RedCard 20-03

"Great gameplay mixed with key flaws"

ok lets just start right into it, shall we

Gameplay: 9

To start off, this game has mad depth. You can choose to play a friendly match in which you can choose any team ranging from Cyprus to brazil. But, the real amazement comes in the advanced mode. In this mode, you must conquer the world by defeating every country(over 50), one continent at a time. At the end of each continent, you will go up against a ''boss'' team, which is composed of what the stereotype is(Oceania:dolphins, Asia:samurai, etc). Though as we all know, the best teams are from all over the world, so you cant exactly progress from the easiest teams to the hardest ones. To deal with this, midway decided to not alter the teams, but to change the difficulty as you go. I have to say I like this idea very much as you really do get a feel for how much you've improved your game.

As for the in-game gameplay.

The in-game gameplay is awesome. It is what everyone wishes soccer can be. While on defense you can practically dropkick the opponent, head butt them, or take them out from their shins and most of the time not getting carded for it. Basically the refs are very lenient. The goal keeping can be questionable at times, however. But, this game really shines when you play offense. You can avoid your opponents hacks and slides, you can turbo your way past the defenders, and bail pass right before you get drilled. As with many midway games, turbo plays a big part of gameplay, and in this game, the coolest feature. Using turbo, you can pull off the coolest shots you can only wish real players could. Though I do not know if it is possible to control which one you do, you can toss the ball up, do a somersault, and kick the ball in, or you do a 'praying mantis' kick, plus many others. I found the control to be somewhat hard, I would have preferred the shooting button not to be the Z button. But with all being said and done the gameplay is awesome.

Sound: 8

The commentary is somewhat funny, other times kind of tacky. For instance, at the start of the second half, if you're leading lets say 1-0, the commentator would say ''despite the slim lead, the mexicans(any country) still have a lot to play for.'' That really doesn't make any sense, as you do have a lot to play for with a slim lead. It can be pretty funny though when the commentators bash the referee for not carding when you totally trash someone. Their voices aren't bad either.

Graphics: 7

The graphics while playing are pretty good but I don't know how its any different than a lot of games out there. The main reason i took points off was how the players looked up close and their likenesses. Up close they look kind of choppy and you couldn't tell who the player was if their name wasn't displayed for you. I mean for U.S., Donovan is bald, the goalkeeper has a full head of hair, and hell, it looks like everyone was made out of the same models. So in general I'd have to give this an average score.

Do not think this game goes without flaws, though. Here are some things I would like to point out:

No instant replay. You do get a chance to see a goal a second time once you score, but you do not get a chance to replay the nail bitting missed shots and the matrix-style power moves you can do. That can be a drag sometimes.

No passing on a free kick. Nope, you cannot do that, even if the free kick is a long way away from the goal.

Glitch on a free kick. If you or your opponent gets awarded a free kick from the extreme right or left side of the penalty box, there will be no wall of defenders and the goalie will be facing towards midfield. All you or your opponent would have to do is just hook the ball in the net for an easy goal.

Questionable cardings. Sometimes you can just barely tackle someone and it doesn't even have to knock them down and get a red card. Many other times you take a guy down hard with a dropkick and get nothing. This can be frustrating but I guess its the way the game works sometimes.

Overall: 8

The gameplay really saves it here. This is by far the best soccer game out there, whether it be realistic or not. The sound and graphics may not be as up to speed as it could be but the game is still very fun to play. You will be spending a lot of time on this game, you must win about 70 games just to ''beat'' it although there is still a lot you can do once you do. Had this game come with an instant replay it might have made a 9, but its stuck with an 8 in my book.

Rent or Buy?:

Well, I do not see a point in renting this as you will have to spend a lot of time on it, you are probably better off just buying the game. Unless, of course, sports games aren't really you're thing, otherwise you should just rent it.

Reviewer's Score: 8/10, Originally Posted: 07/03/02, Updated 07/03/02