Dyson Posted June 2, 2009 Posted June 2, 2009 Please move to Nintendo E3 discussion - can't make threads there. Just announced in Ubisoft's E3 Presser. Looks like a poor mans' Mario Strikers Charged to me.
mcj metroid Posted June 2, 2009 Posted June 2, 2009 who knows no gameplay footage yet but the graphics aren't really all that... especially after showing us red steel 2.
Funktion Posted October 17, 2009 Posted October 17, 2009 Did anyone pick this up? I didn't follow this game, but I just saw a couple of videos that made it somewhat resemble Sega Soccer Slam, which I enjoyed, so I was wondering if the game is any fun at all.
Ganepark32 Posted October 17, 2009 Posted October 17, 2009 I got sent it for reviewing. It's not bad, very arcadey and I got the same feeling of it being like Sega Soccer Slam. It's worth a go if you liked those games.
Funktion Posted October 17, 2009 Posted October 17, 2009 Thanks. I may give it a try, seeing as it's already being sold for around £15.
Ganepark32 Posted October 17, 2009 Posted October 17, 2009 If it's any further help, here's my summation for the review of it: "Academy of Champions Soccer is a surprising title to be honest. After the showing at E3, you would be remise in thinking it was going to merely be a cash-in attempt on behalf of Ubisoft to get some money off of the Pele name. But this has proven not to be the case as the game is a very enjoyable experience that will no doubt make players come back time and again, either for the lengthy story mode or to see the various Ubisoft cameos take to the pitch. It obviously can’t compete with the bigger football games but is definitely deserving of your attention if you’ve grown tired of the constant yearly updates from those two." + Good visual style + lengthy story mode + tight and action packed football - AI issues - Gameplay is very basic - Some control issues
Funktion Posted October 17, 2009 Posted October 17, 2009 Ok, you sold me on it. It's been years since I bought a football game, I'm more of a fan of arcadey and fast paced football games such as Virtua Striker 2, Sensible Soccer, the already mentioned Sega Soccer Slam and the old Super Soccer for the SNES, than the supposedly more realistic games such as FIFA and Pro Evolution Soccer. Besides, the idea of pitting the Rabbids against a team comprising of Sam Fisher, Rayman, Jade (Beyond Good and Evil), Altair (Assassin's Creed) and the guy from Prince of Persia in a football match sounds like a lot of fun... :p
Ganepark32 Posted October 18, 2009 Posted October 18, 2009 ^ Just so you are aware, you'll have to unlock those characters/teams through the story mode and it'll take a bit before you can play as them/against them. A small downside but worth it when you get them unlocked. Just strange seeing Altair on the Wii considering there is no Assassins Creed title on the console.
Funktion Posted October 18, 2009 Posted October 18, 2009 I was already aware of that through some videos I saw. No problem, I like unlocking stuff in games.
Funktion Posted October 25, 2009 Posted October 25, 2009 And so I picked up this game, and honestly I found it surprisingly fun. When this was announced, I wasn't impressed and discarded it almost immediately as one more of Ubisoft's "shovelware" titles for the Wii. Well, looks can be deceiving, while it's far from a perfect title it's also great fun, and a game where it's clear Ubisoft made an effort to present us with a good title. This game is being pretty much ignored (to a point where even finding a review of it is almost an adventure), but in this case I would say unfairly so. I guess Ubisoft is "paying" for the lack of quality of most of their Wii output (that, and the total lack of advertising). What made me give this game a try was the apparent similarities it shared with a title I quite in enjoyed in the past, Sega Soccer Slam. And it does share a few similarities to Sega Soccer Slam, although it's not as fast paced because the field is bigger in this game. Still, the game is a fun and fast arcade-style football game with no fouls and no out-of-bounds, and where special moves and crazy goals from the middle of the field are pretty much the order of the day. Technically speaking, the game has nice visuals, with interesting art design (in the fields in which you play, the background elements look like crazy drawings; and usually new elements start to show up as you score goals; transforming stadiums! :p), and a nice soundtrack (by Mutato Muzika, the company of Devo's Mark and Bob Mothersbaugh; Mark and a few other people composed the game's soundtrack). The game's main mode, the story mode, is actually quite fun. In it you go through 4 semesters of practicing, playing matches, recruiting new team members, improving you and your teammate's skills (with a few light RPG elements), taking basic exams on your knowledge of the game's controls and opposing teams, purchasing items and other stuff (and guess who handles the shops: Rabbids ), and playing in tournaments. Besides the main mode, there's a quick match mode (which allows for VS matches), and several mini-games (most you unlock during the story mode). The game has "achievements" (medals, actually) that you can check in one of the main menu's options. You have 50 to get, and this option also keeps track of your progress with player recruiting/unlocking and items purchased, and gives you a percentage of completion (a bit similarly to games such as GTA). Ganepark32 considered in his review of the game 3 main negative points: - AI issues - Gameplay is very basic - Some control issues As for AI issues, in 12 hours of gameplay I experienced maybe two significant issues with the AI (in one of them the opposing character in a mini-game was simply standing there, I tackled him and he finally started running). A bit more testing would have detected this, but in wasn't frequent, and didn't affect my enjoyment of the game. I would say I had more problems with the camera getting sometimes stuck on a player (instead of where the ball was) than actual AI issues. As for "Gameplay is very basic", it indeed is. But it's typical of this sub-genre of games, fast-paced arcade-style sports games are usually like this. You have low-pass, high pass, tackles, shooting (with a strength gauge) and special moves. That's pretty much it, but at the same time that's pretty much all that's needed. More complex moves/controls would work against the pace of the gameplay. This isn't a game that's going after the FIFA's and the Pro Evolution's, this is a game were scores of 8-12 goals are perfectly normal, and shooting and scoring from the middle field is the order of the day. As for control issues, this is where I have to disagree. I never experienced any issues with the controls at all, I never failed to do what I wanted (and fast), and I never triggered anything I didn't want to (because thankfully they barely used motions controls, they only use it to trigger the special moves; in a fast paced game such as this, any failing to register a movement or triggering something else would make the game an unplayable chaos). Maybe Ganepark32 used either Wii MotionPlus or the balance board, and one of them failed to properly work in terms of gameplay. I don't have the balance board, and I didn't try MotionPlus with this game because the control configuration with it seemed stupid and tacked-on, in this game I would rather have the analogue stick controlling the direction of a shot and the time I press a button control the actual shot than having to either point up or down for it to register different types of kicks. All in all, while it's not a terribly original game, and one to earn any GOTY prizes, it's also not a shovelware title or a game devoid of any interest. It's a worthwhile game for those looking for football games where realism isn't the order of the day, and where tactics and complex playbooks are replaced with lots of goals and tackles every couple of seconds. Personally, I'm not a big fan of sports titles, and when I do play a sports title I'm not seeking realism (if I wanted that I would go outside with a ball and play with friends, instead of having my butt on a couch... ), I seek fun. I always preferred soccer games such as Virtua Soccer 2 or Sensible Soccer to games like FIFA. If you are like me and you appreciate a fast-paced arcade title which doesn't require a 3 button combination to dibble your opponent, you could do a lot worse than this title. Especially for the price, less than a month after release it's already being sold below £15.
