While we're getting a Pikmin renaissance with the release of the original two games on Switch, the release is also killing the dreams of Nintendo fans eager to see GameCube titles on Nintendo Switch Online.
Nintendo Switch Online is the platform's paid online multiplayer service, which also features a selection of occasionally-updated NES, Super NES, and Game Boy libraries. The more expensive Expansion Pack version of the subscription also includes Nintendo 64, GBA, and Genesis/Mega Drive games. Fans have held out some hope that the subscription would eventually expand to include GameCube games, but those hopes are starting to fade.
After today's Nintendo Direct, the original two GameCube Pikmin games hit the Switch eShop at a relatively pricey $30 each, or $50 for a bundle of the two. This comes after Super Mario 3D All-Stars, which featured largely unremarkable ports of three Mario games including GameCube's Super Mario Sunshine, launched for $60. It also comes after Nintendo brought us an excellent $40 GameCube upgrade with Metroid Prime Remastered, and amid long-standing rumors of standalone ports of the two GameCube Zelda games for Switch.
In short, it sure seems like Nintendo is more interested in reselling GameCube games at premium prices than it is in making them a bonus for subscribers.
"This kinda cements that GameCube games won't be part of Nintendo Switch Online's future," as one Reddit user puts it. "Shout out to the people on this sub who called Nintendo will just sell us GC ports instead of being an online service," as another says.
Pikmin 1 and 2 on Switch technically fit the bill as 'remasters,' but it might be more accurate to simply call them 'ports,' since the only real improvement over the GameCube originals seems to be the clarity of HD resolution - though that certainly doesn't do the original textures any favors. These versions don't even go the extra step to include the option of the pointer controls from the Wii ports. In fact, the one major change here seems to be the removal of branded items like the Duracell battery in Pikmin 2.
It's always a good time to play some of the best GameCube games.
