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Sega Soccer Slam

Score: 8.7 / 10

Baseball games get lots of attention.  The same can be said of basketball and hockey games.  But you could swing a dead cat all day and not hit a soccer game.  Basically your only choice was EA’s FIFA series.  Not to knock FIFA, but that’s not much of a choice.  Even though Sega’s Soccer Slam (SSS) at times resembles a clash of comic book characters more than an actual soccer ("football" to the True Believer) match, it sure is fun.

Taking a page from Midway’s playbook, Visual Concepts / Black Box have pared down the reality factor and upped the fantasy aspect.  This game in no way resembles real life, but there’s no denying that they’re playing soccer.  It’s three players aside, with a fairly automatic goalie, playing on a field about half the size of an actual pitch.  The results are fast kinetic fun.

The three unique characters that make up each team are distilled and exaggerated stereotypes: the large Scotsman, the thundering Samoan warrior, and a bra-less British party girl who holds the Spice Girls in high esteem – to describe only three.  Most often, the teams consist of two male characters and one female.  When playing All-Star games, only the top players get to participate, and guess what, they’re usually male.

 

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Graphically, SSS is akin to playing a well above-average Saturday morning cartoon.  In fact, with a few cutscenes SSS could be a cartoon.  Everything is extremely bright and colorful, and no matter what’s going on there are never instances of slowdown – except when there is supposed to be slowdown.  Power moves play a big part in SSS and most are executed in dramatic Matrix fashion.  Time seemingly slows down while your character jumps ten feet in the air, spins around, picks a corner and belts 

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the ball toward the goal with an appropriate sonic boom.  Also impressive are the super-charged boosts you earn by performing pass and shoot combos.  These boosts are different for each team (but everyone gets Turbo).  For example, one team “El Feugo” has the ability to shout “Flame On!” and temporarily streak around the field on fire (one player at a time).  The effects of these elemental transformations can’t really be appreciated until an instant replay.  There are little touches too that make SSS come alive.  The crowd is very animated and, even though they’re probably one-dimensional, they make the stands come alive.  When an elemental boost is active foot prints spark with electricity, fire, whatever is appropriate.  To appreciate the graphics “as they happen” you can zoom in quite close to the action at the expense of being able to see where your teammates are.

The passing game will get you further than going solo.  However, this nod to reality is only a nod.  Magic passing, phased out of “real” soccer games, is in full force.  Passes can be picked off but the computer AI isn’t that good, so go ahead, make that cross field goal to setup a one-timer!  On higher levels the AI picks up the pace and you’ll have to use all the moves at your disposal such as dekeing, slide checking, and punching. (Since there are no referees or linesmen, anything goes.  And there is no way to put the ball out of bounds for a throw in or corner kick since the pitch is enclosed by a force field.)  The controls themselves never get in the way of playing or enjoying SSS.

The single-player game is quite good, with variety and challenge to keep you occupied.  There are unlockable (read: buyable) team member upgrades, challenges, the option to control one team member instead of the whole team, and training options to fill up a few weeks of play.  However, playing against human opponents is way more fun and entertaining.  There’s nothing like lining up the perfect power shot and hitting the back of the net, then being able to verbally assault your opponent.  This is the kind of game that cements friendships, with the possibility of creating an enemy or two.

Before the fireworks go off, I should mention the audio aspect of SSS.  What’s included is great, but there should be more of it.  The announcer gets precious little to say and the player characters even less.  It’s a mystery why a character game is so devoid of dialogue.  I expect that SSS may be turned into a franchise, so this issue could be addressed with any sequels.

I can recommend Sega Soccer Slam for sports enthusiasts that want a little light-heartedness in their soccer.  And if you’re having a party, be sure it’s in your GameCube library.

- Omni

(May 23, 2002)

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