I guess Nintendo figures that everybody is still busy going through those Golden Sun games, because it's another week without a Nintendo Switch Online update. Thankfully, there are still a few Nintendo Entertainment System games that need to get the Review Crew treatment. I'm talking about 8-bit titles like Eliminator Boat Duel, Solomon's Key and Super Dodge Ball. Sure, these hit Nintendo's online 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, N-Force, The Games Machines and more classic magazines to see what the critics said when these games first came out. If you can dodge a wrench, you can dodge a ball, but you're still going to be hit by this brand-new episode of Nintendo Switch Online Review Crew.


Ignore the eye-sore of a cover, because Eliminator Boat Duel is an 8-bit treasure. It's a high-speed racer that takes the best elements from R.C. Pro-Am, Mike Tyson's Punch-Out and Rad Racer, creating an irresistibly fun boat game with a full cast of colorful characters. This is one of those games that could very easily have been lost to time, so it's exciting to see this Electro Brain classic find its way to the Nintendo Switch Online library. What sets this game apart is that it has a mix of both overhead racing (similar to something like Micro Machines) and third-person racing, not unlike OutRun. It's an example of a developer trying to do the most with the limited hardware and coming up with something unique and fun. I dig this game, but what did the critics say at the time?

As it turns out, the reviews were all over the place. Some critics loved it, others hated it; it was polarizing like that. Let's start with N-Force, who were decidedly not fans of Eliminator Boat Duel. Rob called the game “a speedy little motorized boat game very reminiscent of Micro Machines. With only one other boat to race against, things are a bit on the easy side, but there are plenty of characters to take on. Unfortunately, there isn't much else apart from the odd bubble-headed beach blonde waving her arms around. Graphically, the NES is capable of a lot better, and what music there is, is irritating.” The good news is that Milo was there to offer some immediate pushback, arguing that “although the graphics are a little rough around the edges, there's loads of color and the cartoon style adds to the appeal, along with nice touches such as the bikini-clad babes jumping up and down and chanting ‘we want slow mo!' A small amount of strategy has been sneaked in on the boat upgrades, but Eliminator Boat Duel is a very simple game. So simple, in fact, that it might not stand up to long-term play. Entertaining from start to finish, this fun little game deserves a mooring in any race fan's yard.” With differing opinions, N-Force ultimately gave the game an average score of 56%.

For their part, Nintendo Power neither loved nor hated the game. They simply thought it was okay, giving Eliminator Boat Duel a score of 3.2 out of 5. Of course, this was just a speed bump on the road to the high score, a 91% from Nintendo Magazine System. “It's happened with platform games and now it's happening with bouncy Super Sprint-style arcade racers. There's RC Pro-Am, Pro-Am 2, Cobra Triangle and now Eliminator Boat Duel. However, the saving grace is that all of these games are of a high quality, and Eliminator Boat Duel adds more original ideas to the genre than most. The switching of viewpoints means there's more techniques to master, from learning the optimum start times for each starter to learning how to nitro through an opponent to wreck their boat. As a one-player game, Eliminator Boat Duel is certainly a lot of fun, although it is a tiny bit easy once you get used to running your boat. However, as a two-player title, Eliminator is outstanding. Although not the greatest game of its type on the NES, Eliminator is close and is most certainly an extremely worthwhile purchase.”

I agree, this really is a great game. It may not be as flashy as some of the other titles on Nintendo online service, but don't sleep on this 8-bit classic.

Although it wasn't sold as anything more than a dodge ball game in the United States, this 8-bit sports game is actually part of the Kunio-Kun series, a franchise that includes beat ‘em up classics like Renegade and River City Ransom. Super Dodge Ball ditches the street fighting and takes the action to the court, where the goal is to knock out the competition by smacking them with the ball. With great gameplay, fun super moves and teams from around the world, players will enjoy the fast-paced action and wide variety of great looking locations. And with a number of competitive multiplayer modes, I have to wonder who could resist the charm of Super Dodge Ball?

Apparently, the answer to that question is game critics, because Super Dodge Ball was not a big hit with the few magazines that reviewed it. The highest score was a so-so 3.5 out of 5 from Nintendo Power. While not bad, that came from an era when Nintendo Power didn't really offer critical reviews to back-up their scores.

Thankfully, that was not a problem with Electronic Gaming Monthly, who couldn't wait to share their criticisms of Super Dodge Ball. The highest score came from Jim, who gave it a 6 out of 10 and said, “it's a fun game that unfortunately is a little easy thanks to awesome ‘Power' throws. The graphics and sound are decent, but the gameplay makes up for any shortcomings. Super Dodge Ball is different – but good.” Steve gave the game a slightly lower 5 out of 10, but had good things to say: “While the action may seem repetitive at first, the inclusion of special attack techniques brings a new dimension to the play. Super Dodge Ball has rough graphics and is fairly easy, but it does have some merit.” Ed disagreed, going as low as a 3 out of 10: “CSG Imagesoft has cooked up a sports game that doesn't have attractive play mechanics or cool arcade-style play or much of anything to boast about. The game suffers from bad flicker, repetitive game play and a lack of interesting features. This one got boring very quickly.” Electronic Gaming Monthly ultimately gave Super Dodge Ball an average score of 4.75 out of 10.

That seems incredibly low to me, but you can judge for yourself when you play this classic sports game on the Nintendo Switch.

Now here's an interesting little platformer. Solomon's Key is an arcade port that stars a young wizard whose central task is to open up the doors and escape the next puzzle. Of course, it's not as simple as it sounds, as there are enemies everywhere and our hero has very few offensive attacks. Taking inspiration from Lode Runner, the trick is to create blocks to not only climb to hard-to-reach locations, but also to trap enemies. And with an emphasis on solving challenges and figuring out where (and how) to find all the items, one could argue that this was the first puzzle game on the Nintendo Entertainment System.

Given how polarizing the game is these days, I went into this episode expecting the reviews to be all over the place. As it turns out, they were surprisingly consistent. In fact, when we look at the three magazines that reviewed this game, there's really only a four-point difference between the highest and lowest scores. Well, technically, there's a 710-point difference, but that's only because one of ACE magazine's ridiculous one-thousand-point scale.

Speaking of ACE, let's go ahead and start there, as they gave the platformer the lowest marks with a score of 790. They argued that “Nintendo games are usually top of the league in terms of staying power and Solomon's Key is no exception. Not too special in graphics, plot or originality, but from a gameplay point of view – well, you'll just plug this one in time and time again. Now that's what ACE calls quality control.”

Over at The Games Machine, they were impressed with this port, giving it a solid score of 80%. That said, they couldn't ignore its age: “Phew this game is old. The Nintendo version is just as playable as the Amstrad version reviewed 31 issues ago. The sprites are surprisingly well defined (for the Nintendo) and a nice range of colors bright up the proceedings. Sound's pretty good, too. A must for all platform fans.”

The highest score, if you want to call it that, comes from Nintendo Magazine System. In a small capsule review that got the company's name wrong, they said that “this is an excellent conversion of the Data East coin-op, which is one of the best arcade puzzle games out. If you're after some mental stimulation from your Nintendo, this has got to be somewhere on the shopping list.” They gave it an 83%.

Honestly, I'm not sure this game holds up all that well, but it is unique and there aren't a lot of other games on the Switch like it. It's not for everybody, but you may just enjoy Solomon's Key. Give it a try.