Category: Sports Games

From the Database of Home of the Underdogs GAME DESIGNER: GAME DEVELOPER:Friendware GAME PUBLISHER:Friendware Copyright 1995, Friendware Speed Haste is a very simple, flawed shareware arcade racing game that allows you to race the F1 or Stock Cars around a variety of circuits. The usual arcade options are here: select your car from different car…

From the Database of Home of the Underdogs GAME DESIGNER: GAME DEVELOPER:Stone Jackal Studios GAME PUBLISHER:Megamedia Copyright 1997, Megamedia One of the best, and most underrated, futuristic sport games ever made, Crush! Deluxe is best described as a much-improved version of Micro League’s earlier Blood Bowl, a futuristic rugby game. David Finn of Games Domain…

From the Database of Home of the Underdogs GAME DESIGNER: GAME DEVELOPER:DigiTek GAME PUBLISHER:DigiTek Copyright 1989, DigiTek A humorous miniature golf game with a lot of innovative ideas, Hole-In-One Miniature Golf from DigiTek is a severely underrated game that deserves a closer look. The game takes the standard approach of using the overhead view for…

From the Database of Home of the Underdogs GAME DESIGNER:Jasmin F. Patry GAME DEVELOPER:Sunspire Studios GAME PUBLISHER:Sunspire Studios Copyright 2000, Sunspire Studios A cute and unique 3D racing game, Tux Racer casts you as Tux the Linux Penguin (*groan*) as he races down steep, snow-covered mountains. Your mission is to race Tux down a hill…

From the Database of Home of the Underdogs GAME DESIGNER: GAME DEVELOPER:US Gold GAME PUBLISHER:US Gold Copyright 1991, US Gold Re-release of U.S. Gold’s own Italy 1990 with a few unimportant enhancements, mostly cosmetic ones. Despite the coveted World Cup license, World Class Soccer is a very uninspiring game that doesn’t offer much more than…

From the Database of Home of the Underdogs GAME DESIGNER: GAME DEVELOPER:Elite Systems GAME PUBLISHER:Elite Systems Copyright 1992, Elite Systems European Championship 1992 is a PC conversion of Tecmo’s arcade soccer game World Cup 1990, though the computer version has been licensed to the European Championship of 1992. It’s a standard isometric view arcade style…

From the Database of Home of the Underdogs GAME DESIGNER: GAME DEVELOPER:Astros GAME PUBLISHER:Gremlin Copyright 1992, Astros Despite endorsement from one of the world’s leading auto makers, Toyota Celica GT Rally is still a pretty poor rally racing game. The partly 3D, partly bitmapped graphics looks okay, and I also noticed nice PC speaker music,…

From the Database of Home of the Underdogs GAME DESIGNER: GAME DEVELOPER:MindSpan GAME PUBLISHER:Gamestar Copyright 1989, MindSpan A great ice hockey game developed by Canadian sports games experts MindSpan (makers of Hardball series and Joe Montana Football). Faceoff! was MindSpan’s first game, and was instantly touted (although not loudly enough in my opinion) as one…

From the Database of Home of the Underdogs GAME DESIGNER: GAME DEVELOPER:Argonaut Software GAME PUBLISHER:Mindscape Copyright 1990, Argonaut Software Argonaut’s entry in the racing genre using the Tom Cruise Days of Thunder movie licence. Here is your chance to become cocky Cole Trickle as you race around various circuits from the Daytona 500 to Phoenix.…

From the Database of Home of the Underdogs GAME DESIGNER:Ian Martin GAME DEVELOPER:The Software Refinery GAME PUBLISHER:Gremlin Copyright 1995, Gremlin Slipstream 5000 is a nice futuristic racing game with cool-looking fully-textured 3D graphics. They are very fluid albeit a bit slow. You can fly through varied courses located all over the world, there are also…

From the Database of Home of the Underdogs GAME DESIGNER: GAME DEVELOPER:Krisalis GAME PUBLISHER:Krisalis Copyright 1992, Krisalis First in Krisalis’ trio of soccer games based on the exploits of Manchester United, Manchester United Europe is a fun action soccer game that lets you lead this popular club in major European tournaments, including the European Cup,…

From the Database of Home of the Underdogs GAME DESIGNER:Tuomas Korppi GAME DEVELOPER:Freeware GAME PUBLISHER:Freeware Copyright 1999, Tuomas Korppi Perhaps the world’s only sumo computer game, The Fight of the Sumo-Hoppers is an original and strangely appealing fighting game where you try to to beat your opponent in the sumo tradition: force him outside the…