Ganepark32 Posted October 25, 2009 Posted October 25, 2009 ^ By AI issues, I was referring the the game's continual ability to have your computer controlled team mates no where near where they need to be, i.e. when you're attacking they don't run into space and don't really keep up with you while in defense they seem to lag behind as well. It's not a huge problem but it does get frustrating when playing some of the harder teams on higher difficulties. As for the control issues, there were a few odd button choices that took awhile to get used to and some unresponsiveness but they're minimal. Saying the negatives without the context of the review is a little difficult to get them across. But as you say, it's a game worth your time if you like Sega Soccer Slam or the more arcade-y offerings as there's lots to do through that story mode.
Funktion Posted October 25, 2009 Posted October 25, 2009 (edited) ^ By AI issues, I was referring the the game's continual ability to have your computer controlled team mates no where near where they need to be, i.e. when you're attacking they don't run into space and don't really keep up with you while in defense they seem to lag behind as well. It's not a huge problem but it does get frustrating when playing some of the harder teams on higher difficulties. To be honest I never noticed anything terribly wrong with the AI players movements (except in a few 2 or 3 to 1 plays), because I kept switching between players (frenetically) and moving them myself, especially on defense. By the way, my comments regarding your "complaints" were in no way a critic to your review, just my personal opinion based on my gameplay time. And even without the full text (which, by the way, was it for a website or publication?), your comments were quite helpful, because they convinced me to give this game a try. Hopefully more people will give it a chance too. Lots of Wii titles are getting (in my opinion) unfairly ignored, unfortunately if it isn't a Zelda or Mario title, or something that receives a 9 in 10 or similar score, it's never looked upon twice by some people. There's lots of titles worth your time that don't achieve such scores, especially since most 3rd party Wii games are not selling very well, and 1-2 weeks after their release they are being sold for £10-£17 most of the times. Games such as Opoona (criminally ignored), the Trauma Center sequels, Eledees, Dewy's Adventure, Final Fantasy Fables: Chocobo Dungeon, Blast Works, Deadly Creatures, Klonoa, The Munchables and many more. Heck, even games like Little King's Story (one of the best games in this generation of consoles, IMO), Zack & Wiki, Madworld and other well received titles are selling like crap. Seriously, I don't get why multiple console users are running to the stores to pre-order Modern Warfare 2 (with it's stupidly inflated price), and then have to think twice if Little King's Story is worth the £10 some stores are selling it for, even if they are interested in it. Edited October 25, 2009 by Funktion
K-project Posted October 26, 2009 Posted October 26, 2009 Heh. Sounds better than the new FIFA. Thanks for the heads up though. I'll look out for this. Might be worth a pop on the cheap.
K-project Posted November 7, 2009 Posted November 7, 2009 It's a tenner on Zavvi right now if anyone's interested. I'm picking it up. Even though I'm a bit of a PES saddo, I like the look of this going on the videos on YouTube of it. It looks fun and pacey, and me and the youngest will be able to play it together. It does remind me a bit of Sega Soccer Slam, but I think it looks better tbh. We'll see.
flameboy Posted November 9, 2009 Posted November 9, 2009 It's a tenner on Zavvi right now if anyone's interested. I'm picking it up. Even though I'm a bit of a PES saddo, I like the look of this going on the videos on YouTube of it. It looks fun and pacey, and me and the youngest will be able to play it together. It does remind me a bit of Sega Soccer Slam, but I think it looks better tbh. We'll see. Ah you beat me to it...not picking it up myself, still own sega soccer slam but this does look pretty decent.
K-project Posted November 9, 2009 Posted November 9, 2009 It looks great to me, though it's had some funny write-ups around the net. Mostly from the so-called hardcore lot. There's been a few good reviews too around the place too. I'm surprised it hasn't done better tbh. The thing that looks good to me is it seems to have a proper sense of football, rather than special moves and crazy score-lines. I'm sure that'll creep in (of course, it's a cartoon footie game!), but I do think from looking at it that Mario Strikers looks more like Ice Hockey than football, whereas this game keeps the "nature" intact. I like the size of the pitch on this (lots of room for movement by the look of things, while still keeping gameplay tight) and the camera seems much more dynamic and fun. It's just my early impressions though - I don't have it yet, but I'll be sure and post up if anyone's interested when I do!
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