Nintendo has recently confirmed that the online gaming service for the Switch will be available in 2018. When the Nintendo Switch online service is released it will be priced at $19.99 for year of access. There will also be shorter subscription options for 1 month priced at $3.99, and 3 months for $7.99 available at the subscribers discretion. The company also stated that “pricing for additional countries, as well as details of the subscription terms, will be available closer to the launch of the service.” Until then cooperative multiplayer and online competitive features for titles will be free for players.
Online play during this free period will only require players to have an Nintendo account. Nintendo originally planned for the online service to go live this year, and even outlined the pricing for it’s online service on their website. After the free trail period Nintendo says that most games will require a paid online service subscription to play online.
Switch console owners who will have purchased a subscription will also be able to download classic titles such as Super Mario Bros. 3, Balloon Fight and Dr. Mario. “Nintendo Switch Online subscribers will have ongoing access to a library of classic games with added online play,” a spokesperson told Kotaku. “Users can play as many of the games as they want, as often as they like, as long as they have an active subscription.”
The paid features also include an online lobby, voice chat, a monthly game download and exclusive deals. The online subscription will become a paid service in the beginning of Fall this year.