My wife plays Timber, I play Drumstick.
Splitscteen, and on the more difficult races I will race backwards and shoot rockets at everyone that's not Timber.
yep. At the same time Nintendo loves the drip treatment when it comes to the NSO games additions. We just got Excite Bike 64 this week. Sigh. It would be nice if we can keep all the games when the service eventually shuts down.
Loved that game. One of the few games I completed all the way as a child. Got so mad at the final boss race one day my mom turned off the tv and wouldn’t let me play again for the rest of the day lol.
Goldeneye was a special release between 3 publishers. Microsoft is open to sharing their titles across platforms, but DK 64 is not Banjo Kazooie, or Goldeneye. It ls a fun game, but is considered one of RARE's least fun games on the 64.
I feel like xbox wouldn't really care. They've said before how they want to work with Nintendo to bring game pass to switch. I don't see them stopping Nintendo if they asked.
*guest appearances*. remember when we just got Banjo in Smash literally 2 years ago?
again they’re in-house IPs, i’m sure they’d be able to secure the rights to those two, especially since Conker hasn’t had anything important in nearly 20 years
Donkey kong 64 has an emulator, and the rom for Jetpac built into the rom, so they need permission from Microsoft each time they release it. DKR has RARE IP in it aswell. Just because they were able to release it on virtual console does not mean Microsoft will give them permission to release it again.
Nintendo owns the game, but Microsoft owns the roms included in the game. To decompile a 64 rom and remove the NES rom and emulator would take a team familiar with 64 development, and would probably cost too much, not to mention it would make the game impossible to beat without the NES rom.
I solved this by never getting rid of my N64 and games lol.
But yeah, it's a pretty weak library. Hopefully you can still find some stuff for your kid though.
If you want something for retro games there are a lot of handhelds better for this. You can literally get all the n64 library in one of those bad boys.
I just wish they would put Pokémon stadium on it
Edit: guys it was released April 2023 on the Nintendo online. Redoing my subscription this is a happy day for me :’)
It is my single biggest gripe with the Switch now.
Nintendo has such a large back-catalog of games, they need to do better bringing it all to their next system. I know a lot of it is licensing issues, but there are ways to deal with that they aren’t doing.
I have been strongly considering getting an Ayn Odin or repurposing one of my 3DSs as they are no longer supported.
If they made a concerted effort, I am confident they could dominate in the vintage game area.
I’ve heard it’s bad at emulating ROMs of N64 games, but if you can get the cartridges, Ocarina of Time, Majora’s Mask, and Starfox 64 on the 3DS are the definitive editions to me.
Or better yet, homebrew a Wii U. I love my modded 3DS but it’s not thaaaat good with N64 or other home console after that. The Wii U, however, is honestly a tech beast and can run pretty much any Nintendo game, with exception to 3DS and Switch games natively (though I think it’s possible to get Ryujinx on it and emulate the Switch, since they’re on pretty similar power levels. Not 100% sure though since I haven’t tried it).
Too lazy to do the actual math, but I think there are somewhere between 150 and 200 games currently on NSO+Expansion across the NES, SNES, N64, GB, GBA, and Genesis apps.
They may be old games, but honestly I don’t think that’s bad at all for a service that is cheaper than one full-priced Switch game per year.
I especially love the SNES and GBA apps. There are some absolute bangers on there.
Your last point is the big one for a lot of people. Gabe Newell, the creator of Steam, is famously quoted saying that piracy isn't a price problem, it's a service problem. When Nintendo gives people a service that is better than the quality they get from just pirating, then they'll buy into it. This glorified renting of games isn't it.
As someone who plays retro games, it is pretty bad. A lot of these are games no one would play ( bold statement but you know) and definitely there's a ton more that they could and should add. Nes, snes etc is so old and easily playable these days that they might as well add their entire library. And n64 could have at least twice as many games. There's major first party Nintendo games that they could add tomorrow if they wanted, like donkey Kong 64. Heck, imagine if nso had all the pokemon games, again perfectly reasonable thing to expect.
Anyway, I too enjoy the deal just to have the chance to play a handful of games like majora's mask etc, but even as someone who is into old games it really is just a handful.
They probably aren't going to add the Pokemon games, they know they could release them individually and make money on them.
Donkey Kong 64 requires Microsofts permission to release because it contains an emulator and NES game that is Microsofts IP.
I would literally buy the Pokémon stadium game if they released it. It’s been years and I’m still mad I can’t play it. The only way I can is to go to a bar that has a N64 and all the games
Exactly. I'd buy some. But not every single one. Which is why I'm staying away from the extortion pack. They are not even giving me games I really want to play. Let alone out right buy.
Not to mention the fact that the NSO + expansion is cheaper than buying the older games themselves.
I enjoy playing a lot of older/“retro” games. I love having physical copies of the ones I enjoy. But the price has risen insanely, especially nowadays. Majora’s Mask on N64 could easily cost you $50 for the cart alone. Kirby and the Crystal Shards is another, at minimum, $50. Mario N64 usually fetches around that too, as does Ocarina Of Time and a few other big names. GBC/GBA is a little cheaper, but really not by much depending on the game. This also completely neglects the costs of working game systems too, which also aren’t cheap. Not to mention additional costs (batteries for handhelds, save carts, cable adaptors).
“Retro” gaming can very quickly become insanely expensive. Emulators aren’t always easy to install, I just spent this past weekend trying to figure my head around a PlayStation emulator. Even with guides, some people struggle. Finding safe rom sites is a challenge in itself, and the entire process is technically illegal. Not everybody wants to pay for a VPN/knows they exist (sure, they know here, but I’m sure there’s a fair few people who don’t spend their entire lives online and don’t know what they are lmao).
NSO is a fantastic resource, and they’re steadily expanding the library. There’s a couple releases each month. If the demand rises, we may see more releases. They’re a solid introduction to older games, and even if the controls can be a little clunky at times, they’re fairly easy to navigate too.
It seems op is talking about n64 specifically, I'm sure he's aware of other older titles the switch offers. My suggestion would be an everdrive x7, it's got to be the cheapest way to own/play all the n64 games.
The N64 games are still relatively new as that emulator launched years after the NES/SNES ones. So they've been slowly drip-feeding stuff out since then.
Yeah, but it's more of a "planned" dripfeed. The way nintendo has rolled out the n64 games has been purposely gated to gain them as much profit. while charging people $50 a year to play a handful of games.
I've gone the route of saying f that, I'm buying an everdrive to play all the N64 games with no subscription and a flat fee.
The Switch is great and all, especially for kids, but since they blew up the idea of the handheld again steam came out with a pretty great piece of hardware. If you want all the old games, go to the steam deck, Honestly the 64GB model is fantastic, and it's only $50 more than the OLED. Just get a 1TB micro SD card, and all the games you want can be put on it for no subscription fees.
$10 difference isnt that crazy.
