Amstrad Action


4 Most Balls, Boots And Brains

Author: Adam Peters
Publisher: Alternative
Machine: Amstrad CPC464

 
Published in Amstrad Action #84

4 Most Balls, Boots & Brains

A bit of a round spherical objects feel to this little compilation. There's two games based on the proper application of the ball in modern sport (good, decent, wholesome 'real' football), and two based on more barbaric interpretations.

Soccer Boss was included in our summary of football management games last month. We've gone off it a bit since then, not least due to this opportunity to get to grips with Rugby Boss, a more polished version of the same game.

Rugby Boss combines very neat presentation with all the buying and selling, fixture-checking business you normally associate with sport management games. The 'news flashes' that scroll along the bottom of the screen at snail-speed are very annoying, but you can't have everything.

Australian Rules Football takes place on a very small pitch and can be very confusing at first (er, where's the ball?). Once you get in the swing of things, you'll discover it's a fairly neat little representation of that cross between soccer, rugby and all-in wrestling that is Aussie rules.

The last game on the pack, Soccer Challenge just has to be seen to be believed. Don't expect to play a game of footie. What you get instead is various training exercises, played competitively, with lots of alien-like things wibbling around. Nurse!

4 Most Balls, Boots & Brains is a fairly impressive compilation, one of very few to attempt to combine arcade games and management sims in one package. Well done Alternative, as our dear old friend in Cornwall used to say.

Adam Peters

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