The big picture: Nintendo’s Switch Online retro gaming collection had its doubters when the service debuted in late 2018, but to the surprise of many, the company has done a fine job of growing the library over the years. The optional “Expansion Pack” tier builds on the success of the base catalog with additional games from even more systems.
The latest Switch Online + Expansion Pack additions include Mercs, ToeJam & Earl in Panic on Funkotron, and Vectorman.
Mercs, a direct sequel to Commando, is a run-and-gun game that first hit arcades in 1990 before finding its way to the Mega Drive / Genesis a year later. Panic on Funkotron was the highly anticipated sequel to the original ToeJam & Earl, and it arrived on the Genesis in late 1993. Fortunately for fans of the franchise, it wouldn’t be the last appearance by the funky aliens.
Vectorman, meanwhile, dropped near the end of the Genesis’ lifecycle in late 1995 (remember, the Genesis launched way back in 1989). The game was meant to be Sega’s answer to Donkey Kong Country, the smash hit SNES title from 1994 that still holds up to this day. Vectorman proved a commercial success, with 500,000 copies sold in the US in the first few months alone.
The games join a handful of others that have found their way to the service as of late. Nintendo added Donkey Kong Land and Donkey Kong Land 2 to the mix this past week and brought in Shadow Man and Turok 2: Seeds of Evil on October 29. SNES games Big Run, Battletoads / Double Dragon, Angelique, and Cosmo Gang the Puzzle hit the service back in September.
An individual membership to Nintendo Switch Online starts at $3.99 per month, or $19.99 for a full year, while a Switch Online + Expansion membership will set you back $49.99 annually. The Expansion Pack adds N64, Game Boy Advance, and Sega Genesis games to the mix. Nintendo offers a free seven-day trial so you can try before you buy.
