Is the Nintendo Switch Online worth it?

If you think about games like Mario Kart 8 Deluxe and Splatoon 2 the first thing that comes to mind is how fun their multiplayer is but unfortunately ever since the Nintendo Switch Online program started you need to purchase a subscription to play these and other games online. But, is the Nintendo Switch online worth it?

If I was just paying to play games online I'd feel cheaped out because most games that require a subscription were already playable online for a year and a half! And even worse, nothing seemed to have been added to improve the overall online experience. I would play games like Mario Kart 8 Deluxe and everything would feel the exact same.

Luckily there's more to the Nintendo Switch Online like the long-awaited Save Data Backup Cloud! Now I can finally back up all the save files from my favorite games, or can I? Apparently, games like Pokémon Let's Go, Splatoon 2, Dark Souls Remastered and others don't support cloud saves because Nintendo thinks that players would use this feature to cheat. Comprehensible but still very disappointing.

One other feature that the Nintendo Switch Online offers is an ever-growing library of  NES games featuring online capabilities. The games run really well and it's always fun to play games like Super Mario Bros. 2 or River City Ramson with someone online but I just wish there was more to this. It pains me to say this but right now I can barely care for these NES games so I'm really hoping they start expanding their library with Super Nintendo games.

The NES games might be a bit disappointing but do you know what? Tetris 99 isn't! This a crazy take on the puzzler we all know and love but mixed with the Battle Royale genre and it's completely free with the Nintendo Switch Online service. You can check my review on Tetris 99 for more info!

One other thing that I like about this service is its price which is much cheaper when compared to other platforms. A yearly subscription only costs 19,99€ and that's really good for what it offers but you can pay even less if you choose a Family Pack for 34,99€ and split it with eight other people! However, I'd rather pay a bit more if it meant having better service.

If you're paying cheap for something most of the times that means that the product or service won't be of good quality and that really shows with the Nintendo Switch Online... So, is the Nintendo Switch Online worth it? Honestly, it's not but. But, all the games I play online require this service so I have to pay for it out of necessity and for roughly 5€ a year I can barely care. But at the same time, I want something better because all of us deserve to play a game of Smash without lag one day.