March 10 isn’t just a regular day for everyone. For Nintendo fans, Tuesday, March 10, is known as MAR10 Day, and Nintendo has been tying special game drops or deals to Mario Day for several years. And again, Nintendo announced that three vintage titles are coming to Nintendo Switch.
Mario’s Tennis and Mario Clash will be available for the Virtual Boy app, the new Nintendo Switch Online application. Meanwhile, Mario vs. Donkey Kong will be available on the Game Boy Advance app. If you’re planning to play these titles on March 10, you’ll need a Nintendo Switch Online + Expansion Pack membership, meaning you’ll be required to purchase that tier to access them. The Expansion Pack also includes additional retro libraries, making this Mario Day drop a bonus for subscribers looking to revisit some classic titles.
For fans not familiar with these 1995 titles, Mario Tennis was named the ‘Best Virtual Boy Game of 1995’ by GamePro and Game Players. The award is more meaningful than you might think; at the time, the Virtual Boy had a small library, and this was the standout title. The other Virtual Boy game coming on March 10 is Mario Clash, listed as one of the most notable games in the Virtual Boy’s tiny catalogue because it’s one of only two Mario games released for the system and has a cult reputation among retro fans.
These titles will join 3D Tetris, Galactic Pinball, Golf, The Mansion of Innsmouth, Red Alarm, Teleroboxer, and Virtual Boy Wario Land in the growing Virtual Boy Nintendo Switch Online library, which continues to expand with more titles planned for the future. To experience the games as intended, players will need either the C$109 Virtual Boy replica headset or the $29 cardboard viewer accessory for the Switch.
Mario vs. Donkey Kong was released in 2004 for the GBA and is a puzzle-platformer that blends Mario-style platforming with clever puzzle mechanics. The title was named GameSpot’s Best GBA Game of May 2004, runner-up for Best Puzzle/Rhythm Game of 2004, and was later ranked among the ‘Top 25 GBA Games of All Time’ by IGN. This GBA classic spawned a bunch of other puzzle title sequels for the franchise, such as Mario vs. Donkey Kong: March of the Minis and Mini Mario & Friends: Amiibo Challenge.
In Canada, Nintendo Switch Online+ Expansion Pack memberships cost 69.99/year for individuals or $109.99 /year for families (up to eight accounts).
Source: Nintendo
