It's yet another week without a Nintendo Switch Online announcement. That sucks, but don't worry, because we still have a lot of 8- and 16-bit games that we haven't featured in our Review Crew series. These games include some of Nintendo's most iconic characters, such as Yoshi, Kirby's Adventure and Zelda II: The Adventure of Link. These are three classic games for the Nintendo Entertainment System, but are they worth playing? To answer that question, I decided to flip through the pages of Electronic Gaming Monthly, Computer + Video Games, The Games Machine and more old school magazines to see what the critics said back when these games first came out. I sure hope you're ready to lay some eggs, because this is an episode of the Nintendo Switch Online Review Crew that is guaranteed to suck.


Where most games started out on the Nintendo Entertainment System before getting scaled down for the Game Boy, the opposite is true of Kirby. This is the rare example of a portable release that ended up getting a more ambitious sequel on home console. Released only nine months after Kirby's Dream Land won over fans and critics, Kirby's Adventure took the platforming series one step further by adding color levels and more levels. Best of all, it introduced Kirby's ability to gain new powers from sucking up different bad guys, a staple of the series. We already know that most of the critics were completely won over by Kirby's charm on the Game Boy, but does that transfer over to the NES?

In the case of Electronic Gaming Monthly, that question is a little hard to answer, since they didn't bother reviewing Kirby's Dream Land. Of course, that didn't stop them from raving about Kirby's Adventure, with Ed asking the age-old question: “Can Nintendo pick winners or what? Kirby's Adventure is an absolute blast to play! Kirby's ability to acquire techniques from eaten enemies is Fantastic! Perfect play control and many levels are the icing on the cake.” Sushi-X agreed, but had a question of his own: “Did anyone call Weight Watchers? Kirby just keeps eating his way to the spotlight each time! Each area is limited in size, but you must use your noggin as well as your dexterous digits to win! Excellent game play really rounds this title out.” Electronic Gaming Monthly gave Kirby an average score of 8.25 out of 10.

When it comes to Nintendo Magazine System, they gave Kirby's Adventure a score of 93%, just one tick under the 94% they gave Kirby's Dream Land. A similar thing happened over at Nintendo Power, once again giving this Kirby game a 4 out of 5. For their part, Computer & Video Games went even higher, giving this NES game a score of 89%. They concluded that “Kirby has so many elements, sub-levels and general cuteness that it really is an unmissable game. My only criticism is that the main sprite is too small and as such tends to get lost during the more hectic levels. Definitely the best NES game so far this year.”

As expected, the highest score comes from GamePro, who gave the game a perfect 5 out of 5. They argued that “Kirby's Adventure is as good as the 8-bit Mario games, which is great news for NES owners. Now, instead of looking longingly at the 16-bit systems, you can look in wonder upon the marvels of Dream Land, a place of endless fun and adventure.” They ended their review by proclaiming that Kirby's Adventure is “one of the best 8-bit games ever.” Look, this game is fun, but I'm not sure I would put it on the same level as Mario. Give it a play on Switch and see if you agree.

When you hear that Nintendo has a game starring Yoshi, you probably think of all the platforming perils a dinosaur can get into. Well, don't get too excited, because the game Yoshi is a poorly-received puzzle game that has very little to do with Mario's prehistoric best-friend. To be fair to Nintendo, slapping a popular star onto an unrelated puzzle game is something they love doing – just look at Dr. Mario, Kirby's Avalanche and Pokémon Puzzle League. Of course, those games sound like spin-offs, while Yoshi sets you up for a flagship action game. Perhaps I'm making too much of this, but the title has always felt misleading to me.

And you know what? I'm not alone. Electronic Gaming Monthly was also annoyed by both the name and puzzle game. Giving it a 4 out of 10, Ed puts it this way: “I am not impressed. Although the main character is different, whether it is Yoshi, Dr. Mario or Tetris, Nintendo continues to beat this old theme to death while hoping to get players to buy the game based on a popular character. If you're hard up for new puzzle games ... wait a while, as something good will be coming out.” Martin liked the game a bit more, giving it a 6 out of 10, but preferred the handheld version: “Like Tetris, the Game Boy version played better. The colored graphics are cute and the sound is a little different, but overall, the game lost a bit in the translation. An above-average puzzler though.” The average score disagrees, coming in at a 5 out of 10.

In case you were hoping Nintendo Power would come in and save the day, think again. Not only did they give the game a 3.8 out of 5, but they didn't even bother writing a review to justify their score. Thankfully, that wasn't a problem at GamePro. Giving it a score of 3.5 out of 5, they concluded that “players in search of another fast-paced brain-burning puzzler should consider giving Yoshi a call. The cart won't have you seeing stars, but it's a nice “tide-me-over” for Tetrisize gamers on the prowl for a new NES challenge with a Mario twist.” In other words, this is one you can probably skip on the Nintendo Switch.

While I wouldn't go as far as to call The Adventure of Link the black sheep of The Legend of Zelda series, it is definitely a sequel that bucks a lot of what made the first game a true classic. The most obvious change are the side-scrolling platforming dungeons, which fundamentally alters the way you interact with the world of Hyrule. While some fans appreciate Nintendo for experimenting with the Zelda formula, few prefer the side-scrolling action to the overhead questing. That may be the case today, but what about back when Zelda II first came out?

If we're talking about back in 1988, when The Adventure of Link first hit store shelves, then it's hard to say. There were a very limited amount of gaming magazines at the time, and even fewer had anything resembling a real review. The good news is that we can get close, thanks entirely to the British press, who reviewed the game in 1990. One of those magazines was The Games Machine, which was not a fan of the changes made to this Zelda sequel. Giving it a 65%, they concluded that “The Adventure of Link is certainly immense, a cartographer's paradise in fact. Sprites, too, are large, but badly defined for their size. A novel addition is the battery pack that allows you to save a game position and thus return later. At forty quid it could, just, have enough content to justify the price. Check out the genre first.”

If you're looking for the mirror image of that review, then look no further than ACE and their ridiculous one-thousand-point scale. Giving Zelda II a score of 901, they praised the game for its lasting value: “Console games often fall down a bit in the longevity stakes. Not so with this one. Zelda II is as meaty an RPG-style adventure as you are likely to come across. Months of adventuring guaranteed.”

You know who wasn't bothered by the switch to side-scrolling action? Nintendo Magazine System, that's who. Giving it a score of 94%, The Adventure of Link is one of their highest-rated NES games. Instead of focusing on that review, I want to draw your attention to the first issue of GMR. Sure, it came out in 2003, some fifteen years after Zelda II came out, but I still did a double take when they gave it an 8 out of 10, a higher score than the 7 they gave the original Legend of Zelda. Here's their reasoning: “The second Zelda was a creative leap; replacing the top-down perspective of the popular original game for side-scrolling fighting and town exploration, Zelda II also included a heavy emphasis on Mario-like platform jumping. While many fans were blown away by the gutsy new direction, others thought it was just too different and not ‘like Zelda.'” Frustratingly, GMR spent more time talking about gamers flying to Canada to buy the game than actually justifying their 8 out of 10 rating. Personally speaking, I think Zelda II: The Adventure of Link is worth playing all these years later, but there's no way I would rank it higher than the original.