This week we saw Nintendo release fifteen games for the Game Boy, Game Boy Color and Game Boy Advance on their Nintendo Switch Online subscription service. We've already talked about the six Game Boy Advance titles and the five games released on the black and white Game Boy, so now it's time to complete this trilogy with the Game Boy Color. If you're a Nintendo Switch Online subscriber, then you can download four Game Boy Color games right now, including The Legend of Zelda: Link's Awakening DX, Alone in the Dark: The New Nightmare, Game & Watch Gallery 3 and Wario Land 3. Those are some big hitters, but are any of them actually worth playing? To answer that question, I decided to flip through the pages of Electronic Gaming Monthly, Nintendo Power, Computer & Video Games and more classic magazines to see what the critics said back when these games first came out. No, your eyes are not deceiving you, because this is another packed episode of Nintendo Switch Online Review Crew. Now in color.


At first glance, Alone in the Dark: The New Nightmare seems like a weird choice for the Nintendo Switch Online service. It's one of the very few games to not come from Nintendo, and it's widely considered the worst version of this Alone in the Dark reboot, a game that was already a little iffy to begin with. However, let me make the argument for The New Nightmare. While it's true that this stripped-down handheld version basically slices and dices the original to shreds, it's also an impressive use of the limited and outdated hardware. Alone in the Dark somehow manages to keep the pre-rendered backgrounds and general atmosphere from the original, which is not easy to do on a handheld. And, as a survival horror game, it feels a world away from the rest of the platformers and adventure games we got on the Nintendo Switch Online. Even if it's not the best game we're going to be talking about today, I like that it was added to the collection.

Unfortunately, there aren't a lot of reviews Alone in the Dark: The New Nightmare. If an outlet was going to review the game, it was going to be on a home console, not the stripped-down handheld version. One of the reviews comes from Game Informer, who ended up giving the survival horror game a so-so 7.5 out of 10. They praised the impressive presentation and sound design. Nintendo Power, on the other hand, was not as generous. They gave it a 2.5 out of 5, complaining that “there's just not a whole lot of game here.” Chris argued that “it's really just a vehicle for some of the most impressive backgrounds ever on Game Boy,” while Drew noted that it ”plays like a slide show, and the hero looks like Cornelius from Planet of the Apes.” Now wait, that's going too far. You can hate on this game all you want, but Edward Carnby does not look like one of those damn, dirty apes.

If you were to tell me that Nintendo chose their Game Boy Color games by randomly pulling boxes out of an old burlap sack, I would probably believe you. How else would you explain starting with Game & Watch Gallery 3. Not that it's a bad game, but is this really the entry in the series you want people to start with? While that's certainly a baffling decision, it shouldn't take anything away from this fun compilation. It compiles some of Nintendo's best-loved Game & Watch games from back in the day, now with a fresh makeover (complete with color graphics).

While this may be the first Game & Watch title on the Switch, you could see the series fatigue bleeding into the old school reviews. Electronic Gaming Monthly literally started their review by saying that, “Simply put, this Game & Watch compilation is the same old, same old. And that's OK. Each mini-game on the cart features a modern and classic version, in addition to the little extra features. It's perfect for the Game Boy Color.” EGM gave the game an 8 out of 10.

That's pretty much the same score we saw from N64 Magazine, which gave the game a solid 4 out of 5. Total Game Boy went a bit higher, giving the game an 85%. However, the lowest score I could find came from an unlikely source – Nintendo Power. Giving it a 6.8 out of 10, they liked the enhanced graphics that “take them beyond the realm of curiosities with nostalgic value. Although all five titles are fairly simple, they provide a lot of entertainment value.” Though, just to be clear, it's not enough entertainment value to score the game higher than a 6.8. Just saying.

Alright, now that we've gotten Game & Watch and Alone in the Dark out of the way, it's time to finally talk about the reason you're – The Legend of Zelda: Link's Awakening DX. This is one of two Zelda games released this week, but don't let this 8-bit version get overshadowed by the flashier Minish Cap, because Link's Awakening is still an amazing game. It's full of all the items, secrets, bosses and fun you expect from an overhead Zelda game, and best of all, this version of the game is in color.

Even though this DX version was little more than a port with a fresh cote of paint, the critics still ate it up. Electronic Gaming Monthly gave it a 9.25 out of 10, making it their fifth best-reviewed game on either the Game Boy or Game Boy Color. John Davison had an interesting comparison: “This is the handheld gaming equivalent of the Star Wars Special Editions, when you think about it. A classic game, which still has no equal, brought up to date to take advantage of more modern technology ... and with some extra bits, too.” John Ricciardi also loved the game, arguing that “Link's Awakening still reigns supreme as the best Game Boy game available. Be warned, though – aside from the beautiful colorized graphics and a slightly updated ending, Zelda DX isn't all that different from the original game.”

Obviously, it wasn't just EGM that loved Link's Awakening DX, as you saw Total Game Boy give it a 95%, one of their highest scores. Nintendo Power ended up giving the game an 8.8 out of 10, which is the exact same score they gave the original black and white version. Computer & Video Games ended up giving the game the highest score, a perfect 5 out of 5. They note that “set-pieces are all based on classic Zelda themes. The new dungeon, whose theme is color, can only be accessed if you have a Game Boy Color – it's not so amazing, but it adds a cool extra feature to the game if you complete it – which is easy. Overall a great game. Though you need to be a Zelda die-hard to own both color and black and white versions just for the extra dungeon.” Thankfully, you won't have to worry about that when you're enjoying this Nintendo classic on the Switch.

After making his first appearance in Super Mario Land 2: 6 Golden Coins, Wario ended up stealing the franchise from Mario with his own line of Wario Land games. What's odd is that Nintendo chose not to start with brilliant original when bringing the series to the Switch, but rather skipped right to Wario Land 3. Don't get me wrong, Wario Land 3 is great and it still holds up remarkably well, but why skip right past Wario Land 1 and 2? Again, it's as if they are pulling these titles out of a burlap bag.

Let's just choose to ignore the randomness of the releases and instead focus on the reviews, which were all overwhelmingly positive for Wario Land 3. Electronic Gaming Monthly, for example, gave it an average score of 9 out of 10. Shawn started his review with a dumb question: “Is it wrong for a grown man to be in love with a video game? Of course not. I'm proud to be smitten by Wario Land 3. With tons of items, coins, power-ups and more to collect, dozens of innovative puzzles to figure out and old-school levels to go back and forth between, what's not to love? One thing to note: It's more of a sit-at-home-and-play kind of game rather than something you take on vacation.” Greg agreed, noting that “it's odd to see a great game on the Game Boy that's not a remake or adaptation of a classic NES or PlayStation game lately. I love the whole ‘impossible to die' setup of this game. It requires the player to think outside the box. You can't just go from point A to point B, but you need to consider the effects each enemy's attack has on Wario and use the subsequent abilities he gains to find hidden areas in each stage.”

Or at Nintendo Power, the critics were overall impressed with Wario Land 3, but definitely not as enthusiastic as EGM. Giving it an 8.2 out of 10, Kyle notes that it has “a pleasing retro feel and holds up a new standard of quality and depth on the Game Boy Color.” Chris liked that “the progressive play control is a neat way to extend gameplay, and the levels are magnificent,” while Jennifer sarcastically asked: “Mario who?” They loved the graphics but were disappointed by the music and sound effects, something that likely lowered the score. Personally speaking, I think you should probably play the Wario Land games in order, but if you're a Nintendo Switch Online subscriber, I'm not going to stop you from jumping right to Wario Land 3. It's pretty great.