How to grab Japanese versions of the Nintendo Switch Online NES games

The Nintendo Switch isn’t region-locked, but you need to have a separate account to access the Japanese version of the eShop. Setting one up is a breeze — this is a good excuse to do so if you haven’t already — and the best part is that, if you have an account that’s “located” in Japan, you can download the Japanese versions of the NES games that come with your Nintendo Switch Online subscription.

It’s an easy process: Log into the eShop with your Japanese account, download the Japanese version of the Nintendo Switch Online app, and then jump back over to your primary account with the Nintendo Switch Online subscription to access it.

While the game list is the same, you’ll be playing the Famicom versions of all the games. Setting this up today means you can grab any future Japanese-exclusive games from that version of the service. Plus, it’s just cool to have the icon with the Famicom on your home screen, as seen at the top of this post.

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If nothing else, it’s fun to see what these games were like on the Famicom versus the NES. Getting both versions of the app only takes a minute or two, and it’s worth your time.