Kick of 2 was brutal, and we loved it for it. Sensible soccer was a great game, but when you scored a goal in Kick Off , it like you scored the winner at Wembley.
Agree to your ratings. Microprose Soccer we played a lot back in the days and it was always fun. Striker was also nice. Once I scored a free kick goal in the 89th minute, that was great! But I failed in the penality shooting. KO2 and Sensie both are fun, even we played KO and later KO2.
Cool video, there are a few games that you could add for part 2 - Graeme Souness Vector Soccer, European Football Champ, European Championship 1992. Graeme Souness Vector Soccer was an absolute horror show of a game - possibly a good building block for 3rd games that followed like Actua Soccer but not a playable game. European Football Champ was a fairly high profile game being a conversion of a well regarded Taito coinup and was released to coincide with Euro 92. European Championship 1992 from Eilte was a conversion of the Tecmo arcade game World Cup 90 rebadged for the European Championships in 1992.
I was going to recommend another similar sounding game called “European Champions”. It’s an upgrade of the Emlyn Hughes game engine which you rightly praise, with a wider pitch and better graphics (but some familiar sounds)!
Kick off was the one for me on the ST & later the Amiga. Incidentally, on the amiga disk you could load up the gfx into DPaint & mess around with them. Dunno if the same could be done wirh the ST version
I can’t remember how many controllers I killed on kick off2 before moving to sensible soccer. I would definitely rank both in the highest tier both having such different vibes and quality. Thanks for this video can’t wait for the second part especially since I have seen Manchester United which i played at a friends and I can’t remember accurately …
Ha ha! My uncle was the same. Even the rugged Cruiser wasn’t enough to withstand the battering! I played a ton of Manchester United Europe as a kid, but the first one I’m less familiar with, so some research necessary!
Back in the day one of the computer magazines ran a 'goal of the month/season' competition where you could send in your best goals that you'd saved to disk with the possibility of winning a prize and/or a trophy. Unfortunately I never got around to sending in any of the masterpieces that I scored. 😢 Sensi was a lot more playable, but 'technically' Kick Off 2 was king. One of the greatest feelings in all my years of gaming (which encompasses its entire history) was when I scored a 'worldie' whilst playing Kick Off 2. Sensi was more fun, but Kick Off 2 was more gratifying. It was the football equivalent of the Dark Souls games.
European Champions (also known and Olympic Marseille or Lothar Matthias) published by Ocean was an upgrade of Emlyn Hughes, including widening the narrow pitch you mention, and really good graphics too . I played both KO2 and Sensi to death so will be interested to see what you conclude on that video.
I didn't know Sensible Soccer was available on the ST! Out of the games I can distinguish in the list I think we had the most fun with Italia 1990. Never really gave Kick Off proper chance as it was too challengeing. Another game I remember that I can't spot on the list is Super Soccer Challenge. I'm not sure if it was actually any good, but you could edit your team colors and shirt patterns which I absolutely loved.
I’ll look into Super Soccer Challenge. I might be able to add it for part 2 👍 Great to hear you having fun with Italia 90, I don’t have the best memories of it, so I’ll be playing this week before I film part 2. It was the World Cup that cemented my love of football as a kid so it’s only right that it’s got a good game!
@@thejoyofsticks I've never had an interest in sports, so we probably liked Italia 1990 best because it was easy to play and fun enough. My favourite "football" game is Nintendo World Cup on the NES. Ridiculous, but I loved it 😆
I remember having 2 versions of italia 90. One being italia 90 and italia 90 world cup soccer where you the screen would alter to behind the goal and you'd have to move the keeper which was very odd and difficult. Also had Manchester United in europe which was good and of course Sensible soccer was king. Me and my mates would often talk in code in front of parents "feel like being sensible?"
sure I am old, but I really liked the cute and colourful pixelart of Gazza 1. Never played it, so I trust you gameplay was rubbish, but presentation for me gets thumbs up!
