Fans of Gamevil’s arcade sports series (Superstars) will be pleased to know that their soccer installment was released into the app store a few weeks ago in time for the 2010 FIFA World Cup. So take the field and compete to reach the ultimate status of Superstardom! Soccer Superstars is only $4.99!

Review

Soccer Superstars is like any other soccer game you’d find on the app store: FIFA 10, FIFA World Cup, X2 Soccer, you get the point. The gameplay pays homage to an arcade version of a soccer game solely based off of the anime but arcadish looking visuals and quick speed of the game.

The game is split up into five different game modes: Season, Exhibition, My League, Cup, and Dramatic Mode. Some of them can be figured out by their names if you’ve ever took an interest in soccer games on consoles or even the iPhone and iPod Touch (games mentioned earlier). The game modes that cannot be figured out by their names are explained: Dramatic Mode is split up into different challenges. For example: you might have to score an equalizer in 45 minutes or shoot a penalty kick in the last second to win the game. Cup is a mode where you play as a team in a certain tournament to win the cup at the end.

When I was beta testing the game, the controls were horrible. With all of the user feedback and dislike, Gamevil made them totally responsive and a great improvement compared to the old ones. Like any other soccer game, you have a joy-stick that controls a player’s movement, and then A/B buttons that control everything else.

What really is unique is the RPG elements that are added to the mix-up. You can customize your players’ names and appearances (which includes their physical features/attributes and their apparel easily) with the user friendly menus.

The game also includes a bit of fantasy; super players can be played with in games with super shots. These super shots are activated with a small button displayed directly above the A/B buttons on the right side of the screen. It’s pretty fun to take a super shot from outside the penalty box and watch it go inside almost every time! Two of them are available in the beginning, and the other two can be unlocked using “G Points” that you earn from completing different challenges in the dramatic mode and other things in the game.

Mainly, there are just a few minor changes that should be made. The biggest concern I have is not being able to switch players. It’s pretty annoying when a player of the opposition is bee-lining for your goal and runs straight past one of your players that could have stolen the ball, but wasn’t being controlled by you. Instead the player being controlled by you was panting and running behind the player with the ball with no hope of stealing it.

The games lacks two things which is a good thing and should remain like that. Replays and commentary. Yeah, sure, they could be added easily but I highly recommend that they not be added as you’d want to maintain the arcade feel of the game. The commentary and replays would make the game too “official”. How many soccer games at the town’s arcade have replays every time you kick the ball on frame, or a man constantly muttering on and on about the game?

The visuals are the second contributor, along with the fast-paced action, to the arcade feel of the game. Like all of Gamevil’s other iPhone and iPod Touch games, Soccer Superstars’ artwork is rendered in an anime style. It looks great for this type of game, and so do the wonderful animations.

Soccer Superstars, without the RPG elements, arcade feel, and many game modes, wouldn’t be a fun game at all; it would be average. But with all of those things and more, the result is phenomenal!

Tips

Use the super shots of the super characters in the beginning of a match. That way, you’ll be off to a good start (1 to 2-0) and won’t have to worry about the opponent team catching up.

Recommendation

Don’t pass up the opportunity to buy this game. Soccer Superstars is selling at a high price of $4.99, but it’s worth it proved by the many good ratings in iTunes. If you’ve tried any of Gamevil’s other games, you know that they don’t fall short of the Amazing category, and neither does this one!

Gameplay Video

Photos

Note: A promotional code was provided from the creator for use in this article.

Please post your comments, tips, and questions down below in the comments section!

Thanks for reading!

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