#428 Game Theory 22 | Jikkyo World Soccer PERFECT ELEVEN
Good evening, your commentator is Markey.
In that vein, for the past few Game Theory entries, I've been wholeheartedly introducing fighting games, but to get back to basics, I'm going to introduce a soccer game.
Back when I was obsessed with soccer, I loved both playing and watching it, and I also loved playing soccer games, having introduced the following titles so far.
I really loved playing them, and I have introduced the following soccer games in the past.
However, among those many soccer games, the one I'm introducing today, "Jikkyo World Soccer" was by far the highest quality and most fun.
And it feels like this Jikkyo World Soccer, released by KONAMI, evolved into Winning Eleven.
The Appeal of Jikkyo World Soccer PERFECT ELEVEN
1. It has live commentary
First of all, the "live commentary" that gives the game its name was revolutionary.
This Markey provides the commentary, and I recall that this game was the root of the live commentary that has become standard in games like Winning Eleven.
He praises you when you make a good play, and if you miss, he says things like "You should have scored that", but that's what makes it good!
And from the second game onwards, there was also color commentary, making it even more fun.
2. Unprecedented features, controls, and UX
While this series might not have been the originator of everything, it had many concepts and features that were absent in soccer games at the time, which was excellent.
In terms of buttons, I recall this being the first game to include a "dash button" in a soccer game, and being able to control the tempo of the attack with this was fantastic. The "through pass" button was also great.
Outside of the match itself, the concept of "condition" was also very interesting.
I don't recall "stamina (physical strength)" starting from this series, but considering stamina and condition when thinking about player substitutions was a joy in itself. Before this, soccer games barely had a concept of substitutions, so it was truly coaching worthy of Zico, haha.
Also, the "strategy" and "attacking awareness" settings were very good.
I utilized "counter-attack" and "CB overlap," and had my side-backs maintain a high attacking awareness.
I loved the play where a side-back would overtake a winger to cross the ball, and a center-back would connect with it, so I would get excited all by myself, haha.
3. The Scenario Mode is intense
The "Scenario Mode," where you start a game from the middle with a pre-determined situation, was fun.
The scenarios were quite tailored to enthusiasts, mostly based on scenes that actually happened in the '94 World Cup.
Brazil vs. USA, South Korea vs. Spain, Bulgaria vs. Germany, and so on.
For a core example, there is also the "Tragedy of Paris" scenario from the France vs. Bulgaria European final qualifier.
And you can enjoy it like, "That's how it happened back then, but I'm going to change history!", haha.
The players of Jikkyo World Soccer PERFECT ELEVEN
Perhaps due to licensing issues, the player names are just placeholders.
However, it was great that you could clearly tell, based on jersey numbers, positions, and above all, their appearance, that "...you're Valderrama, right?".
And since you could change the names, I enjoyed changing the names of the players who looked like the real ones.
Italy has the ponytail number 10, Giovanni. This is, needless to say, R. Baggio.
Germany has the number 10 CB, Krantz. This is also, needless to say, Matthäus.
Mexico's super-attacking GK Fernandez is obviously Campos, Colombia's afro-haired Sanchez is Valderrama, Brazil's Müller and Carlos are Romário & Bebeto, Argentina's Fernando is Maradona, and Belgium's solid GK Alex is Preud'homme.
Also, the Netherlands, which I've liked since back then, has Henry, Jakov, and Vilandl. I think the model is Bergkamp, but I loved this Vilandl.
And I believe I heard that Japan's team was named after the development staff, with a mysterious lineup of Okuda, Hashimoto, Eto lol
I remember making whoever had number 11, either Eto or Hashimoto, into Kazu, and there was also a guy with an afro and a beard on the bench—needless to say, that was Carioca lol
Also, I don't know who the original players were, but I remember names like North Korea's Pak Kam-il, Saudi Arabia's Abraham, Nigeria's Sepek & Isuark, and Ireland's Keelman. I think those who know, will know!
Summary
With that said, looking back on it now, it was incredibly fun.
This is the game that got me the most fired up on the Super Famicom.
By the way, I was just as obsessed, if not more so, with Jikkyo World Soccer 2: FIGHTING ELEVEN, which was released in '95.
I'd love to play it again after all this time!