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The PSP's first soccer offering, how does it stack up?
March 28, 2005 | 11:37 PM PSTby: Sud Koushik
Sports games are by far one of the selling factors of a system or handheld. That being said, Sony made sure that the PSP launched with a number of sports games to back it up. Everything from Gretzky NHL to MLB is there, including World Tour Soccer. Now I know that people are mainly FIFA or Winning Eleven fans, but since neither of those titles are out on the PSP as of now, WTS is the only alternative. That, along with my impatience led me to purchase World Tour Soccer instead of waiting for EA’s FIFA which I believe is one great soccer franchise. Despite World Tour Soccer not being the best soccer game, it does provide a great experience on the PSP.
Gameplay
Despite not having a career mode, WTS does offer a variety of other modes. The Exhibition mode (A friendly match where you can choose the settings), a Quick Mode (This mode is a perfectly suited for a handheld soccer game, as it throws you into a quick four minute game with a randomly chosen team for yourself, and your opponent), a Cup mode (Join many competitions using either International or Club teams), and finally a Challenge Mode (A game that requires great skill as your are rewarded and penalized for every play you make). I found the challenge mode very exciting, it keeps you on your toes and makes you want to avoid being carded and making the ball go out of bounds even more. At the end of a Challenge game you are given your points which can then be used to purchase a variety of over 100 teams for use in the Exhibition mode.
If you have played any Sony published soccer games on the PS2, then you will instantly be familiar with the controls used in World Tour Soccer on the PSP. I myself have not played soccer games on the PS2, yet I still was quick to pick up the controls on the PSP. When you have ball possession, you can pass the ball in any direction with ease. If you have no need to pass the ball, you can do numerous moves to try and get rid of your opponent, an example would be executing a simple step over with the touch of a button. However for the more complex moves there are no button choices. Simply put, you have to be in the right place, at the right time. If you are in front of the goal and have your head at the goalie and the ball is in the air, you’ll automatically head the ball. The only downfall to the controls is the analogue nub. Since the PSP doesn’t have a normal analogue stick, it is slightly different using the nub. This doesn’t hurt gameplay too much, but it doesn’t feel as fluid in motion.
I am a big soccer fan, and World Tour Soccer provides plenty of licensed teams and rosters. To be specific, there are 86 international teams, and 128 club teams. This means you can have fun taking down the mighty Brazil, while also enjoy playing with clubs such as A.C. Milan. Despite the numerous teams, I was disappointed in the lack of up to date rosters. The stats for each player didn’t seem accurate, and in addition the starting lineup leaves much to be desired. Many star players start off on the bench, and leave less then stellar players on the pitch. 989 Sports could have done better in this area.
It wasn’t me, I swear!
The A.I. is the main achilles heel of the game. The difficulty of the game is relatively easy unless you put it on Master Difficulty. It requires little skill to dribble a ball from one end of the field to the other, since there is little to no defense from the A.I. Another annoyance is dribbling next to a teammate, and have him stand there, dumbfounded, and not move at all. The goalie is sometimes completely brain dead and he will sit there and watch the ball come rolling into the goal. Maybe its a glitch that he doesn’t move, but it still is annoying. Overall the game does not match to the fluid motion of a real soccer game.
To add to the gameplay is the Wi-Fi multiplayer. Two people can play head to head in the only mode offered over Wi-Fi, the Exhibition mode. Unfortunately this happens to be the only 989 Sports game that does not feature online play. Other then that, wireless play proves to be lots of fun, and greatly extends the replay value. However you may experience some occasional lag, mainly when too many people are packed around one area (Most commonly the goal box). It would have been a welcomed addition if some other modes were included into the Wi-Fi, or at least a few minigames. At least that can be improved on in next years installment.
Audio and Visuals
The way that World Tour Soccer presents itself is a step up from what we are used to on portables. Before the PSP, we had some FIFA games on the GBA that were not so impressive in graphics, and it was hard to tell what you were doing. Thankfully with the PSP, graphics are no problem. The game looks impressive. The stadiums look beautifully created and the character models are for the most part good. In addition the animation is at a constant framerate, which only helps the visuals. The attention to detail on each individual character is subpar. You can hardly tell one person apart from another. This is again, something to improve on for next year. The Audio too is quite good. The announcer makes comments when appropriate, and has that authentic voice that we have come to hear from Fútbol announcers. Despite the accurate comments, they seem used too often. The crowd makes itself known by cheering at climax moments, such as after a goal, or a good save. The soundtrack isn’t too bad, but it doesn’t match EA’s Trax.
I’m Denmark...you are Germany.
