Sensible Soccer 2006 (PC CD)

 

 

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I have grown up with and loved the whole Sensi Soccer series, being a 31 year old now whose first memory of 'real' computer football was Match Day on the wonderful old ZX Spectrum. When Sensible Soccer came along for the Amiga it was a revelation. And when Sensible World of Soccer was released computer football reached a zenith. I still think SWOS is the most playable, in-depth football game where you actually control the players that there has been to date. Sure, I love IIS Pro as the next best competitor but ISS simply hasn't the depth or charm that SWOS had. Or I should say still has, as SWOS has been installed on every PC I've ever owned (albeit with tweaking to slow the thing down on my latest PC). So you have some idea how much I was hoping Sensi Soccer 2006 would live up to such halycon memories.

And oh how it falls so terribly, terribly short.

Sensi Soccer 2006 is appalling in nearly every aspect. It has about 10% of the teams that SWOS had and there are laughably few options for competitions. The gameplay is very poor and it is far, far too easy to beat the PC with little or no effort. The graphics, whilst retaining some of the charm that Sensi Soccer is famous for, are not really very good and add nothing to the game. Bugs litter the game, with key responses often going missing at key moments like when shooting or hoofing out of defense. The custom team option is limited and there is a very poor career mode that is so far behind the SWOS offerings that its laughable. There is no option to take a Division 4 (thats League 2 for youngsters) team up through the ranks and build a team over many years. No FA committee coming along to offer you the England job after your third European cup triumph. No chance to go and manage Hearts of Oak in the Ghana league. In short nothing that made Sensible Soccer stand out and appeal to people who really love football! Nothing like that at all, just a heartless and lacklustre attempt to cash in on the Sensible Soccer name.

Sensible soccer was great because its gameplay was simple. The game was full of depth and the option to play virtually any league and team in the world. And buy their players. And on the pitch it was so controllable and user friendly whilst still a good challenge that it was addictive on a level few games ever are. You really could keep coming back to this game for years and still love it.

In short please do not buy this game. If only as a protest at the gaming industry once again pushing an unfinished, sub-standard product on customers and trying to con money out of us all. If you have never played any of the original Sensible Soccer games don't be tempted by this charlatan of a game. Buy ISS Pro and play a very good football game instead. If you have played Sensible Soccer and were hoping this would be a rebirth of the greatest footballing series ever, avoid this like the plague and dig out a copy of SWOS for the PC instead. This game is the worst PC game of any kind I have played for a very long time. The publishers should be ashamed of this game!

You've already seen 3 1-star reviews for this game and here's my effort just to bring the overall average score down yet again.

I was going to begin at the beginning (if that makes sense), but this game frustrates me so much I might as well just vent my anger out randomly and incoherently, since that's how the game seems to have been coded - one big lacklusture mess.

Some of the things you'll experience in this game are:-

* Rubbish selection of teams.
* Unresponsive controls. (Sod's Law states that the controls will be unresponsive when you want them to be very responsive).
* Awful 'career' mode. I realise it's Sensible Soccer and not Sensible World of Soccer but a 'career mode' is standard in most football games these days. The career mode is nothing more than you playing different competitions with your team and going from 1 star to 5 stars. How thrilling.
* Bugs galore. Oh and bugs. I'm wondering if the game as a whole is one big bug. Have I got a virus on my installation CD and the real, proper SS 2006 is still waiting to be installed? Alas no.
* A general, "Oh my God this is a half-baked but good looking shareware game" feeling that you get when you play a... well, a half-baked but good looking shareware game.

It has all the hallmarks of a rushed, cash-cow, grab-the-public's attention-whilst-the-World Cup-is-on affair. It has absolutely no redeeming features whatsoever.

Go to your attic and play SWOS on your Amiga or get down and dirty and get it running on your PC with a bit of tinkering with some DOS emulation software. If you've never had an Amiga, consider building your own time machine before playing this game.

