Nintendo Switch paid online coming 2018

[Glen-i]

Just now, dazzybee said:

How do you not have the internet in your house? 

Do you have a mobile phone and can use that?

I can answer both questions with one answer, budget. I don't make a lot of money, it's either internet or games. And what's the point in having internet with nothing to play?

It's generally why I don't actually buy games like Mario Kart and Splatoon. Gaming in my house is mostly single player based.

[Nolan]

4 minutes ago, dazzybee said:

There is absolutely no chance whatsoever they'll allow games released before to still be free, makes no sense whatsoever. 

I think you’re correct but I enjoy being contrary. 

It could theoretically happen along the same lines of PSN is still free for PS3 to play online. And possibly PSVita (really not sure on that). Of course that situation was completely different and Nintendo from the start explained their intentions of moving to a subscription service. 

[dazzybee]

14 minutes ago, Glen-i said:

I can answer both questions with one answer, budget. I don't make a lot of money, it's either internet or games. And what's the point in having internet with nothing to play?

It's generally why I don't actually buy games like Mario Kart and Splatoon. Gaming in my house is mostly single player based.

Fair enough, we all have to make those decisions in life. And if you can nip to Dcubed's and use his.... 

[dazzybee]

12 minutes ago, Nolan said:

I think you’re correct but I enjoy being contrary. 

It could theoretically happen along the same lines of PSN is still free for PS3 to play online. And possibly PSVita (really not sure on that). Of course that situation was completely different and Nintendo from the start explained their intentions of moving to a subscription service. 

Yeah, it's like the 3DS will probably be still free to play online.

But the sooner we know EVERYTHING about this service the better

[Rummy]

On 02/02/2018 at 12:24 PM, Charlie said:

Meaning you won't pay for it?

My guess that games released up until that point will still be free to play online and it will launch with a big multiplayer game (Smash Bros? Metroid Hunters?).

Doesn't the site specifically stated that this isn't the case?

[Helmsly]

I wish they were keeping the online gaming part free to play and just charging a subscription for some extra perks, like being able to send messages to friends, auto-invite and access to old games etc.

Edited February 3, 2018 by Helmsly

[Sheikah]

I wish they were keeping the online gaming part free to play and just charging a subscription for some extra perks, like being able to send messages to friends, auto-invite and access to old games etc.

Yeah I wish it was optional. There's just not enough there in terms of online multiplayer titles that warrant the cost for me, even though it does cost less than the others. There's also games like Smash which in my opinion have always been very poor online experiences.

 

I should point out that I don't care for Splatoon either.

 

[Josh64]

TBH I barely ever play games online so whether I get this will depend entirely on if they have a decent free games service. I can't remember the last time I played online on my Playstation but I still have Plus because I like the free games (only had the system a year so have lots of catching up to do) and the sales are really good, I get quite a few discount indie games a month.

 

Same applies to Xbox with GOLD though they have hooked me on Forza recently.

 

One game that would make me buy Switch online either way is Smash Bros. I grow tired of Mario Kart and stuff after a while but always have time in my life to play some Smash. I just hope they can really nail the online this time. Wii U friend battles were fantastic, no lag at all, but I pretty much didn't bother with random match up's after day 1.

Edited February 3, 2018 by Josh64

[Julius]

I was thinking about this a bit earlier today, and sorry if someone’s already suggested it, but maybe Nintendo should continue the free online component in games with a heavy online element (such as MK8D and Splatoon 2) released prior to, say, Summer 2018? 

Because adding this 18 months into the console’s life will just eat away at the potential sales and player activity for such games. 

[dazzybee]

Potential sales for what? Sorry to be so blunt, but it’s a stupid idea. Why would they give any reason not to subscribe? Makes no sense whatsoever. 

[Ronnie]

1 hour ago, Julius Caesar said:

I was thinking about this a bit earlier today, and sorry if someone’s already suggested it, but maybe Nintendo should continue the free online component in games with a heavy online element (such as MK8D and Splatoon 2) released prior to, say, Summer 2018? 

Because adding this 18 months into the console’s life will just eat away at the potential sales and player activity for such games. 

Those who are still playing Splatoon 2 and MK8 a year later are probably hardcore enough to shell out £14 or whatever it is a year, especially if Nintendo are offering extra perks like VC games on top of that.

[Ike]

I don't personally think they'll retroactively start charging for games already released.