It does have a cute appeal, for sure. I always thought Match Day 2 on the Amstrad had that appeal too. But yes, the gameplay is less cute, unfortunately.
Great video, thanks man. Kick Off was the 1st game I bought for my ST (after the Power Pack). I spent thousands of hours with it and Kick Off 2 Europe.
You might be on to something, Bill. It is certainly closer in quality to Emlyn Hughes than Gazza II. The rankings aren't set in stone just yet, we've got a bunch more games to go and things can get shuffled!
Great video Marc. I spent hours playing Sensi and Kick Off 2. Sensi you could just pick and play so it was good fun for a casual game. Like you said in the video, you had to put the time in to get good at Kick Off 2 and it was so much more rewarding to play as a result. If anyone complained that Kick Off was too hard or uncontrollable, I just thought they haven't played it enough! Kick Off 2 is the the number one for me!
Awesome video, Marc 🍻 I actually pre-ordered Gazza's Superstar Soccer for the Amiga, but when I went to collect it from my local computer shop... I saw the newly released Stunt Car Racer running 😲 and bought that instead. Yippee! 😁 Then the brilliant Kick Off became an obsession; me and my friends were always playing it for hours and hours. The same with the even better Kick Off 2. 😀 After that... the sensational Sensible Soccer 🥳 became the de facto footy game that had people hooked for years and years. It was the pinnacle of 16-bit football. 😎
did you ever come back around to GOAL! (1993)? that ended up being my fave. the one i learned inside and out. loved it. haven't played it in like three decades, mind.
You really dodged a bullet there! From Gazza to Stunt Car Racer? What an upgrade! 😅 I love your words about footy games. Kick Off and Sensible joined replica kits and footy stickers to become a church of football. Just glorious. Then I discovered Championship Manager and it sealed the obsession.
@@thejoyofsticks I remember being hooked on football management games for the Amstrad and then the Amiga. Played loads of them... from Football Manager 2 to Tracksuit Manager and finally Championship Manager. I found them really addictive as a kid. But completely stopped playing them as a teen It's the only gaming genre that I abandoned and have never returned to. 😞
For me kick off 2 is the better game in terms of the sheer amount you can do on the pitch but Sensi has the better presentation. Kick Off 2s menus and stuff look like an unfinished tech demo in comparison. Also I will rep in advance for Manchester United In Europe - which is as far as I know the only “arcadey” football game where your players can be booked for dissent.
Heh! Yes, that Anco UI looked ropey in the late eighties and they never really updated it for any of their games, did they? I’ll be checking the manual for MUtd Europe for the control combination to call the ref a wanker in preparation for next week.
Kick Off 2 & Sensible are too good to die, no matter which one is the best... in my country Greece, there are yearly competitions for both these soccer games... these competitions take place in luxurious hotels and a lot of people participate
Great vid as always, I was just like you Emlyn Hughes to kick off to Sensible, for me Sensible was by far the best and would only have sensible in top section so far, I couldn’t get away with kick off personally, I got really frustrated trying to dribble etc, when I started playing sensible it made it so much more fun the way the ball would stick to the player more, just my opinion, sensible did have my team Sunderland in the special teams as they played in the 1992 FA Cup final against Liverpool so maybe I’m being a bit biased 🤣 Used to love Emlyn Hughes too, and I can agree with one thing, Peter Beardsley soccer defo needs to be at the bottom, that game was sooooo bad man 😂
Yes! One of the first things I would do is put the current Birmingham City team in. I think that’s partly why I was so looking forward to SWOS on the ST, so I could legitimately play as my team. I wonder what the best way to play SWOS is these days? I know there was an XBox version. DOSBox emulator maybe?
