Customisation, multiplayer, conclusion.
Each team is given a star rating, with 5 stars being the highest. A team with higher stars performs better than a team with less and should provide stiffer competition. However, at times, the A.I does not seem up to the job. Despite playing some of the highest ranked teams in the World Cup, 8 out of 10 of the matches resulted in a blank sheet from the opponent. It’s difficult to assess at this point whether my defending is superb, or the balance in the game isn’t quite right.
Sensible Soccer 2006 also allows a fair degree of customisation. You can create your own custom leagues and tournaments, create custom teams and players, and modify your kit to your own liking. In the custom team career mode your players will receive upgrade points that affect their skills, if you win one of the tournaments.
There’s also plenty of unlockables, including new balls and pitches, shirts and shots, and even hair. These items are rewarded when you win a preset competition, such as the European cup.
Now, I mentioned the A.I being slightly too easy for my liking in single player, right? Well, Sensible Soccer really comes to life with friends, where you can play 1 Vs 1, 2-player co-op, or 2 Vs 2 matches. You can always work out ways to exploit A.I opposition but it’s far more difficult second-guessing a human opponent. The multiplayer aspect of the game will keep you coming back time and time again.
Graphically Sensible Soccer 2006 is what you would expect. The caricatured players and model textures are in-line with the original. The enlarged heads are back and will appeal to those old fans and hopefully some new ones. The graphics are stylish without ever getting near to spectacular, but it’s still enough to suck you in for just one more game before you hit the sack.
In every game of Sensi I’ve played so far I’ve had a grin as broad as a Cheshire cat. Apart from some improvements in the A.I it’s the game that I’d been hoping for, I’ll be playing Sensible Soccer 2006 for months to come.
Pros
Superb control system
Easy to pick up and play
Plenty of tournaments
Customisation of teams and players
Scoring some cracking goals
It’s Sensible Soccer
Cons
Poor A.I at times
Basic graphics
Tackling could be improved
Extremely addictive gameplay and great fun with friends, Sensible Soccer 2006 is well worth the money.
HEXUS Awards
Sensible Soccer 2006
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Sensible Soccer 2006 is available now, click the following links to order:Play.com
