A new update for Majora's Mask arrives on Nintendo Switch Online, today, February 25.
The only way to play Ocarina of Time on Nintendo Switch is by purchasing the Expansion Pack for Nintendo Switch Online. A lot of people complained about the Expansion Pack being too expensive at launch, but the real backlash began when people saw the poor quality of the emulation on offer. One recurring issue among games seemed to involve fog and water effects, as they wouldn't display correctly. The Water Temple in Ocarina of Time had a number of issues due to this problem, which was an issue for many fans of the classic 1998 original. Through updates, Nintendo has partly fixed the Water Temple, but it's still not up to the same quality as the N64 original.
The Nintendo Switch Online + Expansion Pack app has received a new update that has fixed many of the issues that fans have had with the emulated N64 games. According to OatmealDome on Twitter (via Nintendo Everything), the fog effect has finally been fixed in the Water Temple in Ocarina of Time. This finally brings the Nintendo Switch Online port of Ocarina of Time closer to the original version of the game, offering a more comparable experience.
It's not just the Water Temple that has been fixed, as there are reports regarding the fog effect being fixed in the opening of the Forest Temple in Ocarina of Time. Screen Rant has also verified that the fog effect in the Choco Mountain track in Mario Kart 64 has been fixed. Outside of the fog effects, there are reports that the Paper Mario game-ending bug has also been fixed. There was a recurring issue where dying while Watt was a party member would cause the game to crash, but this appears to no longer be an issue.
Nintendo seems to have taken negative responses to the Nintendo Switch Online + Expansion Pack service seriously, seen with its continued efforts to improve the experience. The service has also been regularly expanding with new games available, continuing to drive interest among players. Despite concerns over NSO's high price point, Nintendo seems set on introducing new content, including free DLC like Animal Crossing's Happy Home Paradise, and the Mario Kart 8 Deluxe DLC.
It's a shame that the NSO N64 app launched with so many issues, as the Expansion Pack had already drawn the ire of the fanbase due to its high cost. Nintendo has been gradually improving the emulation in response to the backlash, and hopefully, these ports of such classic games will be able to live up to the quality of their N64 originals. Majora's Mask has launched on the Expansion Pack today and there have been no reported issues with the game so far. If the service keeps up its pace of adding a new game per month, then the Nintendo Expansion Pack might be worth its cost.
The Ver. 2.0.0 update for the Nintendo Switch Online N64 app is available now.
Source: OatmealDome/Twitter (via Nintendo Everything)
