
But right now, it serves no purpose to me. This is nothing more than dropfeeding us nostalgia.
I still often play my Wii U due to the large amount of Virtual Console games I have for it, then when they come out on Switch, I delete them from my Wii U.
Not sure it's worth saying but I think the reason why so many games haven't made it to the nes and snes switch apps is down to online functionality and getting it to work over an online network.
Because up to two players can play these together they have to make sure these games are supported by their online infrastructure.
That said, it could also be down to lack of staff supporting this initiative.
Either way I still find both libraries to be rather lacking. There are many games from my childhood missing.
Where's New Ghostbusters 2? Where's Zombies ate my neighbours?
Fire 'n Ice is neat, but Psycho Dream may be an even bigger highlight here - not just as a long overdue western release of another age-old game, but as a remarkable piece of cyberfantasy from the guy with one heck of a portfolio - from Exile and Tenshi no Uta to Moon RPG, LOL and Chibi-Robo (not to mention a cited hand in projects like Chrono Trigger and Super Mario RPG). And I don't even recall paying it much attention in the romset before! Definitely checking it out next week.
Gonna play summa dat Fire 'n Ice. :v
These games are just fine, like in a "here's a big game like Super Metroid oh and heres these 3 games...".
I know it's only £18 or something a year but I'll happily pay what Microsoft charges for better content and a GOOD online service. Seriously, what Nintendo has in their back catalogue eclipses what the others have and if Disney can now offer their "Vault" for several quid a month, why cant video gamings equivalent? I reckon sales ofthe Switch and NSO will go up even more if they offered what people wanted...but then what people want Nintendont.
I never play the NES or SNES games on the Switch. Use my WiiU and minis for that. But maybe I should be giving them a go.
Does it still have that bad background for all the games or can you change it to black yet?
Still seems like a good investment to NOT subscribe to Nintendo's online service 😂
When they start to bring n64 and Cube games, then, I might be back even if they charge more for it.
@flighty good logic, but we had both Earthworm Jim games and Clayfighter on the Wii VC back in 2008, after they became Double Helix.
Great, I love when they release obscure games. A chance to discover hidden gems, and I like how these 4 look.
But I wonder why does it take so long to update these apps. Months pass between every batch of releases. Can't see it justified.
Plus, I think it's time to let us play with the N64 catalog, considering the Mini won't happen. It's about time we can play Paper Mario without having to sell a kidney, for instance.
I miss these articles...
@Moroboshi876 "Great, I love when they release obscure games. A chance to discover hidden gems, and I like how these 4 look"
The problem is most of them are not gems... Hidden shovelware would be more accurate. The real forgotten gems are MIA.
Stop asking for games like Earthbound and Super Mario RPG, or asking for Nintendo 64 or Game Boy Advance on the service, ask for the real solution: The games need to come faster.
I get that these 4 games don't look that bad and maybe they are unknown gems, but Nintendo should first release their most famous games and also famous third-party titles, but the real problem is that regardless of which games they pick, they are coming too slow, only 4 games every 2 months is not enough, we need these games coming faster, it's just ROMs, Nintendo is so rich right now, they can give us more NES and SNES games as a bonus.
Wish they would add silent service (NES) to collection
@duffmmann some of my SNES favorites that are missing;
1. Zombies Ate My Neighbors
2. Gradius III
3. Chuck Rock
4. Vikings
5. Sim City
6. Robocop Vs. Terminator
@Clyde_Radcliffe agreed - I picked up the Castlevania collection recently and was like “wow, I wish Nintendo would have just paid for this to be on NSO this is awesome”
@gaga64
True, and 2008 was when Earthworm Jim 1, 2, and 3D appeared on GOG as well. But way back then Interplay still had publishing rights of the IP, which it presumably sold when it sold off its remaining IP in 2016. Wikis are only so helpful, but it makes sense to assume that Double Helix or Foundation 9 bought the Earthworm Jim IP from there, allowing them to start production of the Amico game, which hopefully sees the light of day if the Amico manages to release in April without further delays.
But that's the thing, what happened to the original data? Just because Interplay sold the IP doesn't necessarily mean that the orginal source code and roms were transferred to Foundation 9 / Double Helix. So what I'm saying is it's possible we might not see rereleases of these games anymore, short of a from scratch remake, which seems unlikely to me. And if they do have this data, do they have to remove the interplay logo from the game intro? I'm foggy on all this, but I'd assume stuff like that keeps a lot of rereleases from happening.
I'm very disappointed that they didn't add a new console to the service in 2020. At the very least I would have expected Gameboy games.
There's so much money and opportunity on the table at Nintendo in regards to this service its more criminal than the Manson family murders. To be fly on that wall in meetings when they have these discussions. The hunger for more prevalent games and most especially more system options (Game Boy, N64, Gamecube, etc. pick your poison) is just insane.
