With Golden Sun and The Lost Age making their arrival on Nintendo Switch Online, we've given this list a bit of a spruce up and added a few more dream titles to the service.
Plus, we've got a cheeky little poll at the end of the article too — so make sure you vote and let us know what you want to see on NSO.
The Game Boy Advance reached the Expansion Pack tier of Nintendo Switch Online in February 2023. And while plenty of stellar titles have come to the newest addition to NSO, we're still missing plenty of must-have titles.
While we've seen classics like The Minish Cap, Golden Sun, Metroid Fusion, and Fire Emblem arrive on the service in the first year, there are lots of other titles we're clamouring to have access to on the hybrid console. So, we've given this list a bit of a tidy-up — after first publishing it in 2022 and then updating it in 2023.
We've skipped any games that are already available on Switch in some form — Castlevania: Aria of Sorrow, Harvest Moon, the Mega Man Zeroes, Mega Man Battle Network, and Advance Wars being the main ones — with one exception which we explain.
We've also abstained from adding Pokémon; it's a given we'd love to see them, but transferring and trading Pokémon in a game with Save States gets messy, at least from Nintendo's perspective. Perhaps we'll see a glorious workaround with those particular entries, although we think it's more likely we'll see Pokémon remakes rather than re-releases.
Enough with the caveats! Let's take a look at 21 GBA gems we'd love to revisit via Nintendo Switch Online.
Metroid: Zero Mission (GBA)
Metroid: Zero Mission is an excellent 2004 remake of the original Metroid, and a game that's in the conversation for 'best remake evs' (if that conversation is being held with a teenager during the 2010s). Zero Mission tells the story of the first entry, but with far snazzier visuals and Super Metroid-inspired gameplay. With save rooms and a bunch of new items, areas, and mini-bosses, this is the way to experience Samus' first mission. Sorry, zero-st mission.
If it came down to a duel, there are Nintendo Life staffers who would actually take this over the SNES game. It's that good.
Tony Hawk's Pro Skater 2 (GBA)
Vicarious Visions managed to distil the essence of the full-sized Tony Hawk titles into an incredible isometric version that feels tight, responsive and very much not the obligatory downgraded handheld port you might have expected. Tony Hawk's Pro Skater 2 on GBA is genuinely one of our favourite entries in the overall series, with great music and cracking visuals. And Spider-Man.
What's not to love?
Astro Boy: The Omega Factor (GBA)
This Treasure-developed take on Osamu Tezuka's classic character was a real looker in the GBA's library — fitting given the prestige of the property and the adoration of manga and anime fans around the world. As opposed to Treasure's usual output, Astro Boy: The Omega Factor is more platforming beat 'em up than run-and-gunner (with a few shmup-style stages thrown in for good measure). It successfully blends traditional manga-style presentation of the characters in dialogue portraits with more rounded 3D-esque sprites and backgrounds for the action. It's a real winner; a licensed game that lives up to the source material.
Kirby: Nightmare in Dream Land (GBA)
Kirby: Nightmare in Dream Land is a worthy remake of Kirby's first home console adventure and having just celebrated his 30th anniversary, this would be a nice tribute to the little pink fella after what has been a stellar 12 months between 2022 and 2023. While what it offers is a tad basic compared to what more modern Kirby titles offer, it's still very playable, and there are little creative moments where game occasionally shines. As with practically every other game featuring the Kirbster, its delightful, colourful visuals make it a supremely charming experience, and one which will be most appreciated by players looking for only a very light challenge.
Sure, Kirby & the Amazing Mirror is a great entry and that one is available, but this is the one we really want to see.
Gunstar Super Heroes (GBA)
Gunstar Super Heroes (or Gunstar Future Heroes in Europe) is a sequel that lives up to the prestige of the name it awkwardly sandwiches a 'Super' in the middle of. The gameplay and controls of Treasure's classic 1993 Mega Drive game are altered to work better on the portable, but the result is every bit as compelling, even if it's on the short side and doesn't feature co-op play. As run and gun games go, Gunstar Heroes is up there with the very best. This sequel is also very good — one might even say super.
Or future if you're European and want to be awkward.
Pokémon Pinball: Ruby & Sapphire (GBA)
Pokémon Pinball: Ruby & Sapphire is an enjoyable entry-level pinball game designed to appeal to as broad an audience as possible. Its colourful, charming visuals look great, and the vast number of Pokémon available to catch and evolve means that if you’re looking for a long-term dip-in, dip-out sort of game, you’ll have plenty to keep you occupied. This is the perfect little game for short play sessions, and will fill the Pokémon gap just in case Pokémon Emerald doesn't hop onto NSO.
Sonic Advance (GBA)
In the decades since the shocking first appearance of Sega's mascot on a Nintendo handheld, it's fair to say that not every team that's worked on a 2D Sonic game has nailed the delicate sense of inertia and tight physics that characterise the classic 16-bit titles. Sonic Advance is one such example that just gets it. Developer Dimps retains the classic feel and course design that made the originals special while adding fresh elements that prevent it from feeling like a re-tread of old ideas. Vibrant visuals, charming animation, excellent audio; add multiplayer into the mix — as well as the Tiny Chao Garden that linked to the Gamecube — and Sonic Advance is a platforming treat up there with hedgehog's finest.