@@thejoyofsticks I know mate, my mates that had the Amiga would brag about playing SWOS for hours and I used to get so jealous as it wasn’t out for the ST as we know, the management games I had access to the ST where mediocre to say the least 🤣 Can’t wait for part 2 don’t hold us in suspense for too long mate 😂 I saw Manchester United footy game Is next, I vaguely remember that game man, the players would warm up on the sidelines I do remember that, I also think the game featured a referee 🤔 I could be wrong, look forward to it anyways 👍🏻
My mate had an Amiga, so my life wasn't completely devoid of SWOS, thankfully. I've just remembered that I have a couple of Amigas in the loft (a 500 and a 600) so maybe I should dig one out for a bit of Summer of SWOS action. I certainly remember those features you mentioned in Man Utd Europe, so you might be right. I'll need to play the original this week for research as I've never played it!
@@thejoyofsticks Yes it would be a nice name for your top. By the way I played only Kick Off 2 football video game, and spent hours on it. I played football to death in the school yard when i was kid
Thanks for the feedback. I think I would enjoy it too! I remember extensively playing the various iterations of Championship Manager, Premier Manager, Player Manager and Treble Champions, but I’d have to research any others.
AFAIK, of these, i've only played the dino dini titles and SENSIBLE. i remember seeing STRIKER on GAMESMASTER, whenever that was. other systems? ISS on the SNES got a bit of play.
I was football obsessed through my youth, so played absolutely every football game I could get my hands on. I liked ISS too. Nice vibe to it: arcadey and fun. And it would go on to spawn one of my all time favourite footy games: Pro Evolution Soccer 2 on the PS1.
@@thejoyofsticks i've tried to get into sports and it's never stuck. while i could (conceivably) be impressed by some demonstration of athletic ability or skill, i just don't have a stake in any of it, and will never care about the fortunes of one person or team over another. closest i got was maybe basketball for a while, but that drifted away easily, too. i should maybe look at few historically significant games; see if i can find a way in again.
🤣 I couldn't resist. Bought a season ticket on early bird release date! I was a season ticket holder last time we got relegated to the third tier, so it just felt right. We went to every away game that year too. Unfortunately, I don't think I'll be able to get away tickets this time as Blues have a tier system for fans getting tickets. This is my first season ticket for 15 years, so I'm bottom rung!
@thejoyofsticks good man ..I got 5 ..missus and kids all wanted to go ..tilton standing...think we've broken the record for amount sold already...buzzing for the season 👊🏻
Kick of 2 was brutal, and we loved it for it. Sensible soccer was a great game, but when you scored a goal in Kick Off , it like you scored the winner at Wembley.
Yes! A goal in a real game of football is euphoric. Kick Off comes closest to that feeling for sure.
Agree to your ratings. Microprose Soccer we played a lot back in the days and it was always fun. Striker was also nice. Once I scored a free kick goal in the 89th minute, that was great! But I failed in the penality shooting. KO2 and Sensie both are fun, even we played KO and later KO2.
👍 I seem to remember Striker had really good penalties. It certainly did on the SNES. So, which is best? Sensi or KO2?
Cool video, there are a few games that you could add for part 2 - Graeme Souness Vector Soccer, European Football Champ, European Championship 1992.
Graeme Souness Vector Soccer was an absolute horror show of a game - possibly a good building block for 3rd games that followed like Actua Soccer but not a playable game.
European Football Champ was a fairly high profile game being a conversion of a well regarded Taito coinup and was released to coincide with Euro 92.
European Championship 1992 from Eilte was a conversion of the Tecmo arcade game World Cup 90 rebadged for the European Championships in 1992.
Massive thanks for the suggestions, mate! I’ll add them to list. This could even become a 3 parter! 😂
I was going to recommend another similar sounding game called “European Champions”. It’s an upgrade of the Emlyn Hughes game engine which you rightly praise, with a wider pitch and better graphics (but some familiar sounds)!
Kick off was the one for me on the ST & later the Amiga.
Incidentally, on the amiga disk you could load up the gfx into DPaint & mess around with them. Dunno if the same could be done wirh the ST version
We certainly never did that, but it would be great fun. I’m reminded of UNsensible Soccer where the players were replaced with pieces of fruit.
