Super DodgeBall Brawlers

Yes, nostalgia I think plays a big role in whether or not you're going to be satisfied with what is on offer here.

I've heard the GBA one is supposed to be really good so I'll check that one out and see if it's just me not diggin' the series or the DS game just not being up to snuff.
 
[quote name='RollingSkull']Well, I mean, with Street Fighter, there's different things to do... techniques and different characters to play. Hell, the GBA port of SFA3 had a couple different modes and a good roster of unique movesetted characters... Unless the game is hiding something I'm missing, all I'm seeing in the dodgeball in this game is "catch, duck, or sidestep the ball. Do the silly sequence to throw your power shot. Repeat."

I mean, if you want more Super Dodgeball, then you should get this at a price drop because, if memory serves, this is exactly what you want: more Kunio dodgeball. Get a friend who likes the same, you can have some fun. But as a relative stranger to the franchise, I'm just not feeling it.[/quote]


Right, but in the end, it's you punching and kicking 8-16 people until the game is over. I'm not saying Street Fighter isn't deep, but there's not much to do outside of the core gameplay. This game is the same way. It's not a game you're going to stay up all night to try and get that last item or beat the final boss or anything. It's just a game with fun gameplay fundamentals that you'll keep coming back to play (in my case, at least). I was having a blast playing Golden Axe at a friend's house the other day. Not only did I first play it close to 15 years ago, it's seriously only like a 30 minute game!


I think nostalgia does play a part somewhat, because newer games have different expectations- story, cinematics, a progressing single-player mode, etc. Older games only had a fun gameplay mechanic to carry them, and for some people, that's all they need. I think this is a reason why you'll see new-ish games like Rez or Wii Sports get blasted for being ridiculously short but still have a huge following based on its core gameplay.
 
Personally, I haven't played the first dodge ball game. But if my memory serves me right, you used to be able to throw super shots with the sideline guys via a pass in the GBA game. I believe it can't be done this time around, only the inside court guys can throw super shots. So essentially, the only way you can really hit a person is if their timing sucks, they miss the timing of a weird super shot, or you catch them on a jump. I think this takes out some of the mindgame of dodgeball. Of course they sped up the game, however the pace still feels albeit "slow."

The super mode or whatever you call it which is executed after filling up your respective bar lasts for about one play so it really is useless if the other team manages to catch the ball and stall.

The whole single player tournament is ok. You can easily beat hard mode within 30 minutes starting from scratch, no need to level up or buy items. Since this is the case, leveling up and buying items is pretty much a non-factor. Only situation I could think these items are useful for are when you play someone else with a good team. But given this game has no wifi and chances of someone spending their hard earned $30 on this game is very very slim, you can throw that possibility out the window.

The melee fighting (punch and kick) and the items are great to throw in that random mario kart-ish variable, but it really doesn't do much outside of that. You can lob pass the ball and pick up an item and throw it, but that's pretty much it in terms of strategy. Also I really wish there was some sort of manual character switching. Basically your control always switches to the closest player to the ball. This can get aggrivating when the opposing team passes the ball over the court to get an easy peg because the closest player is too close and reaction margin is cut down considerabley.

Again, this game is definitely not worth $30. Even with these little additions, it still feels really barebones.

edit: also some sort of custom cpu strategy would be good (i.e. setting players to dodge rather than catch when you're not controlling them). The cpu on your team can be quite stupid at times. Usually when the opponent throws a slow supershot of some sort, the teammates run out of the way, but often run back into the super shot getting pegged. Though this is great for using cpu team mates as meat shields, they pretty much are useless.
 
Perfect description, I went back and played it a bit today and finished up the tournament. After you do that, there's really nothing left for you to do. I didn't even bother buying/customizing my team and didn't have any difficulty completing it.
 
Yeah, the single player is just too short to make grinding worth your time. Couple that with lacking multiplayer sends it straight to the bargain bin.

Again, stay away from this game. At least until you can get it for $15 via some sort of $5 off $20 coupon (even $15 might be too much for this game). It's not horrible, but the content feels so sparse, as if it was a Technos GBA game, which it pretty much is. RCR EX at least lasted longer.
 
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