Final Fantasy Tactics Advance (GBA)
While rumours of a Final Fantasy Tactics remaster have been swirling around for a while, Nintendo has already had a taste of what Final Fantasy Tactics can offer in the form of Final Fantasy Tactics Advance. Levelling up your clan, finding the best weapons and trying to out-think the enemy leads to endlessly enjoyable battling, and there are enough variables in location, laws and opponent abilities to prevent things becoming too repetitive. Even when battles get easy with an OP clan, they remain entertaining. It can be tricky to find what you are looking for amongst the many menu screens, but once you know where to look Final Fantasy Tactics Advance will divert and delight you for a long ol' time. Lovely.
Jet Grind Radio (GBA)
Perhaps it’s the announcement that Sega is apparently working on a reboot that’s getting the better of us, but we do love a bit of Jet Grind/Set. On the Dreamcast, Jet Grind Radio oozed more style than should have legally been allowed. A lot of what made the game special there survived the leap to the GBA, but of course the obvious hardware limitations necessitated a few cut corners here and there. Considering this, Vicarious Visions — the studio that did such a fantastic job of translating the Tony Hawk's Pro Skater series to GBA — probably couldn't have done a much better job at adapting it to the small screen. Once you're used to its quirks, you'll find a crazy, fantastic gem of a game.
Tactics Ogre: The Knight of Lodis (GBA)
For many series, the words “side story” are seen as a convenient excuse to trot out a half-baked rehash of a popular title – but Tactics Ogre has never been like other series. This GBA-exclusive entry in the long-running Ogre Battle saga is as richly detailed and politically intricate as any other you could mention, and lurking underneath that already fully-featured surface are a whole host of secret characters and special endings just waiting to be discovered.
WarioWare Twisted! (GBA)
The third game in Wario's microgame series, WarioWare Twisted! never found its way to Europe, but its gyro sensor added a new element to the manic formula established two games prior and made it one of the highlights of Wario's back catalogue. Thanks to that sensor in the cart, it's not a game you'll want to plug into the Game Boy Player on your GameCube, but the basic bitesize gameplay holds up just as well today as it did in the mid-2000s. Let's Twist again.
Comments 188
Where's Mario&Luigi: Superstar Saga?
edit: Before someone else responds to my comment: I made that comment almost a year ago as you can see by the date
Iridion 3D and Racing Gears need to be here. (But I'm chuffed with just Kuru Kuru Kururin to be fair. Bloody love that game ^^)
I only have two GBA games so far (K-1 Pocket Grand Prix 1 & 2) and don't really have hype for other GBA games so I don't need GBA games by rent from NSO.
There is so much potential for some fantastic games to be added to the service.
Here's to hoping that it's actually real
Pokemon Emerald, Pokemon Emerald, Pokemon Emerald, POKEMON EMERALD!
Apart from that though, I'll take anything. GBA was the last generation I missed before getting into video games (with my first console being the DS/Wii) so I'll gladly take the opportunity to play some gems from the back catalogue.
As much as I would love to see the Sonic Advance Trilogy, i doubt I would put much hope into it.
Reason is would be that THQ still hold the publishing rights...IF they still are. I would think that would've expired by now.
Also what about the Phantasy Star Collection? And Drill Dozer? i wanted to play that game SOOOO badly when I was in middle school...!
EDIT: Almost forgot Kirby & The Amazing Mirror! One of the more difficult ( and best) Kirby games on GBA.
If they added a way for Local Multiplayer to be a thing in these games, in way similar to the Neo Geo Pocket Color Selection... I might be talked into upgrading my subscription.
Just give me Donkey Kong (GB) and I'm happy!
Plenty of good games on GBA, going on a list is long.
However, Boktai and Wario Ware Twisted are out of the way on this GBA version for Switch : the two cartridges were equipped with a solar and a move captors. Even if the second might be replaced with the joycon, it looks like complicated.
Out of those games, Warioland 4 is by far my favorite and I hope it gets a new installment! And why not in 3D!
One of the curious things about the GBA library, was always the absence of an original mainline Mario game.
We got ports of previous SNES games, and we got beloved spin-offs like Superstar Saga or Mario vs Donkey Kong.
But no new installment in the vain of Super Mario Land or Bros!
Wario Land 4 was excellent, but it's not a Mario game by any stretch.
@DanijoEX A THQN employee said Sega own the right to the advance games in an ama
(Insert the game you’d love to see but won’t):
ME: Karnaaj Rally.
AKA the best game with the ugliest box art.
Really nice little racing / battle game.
@DanijoEX Publishing rights aren't forever. Look at StarDew Valley. They just recently dropped their publisher and now self-publish the game.
The fact that people get excited over this shows this is our future. We will own nothing and be happy.
Final Fantasy Tactics Advance please.
Removed - unconstructive feedback; user is banned
@DannyBoi i mean from a realistic point of view, resources won't last forever. I dont think renting is the best option or even the good one, its just the option that we have (or, shh, you could emulate. just dont tell shigeru)
@mariomaster96
I was just thinking that!
It's a GREAT RPG, and the Story is a great derive from normal Mario.
For me it's perfect if it have both Fire Emblem, both Metroid and Minish Cap. A Biding Blade translation would be more the perfect, but knowing Nintendo it seems impossible. Mario vs DK, Golden Sun series, boktai series, Sword of Mana, FFTA are great too. Advance Wars I'll buy the remake, Castlevania I already have the collection and Mario & Luigi I prefer the remake.
