Pokémon Stadium 2 and Trading Card Game are now on Switch with online play

By Giovanni Colantonio Published August 8, 2023

Nintendo Switch Online just added two retro classics, as Pokémon Stadium 2 and Pokémon Trading Card Game are now available on the service. Both games have been updated to feature online multiplayer.

Both announcements come from today’s Pokémon Presents stream, which primarily focused on updates to mobile games and Pokémon Scarlet and Violet. Nintendo Switch Online got a small block during the presentation, when it was revealed that the two games were dropping on Switch shortly after the stream.

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What’s most notable about the additions is that both games feature online multiplayer, one of the biggest perks of Nintendo’s retro game service. That’s especially big news for the Pokémon Trading Card Game, which used a link cable for multiplayer back when it first released in 2000.

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To access multiplayer for Switch Online titles, all you have to do is open the Game Boy or Nintendo 64 apps and select “Play Online” from the main menu. There, you’ll see a list of friends playing games and be able to join them. In testing Pokémon Trading Card Game, we had to invite a friend within the game itself to initiate Linked Play.

Trainers battle online in The Pokemon Trading Card Game. — Nintendo

Pokémon Trading Card Game is available to all Nintendo Switch Online subscribers via the Game Boy app. To get access to Pokémon Stadium 2 on the Nintendo 64 app, you’ll need to upgrade to the service’s Expansion Pack. That app also includes the first Pokémon Stadium, as well as Pokémon Snap and Puzzle League.

Though those two updates are exciting for series fans, Switch’s online service is still lacking when it comes to the series’ most iconic games. Pokémon Red, Blue, Gold, Silver, and Crystal have yet to be added to Switch Online.

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Giovanni Colantonio

Senior Gaming Editor

As Digital Trends' Senior Gaming Editor, Giovanni Colantonio oversees all things video games at Digital Trends. As a veteran…

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