Then again as I always say Nintendo knows what they're doing and they do it best. When they feel the time is right we'll get at least some of what we're asking for. And then will play this game again.
Man, the line ups are so sad, just bring back the Virtual Console Nintendo, it's okay that they can't get third party to release their big games on a "free service" but this is ridiculous. Who wants to play those very random and average games?
At this point, I wish Nintendo would start to open the NSO apps to more consoles alike the Gameboy or Nintendo 64, that way they could give classic Nintendo and we'd get more interesting games.
If you want Virtual Console games, play them on you Wii U and 3DS. Simple. Not everything has to be on Switch.
Still no Gauntlet.
I heard from SNES Drunk on YouTube that Psycho Dream scored 33% in Super Play magazine. So definitely not worth buying but maybe worth dabbling with.
@Toy_Link ...yet ?
Of course I wish they released games more often but I dig that they're giving us some of the more obscure stuff I never got into growing up
@Bass_X0 snnnnnnnnnnnnnnesdrunk!
A platformer with cavemen and/or dinosaurs that I have not yet played? I'm interested! Kind of surprised I never knew of this game before.
I've seen in the comments about having Chrono Trigger, Final Fantasy, and Dragon Quest in the Switch Online Service.
That isn't going to happen- Square does its business by offering apps of those games (like on Ipad/Iphone/Android), and some of the are starting to show up on the Switch store.
I agree I'd like to see Super Mario RPG and Earthbound added to the service, those titles are well overdue.
It would be nice to see Soul Blazer, Act Raiser, Illusion of Gaia, and Terranigma, and even 7th Saga. That would make me want to get the service.
This is it until the fiscal year ends, methinks.
I still I will wait for Test Drive 2 for the SNES ^^
What a joke... they're just making fun of their customers are this point.
Don't you just love free garbage?
I think I’d actually prefer a kick in the nuts.
@Darknyht The whole point of wanting a service like this is to provide access to a wide variety of past games. If they're just drip feeding old games like this, it's not worth the money. Plus people don't want to pay $40-$60 for old games, they want new games. This would make them the most money for their back catalogue, especially for the more obscure games that they would never get around to remaking.
@Bolt_Strike It's a rumor, but I heard many Virtual Console games never really did that good because many gamers bought the tired and true games, and never bothered with much else.
To a degree, I think this is true since the only VC games that are in the top sellers list on the 3DS eshop are Super Mario Bros 3, the VC Pokemon games, and Earthbound.
This is why this update does not bother me. I see it as a chance to play some games I never had the chance to try before. If they suck, all I lost is a little bit of time, but if they are good, they I found some new games to enjoy or maybe even a lost gem.
This is how people need to look at this update.
@Bass_X0 Issue 7, reviewed by editor Matt Bielby, bringing his rapier wit and scathing criticism with him from his Your Sinclair and Amiga Power days...
"The one thing that appeals to me as a reviewer about import games is the enforced omission of plot: I can no sooner read Japanese than I can hover across the room without crumpling the Axminster. As far as I'm concerned, the game's called Psycho Dream and it stars a blokey, Ryo; or a girlie, Maria (depending on your personal preference). The rest of the story doesn't count.
"However, even avoiding a quick peek at the pictures in the instruction manual, it soon becomes apparent that the person responsible for Psycho Dream must be a very light sleeper. You could say that the gameplay is shallow, but 'not there at all' would be much more apt.
"What happens is that you walk from left to right (and occasionally from right to left)* and you kill everything that comes within reach of your flashing blade (or glowing whip - see Ryo/Maria above). And that, as they say, is it: stroll, stroll, kill, slaughter, meet boss, die.
"I guess there's a market for this sort of game, but I don't think Europe is it. Unless you're easily wowed by a few transparent guardians, or excited by parallax scrolling, you're not going to break into a sweat, let alone a smile, over this one. And just in case you have any niggling doubts that refuse to die on the edge of my rapier-like comments, slap it on easy mode and you'll see the entire game in one sitting. As long as you aren't overcome by boredom first.
"So there you have it: limited gameplay; infinite continues; long, bland levels; and a soundtrack which is just like any other soundtrack, on any other Japanese beat-'em-up, anywhere.
"Producing games like this for the SNES is like owning a Turbo Esprit and driving everywhere at 20 miles an hour. What a waste of time and plastic.
"* Sorry, I lied. You can walk diagonally up and down stairs too."
Graphics - 67%
Sound - 62%
Gameplay - 35%
Gamelife - 28%
OVERALL SCORE - 33%
VERDICT: "How do games of such startling banality ever get off the drawing board? And who the hell buys 'em? Not you, hopefully."
@Bolt_Strike 8.32 million copies of Super Mario 3D All-Stars and Link’s Awakening on Switch being one of the fastest selling games both disagree with you.