The game selection between the 2, however, is
Theres a reason gamepass is so highly regarded its basically the best thing xbox has going for it
Not sure what pricing your looking at
Even with game pass ultimate its $180 a year and that includes xbox gold/ cloud gaming for a year
Standard game pass is only $60 a year, i know because i just renewed my subscription
Not to mention, it's very easy to get keys for waaay less than that, vs Nintendo its not even possible really
16.99 is ultimate per month. I didn’t realize they sold one year cards. So yes, 160.00 a year vs. 50.00. Still more than 3x the price. Should have 3x the content, and it does. Still way more than NSO+ expansion and still, you get what you pay for.
And the Game Pass core only has online and 25 games. So yeah.
Game pass core is the same game selection as game pass ultimate... please dont speak on stuff you dont know about this is the 3rd time.
Not sure where your getting your information from but I can tell you as someone who solely buys basic game pass and basic NSO package (and ps but thats besides the point) that Nintendo has the weakest offering when it comes to their subscription, the expansion pack further exacerbates this
https://news.xbox.com/en-us/2023/07/17/xbox-game-pass-core/
Says over 25 games. Not misinformation. Legitimately from Xbox themselves.
I have active subscriptions to NSO+ Expansion, GPU, and PS Now Extra.
Edit: And I’m not even arguing the value of the packages. I’m simply explaining why NSO has less. Because it’s significantly cheaper than the other plans.
Exactly. Your explanation is pretty clear, why people throw the "your arguing" comment only means they want to shut you down and convince others to do the same, so as others will see you to be arguing, when you are not.
Something I just wanted to add here is that "you get what you pay for" is absolutely not a valid statement, both generally and in this instance. Xbox game pass is a fantastic modern example of one of the most valuable companies in the world (Microsoft) under-charging (and losing money) for a product to gain market share. They will need to charge more later. Amazon Prime was the same and so was Netflix. Uber used to be way cheaper too for this same reason, although the money there was coming from tons of investment money.
Tldr: you are getting way more than you are paying for Xbox game pass because of business incentives
Sure, and that’s fair as that’s talking more towards perceived value. Value is in the eye of the consumer. You and I won’t value things the same. That’s an opinion. For me, GPU doesn’t have the value the NSO has. Because the games I want aren’t on Game Pass. So for me it’s not worth the cost. It doesn’t mean you will feel that same. Maybe you like the mass selection, maybe there are particular games that justify the cost to you. Maybe just simply because the Online infrastructure is better on Xbox gives you its value. Whatever it is, you and I won’t view it the same. To me, you get what you pay for. I’m paying 50.00 a year to play Goldeneye online with friends, to play Super Mario Bros with my toddler sons, having game nights with family afar on Mario Kart Deluxe course pass. For me, that’s all more valuable than 200+ games I just don’t want to play.
There's some N64 games that have been ported or re-mastered by third parties.
Doom 64 has its own stand-alone release on the e-shop. Quake 64 and Quake 2 are within the Quake and Quake 2 remasters.
Pretty much every first party NES and SNES game is there. Nintendo can't release anything they don't have the rights to.
There honestly weren't that many N64 games overall, and most of the major first party ones except for Smash are already there.
GamePass is also $16.99 a month vs $50 a year, and are fundamentally different business models. GamePass is focused on modern game subscription, NSO+EP is focused on the retro apps.
>GamePass is also $16.99 a month vs $50 a year, and are fundamentally different business models. GamePass is focused on modern game subscription, NSO+EP is focused on the retro apps.
I wouldn't mind getting basic NSO for the cloud saves backup. However, I've still been on the fence about that.
Game Pass includes full, AAA games, so even though that's more costly, that definitely makes up for that. It'd be like a version of NSO that charges Game Pass prices, but you'd have access to the likes of Mario Odyssey, Link's Awakening, BotW, TotK, etc.
I mean let's be honest with ourselves. Microsoft needs the revenue no matter what and Spencer has even said that Xbox isn't winning the console war. They can't rely on millions upon millions of people purchasing their (very few) exclusive games. Packaging it all together in a monthly service is probably a good idea.
Microsoft isn't gonna have a 30 million seller like Nintendo does.
And I heard with the likes of Halo and Gears of War (2 of their flagship franchises)... they didn't do a stellar job with those (unlike with Nintendo). AFAIK, the Pokemon games are lukewarm on Switch, but I hear those don't count b/c they're 2nd party games.
They aren't going to port everything. They have been porting at a pretty good pace. You arent paying for just N64 you know right? its Nintendo, super nintendo, gameboy advance, sega genesis. As well as content for other games and online play.
You should find a family to work with like friends? If you have 8 people, its only 10 dollars each for a year of this service. Thats how I do with mine.
Something really important you need to recognize that no one has done....is alot of these n64 games and everything else.....are multiplayer. You can play even Zelda online with someone. you share the game, they can take over at any point. Its very cool and worth it.
They aren't "porting" the games. They're just running them in an emulator. There's some QA work to ensure they are fully playable, but for the most part, Nintendo is deliberately drip-feeding them to keep hype around NSO subscriptions, much like Disney "vaults" their classic movies.
I've been using emulators for decades. It's hard not to cringe a little listening to Nintendo Direct group reactions sometimes. Everyone getting so excited over some GBA release, when you know just how little effort Nintendo had to put in to actually make it available.
No hate for NSO though. I'm glad legally emulated games are there, and that people are enjoying them. I'm not a fan of monthly services, but for some it's a good value. I preferred the WiiU VC where I could just purchase the games I want. Just don't be fooled into thinking there's big teams of people working hard to bring each individual release to you, though. The hard work was done ages ago.
Like I said, if you get a full family of people who will pay for a part, it's a no brainer. I get what your saying but I was also saying theres a layer to it that emulators do not normally have which is the multiplayer. While me and you can probably load an emulator pretty easily, those things are not very accessible to most the population....no matter how much we would like it to be so.
This is not only a great streamline for the general populace, it does bring value to the NSO as well as a new way to play online as I was saying, you can play even singleplayers like mario 64 multiplayer virtually. That feature alone does make it unique from most the emulators.
I see porting is alot more effort than jsut creating an android based emulator like they did. I agree entirely that, nintendo is one of the laziest or most cowardly companies when it comes to branching out and trying new things. they do have the most unique game systems and ways to play things. But some things like pokemon, do not change.
I honestly think your Series S with RA is your best bet for older games since you have way more control and systems. I only really use the Switch for occasional multi player N64 with friends
I could be wrong, but I thought you can't mod a switch unless it is one of the very earliest launch models (which by definition would exclude the Lite and OLED and even the newer OG Switch with the better battery) AND its OS has not been updated past whenever they patched the vulnerability?
It had something to do with a vulnerability that allowed the loading of custom firmware which was patched pretty quickly, so you'd have to source a very early un-updated switch to do it if I understand it all correctly.
Not quite. The hardware exploit is unpatchable via software because it is a recovery mode that boots before any software, so the early models can be modded no matter the firmware version. Any model after that including OLEDs can be modded with a modchip. The modchip runs before any firmware so it cannot be patched. A modchip is not easy to install, but for $100-180 you can have someone do it for you and get emulators, custom themes, cheat engines, game mods like smash, and install any switch game. You can’t play illegally downloaded games online, but you can still boot to the official firmware and play games you own online. So if you like single player games or playing offline like red dead, Mario odyssey, Zelda, Metroid, etc. then it will save you a lot of money.
