Virtua Striker 2002

"The arcade legend comes home to GameCube!"

The Virtua Striker franchise has a long and glorious history in the arcades. For years it has been the only contender for a quick-fix soccer game and machines are situated all around the globe. The popularity of the game comes from its simplicity. Even those who know nothing about the rules of soccer can pick it up and play.

That's all well and good for an arcade game of course, but how does it convert to the home market? I think you'll be pleasantly surprised...

Gameplay - 8/10
Lets get one thing straight - Virtua Striker 3 is NOT a simulation. If you pick this up expecting something as deep as ISS or even FIFA then you are going to be extremely disappointed. But what it does, it does well.

The controls for the game are extremely simple. Only three buttons are used in open play, one for a short pass, one for a long pass and one to shoot at goal. There is neither a sprint button or a tricks button which simplifies the gameplay instantly.

The game itself is played at a high tempo and you will have little time to dwell on the ball before the tackles come flying in. On easier difficulty settings this won't be a problem, but once you crank it up you might find yourself wishing you had a little more time to think things through.

The passing game is pretty good, with most passes going to the player you want them to, but the game also seems to have a realistic error system where sometimes passes will go awry, just as they would in real life.

Shooting is also good for the most part, although it can sometimes be a little hard to get the power right. A lot of the time the ball will go flying over the bar even if you think it should have gone in the net.

The goalkeepers in the game are a mixed bag. While they make some outstanding reaction saves, they are VERY susceptible to long range shots, reluctant to leave their line and also fail to deal with crosses into the box time and time again.

The AI for your team mates is good on the whole. They will make overlapping runs down the wing and get into good positions for a cross into the box. However they are not good at defending, so if the opposition is attacking it would be wise to get back yourself as your colleagues will most likely miss their tackles.

One weak point of the gameplay is the response times of your players. When you tap the control stick they take a moment to register your command, and that can sometimes cost you big in a match. There are also problems with the player selection system. Sometimes you will want to take control of the player who could make a tackle on the opposing player and the computer will give you control of someone else on the other side of the pitch. It's annoying, it's bad and it should have been fixed.

Overall the game is a lot of fun to play though, which is why it scores highly in this category.

Graphics - 9/10
Excellent. That's the only word that sums them up. The players are chunky and detailed, and the kits look very nice. The likenesses to real life players are not so good, but that's really not a big issue and is a factor with all football games. And besides, you can't tell from a distance.

The stadia in the game are phenomenal. They're packed with life and pizzazz, and give you a real sense of scale when the camera pans around them. The crowd are also the best I've ever seen in a sports game. Each spectator, while a 2D model, is an individual and looks different from those around him/her. This makes for a much more realistic crowd than those in FIFA or ISS. The crowd also move and raise their arms in celebration of a goal. It's very well done.

The front-end of the game is nice and clean, and there are no problems navigating it.

The only letdown is the pitch texture in the game. It looks pretty awful, and is the only thing stopping the game scoring a 10 in this area.

Sound - 6/10
Oh dear...what went wrong here? The game has no commentary, which while forgivable considering its arcade roots, is a real letdown for armchair soccer fans. It detracts from the atmosphere of the game and is poor in comparison to FIFA's majestic efforts.

The announcer in the game is also poor. His screams of ''GOOOOOOAAAAAAAAALLLLLLL!!!!!!!'' after every goal are amusing at first, but quickly grow tiresome.

The crowd are also quiet and do nothing to add to the atmosphere of a match. The menu music is also poor, with no licenced tunes and some generic elevator music.

The one plus point is the on-field sound effects which are pretty realistic and at least give some sense of watching a real match on TV.

Lastability - 8/10
There is certainly plenty to do in the game. A huge management-style mode has been added into the home version of the game and will give you a lot of hours of play time. You have to steer your team through several years of matches both on and off the pitch.

There are also all the standard tournament and league modes in the game. Pretty standard fare, but at least they've been included.

Overall - 8/10
The biggest compliment I could pay to Virtua Striker 3 is to say I had FUN playing it. The game may not be as deep as some of the more simulation orientated titles, but for a quick arcade style blast it can't be beat.

If you don't mind ignoring it's few quirks, and the obvious lack of realism, then this game will give you hours of pleasure. It's a fine effort from Sega, and one that every soccer fan should try at least once.

Buy Or Rent?
The game can be found very cheaply now both online and in bargain bins in stores. It's not too big of an investment, so I'd say buy it.

Reviewer's Score: 8/10, Originally Posted: 03/27/03, Updated 03/27/03