SPEEDBALL 2: EVOLUTION (PSP)
The good thing about the PS minis version of Speedball 2 is that it’s not a remake. Surprising given this is supposed to be an ‘evolution’, although the title has more to do with the 20th anniversary release on smart phones and iPads than any serious messing around with the core game mechanics. That way lays the blunder and fluster of the 2008 PC version, which kind of forgot what made Speedball 2 genius in the first place and in the process of making it look new and fresh properly bodged the game to shit.
Instead it’s back to basics for Evolution with the metallic and fascist styled hyper violence looking very much like a straight port of the Amiga version. Oh, goody! Everything you expect to feature in Speedball 2 is there; bonce domes, warp gates, score multipliers, the little jig players do after they score and the now iconic shouts of ‘ice cream’ are all present and correct alongside the 2D playing field and crisp multi-directional scrolling. Even though some additional controls have been implemented you can still mash your way through teams using one button, just like back in the day with the mighty zipstick. So far, so much like the Amiga version.
Instead it’s back to basics for Evolution with the metallic and fascist styled hyper violence looking very much like a straight port of the Amiga version. Oh, goody! Everything you expect to feature in Speedball 2 is there; bonce domes, warp gates, score multipliers, the little jig players do after they score and the now iconic shouts of ‘ice cream’ are all present and correct alongside the 2D playing field and crisp multi-directional scrolling. Even though some additional controls have been implemented you can still mash your way through teams using one button, just like back in the day with the mighty zipstick. So far, so much like the Amiga version.
Pinball, if it was a contact sport, and decked out in fluorescent lycra
Of course some additional material has been added. The graphics have been given a little gloss and stand out as more colourful than the pure metallic tones of the original. This may irk some purists, but it does little to distract from the fact you’re playing Speedball 2, a game enshrined by the 16-bit ethos, on a next gen system. Most of the main differences lie within the management screens and the league structure, both of which have been re-vamped. The management section does nothing new – it’s still all about training your players and dipping into the transfer market – but it’s now much easier to navigate through the newly furnished (and somewhat colourful) management screens.
The league structure has been lengthened to include seven additional teams that form a longer challenge than the simple two division season play and knockout cup of Brutal Deluxe. Sadly, the knockout form of the game has not been included in this package, but an Intergalactic Cup and Champions League now follow the regular Division 1 and 2 seasons, obviously with the pretence to elongate the game. The additional teams are largely alien based, tougher than their human counter-parts and each has their own individually styled pitch that deviates from the typical metallic Speedball arena. Again, this is likely to piss off purists, but is no real concern as it has no influence on gameplay.
The league structure has been lengthened to include seven additional teams that form a longer challenge than the simple two division season play and knockout cup of Brutal Deluxe. Sadly, the knockout form of the game has not been included in this package, but an Intergalactic Cup and Champions League now follow the regular Division 1 and 2 seasons, obviously with the pretence to elongate the game. The additional teams are largely alien based, tougher than their human counter-parts and each has their own individually styled pitch that deviates from the typical metallic Speedball arena. Again, this is likely to piss off purists, but is no real concern as it has no influence on gameplay.
So, all spectacularly perfectomundo then? Well not quite. Rather sadly Evolution is more Milk Cup than Champions League. Whilst on the surface Evolution looks like Speedball 2, tastes like Speedball 2 and sounds like Speedball 2 it soon becomes obvious that one is not quite playing Speedball 2. There are two game-breakers that prevent this from being so. The first is the manic pace. It doesn’t exist. The PS minis version is pedestrian and lethargic in comparison to the original. Even against the best teams available the player can still take their time implementing strategies in a largely unhurried manner just as they could when playing minnows like Revolver or Raw Messiah. For the original game, even attempting to think about strategy during the 180 seconds of play against Super Nashwan would lead to an insane b*llock kicking. That frantic hyper pace, so essential to making Speedball 2 an absolutely brutal and hardcore challenge has, rather sadly, not been maintained. When this is coupled with a less intuitive A.I. that frequently neglects to use the score multiplier (even when standing right next to it) or constantly fails to ruthlessly beat ones players to a pulp, it makes for a Speedball that is way too blinking easy.
Challenges? If only...
Bolting on further elements of competition in the season mode, therefore, simply exists to perpetuate the longevity of the game in the absence of a substantial challenge. There really should be no reason for you to completely obliterate teams from the off. And whilst the new alien races do pose rather difficult to beat at the start, trouncing five star-rated teams, constantly, by the time you have a fairly mediocre three star team just makes Evolution way less fun than it should be. Worst of all, Super Nashwan have been nerfed to buggery. I said SUPER NASHWAN HAVE BEEN NERFED TO BUGGERY. Beating the arch-nemesis by a clear 100 points first time round is just plain unforgivable!
On the surface this is Speedball 2; it just doesn’t feel or play like Brutal Deluxe. For older gamers looking to rekindle the old magic of the Amiga original, this is a rather tepid and disappointing evolution. It provides a short burst of fun at the start, but after 30 or so matches of outright victory, interest predictably wanes. The Intergalactic Cup and Champions League are merely fraudulent bystanders compared to Brutal Deluxe’s bastard hard approach. Newbies who were just a sproggling in their parent’s eye circa 1990 may get more out of Evolution. It might be a bit tougher for those without previous Speedball clout and pose a greater challenge, particularly where the alien teams are concerned. But for this jaded old git, Speedball 2: Evolution is a missed opportunity to reach out to younger gamers and expose them to what gaming used to be like. Instead it simply lends more weight to the argument that few modern games have a decent level of challenge. Which is a damn shame…
On the surface this is Speedball 2; it just doesn’t feel or play like Brutal Deluxe. For older gamers looking to rekindle the old magic of the Amiga original, this is a rather tepid and disappointing evolution. It provides a short burst of fun at the start, but after 30 or so matches of outright victory, interest predictably wanes. The Intergalactic Cup and Champions League are merely fraudulent bystanders compared to Brutal Deluxe’s bastard hard approach. Newbies who were just a sproggling in their parent’s eye circa 1990 may get more out of Evolution. It might be a bit tougher for those without previous Speedball clout and pose a greater challenge, particularly where the alien teams are concerned. But for this jaded old git, Speedball 2: Evolution is a missed opportunity to reach out to younger gamers and expose them to what gaming used to be like. Instead it simply lends more weight to the argument that few modern games have a decent level of challenge. Which is a damn shame…
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VERDICT
Visual: 8/10
Audio: 9/10 Gameplay: 6/10 Longevity: 5/10 OVERALL: 6/10 |