What it's about the premise, without spoilers
This isn't one game. It's the NES app inside Nintendo Switch Online, a library of old Nintendo Entertainment System games you can play on your Switch for as long as you keep a membership. It's included in the base membership, and you pick a game and you're playing in seconds. The Super Nintendo and Game Boy apps are in the base membership too. The Expansion Pack adds the Nintendo 64, Game Boy Advance, Mega Drive and, on Switch 2, GameCube games.
The library has the famous ones (Super Mario Bros. 3, The Legend of Zelda, Metroid, Kirby's Adventure, Tetris) and a lot of names I'd never heard of. Some games let you play together on the same Switch, and online play works with friends too.
How I got into it my story with the game
I came across it simply because it comes with the Nintendo Online subscription, so there was nothing extra to buy. I know some of the titles, and I had a really good time.
It's a fun walk down memory lane. Super Mario Bros. 3 was always my favourite, and playing it again was amazing. I haven't tried it with the original retro controller, which Nintendo sells separately, so I can only tell you how it feels on the normal Switch ones: it's not the same feel, and not as easy to handle as I remember the real NES pad being.
How it looks art style and atmosphere
It's the 80s in a box. Chunky pixels, bright flat colours, and sprites that still look charming forty years later. Nothing in it is detailed, but a well-made NES game has real character.
On a TV the pixels get big and blocky, which is part of the fun. Handheld is great too, because these games were designed for small screens.
How it sounds music, sound effects and mood
Simple little tunes, and they're the best part. They're short and loopy and still stuck in your head forty years later. The overworld themes, the jingle when you grab an item or lose a life, and the bleeps and bloops are as good as ever. It's easy to leave a game running just for the music.
The story and the people characters and plot, spoiler-free
Almost none. These games tell their story in a paragraph on the box, if at all. A plumber saves a princess, a hero finds a triforce, and that's about it. The characters are famous, but what they do is run, jump and shoot. If you're after story, this isn't the place.
After work: effort and challenge how much it asks of a tired brain
Effort is about as low as it gets. There's nothing to learn: two buttons and the D-pad, and that's about it. You press start and you're playing, and a session can be as short as you like.
How hard it is depends on the game you pick. Overall they're fine, and the games aren't that complex. The Zelda ones are the exception, and so are the high levels of some games, but you'd need really long sessions to get there. What's really nice, compared with the actual NES, is that you can save your game. I guess that takes away from the folklore of leaving the console and the TV on for hours (days?) so you wouldn't lose your progress, although I'm not sure that ever really worked and my memory fails me. Hold ZL and ZR and you can also rewind a few seconds after a mistake.
It's great for a chill evening after work. Short sessions, simple music and cute games.
Docked vs handheld TV or in your hands, and my pick
I played it mostly handheld, and it suits it, since a ten-minute game is exactly what this is for. Docked is better when someone else is there and you want a two-player game on a big screen. There's no text to worry about in either.
What gets in the way the real annoyances
- Some games have not aged well. Pick the famous ones first.
- The controller doesn't feel like the original NES pad, at least not the normal Switch ones I used.
- You need a Nintendo Switch Online membership: €19.99 a year for one person or €34.99 a year for a family of up to eight. Prices change from country to country, so check the eShop price where you live.
- It isn't a one-off purchase, so the games disappear if you stop paying.
On Switch 2 what changes and what it costs
It works on Switch 2 and behaves the same as on Switch. The base membership covers the NES app, so you don't need the more expensive Expansion Pack for it, which costs €39.99 a year (check your own eShop for the price in your country).
Verdict should you play it?
A fun walk down memory lane, especially if you already pay for Switch Online. You play it for nostalgia more than anything else, because the games are simple and only a few get properly complicated. Start with the famous ones, save whenever you like, and enjoy the simple music. A 7 from me, and a good one for an evening after work.