We're well past the point of needing an update to Metroid Pinball. Switch would be a PERFECT platform for it too. But, I would like it to be a showcase for what HD Rumble should have been.
@Daggot Metroid Prime Pinball is a DS game
Fire pro wrestling 1 or 2 please.
Where is Mario Kart Super Circuit you cowards!
Minish Cap and Metroid Fusion are the two GBA titles I've been most meaning to give a go lately. Those and Mother 3 top my list easily.
Tekken Advance was good.
I'd also add Fire Emblem Binding Blade (Roy's game). I know that's Japan only but it feels like it should be an easy port.
It's too bad we can't download them even if they were to be release for Switch NSO, this is like the second time Nintendo refuse to release GBA games for download, the first was 3DS. Instead the crappy Wii U got GBA VC support but only a few games are available.
Temper your gosh darn expectations, This could literally be a year out, or never even happen.
@Screen
How much does it cost per hour to hire you for parties?
@AndyC_MK111
It's a bit of fun, a diversion,
not an academic piece.
Final Fantasy Tactics Advance - like PBNightmare said.
I couldn't care less about the N64 expansion pack, but this... I am willing to pay for all this GBA goodness.
The GBA Tony Hawks 2 game is a remarkable feat. HOWEVER, we do have Tony Hawks 2 already on the Switch and it's also a remarkable port.
Wonderful thing to try out and admire. Not sure why you'd choose it over Pro Skater 1 + 2
All I probably want are the Sonic Advance trilogy and Sonic Battle. I'm still salty SEGA released the Sonic Advance trilogy on the Wii U Virtual Console in Japan only and couldn't be arsed to release them worldwide.
Everything else either I have the GBA cart or got it on the Wii U Virtual Console and I'd rather play there than on Switch.
That's a solid list. I'd add Final Fantasy Tactics Advance if working with Squarenix is a possibility
I think it's a safe bet at least half of these will (eventually) make their way on the service.
I love Gunstar Super Heroes and Astro Boy: Omega Factor. I have them both for my GBA SP.
Why THPS2 and not 3 which VASTLY improved the visuals without bogging down the quality or framerate?
I'd also add:
Max Payne, one of the most impossible ports ever as it takes almost 90% of the original game and crams it into a tiny cartridge WITH FULL VOICEOVERS. Phenomenal even before you realize it's still a fun game to play.
Super Robot Wars. I know OG1 is on the "testing" list of the emulator, but I imagine Bamco may not mind putting the unlocalized ones - particularly the fan-favorite J which revolutionized the series - onto the Japanese NSO. The longest running and most consoles-ever visiting turn based strategy this side of Romance of the Three Kingdoms, the evil cousin of Fire Emblem, the most mecha anime game ever, it deserves to be shown to more people that only learned of the series' existence with the GBA installments.
CT Special Forces - originally a PS1 game that was pretty much a me-too of Metal Slug, it developed into its own thing by the third game and the same devs made kill.switch (you know, the inventor of the cover based shooter genre) and the fourth game was a k.s-like TPS with fun skydiving mechanics. But I digress. This is a trilogy of awesome sidescrolling shooters more people shpuld enjoy.
(Kill.switch itself also had a GBA port and is one of maybe three januwine TPS games on the platform? Another impossible port for sure)
Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban - it's Final Fantasy × Harry Potter. Nuff said.
Fullmetal Alchemist had two games, fun RPG things with a neat alchemical fusion mechanic for combat and a loose adaptation of the original anime's plot (complete with 16-bit renderings of its songs!) for maximum funs.
Chu Chu Rocket! If you have to ask why, you need to have your gamer license revoked. It is absurd how a Dreamcast game became a GBA launch title but it is still an amazing bundle of joy.
@mcslurf Just about to type out the same sentiment! Great games on the GBA!
I have now hacked my 3ds. My GBA, SNES, Genesis, TG16 and NDS games run very nicely indeed. Shame Nintendo doesn't provide a more convenient alternative to hacking.
I would love to see so many GBA titles. Specially Sonic Advance and Golden Sun, since I never got the chance to play them.
There are more original GBA games than I remembered.
I always thought of this console as full of slightly graphically inferior snes games which was great for handheld at the time but not so much on a system that already has those snes games.
But I would definitely like to play Kuru Kuru Kururin the Metroid and Wario games again.
see’s sacred stones on the list
Ah yes, a man of culture.
Me: Reads list
My web Browser: "25 ZIP files download complete"
@RupeeClock yes, the absence of a main Mario game is GBA's biggest con. We got new levels in SMB 3 and Yoshi's Island, but it's not the same as a brand new game. Maybe because it's from an era Nintendo hadn't made 2D Mario games in over 10 years. A Super Mario Land 4 would have been awesome.
Don't think Final Fantasy IV, V, VI have been mentioned.
@Yas I suppose there’s no chance of Square signing up to this service though.
If they did then FFTA would also be a clear winner. Great game in a huge series and not available on any other format (to my knowledge).
If it is true....finally it´ll be my time to upgrade my NSO.
Cause i don´t like N64, NES and Genesis games....
but..GBA....yes...forever.
@Noelemahc Yesss we need a Chu Chu Rocket! with TOUCH SCREEN!!!
