This is what you get with Nintendo Switch Online + Expansion Pack

Nintendo Switch Online + Expansion Pack is the top-end online subscription for Nintendo Switch. Its annual price of $49.99 is more than double the price of Nintendo Switch Online’s base subscription, but it puts the service’s offering more on par with its cousins ​​on PlayStation and Xbox. It’s all about giving players access to more games, including beloved classics from older consoles like the N64, Sega Genesis, and Game Boy Advance.

Here’s an introduction to Nintendo Switch Online + Expansion Pack, the fine print on signing up, and everything you’ll get when you sign up.

Launched in 2018, Nintendo Switch Online offers subscribers the ability to play games online. Some might argue that the biggest benefit of the service is large (and growing) library of NES, SNES and Game Boy games for members to play. They also get cloud storage, voice chat and a smartphone companion app. In addition, Switch Online members can purchase a two-pack of Game Vouchers for $99.98, which is valid for new and upcoming first-party titles.

Nintendo Switch Online + Expansion Pack offers all of that, plus a collection of titles for Nintendo 64, Sega Genesis and Game Boy Advance (some of which offer new online multiplayer features). It also gives subscribers access to paid DLC, including Animal Crossing: New Horizons’ Premium expansion Happy Home Paradise and the entire Mario Kart 8 Deluxe‘s Booster Course Pass, which adds 48 courses and new characters to the base game ($25 value).

However, there is a catch: As with PlayStation Plus and Xbox Game Pass, you only get access to the DLCs and classic games while your subscription is active. If you cancel your subscription, you will lose access when the membership ends.

The Nintendo 64 games currently available Are:

There are also a number of N64 games rated 18+ which you can play through a separate, age-restricted app included in the subscription. Here are the games included so far:

The Sega Genesis games currently available Are:

The Game Boy Advance games currently available Are:

If you choose to sign up for Nintendo Switch Online + Expansion Pack, you can redeem the remaining number of days as a discount (five cents per day) on the expanded service package. So if you have 300 days left on your annual subscription, you will receive $15 back to apply towards the cost of the expansion pack. At that point, your previous membership will end and your new one will begin.

Those who have purchased a Nintendo Switch Online family membership can upgrade to a Nintendo Switch Online + Expansion Pack family plan, which costs $79.99 instead of $49.99 for an individual account. The discount is based on the remaining term of your subscription, at a rate of nine cents per day of service remaining. So if you have 300 days left, you’ll have $27 deducted from the total amount for the upgrade service.

This also means that if you’re on a family plan, you can’t simply purchase the expansion pack upgrade for yourself. You’d have to cancel the family plan and get a new subscription for $49.99.

This FAQ has more, but the basic rules are:

The short answer is no. You must let the subscription expire. Then turn off automatic renewal to ensure you are not charged again. After it expires, you can subscribe to the service package you want.

The value you get from Nintendo Switch Online + Expansion Pack depends a lot on how much you enjoy Nintendo 64, Game Boy Advance and Sega Genesis games. If you only buy it for the Animal Crossing: New Horizons If you have DLC and plan on downgrading once you get tired of it, keep in mind that the content will disappear from your game. You may be better off buying the DLC one-time for $24.99.

The games for Nintendo 64, Game Boy Advance and Sega Genesis are undoubtedly among the biggest hits with a large fan base – Mario Kart 64, Star Fox 64, Super Mario 64, And The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time highlights the N64 side of things; Sega Genesis brings you Sonic the Hedgehog 2, Streets of Rage 2, Ecco the Dolphin, Strider and others. For the Game Boy Advance portion of the service, it’s great to be able to play both Golden Sun games as well as some classic Metroid adventures. And as mentioned above, some games feature multiplayer functionality.

And there is the possibility to play these games with wireless replicas of the original controllers of their consoles. These controllers (N64, genesis) cost $49.99 each.