Ganbare! Super Strikers

Fun, alternative take on football

As a strategy game, Gambare! Super Strikers works well enough, but the novelty quickly wears a bit thin.

Combining tactical RPGs and soccer is a good idea that could be further developed and improved upon, but Ganbare! Super Strikers really misses the mark in execution.

Ganbare! Super Strikers is a fun tactical RPG that happens to feature soccer players. The turn-based approach works well overall, though the formula can wear a little thin after playing several matches in a row.

But honestly, there is only a surface level of strategic options here that will keep players engaged for a long time. If you are picking this title up, be sure to play it with a friend to have some fun with it in the local multiplayer modes. But if you are looking for either a good soccer or a good RTS game, you unfortunately will not find it here.

Ganbare! Super Strikers is simply let down by the limitations of being a micro-indie game. It has a host of good ideas, and the action on the pitch is fine.

This is one of those titles that I like to imagine back to its initial elevator pitch: "OK, so you really love sports, right, and soccer (or football, depending) is a worldwide phenomenon game...

It’s disheartening to see a game with a solid concept that badly needed more work before being released. With how exploitable the AI is, I wound up needing less than nine hours to finish Story Mode, four of those coming after discovering the “V” strategy. Even if the bugs were fixed, Ganbare! Super Strikers has some glaring problems in its game mechanics which lead to lopsided teams and unbalanced matches. The limited customization and lackluster Story Mode are the missed penalty shot that seals it for me. I do hope the developer keeps updating and adding onto what’s here as I did enjoy the core gameplay. However, for $10 I can’t in good faith recommend this in its current state.