[Hero-of-Time]

It's certainly going to be interesting seeing how they deal with this and what games are going to be charged for and what will be exempt, if any. Personally, I think they should should charge for everything, rather than muddying the situation and having some games free to play and others not. Pokemon is going to be the one to watch out for. I can see many kicking off if they don't charge for that yet do for something like Smash Bros. I think it has to be equal across all games, otherwise you risk angering fans of certain franchises.

[DazzeL]

I think it will be difficult to pick and choose what they charge for so I expect it will be everything.

 

For me, I’m not bothered about the cost but I just hope they add some value as currently it’s very barebones.

[Sheikah]

Potential sales for what? Sorry to be so blunt, but it’s a stupid idea. Why would they give any reason not to subscribe? Makes no sense whatsoever. 

The whole idea is ridiculous really. Have you ever heard of a company taking away free online from games that have had free online already for a year and a half?

[Hero-of-Time]

9 minutes ago, DazzeL said:

For me, I’m not bothered about the cost but I just hope they add some value as currently it’s very barebones.

This is the same for me. I'd happily pay what I do for PSN if I got all the same features on my Switch.

[Glen-i]

8 minutes ago, Sheikah said:

10 hours ago, dazzybee said:

Potential sales for what? Sorry to be so blunt, but it’s a stupid idea. Why would they give any reason not to subscribe? Makes no sense whatsoever. 

The whole idea is ridiculous really. Have you ever heard of a company taking away free online from games that have had free online already for a year and a half?

...Minecraft? Would that count? I'm probably wrong though...

[Londragon]

If you visit the eShop or Nintendo's own website and select an online game, like Splatoon 2, and scroll down to the starred conditions, they all state this

"**Internet connection required during online play. The registration and linkage of Nintendo Account and acceptance of the Nintendo Account Agreement and Privacy Policy are required. Online services require a Nintendo Account. Starting this autumn, some online services will also require a paid subscription. Paid online service availability may be limited based on location. Find out more about the paid online subscription service."

I should imagine this will extend to everything, but some online services???  What worries me is the penultimate sentence, Paid online service availability may be limited based on location. Why is this a thing?  The Switch is now a basically region free machine, don't start bringing in European services only available is your ISP is based in Europe.  I hope not.

[dazzybee]

40 minutes ago, Sheikah said:

11 hours ago, dazzybee said:

Potential sales for what? Sorry to be so blunt, but it’s a stupid idea. Why would they give any reason not to subscribe? Makes no sense whatsoever. 

The whole idea is ridiculous really. Have you ever heard of a company taking away free online from games that have had free online already for a year and a half?

Not quite sure what you're saying? Are you saying they should be free because no company has taken free online away before? Has any company added online after a time and not charged for it? Did PS3 add theirs half way through? Can't remember now.

Either way, I'm baffled there's even a discussion. Makes no sense to me. They will charge for online, and you won't be able to play Mario kart, splatoon, poker, arms, rocket league or whatever online without the subscription. 

[Sheikah]

Not quite sure what you're saying? Are you saying they should be free because no company has taken free online away before? Has any company added online after a time and not charged for it? Did PS3 add theirs half way through? Can't remember now.
Either way, I'm baffled there's even a discussion. Makes no sense to me. They will charge for online, and you won't be able to play Mario kart, splatoon, poker, arms, rocket league or whatever online without the subscription. 

Nope, that's what I'm saying. No company has done this before with their console. It's weird to me that you could have played a game for a year and a half online for free, then they suddenly want you to pay to carry on playing that (now somewhat old) game online.

[dwarf]

I hope Nintendo doesn't put pressure on Namco to add multiplayer to Prime 4. Retro had to add tacky waggle features to Corruption in order to advertise the Wii hardware, and I'm concerned Nintendo wish to use Prime 4 as an advert for paid online on the Switch.

 

Edited February 19, 2018 by dwarf

[Happenstance]

I think the fact that they warned people right at the beginning that there would eventually be a charge for online multiplayer means that they will charge for all the current games that are currently free as well. I think its a slippery slope anyway to have some games free and some not. You treat it as an online service and not on a per game basis.

[Julius]

3 hours ago, Hero-of-Time said:

It's certainly going to be interesting seeing how they deal with this and what games are going to be charged for and what will be exempt, if any. Personally, I think they should should charge for everything, rather than muddying the situation and having some games free to play and others not. Pokemon is going to be the one to watch out for. I can see many kicking off if they don't charge for that yet do for something like Smash Bros. I think it has to be equal across all games, otherwise you risk angering fans of certain franchises.