From the Database of Home of the Underdogs GAME DESIGNER:David Lester GAME DEVELOPER:Impressions GAME PUBLISHER:Impressions Copyright 1995, Impressions First in an underrated series of soccer management sims, David Lester’s Ultimate Soccer Manager was released with little fanfare in Europe, although it manages enough success to warrant a few more sequels, the latest being 1998 edition…

From the Database of Home of the Underdogs GAME DESIGNER: GAME DEVELOPER:Microids GAME PUBLISHER:Microids Copyright 1991, Microids Decent action sports game – futuristic and brutal, comparable with Speedball 2, although miles away from its quality and fun. Instead of a square playing field, Killerball plays in a round arena. It is a rather violent game,…

From the Database of Home of the Underdogs GAME DESIGNER:Karl West & Alex Davis GAME DEVELOPER:Imagitec Design GAME PUBLISHER:Gremlin Copyright 1991, Gremlin Team Suzuki is a decent motorcycle racing simulation by Gremlin. All objects in the game including bikes and drivers are polygons except your dashboard, which is bitmapped. They are smooth and fast, however…

From the Database of Home of the Underdogs GAME DESIGNER: GAME DEVELOPER:Grand Slam GAME PUBLISHER:Grand Slam Copyright 1991, Grand Slam One of the most poorly designed and poorly conceived footie games ever made, England Football Championship has very little to recommend, except for the ability to take control of the full England squad — but…

From the Database of Home of the Underdogs GAME DESIGNER: GAME DEVELOPER:Mindscape GAME PUBLISHER:Mindscape Copyright 1995, Mindscape As the game title implies, Al Unser Jr. Arcade Racing is an arcade style racer for Windows starring F1 racer of the same name. The game doesn’t offer much to the simulation freak, but if you’re looking for…

From the Database of Home of the Underdogs GAME DESIGNER: GAME DEVELOPER:Graftgold GAME PUBLISHER:Empire Interactive Copyright 1994, Empire Interactive A fun and humorous soccer game, Empire Soccer offers nothing new to the genre dominated by Sensible Soccer, but still stands out with its cartoonish graphics, big player sprites that are much easier to see than…

From the Database of Home of the Underdogs GAME DESIGNER:Dino Dini GAME DEVELOPER:Virgin Interactive GAME PUBLISHER:Virgin Interactive Copyright 1994, Virgin Interactive Arguably the best soccer game ever made, Goal! is the last soccer game by Dino Dini, the meistro behind such classic soccer games as Kick Off series and Player Manager. The hallmark of Goal!…

From the Database of Home of the Underdogs GAME DESIGNER: GAME DEVELOPER:Microids GAME PUBLISHER:Microids Copyright 1991, Microids Little action-sports game by Micro?ds. In short, Sliders could be described as a mixture of Marble Madness and one-on-one soccer. Two players (you vs. a friend or computer) control a little marble over an isometric-view playfield, trying to…

From the Database of Home of the Underdogs GAME DESIGNER:Arthur MacLean GAME DEVELOPER:System 3 GAME PUBLISHER:System 3 Copyright 1989, System 3 Well, three years after the original game they seemed to have brought out a PC conversion of the C64 all-time classic International Karate. But *MyHeartBreaksAndBurstsIntoTears* when seeing this, one wonders why they raped this…

From the Database of Home of the Underdogs GAME DESIGNER: GAME DEVELOPER:ZCT Systems GAME PUBLISHER:Electronic Arts Copyright 1992, ZCT Systems Michael Jordan in Flight is a neat basketball game, one of the first to use digitized video footage of players, although the results are not very effective. It was also one of the first games…

From the Database of Home of the Underdogs GAME DESIGNER: GAME DEVELOPER:Softie GAME PUBLISHER:GameTek Copyright 1990, GameTek A very disappointing, sub-par basketball game based on the show basketball team Harlem Globetrotters. Well, even for 1990, I would say that this is a very poor simulation of the sport. Ugly graphics, hardly any sound, simple and…

From the Database of Home of the Underdogs GAME DESIGNER:Martin Edmondson & Nick Chamberlain GAME DEVELOPER:DMA Design GAME PUBLISHER:Psygnosis Copyright 1989, Psygnosis Ballistix is a decent – for its time – conversion of Reflection’s fast-paced Amiga airhockey style game that is set in a fantasy scenario. The conversion was done by popular designers DMA Design,…

From the Database of Home of the Underdogs GAME DESIGNER: GAME DEVELOPER:Bethesda Softworks GAME PUBLISHER:Bethesda Softworks Copyright 1991, Bethesda Softworks Last and arguably best in Bethesda’s Wayne Gretzky Hockey series, Wayne Gretzky Hockey 3 continues the legacy of its predecessors with even better VGA graphics, more player stats, and longer league play. As with earlier…

