GameCube games could finally be coming to Nintendo Switch Online
Nintendo has a pretty poor history of making sure its games are looked after. The history of video games is crucial, with digital restoration and emulation helping us to keep titles from being lost to the years.
Still, there aren't many legal avenues to play old-school Nintendo games, because the ones that players are desperate to return to simply aren't deemed important enough for the company's focus.
There are leagues of historical Nintendo titles yet to be brought back to life, and without some love and attention, we could never play them again. They deserve to be preserved.
Nintendo's response to this is to drip-feed classic games to Nintendo Switch Online subscribers with their emulators on the Switch - and now it looks like they could be taking a bold step into the future. By the future, we mean the relative future of 2001.
Is The GameCube coming to Nintendo Switch
Click to enlargeWell, it's about time. Fans have been wondering when (or if) Nintendo will introduce the swathes of iconic games on the Gamecube. Thankfully, it looks like we have something of a tease that it's on the way.
Courtesy of a Nintendo earnings call, the company's president Shuntaro Furukawa indicates that the team is eyeing up more enhancements to the online service.
"As of September 2022, the number of paid Nintendo Switch Online members has surpassed 36 million," says Furukawa "While there are some users who choose not to renew their memberships once they expire, the number of members is increasing overall, along with increases in people playing Nintendo Switch and titles that support online play.
"In addition, the Nintendo Switch Online + Expansion Pack service, which we started last year, is accounting for a gradually increasing proportion of overall memberships thanks in part to the addition of Nintendo 64 titles."
Nintendo is considering "various initiatives" to incentivise NSO
Furukawa continues - "The goal of Nintendo Switch Online as a service is to help users to enjoy playing on Nintendo Switch for a long time, so we are considering various initiatives, including further enhancements to the content of the service."
"As we discussed in today's presentation, our goal is to continue to use Nintendo Account to maintain long, positive relationships with our consumers. In line with this strategy, we consider Nintendo Switch Online as our initiative to encourage our users to continue to enjoy Nintendo Switch for many years to come."
Though there was no explicit mention of the GameCube, this seems to imply that a new console could be coming to the NSO incentives. We're (very) slowly running out of options, and the GameCube is the next best contender.
We know Super Mario Sunshine was part of the Super Mario All-Stars ensemble, but the chance to play that alongside The Legend of Zelda: The Wind Waker and Paper Mario: The Thousand-Year Door, consider us sold.
