As somewhat of a spiritual successor to Wii Sports, many Nintendo fans were elated at the announcement of Nintendo Switch Sports, a game that brings the motion-controlled sports of previous titles to Nintendo's newest console. While reviewers have been able to play the game for some time, April 29 marks the official release date for Nintendo Switch Sports. On the eShop, Nintendo Switch Sports will unlock at different times, but today also marks the game's first major update, including the addition of online play.The focus of the initial Wii Sports was for it to be a family game. However, over a decade after the release of Wii Sports, Nintendo's online functionality has improved somewhat, and one of the major changes fans noticed from the details of Nintendo Switch Sports was the focus on online play. For the first time in a Nintendo sports title, players will be able to compete in an online ranked multiplayer on Nintendo Switch Sports.This online ranked mode will launch alongside the other online elements of Nintendo Switch Sports in its most recent update. Patch 1.1.0 brings a few changes, but these changes are surely noticeable to any Nintendo Switch Sports player. They will allow people to enjoy the game both with friends and others from all over the world thanks to the new online modes. Alongside the introduction of Nintendo Switch Sports' online elements, the newest patch for the game also adds some fixes to make the game more comfortable to play.
This looks to be the first of many updates making their way to Nintendo Switch Sports, as it seems like the developers have a long-term plan for the latest sports title. It has already been confirmed that the game will be adding golf in a future update coming soon. As well as the introduction of golf to Nintendo Switch Sports, other sports have been reportedly discovered by data leaks. However, none of these future content updates have been confirmed by Nintendo yet. In terms of Patch 1.1.0, the full notes can be found below:
- You can now play the "Play with people from all over the world" mode.
- You can now play "Play with friends" [online] mode.
- Fixed some issues to make the game more comfortable to play.
- You need the latest updates to play online elements.
As well as marking the release of Nintendo Switch Sports, April 29 will also be the day when people are able to speak freely over social media about the game. There was a playtest for Nintendo Switch Sports earlier in 2022, but players weren't allowed to voice their opinion on the game publicly. This has led to a few calling out Nintendo for sabotaging their own product, but soon enough fans will be able to make their opinions on Switch Sports' online functionality public anyway.
Nintendo Switch Sports is available now for Nintendo Switch.
