Announcement incoming?
[Update: The mystery is solved! Nintendo added EarthBound (SNES) and EarthBound Beginnings aka Mother (NES) to the Nintendo Switch Online retro game library.]
Nintendo has revealed that NES and SNES Switch Online maintenance is coming after the Direct today, which could indicate more games are on the way. It seems like the perfect time to drop some new games, as Nintendo often rolls with the “it’s available now/after the Direct!” style marketing. It’s a small little tease, but it’s always a fun thing to speculate about when there’s going to be a new 40-minute full-size Nintendo Direct.
At this point, the sky is the limit for whatever drops after the NES and SNES Switch Online maintenance. I mean, the floor is so low! Nintendo is charging extra for a service that’s seen minimal gains since it came out, and hasn’t done the greatest job in enticing new players. I’m curious as to how the expansion pack is faring internally, as they haven’t been super gung ho about it being a success yet.
In any case, there are so many SNES classics (and oddities) that haven’t hit the service yet, many of which are first-party games that Nintendo can add at any time. But given the drip-fed nature of the Virtual Console, going all the way back to the Wii, then the 3DS/Wii U, into now: I wouldn’t put it past them to just add a few and hold off.
Stay tuned for our Direct coverage coming later today, including the watch post that everyone gets rowdy in! Between everything coming in February and this, it really feels like the world of gaming is heating up again.