Closing Comments
When matched up against FIFA, World Tour Soccer may not stack up as number one, but it does prove to be a fun game. If a few kinks had been ironed out along with some extra modes, World Tour Soccer could really make a run for the number one soccer game on the PSP this year. However with FIFA releasing in just a few weeks you may want to save your money and wait to see how 989 Sports does in its 2006 version.
Gameplay
Despite not having a career mode, WTS does offer a variety of other modes. The Exhibition mode (A friendly match where you can choose the settings), a Quick Mode (This mode is a perfectly suited for a handheld soccer game, as it throws you into a quick four minute game with a randomly chosen team for yourself, and your opponent), a Cup mode (Join many competitions using either International or Club teams), and finally a Challenge Mode (A game that requires great skill as your are rewarded and penalized for every play you make). I found the challenge mode very exciting, it keeps you on your toes and makes you want to avoid being carded and making the ball go out of bounds even more. At the end of a Challenge game you are given your points which can then be used to purchase a variety of over 100 teams for use in the Exhibition mode.
If you have played any Sony published soccer games on the PS2, then you will instantly be familiar with the controls used in World Tour Soccer on the PSP. I myself have not played soccer games on the PS2, yet I still was quick to pick up the controls on the PSP. When you have ball possession, you can pass the ball in any direction with ease. If you have no need to pass the ball, you can do numerous moves to try and get rid of your opponent, an example would be executing a simple step over with the touch of a button. However for the more complex moves there are no button choices. Simply put, you have to be in the right place, at the right time. If you are in front of the goal and have your head at the goalie and the ball is in the air, you’ll automatically head the ball. The only downfall to the controls is the analogue nub. Since the PSP doesn’t have a normal analogue stick, it is slightly different using the nub. This doesn’t hurt gameplay too much, but it doesn’t feel as fluid in motion.
I am a big soccer fan, and World Tour Soccer provides plenty of licensed teams and rosters. To be specific, there are 86 international teams, and 128 club teams. This means you can have fun taking down the mighty Brazil, while also enjoy playing with clubs such as A.C. Milan. Despite the numerous teams, I was disappointed in the lack of up to date rosters. The stats for each player didn’t seem accurate, and in addition the starting lineup leaves much to be desired. Many star players start off on the bench, and leave less then stellar players on the pitch. 989 Sports could have done better in this area.
It wasn’t me, I swear!
The A.I. is the main achilles heel of the game. The difficulty of the game is relatively easy unless you put it on Master Difficulty. It requires little skill to dribble a ball from one end of the field to the other, since there is little to no defense from the A.I. Another annoyance is dribbling next to a teammate, and have him stand there, dumbfounded, and not move at all. The goalie is sometimes completely brain dead and he will sit there and watch the ball come rolling into the goal. Maybe its a glitch that he doesn’t move, but it still is annoying. Overall the game does not match to the fluid motion of a real soccer game.
To add to the gameplay is the Wi-Fi multiplayer. Two people can play head to head in the only mode offered over Wi-Fi, the Exhibition mode. Unfortunately this happens to be the only 989 Sports game that does not feature online play. Other then that, wireless play proves to be lots of fun, and greatly extends the replay value. However you may experience some occasional lag, mainly when too many people are packed around one area (Most commonly the goal box). It would have been a welcomed addition if some other modes were included into the Wi-Fi, or at least a few minigames. At least that can be improved on in next years installment.
Audio and Visuals
The way that World Tour Soccer presents itself is a step up from what we are used to on portables. Before the PSP, we had some FIFA games on the GBA that were not so impressive in graphics, and it was hard to tell what you were doing. Thankfully with the PSP, graphics are no problem. The game looks impressive. The stadiums look beautifully created and the character models are for the most part good. In addition the animation is at a constant framerate, which only helps the visuals. The attention to detail on each individual character is subpar. You can hardly tell one person apart from another. This is again, something to improve on for next year. The Audio too is quite good. The announcer makes comments when appropriate, and has that authentic voice that we have come to hear from Fútbol announcers. Despite the accurate comments, they seem used too often. The crowd makes itself known by cheering at climax moments, such as after a goal, or a good save. The soundtrack isn’t too bad, but it doesn’t match EA’s Trax.
I’m Denmark...you are Germany.
Closing Comments
When matched up against FIFA, World Tour Soccer may not stack up as number one, but it does prove to be a fun game. If a few kinks had been ironed out along with some extra modes, World Tour Soccer could really make a run for the number one soccer game on the PSP this year. However with FIFA releasing in just a few weeks you may want to save your money and wait to see how 989 Sports does in its 2006 version.
February 8, 2010
