Nintendo is taking its time rolling out a full online service for the Switch. What we have now is a free, but limited service, with the promise of the paid-subscription version appearing in 2018. There's also the Nintendo Switch Online App, which Nintendo quietly rolled out a few days early this week.
It's available for both iOS and Android devices and promises to, "help enhance your online gameplay experience on Nintendo Switch." More specifically, Nintendo intends to offer features in the app on a per-game basis, but also promises to offer the ability to invite friends to play with you or to have voice chats.
For now, anyone downloading the app is likely only going to see a maintenance page. However, we can look forward and see what's coming with the first game to fully support it being Nintendo's own Splatoon 2.
Splatoon 2 will be supported at launch through the app using SplatNet 2. It allows you to view your stats for past online matches, as well as your single-player records and overall ranking. There's also the ability to order special Splatoon 2 gear in the shop and see which online multiplayer stages will be available and when.
Nintendo will allow you to send play invitations and chat with friends as promised, but also share all of your stats by linking the app and SplatNet 2 into your social media accounts. So expect a lot of Splatoon 2 auto-generated Facebook posts and tweets appearing after the game launches on July 21.
