Tecmo Super Bowl

"Simply the Best Game I've Ever Played"

People say the latest new school games like Halo (insert no. here), Metroid/Zelda (insert "dramatic" subtitle here), and GTA (insert semi-fictional locale here) are the "best games they've ever played". Trouble is, whenever the next installment in the series is released, these same people are so quick to jump on the jockstrap of said next installment. To the objective observer, namely, myself, these games are rehashes; not so much new games as they are new chapters in existing games. It's ironic, then, that the game I believe to be better than all the above ones I've mentioned is, in fact, a rehash of Tecmo Bowl.

Bystander: Oh, so you like Tecmo Bowl! I've tried that.
Me: No no, Tecmo Super Bowl.
Bystander: Oh, Tecmo Bowl 2. It was basically the same game.
Me: ...

I had felt that TSB made enough improvements over TB to not be labeled rehash, but apparently this poor soul had not. However, it led me to wonder what the reason why a small but dedicated group of people feel the same about Tecmo Super Bowl as me is.

My reason: enter 1991. Madden is still some time away from completely taking over the sports gaming scene. I am 7 years old, and love watching football. I loved Tecmo Bowl. For God's sake, it had real players! You could play as the same heroes you saw on TV each weekend! If you don't empathize with me on that note, you probably will disagree with my statement that Tecmo Super Bowl is simply the best game ever made. TSB took that element of Tecmo Bowl and ran wild with it, including all 28 real NFL teams, about 700 real NFL players, and (probably the most important part) the least realistic yet most fun football gameplay engine ever created. I was in awe of this game. Two of my closest friends and I would literally sit there in first grade looking at the clock, waiting to go home to play. To put into perspective how much this game meant to me, I almost wept when my brother accidentally erased my save file; I was 11-0 with the Browns going for my first undefeated season. I DID weep when my Grandmother died.

If you're thinking "you're crazy", you probably don't share my sentiments about this being the best game of all time. But if you like football, or sports in general, or great NES games or any combination of the above, do yourself a favor and at least give it a try. What's the worst that could happen? *Looks at himself and realizes he's probably spent close to 4 or 5 months SOLID of his life playing TSB*

Review (vs. games on the platform):

Graphics 9/10
Some flicker, but for the most part, they are spectacular. TSB 22 fast moving sprites on screen at once with generally the correct colors for every team. A neat little quirk are the cutscenes that occur when an especially amazing play occurs. Although it sounds like it would be pretty distracting to cut away from the main gameplay screen, it's actually incorporated almost perfectly into the game.

Sound 10/10
TSB features some of the most catchy music on the system and unique (and sometimes hilarious) sound effects. The interception music is heroic, while the fumble sound effect is particularly amazing: the crowd and music goes deathly silent while the ball squirts around on the ground and the ball rolling effect plays.

Gameplay 10/10
All the fun of Tecmo Bowl but with DBs who won't intercept every single time. Fumbles were a nice addition too, as were onside kicks, changeable playbooks that followed that particular team's playcalling style, player substitutions, and all 28 teams with 25 man rosters. Basically, if you could do it in the NFL (in 1991; sorry, 2-point conversion fans) you can do it in the game.

Tilt 10/10
As I said above, if you like football, sports in general, or great NES games, you owe it to yourself to check this one out. Even if you don't like any of the above, and you stumbled onto this site by pure chance, give it a try anyway. If you don't love it, I will slap myself with the bendable rubber goalpost.

Reviewer's Score: 10/10, Originally Posted: 08/31/02, Updated 04/04/05