The other week, I got to check out the latest Captain Tsubasa game ahead of its release next month – Captain Tsubasa 2: World Fighters. Though I haven’t read or watched the series before and can’t say I’m into soccer, I find arcade-y sports games fun more often than not, and I’m always down to experience a new manga/anime series in whatever form it may take. I came away from the preview both interested in the game itself and in its source material – a far cry from where I started.
When I first started the demo, I was able to make my own character in the style of Captain Tsubasa. Yōichi Takahashi’s distinct art style is captured pretty perfectly, as all of the options translate the notable quirks of his drawings to 3D without looking awkward or out of place. Even without prior experience with the series, I could immediately tell the characters would fit in. As such, having my own avatar portrayed in that style was rather neat.
Credit: BNEA
The best part of my Captain Tsubasa 2: World Fighters experience was the Story Mode, which let me take on Brazil, China, and Saudi Arabia in an adaptation of the “World Youth” arc. Cutscenes before and after, as well as in the half-time intermission, illustrate the stakes of the matches for Tsubasa Oozora and his team. I found the opposing teams to be similarly enthralling, each having no shortage of the shonen manga tropes that I love so much. I like that even the most antagonistic opponents really just have an intense passion for soccer at their core, creating an interesting sort of camaraderie between the main characters and their rivals.
Captain Tsubasa 2: World Fighters is filled with fast-paced and flashy action.
As for the actual gameplay, I mean it when I say I never imagined I’d enjoy a soccer game this much. Typically, your average sports game doesn’t do much for me, with only the more ridiculous and arcade-y experiences like NHL Hitz and the Mario Sports titles really standing out. Captain Tsubasa 2: World Fighters feels like it can be safely added to that list, as it’s gotten me shockingly invested. Perhaps it’s the dramatic anime moves that go the extra mile for me, as the extreme super shots are visually stunning. The first time I saw a soccer ball burn through the net after being kicked, I knew this was more up my alley than your average sports game.
Credit: BNEA
Playing as a whole team was less overwhelming than I expected, as it felt as though there was always a nearby teammate to pass to or intercept an opponent. Coordinating shots and plays had me thinking on the fly and trying to relentlessly outmaneuver the opposing team, which are things I’ve never cared all that much about in other sports games. The gaps between plays are quick, the plays themselves are fast and flashy, and the directional input-based minigame that determines how good a save your goalie makes is an especially cool touch that makes it actually fun to make saves manually.
My only concerns with Captain Tsubasa 2: World Fighters are that it took a while to get a handle on the mechanics and that the admittedly gorgeous action scenes that appear when you pull off certain moves mess with the game’s flow. For the mechanics, I think a more comprehensive tutorial will likely remedy that, but the action scenes are a bit trickier. They tend to disrupt the flow of a match, interrupting tense moments when quick input may be needed. That said, they’re visually dynamic and communicate the manga-like drama of each moment, so their presence is appreciated in that regard. I just wish they were a bit less disruptive.
Credit: BNEA
Captain Tsubasa 2: World Fighters has me actually looking forward to playing soccer, which I didn’t anticipate before this demo. Even if you’re like me and not into sports, I think you might dig how extreme and smooth the gameplay is here. I’m definitely going to play the full game when it launches for the PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X/S, Nintendo Switch, and PC on August 28, and I might even have to read some Captain Tsubasa in the meantime.