While I can't say I like every game that has been released on NSO so far, I do like coming across some of these lesser-known titles.
Fire n Ice deserves more love. Beautifully animated and it plays fantastically. If you're a fan of brain teasers/games with puzzles to solve I can't recommend it enough.
@Darknyht Which both pale in comparison to what actual new entries in those series did.
oh man, I cant remember the last time I was this excited.
past switch online announcements would be one A-list game, one hit-or-miss curiosty, and one scraping the bottom of the barrel mediocre one. until now, anways.
@COVIDberry
Hah! Well I can certainly relate to being annoyed with Atlus, Sega, Nintendo or other game houses when they just won't re-release classic titles, or fail to localize them for more people.
I had to buy a used copy of P5 so I could play it on my old PS3. The game would be a perfect fit for a hybrid system like Switch! Though I suppose they would have to use a higher-cost large capacity cartridge...
I remember enjoying Prehistorik man.,..30 years ago <_<
I didn't know that Solomon's Key had a sequel, though.
Also, now that I've watched the update trailer, I'm actually keen to try that Psycho Dream game, and Solomon's Key 2 (Fire n' Ice).
Certainly we are missing some AAA titles, but I'd say it's hard to be annoyed considering the lineup we already have vs. the price point.
@Bolt_Strike maybe true, but the development costs were minor and they are banking much more than a $5-10 Virtual Console sale will get them. I happen to agree with you, but we (myself included) have told Nintendo and others we will pay high dollar for remakes by what we purchase.
I have purchased a lot fewer Nintendo published titles the past few years specifically because I already purchased them on Wii U.
@Darknyht Thing is that very few of Nintendo fans have a Wii U, myself included (by the time I saw enough games to be worth buying, they were already shifting towards the Switch). So just saying "there's no need to buy it because it's already on the Wii U" is kind of tone deaf. Hell, 80% of the ports people are buying are Wii U games that most people haven't bought before.
The "Angry Video Game Nerd" / Cinemasscre yt channel explained it succinctly:
The NSO offerings represent what you might find in your friend's physical library if you had gone over on a playdate in the 80s or 90s and hung out to play Nintendo or Super Nintendo. There are the classic games EVERYONE has because you can't NOT get them, and then there are an assortment of obscure titles you got because they looked interesting or were what was available when your parent went to the game store.
Doomsday Warrior? ***** game. Why not better games that we knew back then and still know such as Samurai Shodown, Mortal Kombat, a Dragon Ball fighting game? But no they had to frikkin pick Doomsday Warrior????
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XJq90gyUI_M
@Ryu_Niiyama I think you'd get a full house on the bingo card in this comment section alone.
@Bolt_Strike it isn’t tone deaf, it is speaking with the only thing they listen to, $$$’s. Why would I purchase something I already own again (and am happy with) at full price just to get a tacked on $15 DLC? I am glad other can enjoy the game, but frankly Nintendo has published little I am interested in on Switch. I bought XC2 and XC2: The Golden Country, Super Mario Odyssey, Pokémon, Link’s Awakening (my favorite Zelda which I haven’t been able to play since the original GB cart (no 3DS) and Animal Crossing. Historically that is very few Nintendo titles, and for me it is mostly due to not seeing the value in buying something ported from five years ago or less.
But we, as collective video game purchasers, have shown (an industry data agrees) we will pay full price for remasters and re-releases. If Nintendo announced today that Super Mario Galaxy 2, Metroid Prime Trilogy, or any of the Zelda HD remakes were being ported they would have record sales and a significant portion would be repurchases. Heck, I have purchased Super Mario Bros. Multiple times myself (NES, SNES, GBC, GC, Wii, and Wii U), and that was a game they gave me “free” with my NES. So why would they put their Crown Jewels on a subscription service? They see value in their back catalog more than someone like Microsoft which is using theirs to grow their install base.
EDIT: that isn’t even getting into the new ploy of “limited” release before going back in the vault.
Fire n Ice is one of the only games I ever played growing up on a physical NES, and I thought it was a blast. One of the best puzzle games on the system, just like Solomon's Key. I highly recommend anyone to give it a try!
@Crono1973 Why didn’t someone play it on an emulator with an illegally owned ROM? Because there are some people who think it’s called pirating and would rather play it legitimately on a console. I know it’s hard to swallow the idea of ppl who will wait for an actual licensed release when it’s so convenient to just download it with minutes ease, with no discernible nor ethical consequence but a company not making a dime. But we are out there. 🤷🏻♂️
@Bolt_Strike I think $20 a year (thank you Latsa) for the service beats other console corporation’s prices for online playability. And including the solid amount of free games to boot up constantly. Sure, the quality of the recent games may even be C level, but in general the package sincerely does not look bad standing next to the other Sony/Xbox $40-$60 yearly packages when you want to play an exact same game online.
