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While Switch has been a big hit in many ways, one area where the console has come up lacking is in the classic Nintendo software department. While companies like M2 and Hamster have been providing plenty of retro experiences via the Sega Ages and Arcade Archives lines, respectively, Nintendo itself has been oddly stingy when it comes to its own exhaustive catalogue of golden oldies. This was rectified somewhat with the launch of Nintendo Switch Online and its ever-growing library of NES titles for subscribers to play, but it’s a veritable drip in a bucket compared to the sea of software Nintendo has yet to make available.
In an interview with Kotaku, Nintendo of America President Reggie Fils-Aimé was asked about another outlet for retro gaming in the form of the company’s recent spate of plug-and-play “Classic Edition” consoles. The NES and SNES Classic Editions have been massive successes for Nintendo, in some cases even outselling contemporary systems like PlayStation 4 and Xbox One. It seems only natural that Nintendo would want to capitalize on all that momentum and good will with either a Game Boy or Nintendo 64 Classic Edition, right? Yeah… not so much.
Here are Reggie’s thoughts on a Nintendo 64 Classic:
“We were clear when we did the first two Classic series that, for us, these were limited time opportunities that were a way for us as a business to bridge from the conclusion of Wii U as a hardware system to the launch of Nintendo Switch,” [Reggie] said. “That was the very strategic reason we launched the NES Classic system.” The Wii U had been fading fast by early 2016 and the Switch didn’t launch until early 2017.
“So while consumers may have been anticipating something, we view these as limited time opportunities. We’ve also now been very clear that as the consumer looks forward to engaging with our classic content that is going to happen more and more with the subscription service.”
“Would you rule out an N64 Classic coming?” [Kotaku writer Stephen Totilo] asked.
“I would not ever rule something out,” he said, “but what I can tell you is certainly that’s not in our planning horizon.”
Bummer. Nintendo has clearly decided that it sees more money is to be made demanding players endlessly subscribe to experience its retro software as opposed to allowing consumers to be able to directly own any of it anymore. This writer sees the move to subscription-based gaming as a major blow to game preservation, as not actually being able to own the software means all of these games are forever tethered to Nintendo’s servers, which eventually will likely be shut down once Switch’s time passes. With the measly offerings currently available on Nintendo Switch Online and no Nintendo 64 Classic in sight, this is probably one of the worst times in nearly three console generations to be a retro Nintendo gaming enthusiast.
What do you think of the lack of a Nintendo 64 Classic? Sound off in the comments and on social media!
Source: Kotaku
