One of the weirdest parts of the Nintendo Switch’s life so far is the noticeable absence of a Virtual Console-type feature. All we know so far is that subscribing to the eventual paid online service will come with free, classic games in some capacity, but that’s all we’ll know until 2018 at the latest. But over the weekend, the dedicated video game hacking community found something interesting. Buried in the firmware as far back as the 1.0.0 release is an NES emulator called “Flog” that, when activated, plays the original NES version of Golf .
It’s not just NES Golf , though. It’s much more interesting than that. You might remember that back when Nintendo’s online program for the Switch was announced, it was mentioned that games paired with the paid subscription will have online play. Previously, Virtual Console games were more or less straight ROMS in a nice-looking emulator package. This version of Golf baked into the Switch’s firmware is not only compatible with the Joy-Con controllers, but it also has optional motion controls.
While it’s fascinating to see Nintendo experimenting with doing more with its emulation, it’s hard to tell what this means, if anything. Obviously, there’s no known way to access this without using “unofficial” means, and even then Nintendo is known to leave traces of abandoned or unused work around its code. Still, with all the uncertainty around emulation on Switch, this is a cool discovery that could be a hint at things to come.
Source: Ars Technica