Makes FIFA Look Like A Sunday League Team! (International Superstar Soccer Pro Evolution (PS))

Member Name: Smark1985

Product:	International Superstar Soccer Pro Evolution (PS)
Date:	21/04/01 (69 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: The best football game ever. Read text.

Disadvantages: Absolutely none whatsoever.

Without a doubt, this is the best football game ever made. It really is sensational. Virtually everything about this is perfect. The gameplay is so realistic you WILL feel as though you are playing, the graphics are good enough to confuse you that you aren't actually watching Sky. Honestly, I try and look at games for both sides, but with this classic, there is only one way to review it. I cannot say it is bad because it isn't. I cannot say it is unrealistic because it isn't. I cannot put a bad word against it.

Over the years, there have been many ISS games, but for some reason, up until ISS really became noticed in 1999, everyone preferred the tedious FIFA series.

I used to be a fan of the FIFA series, but that was only until I had my eyes opened to the sublime ISS.

Before I fully get into reviewing Evolution, I should point out that it does not have the licence to players names. Now, this has been criticised repeatedly by the FIFA fans, and yes, a game is generally better if it has official licences to name the players. But, at the end of the day, only real football anoraks and staticians will buy a game with worse gameplay than the other just because it has the real names of players. After all, it isn't like you are not allowed to change the names. Even if you couldn't it wouldn't be so bad, the difference is usually just one or two letters anyway. Alan Shearer might now be Alan Sheerer. Wow, that's a big difference. Surely no one in their sane mind would buy a game for the sake of one letter!

But, that does seem to be a main drawing factor of FIFA. It has all the licences to boot. The advertising boards at the side of the pitch (which no one cares about anyway) are genuine Coca-Cola or Konica. Whereas in ISS they are something like GOAL or similar. which doesn't matter in the slightest, but again, if you have a thing for facts and licences, then FIFA is for you.

Right, enough of the co
mparisons. Basically, FIFA has the money that ISS doesn't. Somewhere along the line, FIFA have become so entailed in the off pitch malerky that they have almost completely rejected the gameplay. Each year as a new FIFA is released, they have maybe just touched up the graphics slightly, in the 7+ years that they have been making games, I have NEVER noticed any significant change in the gameplay.

With ISS, they constantly try and do what they can to make the gaming better, rather than worrying about the fine figures and menus.

Passing is a key part of ISS as you have to have a level of accuracy and deft control to make sure that you do not give the ball away to your opponents. This game does require quite a lot of thinking and tactics play a part. Playing Germany is a completely different situation compared to playing Brazil. Brazil are much faster, this you have to consider how attacking you want to play in case the Brazilians launch a counter attack. At the bottom of the screen, there is a bar to determine your tactics. There are five squares, going from very defensive to all out attack. If, at about the 80th minute in a crucial game that you are losing, then you should consider opting to switch to all out attack as you will then have a better chance of gaining a vital goal to save you the match. But, keeping it realistic, this is also a risk as you are abandoning your defensive responsibilities. In this game, you always have to think.

Depending on how much time you have to play and what mood you are in, there are many options for you to alter. Weather conditions, will it be rainy, which will make the pitch faster, or will it be sunny, where your players will get worn out quicker? There are more aswell such as snow etc. Stadia. Where do you want to play your match? You have a wide choice of stadiums to choose from, depending perhaps on how important you think that the match is.

Options aside, what game will you actually play?
Do you want to play a league, which will take a long time, but offers the most satisfaction if you win. Or are you just out to prove to your mates that you can beat them in a knockout situation? Cups and tournaments are both available. If none of them take your fancy, you can of course just play a single match, or, a personal favourite of mine, settle a dispute with a friend in a straight penalty shoot-out!

This game can be played on your own, but also, bring home some mates from the pub and play a game or two. Although you are required to think to an extent, it isn't too taxing to stop you playing after a night out.

Put simply, this is easily the best football game ever made. Completely unmatched anywhere. You will be extremely hard pushed to find a fault in this game, because there aren't any.

Simply exceptional in every way. 10/10.

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