There have been rumblings about Nintendo eventually making its way to adding GameCube games to the library of classic games and consoles available through its Nintendo Switch Online subscription for a while now.
But that didn't make the reveal that it would actually be happening any less exciting when Nintendo confirmed it during the Nintendo Switch 2 direct on Wednesday. The catch here is that GameCube games are only going to be available to players subscribed to the higher-tier Nintendo Switch Online subscription, which is the NSO + Expansion Pack level, and that these games will be exclusively available to players on Nintendo Switch 2.
So even if you're already subscribed to the Expansion Pack tier, you'll need to run out and grab a Switch 2 if you want to play the classic GameCube games Nintendo is adding. And speaking of those games, as expected, Nintendo isn't just dumping all your favorites at once.
The games will be drip-fed as they have been with every other classic console added to the service, and when the console launches this coming June, only three games will be available on launch day. They are:
- The Legend of Zelda: The Wind Waker
- Soulcalibur II
- F-Zero GX
As for what will be coming later on, Nintendo did provide a quick preview during its Wednesday presentation. It was a quick scroll, but we know to expect another seven games, which are:
- Super Mario Strikers
- Fire Emblem: Path of Radiance
- Pokémon XD: Gale of Darkness
- Super Mario Sunshine
- Chibi-Robo: Plug Into Adventure
- Luigi's Mansion
- Pokémon Colosseum
There's no word as to when these games will be added to the library of GameCube games, save for the confirmation during the Treehouse Live event on Thursday that they will arrive "a bit later."
While Nintendo has already hit some of the big names with this first batch of 10 games, there are still plenty that fans are waiting with bated breath to hear about, like The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess, Mario Kart: Double Dash, Super Mario Bros Melee, and The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time, to name a few.
Also, now that we've reached GameCube games, it'll be interesting to see how Nintendo continues to evolve this classic library of games and game consoles. Will we actually get Nintendo Wii games added to this library? How far will Nintendo actually go now that we're solidly in the 2000s and getting closer to modern-day games?
There's a real discussion to be had now as to whether GameCube games are where Nintendo stops. Or maybe we just have to wait for the Nintendo Switch 3 before Nintendo Wii games are far enough behind to be added to this library of classic consoles and games.