I can’t remember how many controllers I killed on kick off2 before moving to sensible soccer. I would definitely rank both in the highest tier both having such different vibes and quality. Thanks for this video can’t wait for the second part especially since I have seen Manchester United which i played at a friends and I can’t remember accurately …
Ha ha! My uncle was the same. Even the rugged Cruiser wasn’t enough to withstand the battering! I played a ton of Manchester United Europe as a kid, but the first one I’m less familiar with, so some research necessary!
Don't forget International Soccer Challenge and Olympique de Marseille Super Football
Kick off 2 absolute fan, SSoccer was really fun but 2nd
Thanks for the suggestions! I think I’m going to need to make this a three parter!
Sensible soccer, what great game on ST. My top on ST.
One of the best footy games on any system. 👍
Back in the day one of the computer magazines ran a 'goal of the month/season' competition where you could send in your best goals that you'd saved to disk with the possibility of winning a prize and/or a trophy. Unfortunately I never got around to sending in any of the masterpieces that I scored. 😢
Sensi was a lot more playable, but 'technically' Kick Off 2 was king. One of the greatest feelings in all my years of gaming (which encompasses its entire history) was when I scored a 'worldie' whilst playing Kick Off 2.
Sensi was more fun, but Kick Off 2 was more gratifying. It was the football equivalent of the Dark Souls games.
Ah, the promise of a Sensi - Kick Off comparison, yes!!
It’s got to be done! The argument must be put to bed once and for all!
European Champions (also known and Olympic Marseille or Lothar Matthias) published by Ocean was an upgrade of Emlyn Hughes, including widening the narrow pitch you mention, and really good graphics too . I played both KO2 and Sensi to death so will be interested to see what you conclude on that video.
I didn't know Sensible Soccer was available on the ST! Out of the games I can distinguish in the list I think we had the most fun with Italia 1990. Never really gave Kick Off proper chance as it was too challengeing. Another game I remember that I can't spot on the list is Super Soccer Challenge. I'm not sure if it was actually any good, but you could edit your team colors and shirt patterns which I absolutely loved.
I’ll look into Super Soccer Challenge. I might be able to add it for part 2 👍 Great to hear you having fun with Italia 90, I don’t have the best memories of it, so I’ll be playing this week before I film part 2. It was the World Cup that cemented my love of football as a kid so it’s only right that it’s got a good game!
@@thejoyofsticks I've never had an interest in sports, so we probably liked Italia 1990 best because it was easy to play and fun enough. My favourite "football" game is Nintendo World Cup on the NES. Ridiculous, but I loved it 😆
I had the Gameboy version! Loved the graphics (which I now know as River City Ransom graphics) and the power shots were so cool. Lots of charm!
Love it 😀 Definitely a tricky decision between Sensible Soccer and Kick Off 2! Can't wait to see the next part, particularly your thoughts on Team
Should make for a fun video. There’s a seed of an idea for a new series of videos pitting favourites alongside each other here.
That would be really cool. And who knows, whilst you are in a football mood, you could even do part 2 of your Championship Manager guide 😜😝🤣🤣
Funnily enough I was thinking about that today. Part 2 will be a player's buying guide! 👍
I remember having 2 versions of italia 90. One being italia 90 and italia 90 world cup soccer where you the screen would alter to behind the goal and you'd have to move the keeper which was very odd and difficult. Also had Manchester United in europe which was good and of course Sensible soccer was king. Me and my mates would often talk in code in front of parents "feel like being sensible?"
sure I am old, but I really liked the cute and colourful pixelart of Gazza 1. Never played it, so I trust you gameplay was rubbish, but presentation for me gets thumbs up!
It does have a cute appeal, for sure. I always thought Match Day 2 on the Amstrad had that appeal too. But yes, the gameplay is less cute, unfortunately.
Great video, thanks man. Kick Off was the 1st game I bought for my ST (after the Power Pack). I spent thousands of hours with it and Kick Off 2 Europe.
