Nintendo Switch Online + Expansion Pack price, release date, and N64 games list [Updated]

Nintendo Switch Online gets a whole lot sweeter this October with the launch of the Nintendo Switch Online + Expansion Pack plan. If the current slate of free NES and SNES titles isn’t doing it for you, you’ll soon be able to access a catalog of top-tier Nintendo 64 and Sega Genesis titles — for a significant price increase over the base subscription.

If you’re an Animal Crossing: New Horizons fan, it’s a no-brainer — the Happy Home Paradise DLC will be included with the subscription. If you couldn’t care less about the chill life sim, you might find the price hike and seemingly mandatory annual subscription too much to stomach.

Here’s everything you need to know about the NSO + Expansion Pack including its release date, expected price, launch games, and more.

When is the Nintendo Switch Online Expansion Pack release date?

After the Animal Crossing: New Horizons Direct on October 15, Nintendo revealed that the Nintendo Switch Online + Expansion Pack will launch October 25.

The N64 and Sega Genesis controllers for Switch Online are also available to order on the company’s online store. Both controllers will begin shipping out October 25.

What is the Nintendo Switch Online Expansion Pack price?

When the catalog was first revealed during a Nintendo Direct on September 23, it was described as an additional offering that would be tacked on to the traditional $19.99 (individual) or $34.99 (for a family of up to eight users) yearly fees subscribers already pay.

Nintendo revealed the pricing for Switch Online + Expansion Pack on October 15. An annual subscription, which will also include the Animal Crossing: New Horizons Happy Home Paradise DLC, will cost $49.99 for an individual user. That’s a hefty $30 increase over the base individual subscription. The cost of an eight-person family membership with the Expansion Pack will increase to $79.99.

Unlike the base subscription, which offers one- and three-month payment plans, it appears anyone interested in the Expansion Pack, whether they opt for an individual or family plan, will need to pay the annual rate.

Nintendo Switch Online Expansion Pack N64 games list

Nintendo announced that the Nintendo Switch Online + Expansion Pack plan will launch with at least nine N64 games on day one.

• Dr. Mario 64
• Mario Kart 64
• Mario Tennis
• Sin & Punishment
• Star Fox 64
• Super Mario 64
• The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time
• WinBack: Covert Operations
• Yoshi’s Story

These N64 games will be added to the Expansion Pack catalog in the near future.

• Banjo-Kazooie
• F-Zero X
• Kirby 64: The Crystal Shards
• Mario Golf
• Paper Mario
• Pokémon Snap
• The Legend of Zelda: Majora’s Mask

Nintendo Switch Online Expansion Pack Sega Genesis games list

In contrast to committing to a steady trickle of games, Nintendo revealed that these 14 Genesis classics will be available for Expansion Pack subscribers on day one.

• Castlevania: Bloodlines
• Contra: Hard Corps
• Dr. Robotnik’s Mean Bean Machine
• Ecco the Dolphin
• Golden Axe
• Gunstar Heroes
• Ristar
• Shining Force
• Sonic the Hedgehog 2
• Streets of Rage 2
• MUSHA
• Phantasy Star 4
• Shinobi 3
• Strider

We imagine more games will be added to this Genesis lineup in the future as well, but it’s possible Nintendo was less definitive on that front because ongoing communication with Sega is likely required to make those catalog additions happen.

Do N64 and Genesis games on Switch have online multiplayer?

Yup! Just like the NES and SNES catalogs before them, all games with multiplayer modes in the N64 and Genesis catalogs can be played online. In the case of N64, multiplayer modes in games like Mario Kart 64 support up to four online players at once. It’s assumed however, that all players must be NSO + Expansion Pack subscribers to have access to your lobbies.

If it works like NES and SNES online, simply scroll over to the player silhouette icon on the left-hand side of the screen and select the option to “play online.” You can play the game while you wait for players to join, and your lobby can be made with and without a passcode.

Will there be N64 and Genesis controllers for Switch?

To celebrate the launch of the Nintendo Switch Online + Expansion Pack, subscribers will be able to purchase replica N64 and Genesis controllers too. The remotes will cost $49.99 each.

The N64 and Sega Genesis controllers for Switch Online are also available to order on the company’s online store.

It should be known that the Genesis controller on offer in the U.S. is the three-button variant popularized at the start of the system’s lifecycle. If you want a six-button Genesis controller for Switch, you’ll have to import one from Japan. Also, you don’t necessarily have to be an Expansion Pack subscriber to buy these controllers either, as they will be offered to anyone with a Nintendo Switch Online membership.