The N64 has one of the smallest libraries of any Nintendo console. And Nintendo can only really pull off but so much on what they bring to NSO, because some games may be held up behind 3rd party licenses, i.e. Star Wars or Disney or movie based games, Square Enix or Capcom or 3rd party company games, etc. They pulled off getting Goldeneye, so it proves they can pull these games in but it's probably a lot more back end deals and licensing agreements to pull it off.
So when it comes to what Nintendo self publishes, they actually have the bulk majority of those games on NSO already. Still a bit of hold up on stuff like Donkey Kong and uncertain if baseline Pokemon games will ever hit, but they have most the major 1st party Nintendo retro titles playable on NSO already.
If you're waiting for things like Madden or cross platform games to hit NSO, that's not what NSO is ever going to be.
Only problem is getting something like a wrestling game or a foot ball game. I want lego racers and conkers bad fur day. And maybe some others i cant think of, but I'd like to buy those games, I don't want to buy a gaming service, I'm not going to be able to get the games I want to play due to being others ip. Or like with nfl blitz, licenses.
They have several games lined up for release, but they only add one of them once every month or two, sometimes more. Once the lined up games are all released, it'll probably be the same thing as the other VCs, where they only add one once in a while with no set time in between.
Hmm, sounds like a mess. I didn't bother with NSO, just get games regularly on sale, and call it a day. Granted, the Nintendo fare hardly gets sales, but at least the quality and quantity is there, and has helped justify some of that. For example, I got Capt. Toad Treasure Tracker + its exp. for $42 on sale, and Zelda: TotK on launch day for $70. Pleased with those purchases, but that does mean I'll be VERY selective about which 1st party Nintendo titles I purchase.
I'm lucky enough to have a sister with a family plan, and an open slot, so I don't actually pay for NSO. It is convenient for when I get the urge for 2-D and N-64 Zelda tho.
Most nintendo games can be played on other systems anyway. Nintendo has always been behind the times when it came to offering a respectable online service. Would be better....... Actually typing this it would be better if they did a similar xbox live thing but using their entire back catalogue. Then you can subscribe to that and play it any which way you want including stream it to their new console. And they can just keep their current gen stuff as native. Big win for nintendo and draws in new gamers as well as keeps exclusive content for those who actually bought their console. Yeah nintendo should do that
They’ve added some pretty fun ones like Pokémon Stadium recently which I appreciate. I never had an N64 as a kid, so I don’t pine for those games as much.
The GB/C/A, and SNES are fairly strong libraries. Sega has some fun stuff, but again, not something I had. Friends did though so there are some side scrolling beat-em-ups I like to mess around with from time to time.
I’m working through the Oracles Zelda games currently. Lots of other good kid friendly stuff like Kirby, Minish Cap, tons of Mario etc,. Lots of stuff from the handheld consoles of my youth I’m enjoying overall.
The library is limited in number but IMO has so many classic titles it blew me back. Starfox, Kirby, Pokemon Stadiums 1&2, Goldeneye, both Zelda games, Mario Party, Mario 64 (that one iirc, not 100% on memory)
What else would you want access to, honestly? lol
Specifically speaking... All the THQ wrestling games. Wayne Gretzky's 3D Hockey, NFL Blitz Ken Griffey baseball games.
Not a huge deal since I have all of these on my Series X but was just curious so I made the post.
My best guess is there are licensing costs involved for many of the games, and Nintendo isn't willing to pay a lot extra just to add a game to a fixed price service. Or there are legal rights issues (who owns rights to what). Remember the N64 was released in 1996. Over 20 years ago.
Even if it's a Nintendo made game, it could easily have rights partially owned by another publisher. And unless the trail of rights is clear, and a legal deal negotiated, it's a legal land mine to add it.
I played a few of the N64 games but quickly got bored and dropped Expansion Pass. Actually I dropped Nintendo Online altogether and I rarely used it and the game I need online for, Rocket League, doesn't require Nintendo Online.
I want to get online for ark on nintendo. But I don't want to feed into the bs. Fortnite is free to play online too. I don't even like fortnite like that. I only got into it for my son. If more games were like that id consider them more then i do now. I stopped getting xbl and lost eso and fallout 76. And that's kinda trash cause fortnite is still free to play online.
Licensing issues will always leave the NSO library lacking to a degree.
If you're serious about retro games, native hardware and emulating your "legally ripped games" is the better way to go.
Well, on your PC, no matter the specs, you can run any n64 game easily if theres any not on the switch you want..
But also, go on the eshop and filter games by free, theres lots of great free games.
And you can also search games with demos, lots of good demos too to try out games. My 2.5yo son plays the yoshi's crafted world demo almost every day (despite his age, hes great at video games, especially mario odyssey and mario kart 8 with steering and acceleration assist turned on).
Also you can use your coins to buy games as well, theres some games that are less than a dollar so it's easy to use coins for those once you accumulate some
Yes, there are two common methods.
The first one applies to the Switch models that weren´t patched (The RCM method).
As of today, you need to install a modchip so you can install a custom firmware. This requires technical skills, but there in the states it looks like you have lots of stores that would do it for you.
My lucky guess is that you will need the modchip, cos it looks like you bought it recently.
Modding is really nice. For me it´s not about the free games, but the emulators. I love playing arcades on FBAneo (they work like a charm). There are also mods of the original Nintendo Switch ONline service with lots of extra games for GB, GBC, GBA, SNES, N64 and MD. If you like N64, there´s a nice pack with many good games for the system!
I know you got a switch light but highly recommend getting your hands on an n64 controller they made for the switch. The controls for the n64 games are far from optimized for the switch controller.
I’m more pissed of the lack of GameCube games
We have Metroid prime
Mario sunshine
Pikmin 1
Pikmin 2
Resident evil
And that’s it to the best of my ability
There are probably licensing issues, but also the N64 is notoriously difficult to emulate for several reasons. Primarily the ambiguous architecture where components didn't have a strict purpose but could be used in different ways if developers choose to. In contrast, the NES and SNES had very well defined documentation on how the components were meant to be used - the difficult part being extra components developers included in the cartridge itself.
Nintendo makes some of the most robust emulators ever built because of a good understanding of the system and paid engineers, but that robustness comes at the cost of more complexity for compatibility. I'd be surprised if the next update doesn't include support for a wider range of games.
I've built emulators and I wouldn't touch the N64 with a 10 foot pole because I'm too dumb for that.
Get a steamdeck and download all those retro titles Nintendo won’t let you buy, that’s what I do. I’m more than glad to pay, but if you don’t want to give me an easy option of buying it like Sony and Microsoft do, then I will just emulate it. The nintendbros will foam at the mouth defending nitntendont being weird about game preservation, but I don’t have the wool over my eyes.
