The Nintendo Switch continues to update its line of games featuring free online alternatives of classic NES games. For this month the system received several new games for the NES offerings, as well as two special games that many gamers absolutely did not see coming.
Nintendo Switch Online subscribers managed to get their hands on Adventures of Lolo, a top-down adventure game sort of like a cross between The Legend of Zelda and Bomberman, along with the original Ninja Gaiden, which features ninja Ryu in side-scrolling action against the forces of darkness. The third game made available is Wario's Woods, which is a throwback to the Tetris-style puzzle games that the Wario titles were known for. However, the selection for this month go beyond that: there are two additional games added to the list, special versions of Dr. Mario and the original Metroid.
The latter two games are special editions of the respective releases, especially considering that Metroid was added to the Switch's online library a month ago. This also means that they've been modified from their original releases. For instance, as noted by Eurogamer, the special edition of Dr. Mario has players dropping into the game starting at level 20 on the high-speed mode. The reason for this is so that players will be able to progress through the game and access a rarely seen sequence that most people had previously been unable to experience. So, in a way, it's like Nintendo trying to nudge people to see the rare content that most people didn't know existed back when the games first came out for the original NES in the 1980s.
For Metroid, the special version of this game for the Nintendo Switch will give you all of Samus' abilities, and instead of playing through the game from start to finish, it starts you near the end of the game to fight Ridley. It once again allows players to blast through the game and access the endings that so few people were able to reach back when the games originally came out some 30 years ago.
These special versions of Dr. Mario and Metroid join a very short list of games that are put into this category, including the original Zelda and Gradius, both of whom also received the special version treatment.
It's Nintendo's way of keeping gamers entertained by these older classics by adding something new to them. Other games have also been updated for the Switch release, including adding online multiplayer for certain multiplayer titles that have been revived for the system.
Technically this feature isn't all that new when compared to the fact that many NES emulators already allow for online play, but it's nice to see Nintendo embracing the option. The company may be a little slow to the draw at times when it comes to certain quality of life functions, but Nintendo is always innovative when it comes to thinking outside the box or creating new ways to play old games, such as the special versions for these NES titles that are definitely very different from what you would be able to play on a standard ROM and emulator set.
