The Nintendo Switch Online NES 5.1.0 update and Nintendo Switch Online SNES update 2.1.0 are out and bring new games for subscribers. Nintendo has released a steady stream of emulated NES and SNES games to its online subscribers over the past few years. With these updates, four more SNES games and one NES game join the line-up.
Nintendo Switch Online NES update 5.1.0 patch notes
The NES only gets one game this time around, and it’s not exactly a classic. The Nintendo Switch Online NES 5.1.0 patch brings Nightshade to the app.
Nightshade is an odd game to bring to the service. Its full title is Nightshade Part 1: The Claws of Sutekh, and it was intended to be the first in a series of games. That series never materialized, but developer Beam Software did use it as a base for its more widely known title, Shadowrun for SNES.
However, Japanese players received a different title with this update (Nightshade never released outside North America). This time around, they get Smash Ping Pong.
Nintendo Switch Online SNES update 2.1.0 patch notes
In contrast to the NES update, Nintendo Switch Online SNES is pretty exciting. The SNES Donkey Kong Country trilogy can finally be played in its entirety on Switch with the release of Donkey Kong Country 3: Dixie Kong’s Double Trouble. Additionally, three other games debuted with update 2.1.0:
- The Ignition Factor
- Super Valis IV
- Tuff E Nuff
Alternatively, Japan gets another set of titles. In addition to The Ignition Factor (called Fire Fighting there) and Donkey Kong Country 3, Japanese players received:
- Kunio-kun no Dodgeball da yo Zen’in Shugo (It’s Kunio’s Dodgeball, Assemble Everyone!)
- Sugoi Hebereke (Amazing Hebereke)
It’s always great to get new games, but some classics are missing from the Nintendo Switch Online NES and SNES libraries. The most glaring first-party omission is Earthbound, which is still inexplicably unavailable to Switch Online subscribers.