Kuru Kuru Kururin is one of the most underrated Nintendo franchises ever, wish we’d get a new game or just a remastered collection of the 2 GBA games and the GameCube one since we never got the sequels outside of Japan. Will it ever happen? No
I will say, if there's a time to translate Mother 3, it'd be for their premium service. And once they finally do it, that opens more doors to selling it later on, like in an EarthBound/Mother Collection, since they also finally translated Mother 1 and brought it over as Beginnings in 2015.
Don't think some of these games would work though, since they had stuff built into the cartridge for their respective gimmicks.
Not hopeful,
but would like Konami Racing.
I wouldn't mind to see Harvest Moon GBA, but there's so many better farming sims now I can't say I would actually play it.
Other than Pokemon games, there's not many Gameboy games for NSO that I'm interested in. Maybe Metroid 2, but that's still available on Virtual Console.
Did anybody get any replay value out of Minish Cap? I enjoyed my first playthrough, but that was the first Zelda game I played that I was done with after the first run.
My wishlist:
Spyro games
Crash games
Sims games
Final Fantasy Tactics is great (the sequel on DS is one of my favourite games ever).
@Franklin
Tekken is too easy but that’s the way it is.
As I started buying many GBA games on Wii U VC lately, I would like to see Rayman 3, Superstar Saga, maybe the whole Mario Advance series even though they seem worst version of SNES games somehow I prefer the GBA versions on Wii U, and I would like the DKC Trilogy (so you know in which level you're missing what) and Mario Kart Super Circuit!
@AndyC_MK111 I agree. I need a expansion pack with A LOT OF games I LIKE to buy the upgrade.
I like a lot of GBA games...so...i´ll wait 20 or 30 games i like to buy the expansion.
Today, i don´t like any expansion pack game...so...
For me I definitely want to replay Kirby and the Amazing Mirror and Omega Factor!!
Hey Gavin, regarding Samus' "zero-st" mission, there's already an English word for that, more fun to say with 100% less awkwardness: zeroth. Even though its not in many people's vocabulary no-one's going to be confused by it.
All of these plus FF Tactics Advanced
Just the usual hits for the most part. Would love to see a hidden gems take on this list
Nintendo's release with their "VC" is a joke. So yeah good luck even getting 10 games by the end of the Switch's lifespan.
It would be nice to see a Golden Sun remake like the one Advance Wars is getting on the Switch. Update the graphics and make it one game.
I'd also like to add Final Fantasy Tactics Advance and Sword of Mana to that line-up too.
Also, since Nintendo tend to also give us some more obscure but hidden gem title in their NSO releases then I'd like to recommend Pinobee: Wings of Adventure, Banjo-Kazooie: Grunty's Revenge, ChuChu Rocket!, Drill Dozer, Klonoa: Empire of Dreams, Konami Krazy Racers, Sabre Wulf and Shining Soul (both 1 and 2).
If they were to do some cool "first-ever western translate/release" then I'd hope (in addition to Mother 3) that they give us one of the three Densetsu no Stafy (Legend of Starfy) games and the JP-only game in the F-Zero series: F-Zero Climax.
Man! What an unbelievable library. So much variety and substance. Here's hoping we get it soon!
@AndyC_MK111 subscription isn't the ONLY way to play these games...
considering many of us (likely older folks) have already purchased many of these games, and some of them multiple times, I wholeheartedly choose to play on phone or pc.
IF Nintendo gave the option for one time purchases, I might consider buying them once again just to have on my Switch. But I will NOT support the subscription model.
@AndyC_MK111 GameCube is tricky to port to Switch without having analog shoulder buttons. Super Mario Sunshine needed custom control re-mapping. They could sell GC controllers like they did with NES, SNES, & N64 (or do it as a mini console).
We’ve never had a GC VC. We might get things like Prime Trilogy, WW HD, & TP HD. Super Monkey Ball 1 & 2 were re-made in a new engine. Luigi’s Mansion was remade for the 3DS (I am assuming using LM2’s engine).
I would love a port/remaster of Chibi-Robo! Japan got a Wii version of that with Wii controls, but still a long shot.
I agree with your larger point. They should be a lot more generous with the current consoles supported. The GB/GBC/GBA consoles are just low hanging fruit that they are missing.
I can think of a few I'd love to see, Drill Dozer, Digidrive, Soundvoyager, and my favorite, Dotstream.
Glad I have my Everdrives and modded Gameboys, pretty sure NSO won’t even get close to having the best games for both systems.
@tyranny_life Even buying games digitally like Arcade Archives or Virtual Console doesn’t mean those purchases will transfer to the next system. They really should, unless they sold them for a lot less.
NSO will never be the Netflix model until they put out a lot more titles and more originals like Tetris 99.
I mainly want Four Swords. Since the games can be played online with friends now, this would be a huge game changer for me personally, since I rarely had the chance to play this with others.
no advances wars?
@Franklin
$80, I tell one joke every 4 months.
Advance Wars 1 and 2 as we're not getting Reboot Camp!
Hm WarioWare Twisted will need some extra work with controls. Maybe its better to get its own release
Oh hell yea! Astro Boy rules
@shoeses
Mother 1 was not translated a few years ago. It was translated around 1990 and the planned western release was cancelled right after the translation was done.
All the games I am interested in playing, I have better ways to play them.honestly with my recent purchase of a GameCube all the retro games I want to play I have access to. Won’t be upgrading to the expansion pack unless they start offering free games each month like Sony and Microsoft do.
