Sports Champions 2 For PlayStation Move Reviewed

 

This game was reviewed on the PlayStation 3

Feel the need to prove to your family and friends that you have more coordination, skill, and endurance than they do? Well, now you have the chance to do just that in Sports Champions 2 on the PlayStation Move. Zindagi Games brings us Archery, Bowling, Boxing, Golf, Skiing, and Tennis all in one tightly coded package. Do you have what it takes to take home the Gold Medal of awesomeness? There’s only one way to find out!

You start the game with the option to use a default character or make your own. The character customization is brilliant.  You can fully personalize the look and style of your character, even if you decide you want camouflage or leopard skin instead of your typical human skin tones. You can also create the look you want for all sports, or change it up to look different in each sport. Some options in the Appearance and Clothing sections are only available once you unlock them via the World Cup Trials (single player), but even from the beginning you have a lot to work with.

You can choose to play by yourself in a Tournament via the menu option Cup Play and earn the Gold Cup Trophies: Legendary (Boxing), King Pins (Bowling), Make Some Racquet (Tennis), Quiver With Joy (Archery), It’s All Down Hill! (Skiing), and Clubbin’ (Golf). These trophies (and the Bronze and Silver along the way) help you unlock items in the character customization and provide proof that you’re just awesome. There are three types of gameplay in the Main Menu, the first is Gold Cup (as mentioned above) and it is strictly single player. If you are hanging out with a friend you can do Free Play (One to Two Players), or Party Play (Two to Four Players), and go head-to-head to become the ‘master of the living room’ (or whatever you want to declare yourself)!

 

Many of the games follow the same format as the sports games that have come before them. The upside to this is if you have any experience with the PlayStation Move, Wii, or Kinect, it is easy to jump into each sport without a lot of explanation. Bowling uses the same mechanics as previous games you may have played, such as Wii Sports or High Velocity Bowling. Golf relies on properly swinging and following through on your strokes, and Tennis takes into account the angle of the controller and which way you swing – moving for you towards the ball so you’re not running around your living room. Tennis can get a little annoying as the amount of power needed is very little, and can get frustrating as you try to ‘bap’ the ball lightly so you aren’t out of bounds. You may even find yourself just holding the controller with both hands so you can control how lightly you swing on some occasions.

Skiing, however, is an entertaining new concept, and uses the remote’s tilt features to create a more dynamic gameplay, tilting the remote to angle left or right down perilous mountaintops. Archery is by far my personal favourite, and its accuracy is something that is truly impressive. Zindagi Games’ best decision to date is including this game in their second edition of Sports Champions. The concept is a basic one: you have your arrows in your quiver behind your back, and you quite literally reach behind your back with the controller, pull out and nock the narrow, draw back the bow string, aim, and then release. As you progress through the game and defeat your opponents, you’ll find they add new obstacles, quicker pace, and more focus on timed release of your arrows. Though simplistic in nature, it really makes you feel like you could be Robin Hood (or at least one of his merry men).

One glaringly obvious issue found, both in single player and multiplayer is in Boxing – specifically when you are blocking. The mechanics of it are simple enough: Trigger held to your head, chest, or stomach blocks punches. The problem occurs only when you are blocking at your stomach, and if your opponent is hitting you multiple times, all the blocking in the world will not help you. No one should be able to bypass a block, as you cannot do so to the head or chest; however, but even if you stand there, unmoving, blocking your stomach, the game intermittently doesn’t recognize it as a block, even when the gloves are resting there. This can be exploited if you own the game and want to beat a really decent friend to a bloody pulp, but it does give an unfair advantage.

The replay value is only in the multiplayer; this game is designed to be played with friends. If you’re looking for a big challenge for yourself on a solo career, you’ll need to look elsewhere. There are 18 levels to each sport, and you can complete an entire sport in one session easily. Of course there is always the option to go back and improve the original scores; however, the AI in-game is less than masterful, making it very easy to complete all the trials with excellent results.

The scenery is even more breathtaking than the workout. Whether it’s a mountainside view with a sunset strip across the sky, or flashy carnival wheel slowly turning in the background, Sports Champions 2 makes you feel like you’re part of a realistic environment. The only odd part about the developer’s choice of graphics would be the creepy emotes from your character, creating a rubber-face effect. With so much time spent on the scenery, and building a customizable character, this sudden shock of seeing your character laugh with a smile that resembles the Joker is very bizarre. This can either detract from your experience, or make it even more entertaining as you laugh in surprise at their goofy expressions – though it certainly takes away from the game’s consistency. The music in the background is very upbeat and event-oriented, like something you’d hear playing in the background of a really intense high school basketball game, but not to go as far as playing Chariots of Fire. Accompanied by cheers from the crowd, or sneers from your opponents, the game lets you immerse yourself and really play to win – without needless distraction.

If you have a PlayStation Move and want something fun to play with your friends, pick up Sports Champions 2 and give it a whirl! The games are all familiar and can provide a fun night in for you and your friends. The only part that may keep you away from this game is the lack of content for the price. It sounds strange to say this with six major games included, but a solo play-through in two or three nights with this game will have you the reigning champion, and  leave you feeling like you did not get your money’s worth. The multiplayer aspect is the main draw, and if you are planning to purchase the game, you’ll want to keep this in mind. Overall, Sports Champions 2 gives you a customizable sporting adventure that will get you up off the couch and into the game.

Sports Champions 2 receives a 4.0/5.0