Nintendo lives up to its heritage with paid Friv2Online Studio subscriptions to emulators of the classic NES and Super NES consoles with impressive collections of games. Recently, it has become possible to expand the subscription with games for the Nintendo 64, the next Nintendo console after the SNES, as well as the Sega Genesis, the main competitor of the same SNES in the console wars of its time. Are they worth the extra charge? Let's find out in our review.

WHAT IS NINTENDO SWITCH ONLINE

Nintendo Switch Online is a paid Nintendo subscription that, in a controversial trend of the last couple of console generations, is required for online play. But in addition to multiplayer, subscription users have access to cloud saves, a mobile app, exclusive games, and collections of classic NES and Super NES games.

In September 2021, Nintendo introduced an expansion pack for their subscription, available for purchase from October 26, 2021. With it, in addition to the existing functionality, users get access to emulators of two more classic platforms - Nintendo 64 and SEGA Genesis, also known as Mega Drive.

WHAT GAMES ARE INCLUDED IN THE EXPANSION PACK

The extended subscription includes 23 games - 9 for the Nintendo 64 and 14 for the Sega Genesis. In addition, North American and European versions are available for select Nintendo 64 games. Here is a complete list of all friv games for each platform.

• Nintendo 64:
  Super Mario 64
  Mario Kart 64
  The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time
  Dr. Mario 64
  Mario Tennis
  Yoshi's Story
  WinBack: Covert Operations
  Star Fox 64
  Sin and Punishment
  Nintendo Switch Online Subscription Expansion Pack Overview

Sega Genesis:
Castlevania: Bloodlines
Contra: Hard Corps
Dr. Robotnik's Mean Bean Machine
Ecco the Dolphin
golden axes
Gunstar Heroes
MUSHA
Phantasy Star IV
Ristar
Shining Force
Sonic the Hedgehog 2
Streets of Rage 2
Shinobi 3
Strider
Also included in the extended package is the paid DLC Happy Home Paradise for Animal Crossing, in which you can create your own resort and build summer houses for different tourists. It requires the full version of Animal Crossing itself.

IMPRESSION

As in the case of the NES and Super NES, each emulator is designed as a separate program for the Switch, which, when launched, opens the main menu, where we can select the desired game or go to the settings of the emulator itself. Games are downloaded in their entirety, everything works even without a constant Internet connection.

All supported games can be played with friends locally or over the Internet. The Nintendo 64 supports up to four players in some games, the Genesis can only be played by two, but no additional controllers are needed - each player only needs one joystick.

The aspect ratio of the screen in games is classic 4:3, with nice frames on the left and right. Also, in both emulators, the functions of rewinding and saving at an arbitrary point are available - up to four slots in each game. Given the hardcore nature of some games, this can come in handy.

The emulation for the SEGA Genesis works almost perfectly, although the frames sometimes show slight distortion.

Of course, there are not enough friv games, and their choice is not entirely obvious - for example, it would be great to see Comix Zone or the helicopter series "Strikes" - but there are both cult hits like Streets of Rage 2 and Sonic 2, and not so famous among our gamers Phantasy Star IV. A good chance to appreciate the real jRPG of those years.

But with the Nintendo 64, things are very different from game to game. If Star Fox 64 and Mario Kart 64 work quite tolerably, then The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time and Super Mario 64 noticeably slow down, and the picture in these games twitches, especially in stationary mode. This is clearly not what you expect from a quarter-century-old console emulator, even on the Switch, which is not the most powerful by modern standards.

Some users complained about bugs and input lag, but I personally did not encounter them. It's also worth noting that certain games themselves have aged quite badly - the Nintendo 64 was the first step in 3D, and lamp pixel art has been replaced by harsh low-poly graphics that can shock unprepared players.

Management is also not implemented in the most successful way. Perhaps this is partly due to the unusual shape of the controller for the Nintendo 64. In it, as usual, prone to experimentation, Nintendo implemented two "D-pads", one of which corresponds to the right Switch analog stick in the emulator.

Instead of pressing buttons, you need to deflect it in the appropriate direction. Needless to say, this leads to a large number of false positives. Of course, there is a separate N64-style controller for true fans, but that's an additional expense anyway, and it's not easy to find one.

The number of friv games is also quite small, especially compared to the NES and Super NES collections from a regular subscription. Of course, the N64 emulator already weighs more than them - a little more than 300 MB - but even the modest capabilities of the Switch's drive quite allow it to take up much more space. It is hoped that the library will expand over time - and the appearance of The Legend of Zelda: Majora's Mask, F-Zero X, Banjo-Kazooie, Mario Golf, Kirby 64: The Crystal Shards, Paper Mario and Pokémon Snap have already been announced.