Since the launch of the Nintendo Switch Online Expansion Pack, players have been torn: is it worth it? This plan, which costs twice as much as a regular membership, what exactly does it add? If you're hesitating on the purchase page, this FAQ directly breaks down your doubts and helps you see clearly whether the Expansion Pack is the tier you should pay for.

What extra content does the Expansion Pack offer over a regular membership?

Simply put, the Expansion Pack adds three major components on top of the regular membership's basic features like online play, cloud saves, and the mobile app. First, the Nintendo 64 and SEGA Genesis emulator game libraries, which include classics like The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time, Super Mario 64, and Sonic 2. Second, the Animal Crossing: New Horizons "Happy Home Paradise" DLC, which costs over 2,000 yen if purchased separately—essentially free with the Expansion Pack. Third, the Mario Kart 8 Deluxe "Booster Course Pass," which includes all 48 remastered tracks, also a significant cost if bought alone.

If you're a player who enjoys revisiting old games, or if you're exactly looking to play the Animal Crossing home design DLC, then the Expansion Pack can indeed save you a lot of money. But be aware: these extra contents are not permanently owned. Once your membership expires, the classic games and DLC can no longer be played.

Are the N64 and SEGA classic games worth upgrading for?

This experience is quite niche. The N64 game library currently has about twenty-some titles, while SEGA has over a dozen. The quantity isn't huge, but the proportion of classics is high. If you're a veteran player from the 90s, booting up Ocarina of Time or the N64 prototype of Metroid Dread, that nostalgic feeling can be worth it.

On the other hand, the emulator experience is not perfect. While the resolution is clearer than the original hardware, button mapping and frame rate stability can sometimes be frustrating. Moreover, the game update pace is not fast; only one or two titles are added every few months. If you don't have a strong attachment to these old games and are upgrading just to have 'more games to play,' you might be disappointed.

Additionally, the classic titles included in the Expansion Pack also bring you directly into a high-quality Nintendo game recommendations list—covering everything from N64 platformers to SEGA arcade action, with a wide range.

Is the 'Booster Course Pass' the biggest selling point of the Expansion Pack?

For many Mario Kart 8 players, yes. All 48 tracks are unlocked at once, and these are classic courses remastered from previous Mario Kart games, ensuring quality and freshness. Even buying the Booster Course Pass separately costs 169 HKD / 2500 JPY. Calculated, the price difference for a year of Expansion Pack roughly covers this expense.

If you regularly race with friends in two-player Switch games, Mario Kart 8 is practically a staple. In that case, upgrading to the Expansion Pack unlocks all tracks and keeps the online play continuous, instantly completing the experience. But if you're not a regular Mario Kart 8 player, this advantage doesn't hold much appeal for you.

Is the Animal Crossing: New Horizons DLC a buy-and-play?

The 'Happy Home Paradise' DLC is sold separately; the Expansion Pack essentially gives you a subscription-based access to it. The content is not scaled down—you can design villas for animal villagers, unlock more furniture, and even unlock home renovation abilities for your own island. However, keep in mind: after your membership expires, saves you transfer to your main island remain, but you can no longer enter the DLC-exclusive resort. If you're a hardcore Animal Crossing player, you can save a lot with a long-term membership.

If you're just curious whether this DLC is fun, you can first check the discussion popularity of Animal Crossing in the game rankings, or browse the styles of new furniture in the game encyclopedia, and then decide whether to pay for this DLC.

What is the difference between the Expansion Pack and the free games of the regular membership?

Regular members have the free FC (Famicom) and SFC (Super Famicom) game libraries from Nintendo Switch Online, which are retro 8-bit and 16-bit titles, suitable for nostalgia but with dated graphics. The Expansion Pack leaps a generation to N64 and Sega Mega Drive, with obvious generational improvements in graphics and gameplay. You can play the original 3D platformer and the first 3D Zelda—these experiences have a completely different feel and depth.

Meanwhile, the free games available to regular members are mostly pixel-based titles from the FC and SFC era, with slow pacing and high difficulty, not very friendly to newer generation players. If you want to experience the era that truly laid the foundation for Nintendo, the indie game recommendations (though they are remakes of old games) in the Expansion Pack's N64 library have their conceptual origins right here.

Should multiplayer enthusiasts upgrade?

If you often play local or online multiplayer with friends, the Expansion Pack gives you access to an additional track library and classic multiplayer games. For example, N64's Mario Kart 64, Mario Party, or the two-player mode of SEGA's Sonic the Hedgehog 2. These straightforward party games are perfect for gatherings. But the prerequisite is that you and your friends will actually play these—most people's Switches spend more time gathering dust than being used for gaming.

For two-player Switch games, an obvious criterion is: if you've already bought Mario Kart 8 Deluxe and Mario Party Superstars, then the N64 version of Mario Party in the Expansion Pack is not very meaningful, because the new titles have better interaction design and graphics. If you just want to play a few classic two-player matches, the freebies in the Expansion Pack are sufficient.

Who should buy the Expansion Pack? Who doesn't need it?

Those who should buy:
- You are a heavy Mario Kart 8 player and want all tracks.
- You are playing Animal Crossing and plan to continue long-term; the DLC is a necessity for you.
- You have nostalgia for N64 and Sega Mega Drive classics and are willing to spend a monthly fee to revisit them.
- You want to freely browse through the Switch game recommendations and Nintendo game recommendations libraries with this plan.

Those who don't need it:
- You only play single-player blockbusters like The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom and Xenoblade Chronicles 3, and rarely use online features.
- You don't need the Animal Crossing or Mario Kart 8 DLC, and don't touch classic games.
- You think the regular membership's FC/SFC game library is enough for occasional nostalgia, and anything more would be wasteful.

Remember, the Expansion Pack is a plan that 'only pays off if you have specific needs,' not a no-brainer upgrade. First check what you've been playing in recent months, then do the math—that will be much more reliable than following the crowd.

This FAQ should answer about 80% of your questions about the Expansion Pack. If you still have specific concerns, just compare with your own gaming habits and make a decision.