Does Zelda: Majora's Mask Make Switch Online + Expansion Pack Worth The Cash?

Nintendo Switch Online is already home to several classic "Zelda" games, and now it looks like the service is about to get one more. Nintendo has confirmed that "The Legend of Zelda: Majora's Mask" will be the next Nintendo 64 game to launch on the service. While "The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time" tends to get the lion's share of attention when we're talking about the N64 "Zelda" games, "Majora's Mask" has its share of dedicated fans who will likely be pleased to hear that the game is coming to Nintendo Switch.

Of course, "The Legend of Zelda: Majora's Mask" will only be playable with a Nintendo Switch Online + Expansion Pack subscription, which introduces its share of headaches. The good news is that'll be available in just a few days, so if the price of the Expansion Pack isn't a hurdle for you, it won't be long before you'll be able to dive in. The question then becomes whether or not the Switch port of "Majora's Mask" will be up to snuff on release. 

In a tweet to the official Nintendo of America Twitter account, Nintendo announced that "Majora's Mask" will be joining Nintendo Switch Online's Expansion Pack offerings on February 25th. For those without a calendar handy, that is precisely one week from today. The trailer that Nintendo shared today shows off the game in action, presumably running on the Switch's N64 emulator. The Switch port seems to run well enough from that trailer, but we'll need to wait until it's out and we can actually play it before we make that call.

After all, the Switch version of "The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time" had some issues related to emulation, and while Nintendo fixed at least some of those issues in a later update, there's no telling if they persist in "Majora's Mask" until the game is out and people start playing it. We'll find out soon enough at any rate, as "Majora's Mask" is only a week away.

One big hurdle that remains for some Switch owners is the price of the Switch Online Expansion Pack. While a year-long Nintendo Switch Online subscription costs $20 on its own, tossing the Expansion Pack into the mix brings that up to $50 a year. Whether or not the Expansion Pack is worth the extra cost ultimately depends on what kind of content appeals to you.

The Expansion Pack includes access to Sega Genesis and Nintendo 64 games, and on their own, we'd argue they probably don't justify an extra $30 a year for potential subscribers. However, the Expansion Pack also grants access to the "Happy Home Paradise" DLC for "Animal Crossing: New Horizons." The recently-announced Booster Course Pass for "Mario Kart 8 Deluxe" will also be included in the NSO Expansion Pack, granting players access to its remade DLC courses for as long as they stay subscribed.

So, for someone who plays a lot of "Animal Crossing: New Horizons" and "Mario Kart 8 Deluxe," a subscription to Nintendo Switch Online + Expansion Pack may very well be worth it. For those who are only interested in retro games, the extra cost probably isn't — at least not on an ongoing basis — and as good as it is, we don't see "Majora's Mask" doing much to change that.