The Nintendo Switch Online app is set to lose one of its rare features in July, which means it’s used even less than before.
Nintendo has announced that it will be removing the Splatoon 2 Online Lounge feature from the maligned smartphone app on July 28, 2021, which makes sense with Splatoon 3 on the horizon.
However, the online lounge allows you to send invites to friends via a URL so that they can join you in private or ranked matches. Your friends would receive a notification through the Nintendo Switch Online app so that they can join and use voice chat, which is still supported.
Nintendo’s support page states that no other game-specific service changes will be made to the app at this time, which means you should still be able to check your Splatoon 2 match results and make purchases in clothing and equipment stores in the game.
Still, removing a feature that lets you easily play with friends is disappointing, especially since Splatoon 2 makes it unnecessarily difficult to match with friends.
The Nintendo Switch also doesn’t include a game invite or native messaging feature, so the Nintendo Online app was supposed to help bring the Switch online sequel to the level of its competition. Unfortunately, this was not the case.
Only a few games have received specific software support since the app was released. Along with Splatoon 2, the only other games that have additional functionality through the app are Super Smash Bros. Ultimate, Mario Kart 8 Deluxe, Animal Crossing: New Horizons, and the Nintendo Switch Online NES library, the majority simply serving as a place for voice chat.
Speaking of which, we’ve never found the Nintendo Switch Online app’s voice chat so awesome, especially compared to Discord and Xbox Live.
Splashed
The Nintendo Switch Online app is unfortunately another example of Nintendo dropping the ball when it comes to building a robust online infrastructure, which for a paid service in 2021 is simply not enough.
Clearly Nintendo could have made the app something far superior to what we have today, with almost no support for an app that has been downloaded millions of times. We’ll have to see if Nintendo does anything special with the app when Splatoon 3 releases, but we somehow doubt that.