I agree. Personally, I too would rather see them charge for everything, but I think the main problem is that, even if Nintendo has been clear that a paid online is coming, retroactively adding that 18 months into the system's life seems a bit...odd, and it could be a pretty confusing for more casual and/or younger gamers who frequently play games like Splatoon 2 already. I think that it has the potential to divide a game's player base in a similar way to how DLC season passes have in recent years, such as with EA's first Star Wars Battlefront game.

I think that consistency across the board is vital, but you bringing up Pokémon specifically does make one wonder about how they're going to deal with this. Online trading and battling are already a huge part of the games and offer hundreds of hours more of gameplay, yet Pokémon already has an annual online subscription with Pokémon Bank, for transferring Pokémon from older games. Would Pokémon Bank be part of the surely pricier Pokémon game package, be included in the cost of Switch Online, or remain separate, meaning that Pokémon players specifically are paying £5 more than everyone else? In the case of Mario Kart 8 Deluxe and Splatoon 2 specifically, I think that we're very likely to see Mario Kart 9 and Splatoon 3 during the Switch's life, so could Nintendo continue free online support for the older games until the newer entries come along?

As you and @DazzeL have alluded to, I'd also love to see some of the better parts of PS Plus' service come over to Switch Online, such as the exclusive discounts.

@dazzybee sorry if it seems like a stupid idea, but my reason for suggesting it was because of what @Sheikah has stated: no-one else has added a paid online subscription service post-launch. In fact, I'm fairly confident that it's something that Sony decided to hold off with doing a few years into the life of the PS3 in favour of launching such a service with the PS4 simply because of how mixed such messaging could potentially be to customers. @londragon and @Happenstance have rightly pointed out that Nintendo has been fairly up front about the Switch having a paid online service from the start (though, I can't remember if it was something mentioned at their January Switch presentation last year...), but I think the problem, at least from my perspective, is that we know so little about the form of online infrastructure and paid service that we're going to see and what benefits it will have to the subscribing consumer.

If they'd stated at the start that you'd be paying £20/year (or whatever the exact number is) to use online capabilities across all games and that such a subscription would offer exclusive discounts and monthly free games, and stuck to such messaging, then I don't think they'd be in for a potential mess this September. Instead, I don't think we're even sure if we're still getting NES games with online capabilities. Will the service tie into Virtual Console, which we know nothing about? Are they going the Netflix/PS Plus route, perhaps, with consumers being able to download and play a few free games per month/at a time whilst they're subscribed?

If they have this information ready to go, I think that they need to announce what they're doing as soon as they can. They can bring all the great games that they want to E3, but a 20-minute focus exclusively on how the paid online service is actually going to work and its benefits could very easily sour a potentially great E3 for them. I think they need to get ahead of the curb on this.

  

[Hero-of-Time]

10 minutes ago, Julius Caesar said:

I think that consistency across the board is vital, but you bringing up Pokémon specifically does make one wonder about how they're going to deal with this. Online trading and battling are already a huge part of the games and offer hundreds of hours more of gameplay, yet Pokémon already has an annual online subscription with Pokémon Bank, for transferring Pokémon from older games. Would Pokémon Bank be part of the surely pricier Pokémon game package, be included in the cost of Switch Online, or remain separate, meaning that Pokémon players specifically are paying £5 more than everyone else? In the case of Mario Kart 8 Deluxe and Splatoon 2 specifically, I think that we're very likely to see Mario Kart 9 and Splatoon 3 during the Switch's life, so could Nintendo continue free online support for the older games until the newer entries come along?

  

The Pokemon situation is gonna be a tricky one purely because of how many fingers are in the pie. I can see a lot of arguments being had at the various companies in regards to charging for the online part of Pokemon. If they do end up charging for it ( as they should, IMO ) then I imagine Pokebank would be part of that subscription. It would be a big ask telling fans of the series that you have to pay another fiver on top of what you already pay just to transfer your team over.

[RedShell]

I'd forgotten about the Pokémon Bank thing. Yeah, they'd have a hard time keeping that and the online subscription fee going at the same time.

We could definitely do with some more info on the upcoming online setup at this point, I suppose they really want to reveal the details alongside game announcements though. And while Smash Bros. is still the game we're all expecting as the big title to launch the paid service, I'm starting to think it could actually be Animal Crossing instead.

Some of the stuff they're currently doing with the mobile version, not to mention the multiplayer aspect of Tortimer Island in New Leaf, gives the impression that Animal Crossing on Switch will be the most online featured game in the series. When you also take into consideration how popular AC is with female players (56% of the user base on New Leaf and over 75% for Pocket Camp!) it makes sense for Nintendo to use it as a way of selling the online service on Switch.

Edited February 19, 2018 by RedShell