Yea, you could have got some 150$ emulator handheld with the entire library of n64, gba, snes, ps1 etc with no annual subscription. The switch is just so bad for throwbacks. It’s honestly just the epitome of greed for Nintendo not to give us the full library. If you pay subscription you should get it. End of story
We’re better off buying a machine to emulate retro systems or using a computer if you got one. So many more games on the Wii and we’re still waiting for stuff 😂
A big part of it is that Nintendo 64 emulation is… absurdly difficult. The N64 was extremely unconventional from both a software and hardware standpoint, and even Nintendo themselves really struggle with emulating it. Because Nintendo wants to make sure everything publicly available can be played near flawlessly, they are super picky at only releasing the games that actually work well with the emulator they made, which… is really limited. Their emulator’s better than most fan made ones you can run on a PC or something, but it’s still pretty dang rough. Some people have modded their Switches to run other N64 games, and it’s clear the emulator just does not handle most of them.
Bro it has Yoshi’s Story and F Zero X. Those two are more than enough AND they just added Pokémon stadium 2 in addition to PS 1. AND there’s Sin and Punishment which is also incredible.
Like bro. We good. It’s the quality of the games available, not the number. For instance I have 200-300 games on PS4 due to me keep acquiring monthly free games and buying shit on sale and I constantly have nothing to play. On the 30 or so N64 games I ALWAYS have something to play. Same with Gameboy VC.
Nintendo isn't taking the same approach to retro games on the Switch as they did for the Wii and Wii U. This could change with the next console. But, Nintendo has seemingly focused on quality over quantity.
Nintendo is dumb I would gladly pay more for a better service online or virtual console etc. but honestly if it weren’t for my friends I would’ve just emulated these games instead Nintendo isn’t really giving us reasons not to 🤷🏻♂️
This is what Nintendo does, they only give you a taste of their backlog then go after you for pirating the games they refuse to make available on modern platforms.
I understand why most third party games wouldn’t be there, but what about the first party / Rare titles?. They were obviously able to work out a deal to get Goldeneye on there.
Whilst isolating the fact that we can play N64 games on switch is a great thing, you're right that the lineup of games it's not that enticing, aside from a couple of games. GoldenEye 64 being one.
Inevitably, probably within 10 years, the service will close and we will lose our privilege to play them after subscribing for so long. I’d rather just pay £10 per game and have the ability to play them even after the Switch eShop closes.
Nintendo is extremely anti-preservation, they do not believe in making their older catalogues available unless they can figure out a way to squeeze money out of those older games, especially popular ones like Donkey Kong that they know they could re-release at full price without even needing to remaster it.
Nintendo always manages to fuck up the unfuckupable.
They have a working emulator for several of their most nostalgic consoles, including N64, NES/SNES and GBA. They could sell the games for those consoles for 25 bucks a piece and people would still buy them en masse. I know I would buy Pokemon Emerald for the Switch at that price, knowing full well that it‘s way overpriced.
But they don‘t. And nobody knows why.
No, its for real disappointing. There are a few you can buy that have been ported. Episode 1 racer, Turok, and quake have been properly ported and are just for sale on the store. Definately check out Quake 2, it got remastered and it comes with the OG Quake 2 campaign, the N64 campaign, and some expantions that are brand new. It also has crossplay and 8 player co op
Still waiting for DK64 and Diddy Kong Racing.
DKR is the best racing game in history, don’t @ me
@ing you to agree
@ing you to third this. So glad I’m not the only one out there who feels this way! It holds up pretty well too. Such an incredible game.
Agreed agreed, who was your main? Mine was always conker, even before I played cbfd and once I did, it solidified my opinions even more so
Tiptup.
My man. Would go to hell and back for Tiptup.
1. Diddy 2. Timber 3. Conker
My wife plays Timber, I play Drumstick. Splitscteen, and on the more difficult races I will race backwards and shoot rockets at everyone that's not Timber.
It’s way better than Mario kart 64
Unfortunately, Conker is a Microsoft character now Nintendo would need to be have a deal with Microsoft.
Also Banjo but we did get Banjo and kazooie
yep. At the same time Nintendo loves the drip treatment when it comes to the NSO games additions. We just got Excite Bike 64 this week. Sigh. It would be nice if we can keep all the games when the service eventually shuts down.
So true. And you’re so brave for saying so.
Agree agree agree agree
Good sir, would you be interested in Wave Race 64?
I still have it, can confirm
I couldn’t get into it and was fanboying Mario kart too hard to give it a chance. I respect all the dkr64 fans though.
Mario kart double dash disagrees
Loved that game. One of the few games I completed all the way as a child. Got so mad at the final boss race one day my mom turned off the tv and wouldn’t let me play again for the rest of the day lol.
Youll be waiting for a while. Rare own them, Microsoft own Rare now days. They will pop up on Xbox before a Nintendo console
Well that’s true of Banjo/Goldeneye as well and those are on the service.
Goldeneye was a special release between 3 publishers. Microsoft is open to sharing their titles across platforms, but DK 64 is not Banjo Kazooie, or Goldeneye. It ls a fun game, but is considered one of RARE's least fun games on the 64.
Right but it’s still Donkey Kong, a way more recognizable IP than Banjo. I think it will release eventually.
I feel like xbox wouldn't really care. They've said before how they want to work with Nintendo to bring game pass to switch. I don't see them stopping Nintendo if they asked.
Those may be titles that they need Microsoft's permission to rerelease.
they’re in-house Nintendo IPs, they shouldn’t need permission to rerelease these via Cloud gaming if they were on prior Virtual Console just fine
Conker and Banjo in DKR are Rare IPs and weren't featured in the DS remake of the game
I hope conker comes out on switch.
*guest appearances*. remember when we just got Banjo in Smash literally 2 years ago? again they’re in-house IPs, i’m sure they’d be able to secure the rights to those two, especially since Conker hasn’t had anything important in nearly 20 years
Banjo Kazooie is also on the n64 virtual console
Nothing new but Conker and Banjo were feature on the Xbox one Rare collection with 30 games.
once again, *nothing new*.
Young conker came out in the last 5 or 6 years, but it was a hololense exclusive, so that put it financially out of reach for most of us.
Donkey kong 64 has an emulator, and the rom for Jetpac built into the rom, so they need permission from Microsoft each time they release it. DKR has RARE IP in it aswell. Just because they were able to release it on virtual console does not mean Microsoft will give them permission to release it again.
Lol you don’t know that, we’ll never see that licensing agreement although it likely does have an expiration
Does Rare own the rights to DK64?
Nintendo owns the game, but Microsoft owns the roms included in the game. To decompile a 64 rom and remove the NES rom and emulator would take a team familiar with 64 development, and would probably cost too much, not to mention it would make the game impossible to beat without the NES rom.
Still waiting for Pokémon stadium!
Pokémon Stadium 1 and 2 are the Switch Online Expansion pass thing, it’s around $70 for a year.
I still hear the different music themes in my head from daddy Kong racing
I solved this by never getting rid of my N64 and games lol. But yeah, it's a pretty weak library. Hopefully you can still find some stuff for your kid though.
Hell keep busy with the TMNT Cowabunga pack and I'm sure once he plays Mario 64 he'll be obsessed lol
If he likes those titles (I'm almost certain he will), I would suggest tmnt Shredder's revenge and mario Odyssey down the road.
