It's the Friday before Christmas, so of course Nintendo didn't bother announcing any new games for their online service. Thankfully, we still have a few more Super NES games that are in desperate need of the Review Crew treatment. I'm talking about all-time classics, like Breath of Fire II, Earth Defense Force and The Ignition Factor. Sure, these games hit the subscription service years ago, but I still need to ask: Are any of these games worth playing? To answer that question, I decided to flip through the pages of Electronic Gaming Monthly, Next Generation, GamePro and more classic magazines to see what the critics said back when these games first came out. Get ready to fight fires, aliens and fire-breathing dragons in this incredibly random episode of the Nintendo Switch Online Review Crew!


Not to be confused with the popular bug-killing action franchise of the same name, Earth Defense Force is one of the Super Nintendo's middle-tier shoot ‘em ups. First released back in 1992, this is actually a speedy port of an arcade game of the same name, though the two games have slightly different stories. This Jaleco release came right after the initial release of high-profile shooters like Gradius III and Super R-Type, but also right before the genre started to lose stream and market share. The result is a game that hits all of the typical shoot ‘em up notes, but isn't remembered as one of the true classics of the genre. Let's see what the critics said back when Earth Defense Force was first released.

It's a real mixed bag over at Electronic Gaming Monthly, with two editors giving the game fives and the other half of the review crew giving it sevens and eights. Fake ninja Sushi-X called the game excellent. “I had a lot of fun with Super E.D.F. from start to finish. You won't believe some of the mode 7 effects in here. The music is the only area that could have been better. Just wait until you see the large mother ship scale in from a distance. Even the base scales in as you make your last attack!” Steve wasn't as sold on the game, arguing that “there are substantial problems with the execution of Super E.D.F. First of all, the game offers little in the way of variety within each round. The backgrounds and enemies are repetitive. The weapon power-up is unique, but overall I wasn't impressed.” Earth Defense Force averaged a disappointing 6.25 out of 10 from EGM.

That mixed reaction isn't too far off from where other magazines were at the time. For example, Video Games & Computer Entertainment gave the game a score of 7 out of 10. The typically overenthusiastic GamePro went a little higher, giving the game a 4 out of 5 and concluding that “after all is said and done, a space shooter needs great gameplay to call itself truly super. E.D.F. isn't the hottest of the hot, but it will surely satisfy video kamikazes looking for a Super NES assignment. It's no shot in the dark, Earth Defense Force is a winner.”

Now, to be fair to Jaleco, there were high scores back in the day. I would point to Game Informer, who liked the game so much that they gave it a 9 out of 10. While that may be the highest score I could find, it's definitely not the biggest number, thanks to ACE and their ridiculous one-thousand-point scale. Giving it an 850, they concluded that “the only thing that prevents the player getting into E.D.F. right off the bat is the difficulty; it's a tough game and a good hour's practice, coupled with experimentation with the various weapon systems, is required before it all starts happening, man. The catchy music and lovely backdrops do a good job of keeping the player engaged, and a variable difficulty setting ensures that interest isn't likely to lapse for quite a while. Good clean fun throughout.”

That's a good way to put it. While it's not as high-profile as R-Type and Gradius, this Jaleco shooter does have some fancy visual effects and an interesting upgrade system. Definitely not terrible, but also not the best shoot ‘em up on the Switch.

Video games are full of soldiers, ninjas and police officers, but what about firefighters? It's one of the most heroic (and exciting) jobs on the planet, yet there are only a handful of games on the subject. One of my favorite fire-fighting games is The Ignition Factor on the Super NES, a unique action game that has you puzzling your way through all kinds of flammable locations in order to save lives and put the fire out. Couple that with a surprisingly engaging story and gameplay that takes the best elements from shoot ‘em ups, and you have a real winner on your hands. Of course, that's just me saying that. Were the critics as into this fire-fighting adventure?

The answer to that question depends entirely on what magazine you're reading. Although it may have only scored an 8.25 out of 10 from Electronic Gaming Monthly, The Ignition Factor did manage to win their Game of the Month award in issue 68. Ed called it a “good game” with “lots of different ways to approach the many problems, so you can try different things each time. While the action isn't very intense, the time limit and number of people to rescue can be quite daunting. The graphics and gameplay are certainly top-notch. I wouldn't recommend this for kids, it's more for the hardcore gamer who'll love it.” Al, on the other hand, gave it the magazine's lowest score and called it “pretty good.” “Unlike many games that you just blow through, Ignition Factor forces players to really think about what they want to accomplish in order to complete each level. All the while, you are treated to some well-drawn graphics. With all this, you'd think they'd tweak the music and sound a little. I didn't care much for those, however, Ignition Factor is a decent title.”

