Nintendo continues to strengthen its Switch Online + Expansion Pack service with new game releases. Today, the focus is on the entry level, with seven major games added to the NES library.
New titles now playable on the service include Urban Champion (1986), Golf (1985), Donkey Kong Jr. Math (1986), Mach Rider (1986), Sunsoft’s side-scrolling platformer The Mystery of Atlantis (1986) – known in Japan as Atlantis not Nazoand two games previously featured in the Rare Replay collection, Solar Jetman (1990) and Cobra Triangle (1989).
Nintendo is currently offering a free 7-day trial of Switch Online in select regions, which resets even if you’ve used one before. Here’s a detailed breakdown of each title released today, courtesy of Nintendo’s official PR:
Urban Champion™ – There is only one rule in these streets: Punch or I’ll punch you. Nintendo’s first 2D fighting game from 1986, Urban Champion™ is a bare-knuckle clash between fighters looking to earn the title of Champion – and send their opponent tumbling down the nearest well in the process. If they’re successful, they’ll earn confetti showers from the locals and, eventually, enough victory tokens to declare themselves the undisputed champion. But beware of angry neighbors who will try to throw vases of flowers at your head, and the police will occasionally show up to temporarily break up the fight or make arrests if the fight time runs out. Spar against a computer opponent or a friend and prove your worth to become the Urban Champion!
Golf – Click the links and revisit one of the original NES sports games. This 1990 classic brings you 36 holes of realistic golf stakes, with hazards that change every time you play (so you’ll need to plan a strategy beyond just “swinging away”). Check the wind direction, choose the right club and adjust your swing as you make your drive. A scorecard keeps track of your strokes for each hole as you tackle twisty fairways and hungry sand traps. Training time is right now, so grab your clubs!
Donkey Kong Jr.™ Math – First question: Donkey Kong + Donkey Kong Jr. ÷ Math homework = ? Answer: Numerical fun. Originally released in 1986, Donkey Kong Jr.™ Math takes the lively vine gameplay of the original Donkey Kong Jr. game and adds an extra element of mathematical challenge. Play as Donkey Kong Jr. and rescue Donkey Kong, who has been imprisoned by Mario. Navigate vines and platforms to solve math-based puzzles that require you to do everything from adding numbers to catching matching symbols that add, subtract, multiply and divide as needed to solve each problem . Along the way, you’ll collect fruits and keys, and be sure to avoid pesky birds, nasty electrical sparks, and creepy handkerchiefs! Sorry, didn’t we mention there was going to be a test?
Mach Rider™ – Set either 88 years in the future (from today) or 127 years in the future (from the game’s original release date in 1985), Mach Rider™ is a vehicular combat racing game where players navigate their heavily armed Quadrunner through the ruined wastes of Earth in the year 2112. Embark on the combat course and make your way through 10 different sectors, avoiding obstacles and shooting down enemies. Or try your hand at the endurance course, where you try to complete sectors in a time limit, with oil batteries and opponents set to slow you down. You can also tackle the time trial in Solo course mode, where it’s just you against the clock. Remember, you are Earth’s only hope – you are the Mach Rider.
The Mystery of Atlantis – Known as Atlantis not Nazo in Japan, The Mystery of Atlantis is a side-scrolling adventure where players take on the role of Wyn, an amateur explorer who aims to unlock the secrets of a lost civilization and rescue his enslaved master from the forces of the evil Emperor Zavyra. Using sticks of dynamite, Wyn will try to survive in a variety of exotic locations such as caves, temples and even clouds. Atlantis consists of 100 areas, each connected by warp doors – but choose wisely! Your success in the island maze will depend on the doors you pass and the path you take.
SOLAR® JETMAN – You are Jetman on a perilous quest to collect the lost pieces of the Golden Warpship, a near-mythical ship capable of interstellar travel. This early 90s multiplayer shooter puts you in the cockpit of Jetman’s Jetpod as you explore 12 menacing alien worlds, each with their own gravity level! Collect alien goods along the way to earn points that you can trade for equipment from the Interstellar Marketing Co. Trading Post. Once you uncover a part of the Warpship, you’ll need to tow it back to your Mothership, fighting the added drag that affects your maneuverability (and burns your fuel – keep an eye on those gauges!). Recovering the parts will not be an easy task, and Solar Jetman is the only hope!
TRIANGULAR COBRA™ – Have you heard of the Bermuda Triangle? Well, this is a tourist cruise compared to what awaits you on TRIANGULAR COBRA™. Put your skills and reflexes to the test at the helm of a Cobra-class speedboat in this 1989 vehicle-based action game for the original NES. In this part boat racing game, part vehicle combat game, you’ll face high-speed challenges including enemy cannon-equipped vehicles, endangered swimmers, deadly sea monsters, dangerous eddies and explosive bombs. blow Play through 25 stages of watery mayhem, where you’ll need to collect power-up items scattered throughout the levels to improve your speed and firepower if you hope to make it out of the Triangle in one piece!
Japan has also received several different Famicom games. Instead of Mystery of Atlantis, Solar Jetman and Cobra Triangle, the former is taken Mahjong game on the system, Nintendo’s adventure game Famicom Mukashibanashi: Shin Onigashima and the five-way link game Gomoku Narabe Renju