The brightness sensor for Boktai is a really clever thought! I hope Konami re-release as a collection one day.
Heyyyy @Franklin (can't help but address you like that, greatest show) I would be so pumped if konami racers were available. I wanted to give that game a try it seems so kookie. I saw on Wii U eshop I just couldn't pull the trigger, don't want to spend the money on something that I might just play once and not touch again.
@Don Interesting. Is it possible for it to be the same case again? I thought there was an article some time ago where it was in-process at one point, but then it was decided that the themes and parts of the game were too mature for the West.
Didn't they already re-release the golden sun games for the Wii-U?
Why not just give us that version?
I'd Love for them to give us the Mario 64 DS Wii-U version on the Nintendo Switch.
As well as Super Mario RPG: Legend of the Seven Stars from the SNES Classic.
They wont release it for my 3DS, then why not the Nintendo Switch?
Where are the Gantlet Games on the NES App? can we get the collection released with up to 4 players?
Who owns the 8-bit Gantlet Games?
I'm not interested in the 3D versions, just the ones I played a ton as a kid.
Any more News of GEX or Sonic legacy games or remakes?
If Chocobo GP can survive on the Switch, then a Chao Garden and supported games can definably survive.
Why does nobody want my money?
Only thing I hate is you need a NSO subscription to play them no download or on Cart to play them.
@SwitchForce it’s probably just so people would buy NSO.
Hmm, this might actually make sense as the way to localize "Mother 3," since they won't have to worry as much about losing money on the game once it gets its expected M rating (and the PEGI equivalent) in the West. Still, it would be a lot of work just for something to add extra value to a subscription service.
@AndyC_MK111 Exactly which additional NES/SNES could be brought to NSO that aren't:
A) licensed games
B) otherwise unavailable due to rights issues
C) already available in Switch compilations
D) related to C, owned by a 3rd party that is clearly not supporting NSO (and I don't blame them) such as Capcom, Konami, Square-Enix, etc.
E) still hasn't had a Western localization like the early Fire Emblem games
F) have hardware issues like "Duck Hunt" (which would be even more of a pain to fix beyond the Wii U version without a sensor bar) and the games that used R.O.B.
Face it, but most of what's possible on NES/SNES is already there.
Meanwhile, part of the drip feed approach is simply that it takes time to get these games properly emulated and optimized, especially if they only relatively recently managed to negotiate the game's inclusion.
@Tandy255 That's why we smart people keep and still play our old systems even after new ones come out, as well as keep our data backed up.
@AndyC_MK111 Many of them are available in modern compilations or at least have somewhat more recent remasters/remakes/compilations that are a lot cheaper on the second-hand market than the original versions.
As for most of the others, if you just kept your Wii and/or Wii U around [and (2/3)DS to a degree], you wouldn't have this subscription problem. It doesn't matter to *smart people like me that I can't play "Final Fantasy IV" on the Switch when I can just boot it up on my Wii U instead, and without a subscription fee, too boot.
*Of course, it's not your fault if the Switch is your first Nintendo console, in which case I agree that subscription services suck when a viable one-time purchase system could be used instead. I only buy subscriptions for stuff when such a model is unavoidable like Internet access, cell phone minutes, periodicals (either print or online), current TV programming (although even that's gotten so ridiculous that I don't mind pirating certain things on more obscure services). Video game online play if necessary, as well, although I'd much prefer an NSO option for $5-10 a year just for online play without the extra games.
Hopefully they add in sacred stones. It was my first fire emblem game.
If Mother 3 ever happened it wouldn't be part of these NSO games guaranteed. Outside of that one, just give me the Wario games and the Fire Emblem games and we're good.
I'd really like to play Pokemon FireRed again.They can disable save states or not allow pokemon transfers for all I care.
@Marioman2022 @mariomaster96 It's not mentioned because it's already on NSO.
@mariomaster96 Spoiler Alert: It's already on the service! Go have fun playing it!
Wanted to let you know in case someone else didn't tell you yet.
i know this is impossible to happen, but i would love to play a complete localized Mother 3 on NSO.
Zelda: Four Swords please!
@Kirbyo @AlexanderDaniels look at the dates from those comments
@Kirbyo Well yes I know, I watched the Direct live
But thanks. And yes, I actually plan on playing it
@AlexanderDaniels
I wrote that comment almost a year ago
I would love to see the Dragon Ball Z Legacy of Goku series come to switch, but I doubt it will happen.
Wario Land 4 & Pokémon Emerald !!!!!
@mariomaster96 Oh no! You're probably going to get A LOT of messages about Superstar Saga already coming to NSO...
@Pineapple_Mohawk Already edited my comment to prevent that
@KingdomTears @mariomaster96 My apologies. I skipped ahead after the first paragraph immediately to the list. NintendoLife back at it in regurgitating articles and this time no bolded 'update', yet was listed as if it was a recently made article an half hour ago.
Still haven't gotten the Expansion Pack, just don't see the value in spending the $50/year yet, so cautiously optimistic given how game drops are. If any game would sell me on it, Sonic Battle. I love this game, and I feel it would be really fun online.
Last year when my friend visited, we even played Sonic Battle on two GBAs with a link cable and two copies. I would love to have it online, because we both live in different states. This way we can play anytime, instead of waiting for us to be together.
