Let's Play..Pocket Soccer

Pocket Soccer for the Gameboy gets a big thumbs up from BBC Sport Online reviewer David Gibbon.

While every games format ever conceived has enjoyed countless football titles, the Game Boy has fallen behind in the pecking order.

It has had one or two hits, such as the acclaimed Ronaldo, but overall, there's been no real must-have killer title.

Now Nintendo are fighting back with the release of Pocket Soccer - a game that has the potential to do very well indeed.

  Pocket Soccer

Format: Game Boy Color

Price: £19.99

Publisher: Nintendo

Genre: Football

Also Available: N/A

Rather than just being another middle of the road footie game, Pocket Soccer mixes up arcade play with management.

You pick your squad and train individual members in various disciplines.

The better you coach your players, the better they become. For example, each time they score, they earn a star. And each star increases the skill of the player.

Pocket Soccer also allows you to delve into the transfer market by trading players - with a difference.

Instead of signing players within your own game, you can actually swap them with friends (assuming they have a copy of the game and consul themselves).

You do this via the Game Boy's infra-red communications port or the more reliable Game Link cable, sold separately.

Off-putting

More than 200 players, all fictional, are at your disposal - with each one rated for speed, tackling etc.

The action is fast and furious

There's also 32 ready-made teams - again all fictional - which can be customised with different colours, names and appearance of players.

Game modes include Quick Start, Exhibition, Play Offs and League, the latter allowing you to be both player and manager.

Once you get into the game itself, you'll find its simple, overhead graphics a little off-putting at first.

But persevere and you'll soon realise they pale into insignificance.

The pitch may be a little on the small side, but controlling the players is simplicity itself, although the AI of the opponents is excellent and they will tackle you at every given opportunity.

The real difficulty comes when trying to get the ball back as you have to be very precise when trying to pull off a sliding tackle - but practice does make perfect in this gem of a game.

  Gibbon's verdict

Graphics: 76%

Playability: 84%

Sound: 47%

Realism: 82%

Overall: 83%

Given the size of the pitches, the action can get fast and furious so you need to be on your guard at all times. Take your eyes away for a few seconds and it's a certainty you'll be a goal down.

Football fans will find Pocket Soccer a superb package - especially if they have a football-mad friend who also owns a Game Boy and a copy of this game.