Probably the most shocking thing I discovered while researching this episode is that EGM's 8.25 is basically the ceiling for this game. The good news is that there were a few magazines that bumped up against EGM's score, such as Game Players giving The Ignition Factor a 76%. Over at VideoGame magazine, you saw them give the game a respectable 8 out of 10. That's the same score you saw from Hyper, who liked the “lovingly detailed, satisfying” visuals and “interesting and challenging” gameplay. “All up, this was a nice idea – with a little more tweaking on the controls, this could have been a little corker, coming right out of the blue as it did, but the way things are, you'll have to try before you buy.”

After that, most of the reviews dip into so-so territory. For example, Nintendo Power gave the game a 3.6 out of 5 in their 70th issue. GamePro went just one tick lower, giving The Ignition Factor a score of 3.5 out of 5. And then there's the notoriously grumpy Next Generation, who may have gone down to a 3 out of 5, but did drop this nugget of information: “This is the first title that Japanese-based Jaleco designed with input from its U.S. offices. At first glance, the fire-fighting angle promises a new gameplay experience, but this title is a repackaged version of older games like Capcom's Commando and Sega's Alien Syndrome. Basically, the numerous missions center around finding and rescuing people before the time limit expires and the entire building collapses. The action is good, but stages are repetitive, and mostly just rearrange the placement of hostages without adding any significantly new gameplay.”

They compare it to Commando and Alien Syndrome like that's a bad thing. The truth is, hearing Next Generation describe Ignition Factor reminds me of all the reasons I liked it. It's polarizing, but definitely give it a chance. Maybe you too will see the charm in this unique Super NES game.

After Square Soft proved that American gamers were willing to take a chance on a new role-playing franchise, Capcom finally worked up the courage to publish the Breath of Fire sequel. This is a bigger, more ambitious adventure made with a surprising amount of confidence and precision. Unfortunately, the American version is weighed down by terrible translation problems, but if you can look past that, you'll be treated to a fun alternative to the Final Fantasies and Dragon Quests you were getting in the mid-1990s, complete with cool boss designs and a cool mystery. Fans of the series love it, but what about the 1990s critics?

Once again, Electronic Gaming Monthly was a bit lukewarm on Breath of Fire II. After giving the first game an 8, they dipped a bit with an average of 7.5 out of 10. That said, you wouldn't know it from the reviews. Andrew says that “Breath of Fire II exceeds its predecessor in every way. The graphics are bright and well-drawn. The whole quest is huge, making for days of adventure. The control setup is similar to the original, but I sort of wish that you could try different attacks. It would have added more strategy to the battles.” Mark gave the game the lowest score, noting that “at first glance, the graphics in Breath of Fire II may look a little below average when compared to other hit RPGs, such as Final Fantasy III and Chrono Trigger. This is true, but graphics aren't everything. Breath of Fire 2 has a decent story to it, and features over eight characters that you can pick to join your quest. Overall, Breath of Fire II is a worthwhile game, but this one could have been a little better.”

As it turns out, this RPG sequel proved to be one of the more polarizing Super NES games. You ended up seeing Game Players trash the game and give it a low 66%. The notoriously grumpy Next Generation lived up to their reputation, giving this Capcom classic 3 stars out of 5. “Capcom's follow-up to the modestly successful Breath of Fire is larger and more involved than its predecessor, but unfortunately much less interesting. While some parts are very clever, it suffers from too little direction, a purely mechanical storyline and the clunkiest dialogue since Night Trap.”

On the other hand, you saw quite a few magazines praise the many things the game got right. You saw Super Play give it a score of 81%, making it their 195th best reviewed Super NES game of all time. Nintendo Power went a bit higher, with a 4.1 out of 5 in their 80th issue. Across the pond you have Computer & Video Games going as high as a 90%, even with the dubious localization. That's basically the same score we saw from GamePro, who argued that “even though it drags at times, Breath of Fire II never loses its momentum. This excellent, very time-consuming journey will keep the most demanding RPG fan satisfied.”

Without Final Fantasy III and Chrono Trigger to overshadow it, Breath of Fire II is able to shine bright on the Nintendo Switch. Yes, you're going to have to put up with some real questionable dialogue, but that's par for the course when it comes to role-playing games in the 1990s. If you love adventures and have a bunch of hours on your hands, give Breath of Fire II a play.