I really want to see the starfy games added. Wouldn’t mind if it’s just the JP app but localized would be neat.
@AlexanderDaniels yeah it happens all the time here. Would be nice if Nintendolife could make it clearer after articles are updated
With the golden sun games i would have loved to have seen a remastered collection, aside from the benefit of being able to keep the games it could also include things like letting you transfer data between games like you could with a link cable (on the wiiu VC version i used the max password and its something i would never want to do again)
I scanned the list quickly, but definitely would add Legacy of Goku 2 and Buus Fury. Those were great GBA titles that I've replayed quite a few times
@KingdomTears Oh. I didn't realize this was a republished article and not completely new!
@mariomaster96 Well, I plan on playing it too! ...once KRtDD is done with.
I would have said Final Fantasy 1-6 (minus Final Fantasy III).
But now the Final Fantasy Pixel Remasters are coming so there's not really any need for that. (Although the extra content is not in the Pixel Remasters)
Also there's no reason to get stuff that already exist on SNES online, like Yoshi's Island and the other Super Mario Advance games. (Super Mario Advance 4 is nice though as it ads some new features and levels that are not in the all-stars or NES versions of Super Mario Bros 3)
I guess my top pick would be Final Fantasy Tactics Advance.
And then Kingdom Hearts - Chain of Memories
And man.. They should bring over the Pokemon games both GB/GBC and GBA, and make sure that Pokemon Home get's compatible with them, that alone would almost be awesome enough to justify raising the price of Nintendo Online again
But they probably won't
If anything else, Drill Dozer would be lovely.
As with the rumble and gyroscope games.
I want Fire Emblem the Sacred Stones and an actual official English translation of Fire Emblem Binding Blade.
Blazing Sword is fun, but I prefer the other 2 GBA FE games. Doubt we'll get Binding Blade, but a guy can dream.
Hear me out... Kirby Amazing Mirror... With online play up to 4 player...
@DimBeau Amazing Mirror is coming. Online would be nice. Guess we'll have to see if it they do add it.
Double Dragon Advance, Astro Boy Omega Factor, Fire Emblem games, Kirby games. There are so many games I want to come. The GBA was my system back in the day.
Sonic Advance is quite underrated.
I'm good on mother 3. What i do want is a pokemon game, preferably emerald. I'd also love the finally get my hands on the second golden moon game.
I want Konami Krazy Racers, I loved that game!
Fire pro wrestling.
With the release of the Game Boy Advance system on NSO, the stage is set for Nintendo to finally release Mother 3, considering the previous two entries can be played on NSO. Still not going to hold my breath but it would be a fantastic day if it happened.
These all are good options. I think a really good one would be the LOZ a link to the past with the four swords, four swords would be awesome since you would be able to play online or even local with friends.
@isaelsky21 Right! Skipped over it because my eyes focused on Golden Sun XD
I'm gonna be generic and say Pokémon.
@DimBeau lol believe me, Golden Sun might just be the reason for me to get the Expansion then. I just want to wait a bit longer till we see what comes after the already announced games. What to do, what to do.
Guru Logic Champ! Ideally with an English translation, but even without being able to read the text it's still one of the best puzzle games ever made.
@Nf157 They'll re-sell pokemon titles to you separately, you won't get those in a package deal like NSO.
I'm missing "Super Mario Advance" on the list, the best version of (IMO) the best 2D Mario game!
I absolutely loathe the NSO UI elements that are sprinkled across the Switch versions and I'd be even more irritated if I had to pay an annual fee for it. I know I'd much rather pay AU$60 for a few compilations of old games than pay that amount repeatedly over a number of years only to have nothing to show for it after the Switch eventually fizzles out.
And given that the Switch already doubles as a home and handheld console, what possible reason could there be to entice people to buy the same old games on Nintendo's future hardware? There were reasons to upgrade from Wii to Wii U and to grab the games on 3DS, but why would anybody buy the same old games on the Switch 2 if it yields no additional benefit?
If Nintendo had re-released these old games for purchase on Switch, then most people would have no reason to ever buy them again, really. Nintendo choosing to gatekeep these games behind a subscription service now is a stroke of contemptible genius.
Fortunately, there are other (and better) ways to play these games.
The sims games and the Spyro games. Nuff said.
You need to add Castlevania: Aria of Sorrow (I’m pretty sure that was GBA...) the best Castlevanie outside SoTN!
So many good games in this list and the comments already, hope we'll get most if not all of them!
@Sunsy Multiplayer games like Sonic Battle are among those I'd like to see the most exactly because of wireless local and especially online play!
@DaniPooo I'd say it would be still worth getting the other Mario Advance games since they do have (if less substantial compared to Advance 4) new features, like for example checking in which levels you have collected all Dragon Coins in Advance 2 i.e. World, but they're definitely lower in my list of games I'd like to see added.
@DimBeau Since local and online play up to 4 players is a base feature of the app that's confirmed too, one more reason why I can't wait for that game to come to Switch Online!
@Ryan_Again They skipped it because it's already available on Switch in some form as mentioned in the article.
Sort of okay list, (although i still have my original wario ware twisted ofcourse).. but you mist my favourite GBA Game by a mile: Gury Logic Champ ... puzzle heaven
And might be nice if they release advancewars 1+2 to coincide with the rerelease, although i have it so many times already..
