
"Virtual Console Successor is Nintendo Switch Online," Says Nintendo of America President
Virtual Console may be the hero the Switch deserves, but it's not the one it needs right now.
Sadly, the Virtual Console still isn't coming to the Nintendo Switch. This has been known. Nintendo Switch Online, however, is being seen by Nintendo as its big alternative. The Online subscription will come with 20 NES games at launch, with more added over time. The NES games will have online play for the first time ever too.
This is squarely because Nintendo sees this sort of program of releasing retro video games through a subscription service as a direct successor to the former virtual platform, which sold retro titles individually. "The Virtual Console successor is Nintendo Switch Online, right? With the mentality that says we're going to be offering a slate of games, and it's a slate that's going to increase over time," Nintendo of America president Reggie Fils-Aimé told IGN at E3 last week. "For many of these games, there's going to be additional online capability provided in those games. That's the vision we have for how to best bring our legacy content to Nintendo Switch."

Nintendo Switch Online isn't just going to offer online services for games like Splatoon 2, nor just NES games. Even though online play is free right now, Fils-Aimé doesn't think players will be discouraged by the online subscription. "We do [believe people will subscribe], and I say that because what we've laid out is a proposition where, yes you get the competitive play accessibility, you also get the cloud save, and you get access to the legacy content," Fils-Aimé said. "That's a fantastic proposition for $20 a year. We believe that it's not going to be any type of issue for us. In fact, it's going to enable us to continue offering a varied slate of opportunities from an online experience standpoint."
Compared to Xbox Live Gold and PlayStation Plus' steep $59.99 yearly subscription fee, Nintendo Switch Online's is the cheapest of the three. Though it also offers the least, in terms of games. Nintendo Switch Online will launch in September 2018 with 20 NES games with it.
Related articles
PlayStation 5 Update Lets You Know If You're About to Play the PS4 Version of Game
Check yourself before you last-gen yourself.
2
Stardew Valley Just Got Beaches, Fish Tanks, Swimming Ducks, and a Whole Lot More
Nearly five years on, Eric "ConcernedApe" Barone just pushed what he says is Stardew's "biggest update yet."
3
Alien: Isolation Is Free on Epic and Just As Good as It Was in 2014
Get the motion tracker and don't go in the vents.
Shigeru Miyamoto Expresses Confidence in the Younger Generation of Nintendo
The legendary creator says the spirit will stay alive.
6
You may also like
USgamer Staff Past and Present Say Goodbye
End of an era.
26
Press Start to Continue
A look back on what we tried to accomplish at USgamer, and the work still to be done.
67
Mat's Farewell | The Truth Has Not Vanished Into Darkness
This isn't the real ending, is it? Can't be.
9
Eric's Farewell | Off to Find a New Challenger
It's time for us to move on, but we'll carry USG with us wherever we go.
9
Newsletter
Subscribe to our weekly newsletters
Get the best of USG in your inbox by subscribing to our newsletters.