Venice Beach Volleyball

"Don't expect to get a tan from playing this game."

American Video Entertainment was an unlicensed video game developer for the NES, which made several games in different genres. While their innovative black cart design, and unusual games sparked some interest, most of the products sucked. Venice Beach Volleyball is just another example of a one man programmed game without any depth or reason to continue playing. It's not bad in the sense of actual gameplay, but it just doesn't have enough to go over the edge.

Graphics [7/10]
Fortunately, AVE did an above average job when it came to designing the graphics for Venice Beach Volleyball. Unfortunately, there is only one level in the game, and that is Venice Beach. The entire layout is very serene and beautiful. You have the referee on his/her chair, plenty of spectators in the stands, and your volleyball arena. Sand looks crispy and golden brown, plus the actual players have good dimension sizes. It's hard to find a game that scales everything to the right proportions, and Venice Beach Volleyball does just that. But this is just the beginning of the downfall of the game.

For starters, the actual volleyball players in the game don't have faces! Most of the time, players look a pale white, with absolutely no eyes or anything. The spectators in the stands have square heads, no jokes. There's absolutely no rotundity on their heads, and everything looks jumbled together. Despite this, Venice Beach Volleyball utilizes good shading trends with a nice sky visible in the background. The palette of the NES was used to exponential potential, something rarely seen in low budget games.

Sound/Music [2/10]
Ouch. That's one way of describing the music and minimal sound effects during the game. Don't get me wrong, I've got nothing against unlicensed game companies, but the audio in this game was an absolute disgrace. There is one song that constantly loops during the title and menus. It's like watching a slinky climb down a flight of stairs which goes over 10,000 floors, there's no end to it. The music gets even worse during the actual gameplay. There is only one song when you play a volleyball game. It loops every fifteen seconds, and almost makes you want to not play the game. AVE could've at least added some catchy tune, but instead they put some catcher in the rye tune. This is a volleyball game, it's suppose to provide an upbeat experience, not the end of the world.

Sound effects - there were none. I don't know what they were thinking, or perhaps they didn't have the hardware. But, AVE had one friggin' sound effect during an entire volleyball match. Every time a player hits the volleyball, you hear a little ''thump'' sound. Even when a ball is spiked, you hear the same ''thump'' sound. What kind of dedication does this tell you when a developer uses ONE sound effect during the entire game? Effortless. At least they had a whistle sound whenever the ball hit the ground, or a point was scored. I was disgraced though by this department.

Gameplay [7/10]
Even with all the hardships to avoid, Venice Beach Volleyball does provide a decent gaming experience. In case you didn't know, volleyball is a sport where you hit a ball back and forth over a net. The basic idea behind VBV is that you and your partner must defeat the opponent. There's no real storyline. It's just a bunch of ''professional'' volleyball players looking for some fun. As usual, you serve the ball behind the line, and each team must keep returning the ball until one team misses it. You can spike, loft, lob, or block in anyway possible. The game layout is very nice, a quick and painless format. After selecting your mode of play, there are four characters you can choose from. Each player has different attributes ranging from Smashing (spiking ability), to speed (agility on the court). This adds a somewhat strategic approach to the game, but it's still a nice little twist.

As with any volleyball game, the physics have to be good. While VBV isn't exactly perfect at emulating the physics of a real volleyball, it still does a great job. Whenever you loft the ball off of your wrists, it makes a high, plummeting climb. Other times, you can send a little pass to your partner, who will then spike the ball. Gameplay is simple as the B button jumps (and you press it again to spike the ball), and the A button does a normal volley. Gameplay is actually quite fast paced, much like volleyball is in real life. You can even block other spikes if you press the jump button at the right time. Mistiming shots is also a common error when you go to spike the ball. These sorts of techniques give Venice Beach Volleyball a good gameplay perspective. However, there are only four different teams in the game. There's no other level than Venice Beach. There's no tournament mode or anything, it's just opponent versus opponent, and a nice screen saying ''Victory!'' or ''Try Again!''. There's no real reward for beating opponents on hard, just a pat on the back. It surely doesn't motivate the average gamer.

Fun [4/10]
For being an average sports game, Venice Beach Volleyball doesn't do enough. Often, you won't be having fun; you will feel like it's more of a waste of time. The overall presentation of the game is too plain, with no plot or anything to capture the spirit of a typical game. It's understandable that sports games don't have to have storylines, but this one doesn't even manage to go into any depth. No tournament modes, country versus country, just some made-up volleyball players. The game can be entertaining for twenty minutes or so, but it'll just become an ash tray after awhile.

Replayability [3/10]
Simply put, the lack of depth is the cause for this rating. Venice Beach Volleyball is a simple volleyball game that doesn't put enough on the table. It's like trying to bargain for a gold nugget with some rice pilaf, nobody's going to make a stupid deal like that. VBV has an additional one versus two player mode which could provide to be an entertaining mode, but it still isn't good enough. AVE should have learned from their mistakes.

Difficulty [5/10]
Thankfully, Venice Beach Volleyball does provide a challenge to the gamer. While easy and normal difficulties are a bore, the hard difficulty is one that will challenge players. The CPU spikes more often, makes amazing dives, and really puts the player on the edge of his hair. Still, this is just a mediocre sports game with only four different characters/teams to choose from. The fast paced gameplay gives the player a rush, but it only lasts a few minutes. Venice Beach will keep you challenged for more than a few minutes, but don't expect much out of it.

Final Factor [5/10]
Too often we miss the objectives of sports games. Venice Beach Volleyball is a well-designed volleyball game, but it has nothing else in it to make it worthy of being played again. As any sports fan knows, an addictive sports game is one that provides replay challenge which is unmatchable. Venice Beach doesn't do that in any way, and its flaws aren't enough to come by. This game is actually quite rare and hard to find, so it would make a great pickup for one's collection. But, if you're looking for a good game to actually play, look no further. Venice Beach Volleyball simply doesn't match the quality of other NES classics.

Reviewer's Score: 5/10, Originally Posted: 07/16/03, Updated 07/16/03