Nintendo Switch Online adds the best Kirby game you’ve never played
Heads up, puzzlers. The latest Nintendo Switch Online update has brought an obscure, albeit excellent, Kirby game to the service.
If you’re a Nintendo Switch Online subscriber, you can now stream Kirby’s Avalanche via the service’s digital SNES library. Based on Sega’s classic blob matching puzzler, Puyo Puyo, it probably isn’t the first SNES Kirby game you think of. But it’s certainly one of the most unique and fun.
Joining Kirby’s Avalanche is SNES fighting game Fighter’s History, and NES shooter Daiva Story 6. The latter features a fair bit of Japanese text, but the shoot-em-up nature of the game makes it perfectly playable for English audiences.
You’ll be prompted to download the update the next time you boot up the Nintendo Switch’s SNES and NES apps. Once it’s done, the games will be added to the top of each app’s menu, ready for you to stream.
Kirby saves us from a sucky line-up
Personally, I could take or leave this month’s games that aren’t Kirby’s Avalanche. However, the round pink blob’s puzzling escapade is well worth anyone’s time. That’s largely thanks to its roots in the devilishly addictive Puyo Puyo.
Kirby’s Avalanche is chock-full of charmingly colorful visuals and brilliantly fun puzzle gameplay that’s barely aged a day. Not to mention some truly hilarious one-liners Kirby throws at his opponents in cutscenes. All in all, it’s another excellent puzzle game added to the Nintendo Switch’s ranks.
The Switch’s retro offerings are still a far cry from the days of the Virtual Console on Wii and Wii U. But still, it’s nice to see some more obscure titles and hidden gems come to Nintendo Switch Online.
Another month, another mediocre offering?
It’s a double-edged sword, though. Such games aren’t going to be to everyone’s liking. And the minuscule number of SNES and NES games added each month is pretty woeful. Especially considering the enormous quantity of games these consoles are home to. A tiny handful of games added every month definitely gives the retro apps a bit of a wild west feeling.
Thankfully, there’s a greater feeling of stability with Nintendo Switch Online’s lineup of N64 games available on the Expansion Pack tier. Sure, we’re only getting one a month at present, but they’re often popular titles that fans instantly resonate with.
At the very least, the SNES and NES collections are still showing signs of life. And that’s definitely a good thing. I just hope that Nintendo doesn’t ditch the whole thing again come the launch of its next console.