@Toy_Link because the Sega genesis version is superior?
I really don't get you people. These are some deep, deep cuts from nes and snes. I remember playing Prehistorik Man on GBA and Fire and ice on an emulator site, and they were fun time killers. Online is doing what they promised they'd be doing: giving us classic Nintendo games for free on the Switch and basically preserving their history. It costs a lot to include titles from licensed properties, so don't expect to see Turtles in time anytime soon. Be greatful they thought about giving us something better than Rygar on the NES at least.
I have never tried any of those titles, but I'm looking forward to giving them a spin once they arrive.
What's up with the Switch profile picture in that video?
@Magrane I thought it was 20$ a year...
@urrutiap they want to keep there app rated T so kids can play.
@Magrane NSO isn't $20 if anyone else in your family has a Switch. It's close to $40 for the family plan and, during the frequent sales, PS+ can be had for $45. NSO is a terrible service that is nowhere near worth the asking price. This month on PS+ we got Control and Concrete Genie. Last month we received Maneater and Tomb Raider. All are good games published in the last few years. For $10 less, from Nintendo, you get 30 year old roms every couple of months. It's a joke and Nintendo should be ashamed of itself. They should be offering free Switch games.
Psycho Dream = drugs.
My god, this is the worst batch of Games yet. WHERE, are Earthbound & Super Mario RPG?
Oh look, more junk, to add to the pile of junk that is the NSO service.
@Toy_Link Probably because the game is more likely based on Sonic.
@LatsaSpege well, still. those 4 new game additions are ***** additions.
I can think of way better games for the NES/SNES Switch Online
Feb:
PS+: Control ultimate, Concrete Genie & Destruction Allstars.
Games with Gold: Gears 5, Resident Evil & Indiana Jones.
NSO: These.
I know the service is dirt cheap but lacking basic online features from games, the poor connection and lack of free games means it's still an absolute rip off. When are Nintendo going to actually catch up with modern technology
@SwitchplayerJohn maybe we will get prehistoric man 2
@Magrane Well, you are paying for NSO and no one is selling NEW SNES games so who are you really hurting if you play some SNES roms?
@dBackLash you’ve clearly never played any of them then
@Razer you could go play all the junk on ps now for way much more.
@Ambassador_Kong ps+ isn’t shareable in anyway that makes it even worthwhile. You get online service and feee games that are junk and years old as well. Not worth the price at all
@Dakotastomp Rygar is a awesome game but you are right. If these people want these other games the NSO price will jump up along with it. The more games means more royalty paid out and simply put means they need more subs to be able to afford it all. This is why it is taking time to get all these games on here. Givin that it is only 2 years old they have done a great job on the number of games added.
As for these four of people haven’t played them they cannot even talk bad about them or the subscription. Just because it isn’t some AAA doesn’t mean it wasn’t a good game and in fact all
Of these were and still are good games that were not massed produced because companies wouldn’t take chances of losing the money if they didn’t sell. It’s how business works but they are all good games and people should actually try them
@Dirty0814 and yet we still have some self entitled "fans" who can't seem to grasp that concept. Like i was one of the few people wondering when we'll get AAA license titles until it dawned on me how expensive it probably is to get a character licensed title onto a free service. And more importantly, we need to be reminded that NSO doesn't bend to our will for Super mario RPG or Shin Megani Tensin. They can do whatever the f they want and it's up to the customer themself to decide if it's worth their time or not. NSO isn't trash, they just can't always get what they want.
@Dirty0814 years old is better than decades old.
@Angelic_Lapras_King Oh I wouldn't be surprised if they just pull a Mario 3D All-Stars and just sell emulated versions of RBY, GSC, & RSE together for $60 with nothing like a speed-up or trading between your own saves.
Prehistorik! Now that brings back memories. I knew this game as Prehistorik 2 on PC.
@bahooney Agreed! It is nice to have a legal way to play Fire ‘N Ice (outside of using the original cartridge).
@chipia It was time to get another console added to NSO in the fall! Mario 35th celebrations took the spotlight.
Maybe after March 31st? My vote is for GBA games. The Switch is already a giant GBA.
They really should add N64, Gamecube, and Wii to the program. I feel like the program is lacking since it is a paid subscription. Yes, $7 for 3 months or even $20 for a year is cheap, but the subscription is lacking for what you pay for. You pay to play online for the most part and that's it. I don't want a messaging system added, apps like Netflix, or any of that "clutter" on the Switch. I do want games like Luigi's Mansion, Mario Kart:Wii, Majora's Mask, Ocarina of Time, and Legend of Zelda:Twilight Princess (Gamecube version) to be added.
Want my monthly money : don’t do that again
Really want to see lufia 1 and 2 on there. I suspect licensing from a no longer existant company is a real issue though.
Oh wow what a pile of hot garbage!
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