The premium version of the Nintendo Network will get underway in September. The service will be available across three pricing tiers, including $3.99 for a month, $7.99 for three months, or $19.99 for a year. Alternatively, if you have multiple people with multiple Nintendo Network accounts living in the same house, there’s a Nintendo Network family plan available for $34.99.
Over on the official Nintendo website they detailed that all games with current online-enabled multiplayer will require a premium Nintendo Network account in order to continue to access their online features. This includes games such as Splatoon 2, ARMS, Mario Kart 8: Deluxe and the upcoming title Mario Tennis Aces.
Additionally, those with a premium Nintendo Network account will gain access to cloud saves for data storage. The cloud data saves will actually be enabled before September, but Nintendo did not release the details on when it will go live.
What’s more is that there will be 20 NES games made available at the launch of the premium network service, all of which will have online multiplayer enabled. So you’ll be able to play classic NES titles with two-player online multiplayer support on your Nintendo Switch, either in mobile mode or TV mode.
Lastly, there’s going to be a mobile app made available for iOS and Android users. The companion app will allow players to form up groups, join parties and communicate with friends using their Nintendo Network ID.
Some of the features available with premium service and the features that will be restricted to those who don’t have the premium service are outlined below.
Nintendo didn’t clarify if the 20 NES games would later be joined by SNES games, but they did mention that they would be expanding the roster of NES titles over time. On the NES web portal they outline the 20 initial games that will be available this September:
- Soccer
- Tennis
- Donkey Kong
- Mario Bros.
- Super Mario Bros.
- Balloon Fight
- Ice Climber
- Dr. Mario
- The Legend of Zelda
- Super Mario Bros. 3
Expect more details on the Nintendo Network service during this year’s E3.