Nintendo is finally putting GameCube games on Nintendo Switch Online for Switch 2
The big Nintendo news everyone was waiting for on Wednesday is finally here: You can play 20-year-old games on Switch 2.
Plus, there's also a dedicated Nintendo GameCube controller updated with the "C" button for GameChat also announced today.
But for real, one of the cooler little nuggets that Nintendo shared in its big Nintendo Switch 2 Direct livestream on Wednesday morning is that Nintendo GameCube games are coming to the Nintendo Switch Online service. For those who don't know, people who subscribe to NSO (a requirement to play online multiplayer in most Switch games) get access to a Netflix-like catalogue of old games from various platforms. Until now, that list of platforms started at the NES and ended at the N64.
You May Also Like
Some of the GameCube games you'll be able to play on NSO to start with include The Legend of Zelda: The Wind Waker, SoulCalibur II, and F-Zero GX. Nintendo, of course, will add more games to that catalogue over time, but it's impossible to say what they will be or at what rate they will come out. There are a couple of interesting wrinkles to consider here. One is that Nintendo has already done extensive remaster work to some of the best GameCube games, like Metroid Prime, so it stands to reason that the company might opt to sell you those games again instead of putting them on NSO, but we'll have to see about that.
The other is that these games will only be playable on Switch 2.
The most exciting part of a new console launch is new games, but it's also pretty cool to see some of the best Nintendo games of yesteryear get their time in the spotlight, too.
Topics Nintendo Nintendo Switch
Alex Perry is a tech reporter at Mashable who primarily covers video games and consumer tech. Alex has spent most of the last decade reviewing games, smartphones, headphones, and laptops, and he doesn’t plan on stopping anytime soon. He is also a Pisces, a cat lover, and a Kansas City sports fan. Alex can be found on Bluesky at yelix.bsky.social.
Cecily is a tech reporter at Mashable who covers AI, Apple, and emerging tech trends. Before getting her master's degree at Columbia Journalism School, she spent several years working with startups and social impact businesses for Unreasonable Group and B Lab. Before that, she co-founded a startup consulting business for emerging entrepreneurial hubs in South America, Europe, and Asia. You can find her on X at @cecily_mauran.
