Play Japanese Famicom games with your US Nintendo Switch Online account

If you’re looking for more retro gaming than the NES games that come free with your Nintendo Switch Online subscription, you might be interested in playing some Japanese Famicom games. Turns out you can do this without any additional cost. I’m not suggesting you load an emulator on your Switch, though that seems like an option these days. It’s not totally straightforward, but it’s not too challenging either. And it definitely won’t leave your Switch in a state where you’re afraid to let it update. One warning, though. The ads on your Switch home screen now have the ability to show up in either English or Japanese. Why would you want the Famicom app? You might just want it because you can. (It’s me!) If you were a Nintendo Switch Online subscriber in Japan, the free retro gaming app is what you would get by default with your subscription is the Famicom app. (And you’d be looking for the reverse instructions to play NES games.) It has all the appropriate cover art images, some of which are just awesome. So, maybe the cover art could sell you on it. There were also several games that were slightly different when released… Continue reading