I'm disappointed that one of the brains behind the original series, Jon Hare, had so much influence on this game. Is this really all his work? Has he really listened to all the fan's requests and suggestions as to how to bring the classic franchise into the 21st century? Has he actually forgotten what made it so popular in the first place? Shame on you Jon!

Please please please, I beg all those responsible for this game to go back to the drawing board, take another long, careful look at SWOS 96/97 - keep the gameplay intact, and only bring the graphics and sound up to date. Don't try to 'console-ise' the controls. SWOS 96/97 was excellent and only used 1 button! WE don't want all the FIFA/ProEvo-ispired nonsense in the game, we just want to play it like it used to be all those years ago.

I could go on but since Codemasters didn't provide a hanky with the game my tears of disappointment would go unwashed if I carried on.

So to summarise - don't buy it.

A lot of reviewers have called the glass half empty on this one.

Personally I can see where they are coming from. Having been a fan of the original games (as well as the Kick Off series) you expect something to blow you away with nostalgia and game play.

This version of sensible soccer doesnt really do that, and yes it does have a few bugs, but the important thing is that I'm sick and tired of football simulations nowadays where the player pulls off a spectacular overhead kick into the top corner with just the click of a button.

Sensible soccer offers the ability to control the after touch on even the simplest pass, and the ball does not stick to players feet as if it was glued on. After playing just a couple of games I realised that the new generation of footy games had turned me into a skilless sofa slob.

Beating your friends at Sensible soccer is much more fun than beating them at pro evo or fifa.

It is fun. For this reason alone, I redeem this game.

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4.0 out of 5 stars Awesome!!
This game is great.

I saw it in the shop for a fiver, so I got it. It was easy to install, and it didn't leave the computer with any viruses. Read more

Published 22 months ago by L. Powell-Davies

4.0 out of 5 stars Old Kick off 2 fan
I was never a big fan of Sensible soccer,and didn't like all the management options in SWOS.I felt Kick off 2 was much superior as you had to learn all the skills before you could... Read more

Published on 20 Jan 2007 by M. Hammond

4.0 out of 5 stars Excellent value for a fiver
If you've always wanted to revive the Sensible Soccer series on your PC but can't be bothered with an Amiga emulator, this is the game for you. Read more

Published on 18 Jan 2007 by J. Malvern

4.0 out of 5 stars Spunky sport, with a little after-touch!
If your anything like me, you'll want your games to be fun, and if possible addictive enough to keep you entertained. Read more

Published on 24 July 2006 by K. Hamilton

2.0 out of 5 stars Not bad, but not what it could have been..
There was a fair amount of hype surrounding this game, with reviewer's saying things like "best football sim ever" etc, but that doesn't quite describe what you actually get.. Read more

Published on 13 July 2006 by Peter D. Clark

1.0 out of 5 stars OMG NO!
Don't..just don't..gutted.

When SWOS 96/97 came out, Sensible Software had made something of a legendary game. Read more

Published on 23 Jun 2006 by N. A. Stewart

4.0 out of 5 stars Almost Everything You'd Hoped For
So the classic, and arguably best ever, football game is back; Sensible Soccer. But is it as fun and as good as its predecessors? Well, almost. Read more

Published on 21 Jun 2006 by Peter Chandler

1.0 out of 5 stars An insult to the Sensible Soccer series
This game seems a crass attempt at a cash in on the fans of the Sensible Soccer series, the missing features and inherent bugs suggest that this game was hurriedly rushed for the... Read more

Published on 14 Jun 2006 by J. D. Walpole

2.0 out of 5 stars Oh dear
The game came through the letter box this morning, just in time for the England game. I left it until this evening to give it a try. SUCH a disappointment. Read more

Published on 10 Jun 2006 by Mr. A. J. Field

3.0 out of 5 stars A Classic remade....Is it a title winner?
Again this is a review, not some way of making extra brownie points on the amazon reviewer list.

First off, for those too young to remember, Sensible Soccer was a... Read more

Published on 10 Jun 2006 by A R Hartley

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