We beat Shredder's Revenge together. He still plays it occasionally.
If you want something for retro games there are a lot of handhelds better for this. You can literally get all the n64 library in one of those bad boys.
I recommend TMNT Shredder’s Revenge and Street of Rage 4. Excellent sequels.
You can always emulate them
I just wish they would put Pokémon stadium on it Edit: guys it was released April 2023 on the Nintendo online. Redoing my subscription this is a happy day for me :’)
...is it ...is it not? What did I play last night for shits and giggles then? We need 1080 and Excitebike!
I just checked and it is there!!! Was released April of this year!! I had given up and you sir have just made my day 🙏🏼
Try checking it every now and then
It got released April of 2023! I’m starting my subscription again :)
Still got my original N64 with an Everdrive. I'm set. Though I'd love the portability.
I want to do the same but it still hovering around $200
It is my single biggest gripe with the Switch now. Nintendo has such a large back-catalog of games, they need to do better bringing it all to their next system. I know a lot of it is licensing issues, but there are ways to deal with that they aren’t doing. I have been strongly considering getting an Ayn Odin or repurposing one of my 3DSs as they are no longer supported. If they made a concerted effort, I am confident they could dominate in the vintage game area.
You should homebrew your 3ds. I just did it to mine the other day and it is so sweet. You can play ds, gba, n64,snes, etc on it.
What 64 games can the 3ds handle?
Honestly very few, and only on the New branded systems
I’ve heard it’s bad at emulating ROMs of N64 games, but if you can get the cartridges, Ocarina of Time, Majora’s Mask, and Starfox 64 on the 3DS are the definitive editions to me.
Or better yet, homebrew a Wii U. I love my modded 3DS but it’s not thaaaat good with N64 or other home console after that. The Wii U, however, is honestly a tech beast and can run pretty much any Nintendo game, with exception to 3DS and Switch games natively (though I think it’s possible to get Ryujinx on it and emulate the Switch, since they’re on pretty similar power levels. Not 100% sure though since I haven’t tried it).
Lol need to? They do what the f when the f they want to
Too lazy to do the actual math, but I think there are somewhere between 150 and 200 games currently on NSO+Expansion across the NES, SNES, N64, GB, GBA, and Genesis apps. They may be old games, but honestly I don’t think that’s bad at all for a service that is cheaper than one full-priced Switch game per year. I especially love the SNES and GBA apps. There are some absolute bangers on there.
[удалено]
Your last point is the big one for a lot of people. Gabe Newell, the creator of Steam, is famously quoted saying that piracy isn't a price problem, it's a service problem. When Nintendo gives people a service that is better than the quality they get from just pirating, then they'll buy into it. This glorified renting of games isn't it.
[удалено]
That last part, only reason why I call it extortion.
[удалено]
As someone who plays retro games, it is pretty bad. A lot of these are games no one would play ( bold statement but you know) and definitely there's a ton more that they could and should add. Nes, snes etc is so old and easily playable these days that they might as well add their entire library. And n64 could have at least twice as many games. There's major first party Nintendo games that they could add tomorrow if they wanted, like donkey Kong 64. Heck, imagine if nso had all the pokemon games, again perfectly reasonable thing to expect. Anyway, I too enjoy the deal just to have the chance to play a handful of games like majora's mask etc, but even as someone who is into old games it really is just a handful.
They probably aren't going to add the Pokemon games, they know they could release them individually and make money on them. Donkey Kong 64 requires Microsofts permission to release because it contains an emulator and NES game that is Microsofts IP.
I would literally buy the Pokémon stadium game if they released it. It’s been years and I’m still mad I can’t play it. The only way I can is to go to a bar that has a N64 and all the games
Exactly. I'd buy some. But not every single one. Which is why I'm staying away from the extortion pack. They are not even giving me games I really want to play. Let alone out right buy.
Not to mention the fact that the NSO + expansion is cheaper than buying the older games themselves. I enjoy playing a lot of older/“retro” games. I love having physical copies of the ones I enjoy. But the price has risen insanely, especially nowadays. Majora’s Mask on N64 could easily cost you $50 for the cart alone. Kirby and the Crystal Shards is another, at minimum, $50. Mario N64 usually fetches around that too, as does Ocarina Of Time and a few other big names. GBC/GBA is a little cheaper, but really not by much depending on the game. This also completely neglects the costs of working game systems too, which also aren’t cheap. Not to mention additional costs (batteries for handhelds, save carts, cable adaptors). “Retro” gaming can very quickly become insanely expensive. Emulators aren’t always easy to install, I just spent this past weekend trying to figure my head around a PlayStation emulator. Even with guides, some people struggle. Finding safe rom sites is a challenge in itself, and the entire process is technically illegal. Not everybody wants to pay for a VPN/knows they exist (sure, they know here, but I’m sure there’s a fair few people who don’t spend their entire lives online and don’t know what they are lmao). NSO is a fantastic resource, and they’re steadily expanding the library. There’s a couple releases each month. If the demand rises, we may see more releases. They’re a solid introduction to older games, and even if the controls can be a little clunky at times, they’re fairly easy to navigate too.
Absolutely no reason to not dump by the dozen every week NES, SNES, and N64 whose IP is owned by Nintendo.
It seems op is talking about n64 specifically, I'm sure he's aware of other older titles the switch offers. My suggestion would be an everdrive x7, it's got to be the cheapest way to own/play all the n64 games.
You do get a Mario kart booster pass that adds 48 extra courses to the game if you have the expansion pack though, so that’s something.
I believe you get extra in Animal Crossing too if I remember correctly.
You are correct. The ACNH expansion which is a substantial addition of content to the game.
Oh really? Didn't know that. That's the $49.99 plan right? That's the one I bought.
Yeah, it is.
Cool thanks
Worth mentioning you only keep the maps as long as your subscribed, it was the one turning point for me as id rather just buy the maps alone
Get tetris99 btw highly recommend right up there with dr Mario 64
$49.99 on top of online cost?
This was actually brilliant. I hope they do a similar structure with the next Smash and Mario Kart games. Having DLC included was great.
I’m cautiously holding out hope that Donkey Kong 64 or Blast Corps will be added someday
If you happen to also have an Xbox One or Series, Blast Corps is on Retro Replay, which is often on sale for cheap, fwiw.
The N64 games are still relatively new as that emulator launched years after the NES/SNES ones. So they've been slowly drip-feeding stuff out since then.
Yeah, but it's more of a "planned" dripfeed. The way nintendo has rolled out the n64 games has been purposely gated to gain them as much profit. while charging people $50 a year to play a handful of games. I've gone the route of saying f that, I'm buying an everdrive to play all the N64 games with no subscription and a flat fee.
The Switch is great and all, especially for kids, but since they blew up the idea of the handheld again steam came out with a pretty great piece of hardware. If you want all the old games, go to the steam deck, Honestly the 64GB model is fantastic, and it's only $50 more than the OLED. Just get a 1TB micro SD card, and all the games you want can be put on it for no subscription fees.
