I don't know about you crazy kids but when it comes to football games i tend to pay much more attention to UK reviews than US ones, so without further ado.
http://wii.ign.com/articles/862/862937p1.htmlUK, March 28, 2008 - Nintendo's Trojan horse has been fairly hollow when it comes to quality third-party titles and having found its way into millions of homes the Wii's fledgling year has paid host to a succession of shovel-ware all too fleetingly enlightened by moments of quality from the Japanese giant. It's a surprise, then, that it's a Pro Evolution game – a series that has become increasingly stagnant in recent times – that offers one of the first real glimpses of what is possible when a developer pays due consideration to some of the eccentricities of the console, and Pro Evolution Soccer on the Wii not only provides the definitive sports game on the system, but also pushes the series to new and exciting ground.
When Konami's solution to porting its series to the Wii was first revealed, it was hard not to muffle a quizzical whine as our beloved green pitch was transformed into a tactical chalkboard bustling with arrows and markers, but what's most surprising is how intuitive Konami's response to the Wii-mote feels – it only takes a couple of games to become au fait with using the pointer to dictate play, to the point where after only a short while it would feel like a regression to return to a standard controller.
A more dynamic camera accommodates the more pressing demands made on the player, zooming in on goal mouth action while assuming a wide pan when play opens out. It's an important acknowledgement of the extra spatial awareness that is called upon with the added control, although at times it does struggle to give as much access to play as would be appreciated, and despite the otherwise sterling work it belies the fact that this is the first in what's sure to be an ongoing and oft refined series on the Wii.
Some concessions have been made to the game to make the new control system stick, with the conclusions to attacking play bearing the brunt of the compromise. A waggle of the nunchuk will deliver a perfectly weighted and deadly accurate shot, and although it's undeniably an amputation it also reflects the game's shift in emphasis to creating fluid open play.
One serious gripe is the lack of balancing between defensive and offensive play. With attacking players now given an unprecedented amount of options, the defending team is left with an inadequate suite of moves with which to counter. Winning the ball off opposing players is an unnecessarily cumbersome task, ensuring that possession only shifts in dead ball situations. It's another area that betrays the youth of the game on the console, though fortunately it's a frustration rather than a game breaker.
In place of the Master League is the Champions Road, an equally in-depth single-player feature that plays like a football Pokemon. Taking a team through a series of leagues across the globe, it brings the role-playing and stat-tracking elements that underlie the Master League to the fore, as players from felled teams are acquired and levelled up, eventually attaining new skills and abilities. Rather than a reduction of the Master League, Champions Road feels more like a lateral move that is intended to play to a more casual audience, something which is also reflected in the more accessible menus and simplified design throughout the game.
But it's in the multiplayer that the heart of the Pro Evolution series lies, and on the Wii the game delivers beautifully. Initially combating players may find themselves getting a little over-zealous with the unprecedented control on offer, tripping the offside rule more often than not, but once play has settled down the new system allows for some truly Machiavellian tactics. No more is this true than in set pieces, as players are dragged off the ball to ensnare defenders, ensuring some epic tussles in the box in attempt to find space.
Closing Comments
As the first entry in the series on the Wii, Pro Evolution 2008 is remarkable. It’s a credit to the Konami team that their solution to the Wii-mote manages to stick so readily, and it’s a sign that developers are finally beginning to un-tap the potential of the machine. Providing a free-flowing football experience like no other before it, it’s not only the best title of its sort on the Wii, but also an indicator of what’s possible for the genre as a whole when genuine innovation is applied.
| 8.0 | Presentation A refined take on the Pro Evo formula, thankfully minus the inane background music of other versions. |
| 7.5 | Graphics It's PS2.5, but there's definitely a case for function over form. |
| 7.0 | Sound Lawrenson and Brackley are back. We wish they weren't. |
| 9.5 | Gameplay A genuinely new take on what was previously a stale genre, the level of control is unprecedented. |
| 9.0 | Lasting Appeal Pro Evo is for life - but the online elements could have been fleshed out. |
| 8.9 | OVERALL (out of 10 / not an average) |
