Nintendo has revealed that two very mature games are coming to Nintendo Switch Online subscribers.
Turok 2: Seeds Of Evil and Shadow Man, originally released on the Nintendo 64 in 1998 and 1999 respectively, are now part of the Nintendo 64 17+ app. Of course, you will need to subscribe to the Nintendo Switch Online + Expansion Pack to claim these games. And, you will have to download the Nintendo 64 17+ app, which is not available to Nintendo Switch Online child accounts.
Turok 2: Seeds Of Evil continues the adventures of Joshua Fireseed, who is now tasked in defeating a malevolent alien race called the Primagen. Developer Iguana Entertainment was at the forefront of bringing shooters to consoles, and they were able to deliver a satisfying experience for Nintendo 64 players alongside making a Windows version.
For this game, they were able to deliver a fully featured multiplayer mode, just a year after GoldenEye 007. During development, cartridge prices fell, so that they could upgrade the game from a 12MB to a 16MB cartridge, and that allowed them to add multiplayer in.
Shadow Man is an action-adventure game, placing you in the role of Michael LeRoi. As a voodoo warrior who walks in the realms of the dead and the living, LeRoi is tasked with stopping a supernatural evil named Legion. At the time, it was known to be particularly challenging, but enjoyable for players who could persevere.
Both games are based on characters that were originally published in Valiant Comics, now owned by entertainment company DMG Entertainment. They also both received remasters from Nightdive Studios, that released on multiple platforms, including the Nintendo Switch.
These additions to the Nintendo 64 17+ app are really for the gamers who would remember those Nintendo 64 releases. The remastered versions of these games will definitely be better suited for modern gamers.
They feature improved graphics and performance, QOL improvements, and even additional content that was originally cut from the Nintendo 64. But of course, with a service like Nintendo Switch Online, one can argue that Nintendo is continuing to deliver on the idea of video game preservation.
While Nintendo can’t feasibly license and bring back every game that was published on the Nintendo 64, they put effort into making these rereleases to recreate that original experience. There’s certainly room for debate on how well their developers are delivering in terms of accurate emulation, but it’s worth noting that they cared enough to make the effort at all.