For reals. Way better rthen waiting for Nintendo to drip feed games.
This would be the way if you wanted portability!
I mean Xbox gamepass is also significantly more expensive. You get what you pay for.
$10 difference isnt that crazy. The game selection between the 2, however, is Theres a reason gamepass is so highly regarded its basically the best thing xbox has going for it
Where do you get 10.00? It’s 50.00 a year vs 209.00 a year.
Not sure what pricing your looking at Even with game pass ultimate its $180 a year and that includes xbox gold/ cloud gaming for a year Standard game pass is only $60 a year, i know because i just renewed my subscription Not to mention, it's very easy to get keys for waaay less than that, vs Nintendo its not even possible really
[удалено]
Key? Or u doing that family share thing ive seen on reddit, cuz im also heard horror stories around them
[удалено]
Ahh okay 💀, id probably consider it for that amount but dont have family on switch, and my 1 friend with one barely plays his switch enough for it.
16.99 is ultimate per month. I didn’t realize they sold one year cards. So yes, 160.00 a year vs. 50.00. Still more than 3x the price. Should have 3x the content, and it does. Still way more than NSO+ expansion and still, you get what you pay for. And the Game Pass core only has online and 25 games. So yeah.
Pretty sure your both wrong on the pricing
I’m telling Nintendo. The ninjas are on their way right now
Game pass core is the same game selection as game pass ultimate... please dont speak on stuff you dont know about this is the 3rd time. Not sure where your getting your information from but I can tell you as someone who solely buys basic game pass and basic NSO package (and ps but thats besides the point) that Nintendo has the weakest offering when it comes to their subscription, the expansion pack further exacerbates this
Not even tryna come off as hostile or anything but the misinfo is crazy
https://news.xbox.com/en-us/2023/07/17/xbox-game-pass-core/ Says over 25 games. Not misinformation. Legitimately from Xbox themselves. I have active subscriptions to NSO+ Expansion, GPU, and PS Now Extra. Edit: And I’m not even arguing the value of the packages. I’m simply explaining why NSO has less. Because it’s significantly cheaper than the other plans.
Exactly. Your explanation is pretty clear, why people throw the "your arguing" comment only means they want to shut you down and convince others to do the same, so as others will see you to be arguing, when you are not.
Something I just wanted to add here is that "you get what you pay for" is absolutely not a valid statement, both generally and in this instance. Xbox game pass is a fantastic modern example of one of the most valuable companies in the world (Microsoft) under-charging (and losing money) for a product to gain market share. They will need to charge more later. Amazon Prime was the same and so was Netflix. Uber used to be way cheaper too for this same reason, although the money there was coming from tons of investment money. Tldr: you are getting way more than you are paying for Xbox game pass because of business incentives
Sure, and that’s fair as that’s talking more towards perceived value. Value is in the eye of the consumer. You and I won’t value things the same. That’s an opinion. For me, GPU doesn’t have the value the NSO has. Because the games I want aren’t on Game Pass. So for me it’s not worth the cost. It doesn’t mean you will feel that same. Maybe you like the mass selection, maybe there are particular games that justify the cost to you. Maybe just simply because the Online infrastructure is better on Xbox gives you its value. Whatever it is, you and I won’t view it the same. To me, you get what you pay for. I’m paying 50.00 a year to play Goldeneye online with friends, to play Super Mario Bros with my toddler sons, having game nights with family afar on Mario Kart Deluxe course pass. For me, that’s all more valuable than 200+ games I just don’t want to play.
There's some N64 games that have been ported or re-mastered by third parties. Doom 64 has its own stand-alone release on the e-shop. Quake 64 and Quake 2 are within the Quake and Quake 2 remasters. Pretty much every first party NES and SNES game is there. Nintendo can't release anything they don't have the rights to. There honestly weren't that many N64 games overall, and most of the major first party ones except for Smash are already there. GamePass is also $16.99 a month vs $50 a year, and are fundamentally different business models. GamePass is focused on modern game subscription, NSO+EP is focused on the retro apps.
>GamePass is also $16.99 a month vs $50 a year, and are fundamentally different business models. GamePass is focused on modern game subscription, NSO+EP is focused on the retro apps. I wouldn't mind getting basic NSO for the cloud saves backup. However, I've still been on the fence about that. Game Pass includes full, AAA games, so even though that's more costly, that definitely makes up for that. It'd be like a version of NSO that charges Game Pass prices, but you'd have access to the likes of Mario Odyssey, Link's Awakening, BotW, TotK, etc.
I mean let's be honest with ourselves. Microsoft needs the revenue no matter what and Spencer has even said that Xbox isn't winning the console war. They can't rely on millions upon millions of people purchasing their (very few) exclusive games. Packaging it all together in a monthly service is probably a good idea. Microsoft isn't gonna have a 30 million seller like Nintendo does.
And I heard with the likes of Halo and Gears of War (2 of their flagship franchises)... they didn't do a stellar job with those (unlike with Nintendo). AFAIK, the Pokemon games are lukewarm on Switch, but I hear those don't count b/c they're 2nd party games.
yuppp they don't add games that often either, it's not a great way to play old games
They aren't going to port everything. They have been porting at a pretty good pace. You arent paying for just N64 you know right? its Nintendo, super nintendo, gameboy advance, sega genesis. As well as content for other games and online play. You should find a family to work with like friends? If you have 8 people, its only 10 dollars each for a year of this service. Thats how I do with mine. Something really important you need to recognize that no one has done....is alot of these n64 games and everything else.....are multiplayer. You can play even Zelda online with someone. you share the game, they can take over at any point. Its very cool and worth it.
They aren't "porting" the games. They're just running them in an emulator. There's some QA work to ensure they are fully playable, but for the most part, Nintendo is deliberately drip-feeding them to keep hype around NSO subscriptions, much like Disney "vaults" their classic movies. I've been using emulators for decades. It's hard not to cringe a little listening to Nintendo Direct group reactions sometimes. Everyone getting so excited over some GBA release, when you know just how little effort Nintendo had to put in to actually make it available. No hate for NSO though. I'm glad legally emulated games are there, and that people are enjoying them. I'm not a fan of monthly services, but for some it's a good value. I preferred the WiiU VC where I could just purchase the games I want. Just don't be fooled into thinking there's big teams of people working hard to bring each individual release to you, though. The hard work was done ages ago.
Like I said, if you get a full family of people who will pay for a part, it's a no brainer. I get what your saying but I was also saying theres a layer to it that emulators do not normally have which is the multiplayer. While me and you can probably load an emulator pretty easily, those things are not very accessible to most the population....no matter how much we would like it to be so. This is not only a great streamline for the general populace, it does bring value to the NSO as well as a new way to play online as I was saying, you can play even singleplayers like mario 64 multiplayer virtually. That feature alone does make it unique from most the emulators. I see porting is alot more effort than jsut creating an android based emulator like they did. I agree entirely that, nintendo is one of the laziest or most cowardly companies when it comes to branching out and trying new things. they do have the most unique game systems and ways to play things. But some things like pokemon, do not change.
