The long-promised  Nintendo Switch Online service is finally about to launch. Today Nintendo finally nailed down a release date and revealed they’ll be offering a seven-day free trial to new subscribers. Here’s the North American announcement.

　　#NintendoSwitchOnline memberships will start on 9/18. You can sign-up for a 7-day free trial from Nintendo #eShop at launch! We will introduce more information during the Nintendo Direct on 9/13.https://t.co/74Hzxk9spt pic.twitter.com/EJVFJH6F4I

　　— Nintendo of America (@NintendoAmerica) September 12, 2018

　　Nintendo Switch Online will be launching slightly later in Europe than in North America (on September 19 rather than September 18). Here’s the European announcement.

　　The #NintendoSwitchOnline paid membership service will start on 19/09. You can sign-up for a 7-day free trial from Nintendo #eShop at launch! We will introduce more information during the #NintendoDirect on 13/09.

　　? https://t.co/9LXW07Q6GQ pic.twitter.com/0YkwX6yZPR

　　— Nintendo UK (@NintendoUK) September 12, 2018

　　As mentioned in the tweets, we’ll learn a bit more about the  Nintendo Switch Online service in a Nintendo Direct tomorrow. The Direct was originally supposed to drop last week, but was delayed due to the earthquake in Hokkaido, Japan.

　　For those who haven’t been keeping up, once it launches, Nintendo Switch Online will be required to play most online games on the system, including titles that previously offered free play. The service also offer offers cloud saves, and a few other features. Here’s the basic rundown:

　　Online Play

　　Battle it out or cooperate with players around the world in compatible games like Splatoon 2, ARMS, Mario Kart 8 Deluxe, Mario Tennis Aces, Sushi Striker: The Way of Sushido, and more.

　　Nintendo Entertainment System

　　Enjoy 20 NES games with added online play for the first time ever, with more games added regularly.

　　Save Data Cloud Backup

　　Save your data online for easy access. Details about this feature will be available before the paid service launches in September.

　　Nintendo Switch Online App

　　Enhance your experience with voice chat and other features with this online app.

　　Special Offers

　　Stay tuned for news on special deals and offers for members.

　　Nintendo Switch Online will set you back $4 a month, and a mere $20 for a full year. A Family Membership, which lets you share your account with up to 7 other people, is $35 a year.

　　What do you think? Will you be signing up for Nintendo Switch Online? I suppose if you want to play Mario Kart and Smash Bros. online, you don’t have much choice! It isn’t the most feature-rich service, but for only 20 bucks a year, you can’t go too wrong.