From the Database of Home of the Underdogs GAME DESIGNER:Craig Walton & Julian Lefay GAME DEVELOPER:Bethesda Softworks GAME PUBLISHER:Bethesda Softworks Copyright 1990, Bethesda Softworks A better sequel to Bethesda’s classic Wayne Gretsky Hockey, WGH2 takes the innovative hockey sim to the next level with much sharper graphics, more player options, and even the ability to…

From the Database of Home of the Underdogs GAME DESIGNER:Ed Fletcher & Julian Lefay GAME DEVELOPER:Bethesda Softworks GAME PUBLISHER:Bethesda Softworks Copyright 1989, Bethesda Softworks One of the best sport simulations ever made, Bethesda’s Wayne Gretzky Hockey is a classic hockey game that has it all: knuckle-blistering action in the rink, coaching options, great graphics (for…

From the Database of Home of the Underdogs GAME DESIGNER: GAME DEVELOPER:Rage Software GAME PUBLISHER:Time Warner Interactive Copyright 1995, Rage Software Striker ’95 is an above-average soccer game that features some of the best graphics for its time. Similar to Actua Soccer by Gremlin, Striker ’95 features a true 3D environment, with rotoscoped player animations…

From the Database of Home of the Underdogs GAME DESIGNER:Ade Carless & Andy Findlay GAME DEVELOPER:Gremlin GAME PUBLISHER:Gremlin Copyright 1995, Gremlin Actua Soccer is one of the first soccer games ever that presents a true 3D environment and allows for up to 4 players to play on the same computer. The game is very long…

From the Database of Home of the Underdogs GAME DESIGNER: GAME DEVELOPER:MindSpan GAME PUBLISHER:SEGA Copyright 1990, SEGA Endorsed by Hall of Famer Quarterback Joe Montana, Joe Montana Football (JMF) was one of the first SEGA football games, released back in 1990. This company is known for manking great sports games — but ten years ago,…

From the Database of Home of the Underdogs GAME DESIGNER:Kevin Toms GAME DEVELOPER:Addictive GAME PUBLISHER:Addictive Copyright 1988, Addictive Football Manager 2 is a great sequel to Football Manager 1, one of the world’s first soccer management classics on the Spectrum computer. Originally released by Kevin Toms on his own Addictive label (later swallowed up by…

From the Database of Home of the Underdogs GAME DESIGNER: GAME DEVELOPER:Zeppelin Games GAME PUBLISHER:Zeppelin Games Copyright 1994, Zeppelin Games Zeppelin’s final game before changing its name to Junkyard and sold itself off to Merit Studios, Match of The Day – Bundesliga is a decent soccer management game (SMG) centering on the German Bundesliga league.…

From the Database of Home of the Underdogs GAME DESIGNER: GAME DEVELOPER:Anco Software GAME PUBLISHER:Anco Software Copyright 1995, Anco Software A great sequel to Dino Dini’s groundbreaking Kick Off 2 (although ironically NOT designed by him, since Dino Dini left Anco due to internal dispute, and went on to produce Goal! for Virgin). Kick Off…

From the Database of Home of the Underdogs GAME DESIGNER: GAME DEVELOPER:Croteam GAME PUBLISHER:Freeware Copyright 1995, Croteam Football Glory is an interesting Sensible Soccer clone that falls far short of that classic due to insipid gameplay and poor controls. The game offers many options, from World cup to European championships through to domestic leagues. You…

From the Database of Home of the Underdogs GAME DESIGNER:Michael Powell GAME DEVELOPER:Electronic Arts GAME PUBLISHER:Electronic Arts Copyright 1990, Michael Powell Powerdrome is a fun futuristic racer with a great premise, marred by very bad mouse-based controls. Guide your sleek new racing machine round one of half a dozen tracks on different planets, overtaking experienced…

From the Database of Home of the Underdogs GAME DESIGNER: GAME DEVELOPER:SEGA GAME PUBLISHER:Activision Copyright 1990, SEGA Power Drift should be familiar to those of you who owned a C64/Amiga or played arcade games in the late 1980s. For those of you who didn’t, then I think one can safely say that it inspired one…

From the Database of Home of the Underdogs GAME DESIGNER:M. Potente GAME DEVELOPER:Domark GAME PUBLISHER:Domark Copyright 1989, Tengen Its time to put on your swimsuit, drop a coin down the coin slot and take a trip down the roaring rivers in the pursuit of treasures, spare patches for your tubes, as well as soda cans…

From the Database of Home of the Underdogs GAME DESIGNER: GAME DEVELOPER:Domark GAME PUBLISHER:Domark Copyright 1990, Tengen STUN Runner is PC conversion of Atari’s excellent futuristic arcade racing game from 1989, a mixture of rollercoaster racing, bobsled and a shoot’em up game. The game uses polygonal 3D graphics which are fairly fast but sadly not…