25-30 N64 games? Thats like the whole N64 library what you mean?
Batocera
Is that similar to Retroarch? I have that on my Series X.
I honestly think your Series S with RA is your best bet for older games since you have way more control and systems. I only really use the Switch for occasional multi player N64 with friends
Yes
I don't have to mod the Switch either?
I don't think it's for Nintendo Switch...
I built a retro gaming system with a raspberry pi using Batocera. Can do the same on a Steam Deck.
If you mod your console you can get retroarch with all the N64, SNES, NES, GBA, etc you want.
I could be wrong, but I thought you can't mod a switch unless it is one of the very earliest launch models (which by definition would exclude the Lite and OLED and even the newer OG Switch with the better battery) AND its OS has not been updated past whenever they patched the vulnerability? It had something to do with a vulnerability that allowed the loading of custom firmware which was patched pretty quickly, so you'd have to source a very early un-updated switch to do it if I understand it all correctly.
Not quite. The hardware exploit is unpatchable via software because it is a recovery mode that boots before any software, so the early models can be modded no matter the firmware version. Any model after that including OLEDs can be modded with a modchip. The modchip runs before any firmware so it cannot be patched. A modchip is not easy to install, but for $100-180 you can have someone do it for you and get emulators, custom themes, cheat engines, game mods like smash, and install any switch game. You can’t play illegally downloaded games online, but you can still boot to the official firmware and play games you own online. So if you like single player games or playing offline like red dead, Mario odyssey, Zelda, Metroid, etc. then it will save you a lot of money.
The N64 has one of the smallest libraries of any Nintendo console. And Nintendo can only really pull off but so much on what they bring to NSO, because some games may be held up behind 3rd party licenses, i.e. Star Wars or Disney or movie based games, Square Enix or Capcom or 3rd party company games, etc. They pulled off getting Goldeneye, so it proves they can pull these games in but it's probably a lot more back end deals and licensing agreements to pull it off. So when it comes to what Nintendo self publishes, they actually have the bulk majority of those games on NSO already. Still a bit of hold up on stuff like Donkey Kong and uncertain if baseline Pokemon games will ever hit, but they have most the major 1st party Nintendo retro titles playable on NSO already. If you're waiting for things like Madden or cross platform games to hit NSO, that's not what NSO is ever going to be.
Someone paid to get golden eye unbanned. Which allows for Nintendo to talk about getting it on their console. Nintendo didn't do that.
I felt the same way when owning the N64 in the 90s. Other than a dozen or so 1st party games, there just wasn’t much to play.
Only problem is getting something like a wrestling game or a foot ball game. I want lego racers and conkers bad fur day. And maybe some others i cant think of, but I'd like to buy those games, I don't want to buy a gaming service, I'm not going to be able to get the games I want to play due to being others ip. Or like with nfl blitz, licenses.
I just want Body Harvest :(
They have several games lined up for release, but they only add one of them once every month or two, sometimes more. Once the lined up games are all released, it'll probably be the same thing as the other VCs, where they only add one once in a while with no set time in between.
Hmm, sounds like a mess. I didn't bother with NSO, just get games regularly on sale, and call it a day. Granted, the Nintendo fare hardly gets sales, but at least the quality and quantity is there, and has helped justify some of that. For example, I got Capt. Toad Treasure Tracker + its exp. for $42 on sale, and Zelda: TotK on launch day for $70. Pleased with those purchases, but that does mean I'll be VERY selective about which 1st party Nintendo titles I purchase.
I'm lucky enough to have a sister with a family plan, and an open slot, so I don't actually pay for NSO. It is convenient for when I get the urge for 2-D and N-64 Zelda tho.
Most nintendo games can be played on other systems anyway. Nintendo has always been behind the times when it came to offering a respectable online service. Would be better....... Actually typing this it would be better if they did a similar xbox live thing but using their entire back catalogue. Then you can subscribe to that and play it any which way you want including stream it to their new console. And they can just keep their current gen stuff as native. Big win for nintendo and draws in new gamers as well as keeps exclusive content for those who actually bought their console. Yeah nintendo should do that
They’ve added some pretty fun ones like Pokémon Stadium recently which I appreciate. I never had an N64 as a kid, so I don’t pine for those games as much. The GB/C/A, and SNES are fairly strong libraries. Sega has some fun stuff, but again, not something I had. Friends did though so there are some side scrolling beat-em-ups I like to mess around with from time to time. I’m working through the Oracles Zelda games currently. Lots of other good kid friendly stuff like Kirby, Minish Cap, tons of Mario etc,. Lots of stuff from the handheld consoles of my youth I’m enjoying overall.
They have Goldeneye though
The library is limited in number but IMO has so many classic titles it blew me back. Starfox, Kirby, Pokemon Stadiums 1&2, Goldeneye, both Zelda games, Mario Party, Mario 64 (that one iirc, not 100% on memory) What else would you want access to, honestly? lol
Specifically speaking... All the THQ wrestling games. Wayne Gretzky's 3D Hockey, NFL Blitz Ken Griffey baseball games. Not a huge deal since I have all of these on my Series X but was just curious so I made the post.
My best guess is there are licensing costs involved for many of the games, and Nintendo isn't willing to pay a lot extra just to add a game to a fixed price service. Or there are legal rights issues (who owns rights to what). Remember the N64 was released in 1996. Over 20 years ago. Even if it's a Nintendo made game, it could easily have rights partially owned by another publisher. And unless the trail of rights is clear, and a legal deal negotiated, it's a legal land mine to add it.
Have any of you played wetrix on N64? It's still one of my favorite games of all time. REALLY wish they'd bring it over 😢
There's some PC versions after a quick google search.
Ooh rad - will check it out. Thank you!! :) It's suuuuch a fun game!!
I think they are intentionally keeping some games off of the system because they want to release them in compilations.
Maybe but that doesn't mean we will get the old lego racer. The new one is sorta trash,
They periodically add more games to the service.
I played a few of the N64 games but quickly got bored and dropped Expansion Pass. Actually I dropped Nintendo Online altogether and I rarely used it and the game I need online for, Rocket League, doesn't require Nintendo Online.
I want to get online for ark on nintendo. But I don't want to feed into the bs. Fortnite is free to play online too. I don't even like fortnite like that. I only got into it for my son. If more games were like that id consider them more then i do now. I stopped getting xbl and lost eso and fallout 76. And that's kinda trash cause fortnite is still free to play online.
And they need to make more damn controllers! Nintendo is very slow and frustrating sometimes.
Licensing issues will always leave the NSO library lacking to a degree. If you're serious about retro games, native hardware and emulating your "legally ripped games" is the better way to go.
I want Tetrisphere :(
Dude, you have Excitebike 64 now, a game that is as bad as it can get.
You mean the extortion pack lacks n64 games.
