The video game industry has always been in constant flux, and one of the greatest changes in the last few years has been the emergence of subscription-based game libraries. Each of the big three gaming brands has their own distinct platform, with Xbox Game Pass, PlayStation Plus, and Nintendo Switch Online offering countless games for a monthly or annual fee. Like most things, however, Nintendo does things a little differently from its peers. Instead of offering recent releases, Nintendo Switch Online leverages the company's expansive list of classic titles to offer libraries based on each of Nintendo's consoles.
Nintendo's recent additions to NSO have been a pleasant surprise for many. Game Boy and GBA games were added earlier this year, giving gamers the chance to revisit the iconic handhelds on the Switch. Now all eyes are on what console Nintendo might add next, and for many fans, the most highly anticipated addition is the Nintendo DS. Nintendo's dual-screen handheld is one of its most successful pieces of hardware, with a treasure trove of excellent games that exemplify what made it so enchanting. If DS games do make their way to the Switch, there are a few essential games that deserve to be there at launch.
Mario Kart DS on Nintendo Switch
If there's one franchise that's capable of seamlessly translating to just about every Nintendo console, it's Mario Kart. Nintendo's beloved kart racer made waves when it came to the DS with Mario Kart DS, with its charming kart varieties and iconic courses. Many of these course have even been recreated in Mario Kart 8 Deluxe, with the fan-favorite Waluigi Pinball being added in the Mario Kart 8 Deluxe Booster Course Pass. With NSO's online connectivity for classic games, Mario Kart DS fans could find themselves tearing up the racetrack against online opponents like it's 2005 all over again.
Phoenix Wright: Ace Attorney on Nintendo Switch
The Nintendo DS was a hotbed for innovative adventure titles that leveraged the console's revolutionary hardware, but one genre that gained an unexpected foothold among DS owners was the visual novel. Phoenix Wright: Ace Attorney is responsible for this visual novel emergence, combining the intrigue of legal dramas with contextual puzzle solving. Few things in gaming are more iconic than the silhouette of Phoenix Wright pointing and shouting "Objection!", and without the Ace Attorney series, the DS may not have reached such widespread popularity.
Pokemon HeartGold and SoulSilver on Nintendo Switch
In the Pokemon franchise, there are a select few games that are recognized as the upper-echelon of all others to come before or after. Pokemon HeartGold and SoulSilver are such games, remastering Gen 2 for the DS while offering a bevy of additional features, including the ability to explore all of Johto and Kanto. Nintendo has been slow to add Pokemon titles to the Game Boy and GBA libraries, but a DS library would be nothing without this recreation of Pokemon Gold and Silver. If DS games do come to the Switch, HeartGold and SoulSilver are more than worthy of being included on day one.
Nintendo's classic catalogs on the Switch help it standout from other offerings on PlayStation and Xbox, and introducing a DS library would elevate NSO considerably. While there may be some challenges in translating the dual-screens of the handheld to the Switch, PlatinumGames may have already shown how DS games can work on the Switch. Many people were first introduced to gaming through the DS, and with Nintendo finally acknowledging its handhelds with Game Boy and GBA libraries, it seems only right that DS games follow close behind.