I'm really glad we got the Warioware we got rather than Twisted.
Disney's The Lion King, the Hamtaro games, The Lost Vikings, Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban, some Dragon Ball games, some Digimon games, and One Piece.
If they were to ever announce Mother 3 I would do it at the Game Awards and have Reggie come out and do a bit about people asking for Mother 3, and then just go..."ok." and the trailer rolls.
Donkey Kong Country 1-3, because it would give me an excuse to play through those games again.
@Ryan_Again Dawn of Sorrow on the DS, Aria's sequel, is miles better.
This is a great list, except for Wario Ware Twisted. It’s one of the best Wario Ware games, but I cringe at the thought of trying to rotate that mammoth of a handheld and dropping it. 😰
You knocked out a bunch of my favorites by leaving off the Mega Man Zero games(all four are great, the first being a bit rough around the edges) and Castlevania, though Aria is head and shoulders above the other two in my opinion. Gunstar Super Heroes really surprised me how fun it was, especially since it felt so strange compared to other games. Not as good, but still good, was Metal Slug Advance. Good inclusion with Double Dragon Advance. I finally got to play that one a few years ago and it is an excellent beat-em-up and a great enhancement to the Double Dragon gameplay while retaining the feel.
As for Ninja Five-0(Ninja Cop is a better name, imo), I was very lucky to pay attention to the reviews when it came out. It also helped still holding Hudson in high regard so it was on my radar. Anyway, the reviews were good so I made a note of it and bought it a few weeks later. Apparently, I was one of only a few who did. I had a feeling that I needed to get it sooner rather than later if I wanted to have it. And it was a very good game, regardless of its collectability now. Some of the swinging sections get tricky and frustrating later in the game, but it's a good experience and one of my favorites.
Like to see sabre wulf, banjo kazooie:gruntys revenge, even though 50% of the gameplay was removed from it. Banjo pilot, advance wsrs, look forward to metroid games
@PineappleLake same here ive love it on nintendo game and watch tabletop and double and still play them today <333
@Sisilly_G and if we gonna play orig games then those are pretty high in price take like golden sun here in denmark where im from cost 160 us dollar for only the cartridge is sick price so yes maybe nso is stupid and it is but still cheap if you can play them for 60 bux for 1 year and more games will be added
Final Fantasy Tactics Advance please! That game is GOOD!
@zgillet I don’t agree. The tone and art and feel if Aria was better IMO. Dawn was... fine. But Aria was truly special.
First you leave the Gen I Pokémon games off the OG GB list then you don’t even put the remakes on the GBA list?
We’re fighting now.
bitGenerations: Orbient.
Polarium Advance.
Guru Logi Champ.
Kururin Paradise.
Donkey Kong country trilogy.
All we need is Virtual Console on Switch
or Anbernic
Fire Emblem Sacred Stones should be given for 2024, but what I really want is a localized version of The Binding Blade. It also about time that Nintendo releases the original Pokémon games on NSO... The drip feed is just too slow.
Metroid Zero Mission is definitely my most wanted title for GBA NSO overall (it's the original Metroid but with a map and Fusion's controls, HOW COULD I NOT BE INTERESTED) but stuff like Klonoa: Empire of Dreams and Ninja Five-O would be wonderful deep cuts to see get added as well. Boktai is also a massive want for me as I've been enamoured with it's gameplay premise ever since I first learned of it a couple months back XD
Mega Man & Bass
Final Fantasy V & VI advanced
Four Swords Adventures
Sword of Mana
Why is Pokemon Ruby/ Sapphire/ Emerald and Pokemon Fire Red and Leaf Green not on this list?
Imagine if Nintendo indeed ports Mother 3, it'll be the first time some of that game's fans would be able to play it, hahahaha.
That boktal game sounds cool but two things.
One, the sensor on a cartridge wouldn't work as the cartridge is hidden inside the switch and
Two, when it's sunny, I ain't playing games. Too busy working on my tan.
All of the mainline Pokemon games.
Easy. Rhythm Tengoku.
We never got a translation of it - not an official one at least - and the whole series has always been fun.
I know it's not happening, but I wish they added Banjo-Kazooie: Grunty's Revenge to the collection. Pokémon R/S and LG/FR would be excellent too.
Wario Land 4 - yes yes yes <3
Where are Pokémon Ruby/Sapphire? I mean, the given reason to not add them just means Nintendo has to find a way to remove save states, which is probably not the hardest thing in the world. I'd also throw money at Nintendo if they just sold them separately. As long as you can transfer them to Pokémon Home, that is.
Onimusha Tactics and Fire Emblem Binding Blade please
@Coffeemonstah I imported that game back in the GBA era and it was always one of my favourites. Don't even need a translation
Um... what about the main series Pokemon games? FRLG and Emerald would be amazing additions to NSO.
@citizenerased Me too - it'd be nice to see a translation though, the rest of the series has all been done.
I'm happy with whatever they can toss up there. I have a modded og GBA+Everdrive, Pocket, and Vita for playing anything in a variety of ways. I like to use the NSO GBA app as more of a curated playlist.
Really great list. I think they will add the mainline Pokemon games to NSO however, as they did it with VC on 3DS and the VC runner on there had save states built in too.