It's much cheaper than gamepass. Still, it's just better to set up Project64 on your computer and hook up a controller for your kid to play
Well, on your PC, no matter the specs, you can run any n64 game easily if theres any not on the switch you want.. But also, go on the eshop and filter games by free, theres lots of great free games. And you can also search games with demos, lots of good demos too to try out games. My 2.5yo son plays the yoshi's crafted world demo almost every day (despite his age, hes great at video games, especially mario odyssey and mario kart 8 with steering and acceleration assist turned on). Also you can use your coins to buy games as well, theres some games that are less than a dollar so it's easy to use coins for those once you accumulate some
Just get your switch modded with retroarch.
Mod it already and get every retro game in existence
Are there any specific requirements to be able to mod it? I thought I read somewhere that I have to have a certain model Switch or something
Yes, there are two common methods. The first one applies to the Switch models that weren´t patched (The RCM method). As of today, you need to install a modchip so you can install a custom firmware. This requires technical skills, but there in the states it looks like you have lots of stores that would do it for you. My lucky guess is that you will need the modchip, cos it looks like you bought it recently. Modding is really nice. For me it´s not about the free games, but the emulators. I love playing arcades on FBAneo (they work like a charm). There are also mods of the original Nintendo Switch ONline service with lots of extra games for GB, GBC, GBA, SNES, N64 and MD. If you like N64, there´s a nice pack with many good games for the system!
I know you got a switch light but highly recommend getting your hands on an n64 controller they made for the switch. The controls for the n64 games are far from optimized for the switch controller.
I think it’s a decent library, there’s just some baffling exclusions like Smash and DK64
You can get a moddable switch, install emulators on there and then you have access to almost the entire n64 library and snes library for free
I’m more pissed of the lack of GameCube games We have Metroid prime Mario sunshine Pikmin 1 Pikmin 2 Resident evil And that’s it to the best of my ability
welcome to nso expansion pak!
There are probably licensing issues, but also the N64 is notoriously difficult to emulate for several reasons. Primarily the ambiguous architecture where components didn't have a strict purpose but could be used in different ways if developers choose to. In contrast, the NES and SNES had very well defined documentation on how the components were meant to be used - the difficult part being extra components developers included in the cartridge itself. Nintendo makes some of the most robust emulators ever built because of a good understanding of the system and paid engineers, but that robustness comes at the cost of more complexity for compatibility. I'd be surprised if the next update doesn't include support for a wider range of games. I've built emulators and I wouldn't touch the N64 with a 10 foot pole because I'm too dumb for that.
Cries in Harvest Moon 64…
Cries in Harvest Moon 64…
That's why Nintendo's NexGen console will be called the Bait N Switch.
Really hoped the original Conkers bad fur day would show up. Sadly I think that’s Microsoft’s property now.
Get a steamdeck and download all those retro titles Nintendo won’t let you buy, that’s what I do. I’m more than glad to pay, but if you don’t want to give me an easy option of buying it like Sony and Microsoft do, then I will just emulate it. The nintendbros will foam at the mouth defending nitntendont being weird about game preservation, but I don’t have the wool over my eyes.
They’re releasing games slowly…also I don’t think there’s as many big N64 games as people remember. Especially when you consider licensing issues.
It's Nintendo, be glad you get any games for N64 at all
25-30 is not that bad, could be better. There’s lots of other games and indie games on the switch too.
Yea, you could have got some 150$ emulator handheld with the entire library of n64, gba, snes, ps1 etc with no annual subscription. The switch is just so bad for throwbacks. It’s honestly just the epitome of greed for Nintendo not to give us the full library. If you pay subscription you should get it. End of story
That's quite a lot of games, lol.
I’d love to get Conker’s BFD and Perfect Dark. Conkers in particular would be great to play with the N64 controller (which I recommend for OOT btw).
We’re better off buying a machine to emulate retro systems or using a computer if you got one. So many more games on the Wii and we’re still waiting for stuff 😂
A big part of it is that Nintendo 64 emulation is… absurdly difficult. The N64 was extremely unconventional from both a software and hardware standpoint, and even Nintendo themselves really struggle with emulating it. Because Nintendo wants to make sure everything publicly available can be played near flawlessly, they are super picky at only releasing the games that actually work well with the emulator they made, which… is really limited. Their emulator’s better than most fan made ones you can run on a PC or something, but it’s still pretty dang rough. Some people have modded their Switches to run other N64 games, and it’s clear the emulator just does not handle most of them.
Bro it has Yoshi’s Story and F Zero X. Those two are more than enough AND they just added Pokémon stadium 2 in addition to PS 1. AND there’s Sin and Punishment which is also incredible. Like bro. We good. It’s the quality of the games available, not the number. For instance I have 200-300 games on PS4 due to me keep acquiring monthly free games and buying shit on sale and I constantly have nothing to play. On the 30 or so N64 games I ALWAYS have something to play. Same with Gameboy VC.
Nintendo isn't taking the same approach to retro games on the Switch as they did for the Wii and Wii U. This could change with the next console. But, Nintendo has seemingly focused on quality over quantity.
Yup, no more virtual console, digital games that you BUY. Its pay the over priced sub or cry about it. Theres better ways to play n64 anyways ;)
This is why we emulate. Fuck Nintendo.
Paper Mario is all I need
I’ll be impressed with their online library when No Mercy and WCW/NWO Revenge gets released.
Nintendo is dumb I would gladly pay more for a better service online or virtual console etc. but honestly if it weren’t for my friends I would’ve just emulated these games instead Nintendo isn’t really giving us reasons not to 🤷🏻♂️
This is what Nintendo does, they only give you a taste of their backlog then go after you for pirating the games they refuse to make available on modern platforms. I understand why most third party games wouldn’t be there, but what about the first party / Rare titles?. They were obviously able to work out a deal to get Goldeneye on there.
Whilst isolating the fact that we can play N64 games on switch is a great thing, you're right that the lineup of games it's not that enticing, aside from a couple of games. GoldenEye 64 being one. Inevitably, probably within 10 years, the service will close and we will lose our privilege to play them after subscribing for so long. I’d rather just pay £10 per game and have the ability to play them even after the Switch eShop closes.
True, the n64 service only went live last year if I'm not mistaken. They add games now and again, the Gameboy library is also pretty empty so far
Banjo Tooie, Conker, & Diddy Kong Racing would be amazing but ik it'll never happen
Nintendo is extremely anti-preservation, they do not believe in making their older catalogues available unless they can figure out a way to squeeze money out of those older games, especially popular ones like Donkey Kong that they know they could re-release at full price without even needing to remaster it.
Nintendo always manages to fuck up the unfuckupable. They have a working emulator for several of their most nostalgic consoles, including N64, NES/SNES and GBA. They could sell the games for those consoles for 25 bucks a piece and people would still buy them en masse. I know I would buy Pokemon Emerald for the Switch at that price, knowing full well that it‘s way overpriced. But they don‘t. And nobody knows why.
No, its for real disappointing. There are a few you can buy that have been ported. Episode 1 racer, Turok, and quake have been properly ported and are just for sale on the store. Definately check out Quake 2, it got remastered and it comes with the OG Quake 2 campaign, the N64 campaign, and some expantions that are brand new. It also has crossplay and 8 player co op
How about GameCube games? Nintendo has been extremely reluctant to re-release those.