From the Database of Home of the Underdogs GAME DESIGNER: GAME DEVELOPER:Domark GAME PUBLISHER:Domark Copyright 1991, Tengen Domark’s second try in converting Atari’s arcade racing hit after Hard Drivin’ from 1989. As far as I know, there was no Hard Drivin’ II in the arcades, so this one has seen its light only on computers.…

From the Database of Home of the Underdogs GAME DESIGNER:Jurgen Friedrich GAME DEVELOPER:Domark GAME PUBLISHER:Domark Copyright 1989, Tengen Hard Drivin’ is a good PC conversion of Atari’s arcade racing smash-hit. The arcade game was revolutionary in realism and feeling. Of course, the computer versions were never able to capture anything from it. But they tried.…

From the Database of Home of the Underdogs GAME DESIGNER:Mark Madland GAME DEVELOPER:Synergistic Software GAME PUBLISHER:Electronic Arts Copyright 1990, Mark Madland Low Blow is a fun boxing game by Synergistic Software. Game graphics are ok with big nice boxer sprites, even though the animations couldn’t be described as being fluid. Fighting against computer opposition usually…

From the Database of Home of the Underdogs GAME DESIGNER:Jon Stuart GAME DEVELOPER:Manic Media Productions GAME PUBLISHER:Virgin Interactive Copyright 1995, Manic Media Productions One of the best go-kart racing games ever made for the PC, Virgin’s SuperKarts features excellent cartoon-style graphics, worldwide tracks, and addictive gameplay that strikes a good balance between car handling realism…

From the Database of Home of the Underdogs GAME DESIGNER: GAME DEVELOPER:Core Design GAME PUBLISHER:Freeware Copyright 1993, Core Design A fun prehistoric racing game that was also released on many console systems, e.g. 3DO and Megadrive. The storyline is as simple as the gameplay: millionaire caveman Millstone Rockafella has arranged a formula BC contest with…

From the Database of Home of the Underdogs GAME DESIGNER: GAME DEVELOPER:Team 17 GAME PUBLISHER:Team 17 Copyright 1995, Team 17 Overdrive is a fun fast-paced overhead racing game by Team 17. In the style of Magnetic Field’s Super Cars 2, although not as enjoyable as that classic. It’s a conversion of the Amiga game from…

From the Database of Home of the Underdogs GAME DESIGNER: GAME DEVELOPER:Team 17 GAME PUBLISHER:Team 17 Copyright 1995, Team 17 Well, bowling is probably not one of those sports that cry for a computer conversion, but King Pin is actually a very nice game. In the style of Access Software’s oldie 10th Frame Bowling, but…

From the Database of Home of the Underdogs GAME DESIGNER: GAME DEVELOPER:Cyberdyne Systems GAME PUBLISHER:Ascaron Copyright 1995, Ascaron Pole Position (a.k.a. Team F1 outside Germany) is a great, atmospheric formula one management simulation, complex with many details and overall much nicer presentation than Edcom’s Grand Prix Manager. The game is arguably less realistic than MicroProse’s…

From the Database of Home of the Underdogs GAME DESIGNER:Werner Krahe & Jens Onnen GAME DEVELOPER:KRON GAME PUBLISHER:Software 2000 Copyright 1993, Software 2000 The ice-hockey counterpart to the popular soccer management game Bundesliga Manager Professional. It was done by the same people (KRON), and it shows as layout and design is very similar to the…

From the Database of Home of the Underdogs GAME DESIGNER:Arnd Nolte & Ralph Finke GAME DEVELOPER:Time Warp GAME PUBLISHER:Rainbow Arts Copyright 1989, Rainbow Arts Old but good volleyball game by Time Warp. There are not that many other computer volleyball games I remember, except the great Beach Volley by OCEAN for the Amiga and Kings…

From the Database of Home of the Underdogs GAME DESIGNER:Patrick Cook GAME DEVELOPER:Dynamix GAME PUBLISHER:Dynamix Copyright 1993, Dynamix One of the best sports games ever made, period, Front Page Sports Football is the first game in Dynamix’ long-running and popular Front Page Sports games series. With its stunning graphics, realistic replays, and incredible, intriguing season…

From the Database of Home of the Underdogs GAME DESIGNER: GAME DEVELOPER:Rainbow Arts GAME PUBLISHER:Rainbow Arts Copyright 1991, Rainbow Arts Masterblazer is Rainbow Arts’ follow-up to Lucasfilm’s classic futuristic sports game Ballblazer from the early 80’s (that was unfortunately never made for the PC). Besides the Ballblazer game mode there’s also a race and very…