Nintendo is offering a free trial of its Switch Online service to all Nintendo Switch owners, even if they’ve redeemed a previous trial.
Nintendo of Europe is opening up a 7-day trial to all current non-members, providing access to reams of retro NES and SNES games in the process.
Gamers will also be able to play online free of charge during the trial period, while the company periodically makes special offers available to members.
After the week is up, gamers will need to fork over £3.49 for a month, £6.99 for three months and £17.99 for twelve months in order to retain access to the associated benefits.
Related: Best Nintendo Switch games
Enjoy 7 days of online play, 70+ classic #NES and #SuperNES games, and more with a #NintendoSwitchOnline free trial! You can enjoy this offer even if you redeemed a free trial previously. Visit #Nintendo #eShop on your console to get started. pic.twitter.com/q2Ke38XlkS
— Nintendo of Europe (@NintendoEurope) April 29, 2020
That’s much cheaper than Sony’s PlayStation Plus and Microsoft’s Xbox Live offerings. However, those gamers glean far more value from the number of free current- and recent-gen games, and discounts offered through the respective platforms.
Nintendo’s offering is largely backed-up by the access to free games from yesteryear, including those groundbreaking Mario games, and the titles we saw launch for the NES and SNES Class consoles. New games are added to the platform every month.
The current SNES offering includes: Super Mario World, Super Mario Kart, The Legend of Zelda: A Link to the Past, Super Metroid, Star Fox, F-ZERO, Kirby’s Dream Land 3, Super Punch-Out!!, Demon’s Crest, Breath Of Fire, Super Puyo Puyo 2 and many more old school delights.
Meanwhile, if you’re a NES fan, you can enjoy the following right now: The Legend of Zelda, Dr. Mario, Donkey Kong, Wario’s Woods, Double Dragon II: The Revenge, Super Mario Bros, Kung Fu Heroes and many more.
The company will be hoping that gamers, perhaps bored by the lockdowns, will sample Switch Online and decide they can’t live without it going forward. Currently the offer only seems to be available to gamers in Europe, because Nintendo of America hasn’t mentioned anything yet.
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Editorial independence
Editorial independence means being able to give an unbiased verdict about a product or company, with the avoidance of conflicts of interest. To ensure this is possible, every member of the editorial staff follows a clear code of conduct.
Professional conduct
We also expect our journalists to follow clear ethical standards in their work. Our staff members must strive for honesty and accuracy in everything they do. We follow the IPSO Editors’ code of practice to underpin these standards.
