With only a week left to go in May, it’s time for Nintendo to spring some new classic games onto its NSO service. Instead of a broad selection of titles, this month sees four new Game Boy games getting added, with one being a ludicrously expensive Game Boy Color game. I’m not overly familiar with Survival Kids, but if its availability here can potentially drive down prices on the secondhand market, then that is only a good thing.
The four games being added include the following:
- Gradius: The Interstellar Assault
- Kirby’s Star Stacker
- Survival Kids
- The Sword of Hope
Now, none of these are massive titles that everyone has heard of. Kirby’s Star Stacker is probably the most mainstream, and it has even flown under the radar for a couple of decades. Gradius’ Game Boy conversion came out shortly after the NES original, and while it doesn’t hold a candle to its bigger brother, it’s still a good little shmup that retains the brutal difficulty of its namesake. The other two are more cult hits, and from what I can tell, people believe The Sword of Hope is one of the most underrated Game Boy games around.
What’s interesting with Survival Kids’ inclusion is that it could be a way to promote the upcoming revival for Nintendo Switch 2. I wasn’t even aware that was happening, but from what I can find, Survival Kids was eventually spun off into the “Lost in Blue” games that became moderate hits on the DS. You could almost read it as inspiration for Minecraft or even Stardew Valley, but it’s a survival game where kids get stuck on an island and must… survive. It certainly looks charming, and if the idea strikes you, you’ll be able to give it a shot now.
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Written by Peter Glagowski
Peter has been a freelance gaming and film critic for over seven years. His passion for Nintendo is only matched by the size of his collection.