As for games not on here, I'd love some really out of left-field ones, like Silent Hill: Play Novel, GBA Banjo-Kazooie, and the Crash and Spyro GBA games. Also, can't believe Four Swords wasn't on the list.
I would actually prefer the Donkey Kong 1994 gameboy version on NSO. Just seems to make sense to have this game available on the Switch by now. Just really amazing how it really built from the arcade original.
This list needs Tomato Adventure! It was directed by Yoshihiko Maekawa, the same guy who directed Super Mario RPG and Mario & Luigi Superstar Saga, but it was never released outside Japan! It laid the groundwork for the M&L games
Wario Land 4 is the main one I want out of this list but Metroid Zero Mission and Ninja Five-O would be great too, from the games not on this list I would really like Kururin Paradise, the sequel to Kuru Kuru Kururin that released only in japan, yeah it's only in japanese but it seems like it's easy to navigate the menus even if you don't know japanese
I feel like if they were going to add mainline Pokemon games to NSO then they would've added at least one by now so I think there are more issues with that than just save states and rewind because they could just disable these features for Pokemon specifically
Fortunately I got most of these GBA games and although I would love to see Pokemon Pinball I voted for Mother 3 of course.
Personally, I'd love to see Dragon Ball Z legacy of Goku 2 and Buu's fury
We should already have all Nintendo 1st party games on each NSO “app” by now and moved on to GameCube, Wii and DS “apps”. It’s kinda ridiculous how long it has taken , for so little to be available.
Metroid: Zero Mission, for sure. It was my first-ever Metroid game. And what a game to start with.
I remember playing a demo of it in the electronics section of Walmart when it first came out (and this was back when the game demos were the actual games themselves, and not just a short snippet of the game or a mere trailer), even though I had no idea what the game was at the time.
I have fond memories of playing it when I finally got my own copy, following along with the walkthrough in the post-Kraid part of the game in the first issue of Nintendo Power that I got, and in many ways formed my views of what a Metroid game should be like, especially when it came to the music.
Now, Metroid stands in my Top 3 favorite Nintendo franchises, along with Star Fox and The Legend of Zelda. And it all started with me playing Zero Mission.
I don’t think games that are based on real life celebrities, movies or need a translation should be on this list. Even for a hypothetical wish list, there is no way these will happen.
And just because a few games on the NSO did happen such as GoldenEye, Earthbound Zero and Quest For Camelot; that doesn’t mean that any such game can happen.
@sullivans2004
That boktal game sounds cool but two things.
One, the sensor on a cartridge wouldn't work as the cartridge is hidden inside the switch
I was thinking about that. The game could be connected to the internet and it would read the weather data for your area as if it was detecting the weather using the original sensor. But they wouldn’t modify the game like that. So that’s not going to happen either.
Personally I'd like Tekken Advance to be on NSO someday, we haven't had a Tekken title on a Nintendo console since Tag Tournament 2 for Wii U after all...
Yes! PLEASE give us the two klonoa advance games or better yet release a collection that includes not just klonoa advance 1+2 but also moonlight museum AND a translated version of klonoa heroes! Also any RPG is good enough for me. Also Wario land 4. Please?
Don't worry, you can get all if not most on retroarch! That's why I got a series x, considering nintendo are way too slow releasing games for nso and, the fact they only "rent" you games, screw em!
N64, gamecube, wii, gba, etc all available and mostly play excellent
Would Love To See Sonic Battle and Pkmn G/S/C or R/S/E
Final Fight One, AKA the best version of Final Fight
Also the two Klonoa games and, while a long shot, I'd love to see Legacy of Goku 2 and Buu's Fury there too
I don't know the Gameboy libraries nearly as well as some other consoles, so I would be happy to see some more of these games on NSO to experience it for the first time. I only ever had the Pokemon games on my Gameboy, as well as one Super Mario game. As much as I wanted to collect for GB and GBA, the resale prices in my area have always been insane.
Nightmare in dreamland is a treat. It's the only game I've ever 100% 3 times. Once for each save file. The multiplayer was so fun too.
Power Tour probably the obvious choice, since it was on wiiU VC (bought it there) still the best mario tennis in my opinion .. with the rpg element etc..
would love to give omega boy a proper chance... rest of the list i either have or would be more of the same..
@dustinprewitt Four Swords Adventures is a Gamecube game. The GBA game is just called Four Swords.
I see the title and images and I know I'm going to see a whole bunch of games that are surely going to show up eventually.
Anything Metroid, Fire Emblem, Mario or Kirby related will.
Do the people who wrote this list or edited this list not actually look at the Nintendo switches game list fire emblem Tony hawk pro skater 1 and 2 Mario golf Mario tennis about half this list you're not going to find on Nintendo online because they have full fledged versions as actual switch games.
Personally I would like to see Sigma Star Saga make a return. For those who don't know, it was a game by WayForward that was part RPG, part side-scrolling shooter. I traded my GBA stuff a long time ago, but would love to play that again.
F-Zero Maximum Velocity and F-Zero GP Legend are two that come to mind that I always meant to play.
Shining Soul I & II and LOTR: Return of the King were my favorite Diablo-like games growing up, although I highly doubt they'll be added.
You forgot one of the best: Kingdom Hearts Chain of Memories! The original pixel art GBA version is preferred over the PS2 remake in my humble opinion, and it's the exact kind of game that Square Enix would never bother to port properly. So it's perfect for NSO!
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