Those gazza games need to go down a level. No way any of them can be in the same level as microprose soccer.
You might be on to something, Bill. It is certainly closer in quality to Emlyn Hughes than Gazza II. The rankings aren't set in stone just yet, we've got a bunch more games to go and things can get shuffled!
Excellent video. A lot of football games I did not play or know back then. It's fascinating to see how smooth Kick Off still looks today
It was a marvel back then. A proper jaw-dropper.
Great video Marc. I spent hours playing Sensi and Kick Off 2. Sensi you could just pick and play so it was good fun for a casual game. Like you said in the video, you had to put the time in to get good at Kick Off 2 and it was so much more rewarding to play as a result. If anyone complained that Kick Off was too hard or uncontrollable, I just thought they haven't played it enough! Kick Off 2 is the the number one for me!
Another awesome video 👊 Thank You. Kick Off over KO2 for me, just as Speedball over SB2. Still fire up the ST for a raz on Kick Off now.
Love the way you have compared the games, excellent viewing as always mate❤
Awesome video, Marc 🍻 I actually pre-ordered Gazza's Superstar Soccer for the Amiga, but when I went to collect it from my local computer shop... I saw the newly released Stunt Car Racer running 😲 and bought that instead. Yippee! 😁 Then the brilliant Kick Off became an obsession; me and my friends were always playing it for hours and hours. The same with the even better Kick Off 2. 😀 After that... the sensational Sensible Soccer 🥳 became the de facto footy game that had people hooked for years and years. It was the pinnacle of 16-bit football. 😎
did you ever come back around to GOAL! (1993)? that ended up being my fave. the one i learned inside and out. loved it. haven't played it in like three decades, mind.
You really dodged a bullet there! From Gazza to Stunt Car Racer? What an upgrade! 😅 I love your words about footy games. Kick Off and Sensible joined replica kits and footy stickers to become a church of football. Just glorious. Then I discovered Championship Manager and it sealed the obsession.
I'll be playing Goal this week as it's been too long since I last played to judge it fairly. Looking forward to it!
@@thejoyofsticks I remember being hooked on football management games for the Amstrad and then the Amiga. Played loads of them... from Football Manager 2 to Tracksuit Manager and finally Championship Manager. I found them really addictive as a kid. But completely stopped playing them as a teen It's the only gaming genre that I abandoned and have never returned to. 😞
It’s probably for the best I dread to think how many hours I’ve “invested” in the various Champ Man iterations over the years.
Nice. I would add Hotball to your list, that was definitely a stinker.
Very nice video. I would add Super Soccer Challenge by Genias.
You're the second person to mention it. I’ll add it to the list for next week! 👍
For me kick off 2 is the better game in terms of the sheer amount you can do on the pitch but Sensi has the better presentation. Kick Off 2s menus and stuff look like an unfinished tech demo in comparison.
Also I will rep in advance for Manchester United In Europe - which is as far as I know the only “arcadey” football game where your players can be booked for dissent.
Heh! Yes, that Anco UI looked ropey in the late eighties and they never really updated it for any of their games, did they?
I’ll be checking the manual for MUtd Europe for the control combination to call the ref a wanker in preparation for next week.
Kick Off 2 & Sensible are too good to die, no matter which one is the best... in my country Greece, there are yearly competitions for both these soccer games... these competitions take place in luxurious hotels and a lot of people participate
Knowing that somewhere in the world, games 3 decades old have that kind of following and bring people lots of joy makes me very happy indeed.
@@thejoyofsticksme too for sure
Great vid as always, I was just like you Emlyn Hughes to kick off to Sensible, for me Sensible was by far the best and would only have sensible in top section so far, I couldn’t get away with kick off personally, I got really frustrated trying to dribble etc, when I started playing sensible it made it so much more fun the way the ball would stick to the player more, just my opinion, sensible did have my team Sunderland in the special teams as they played in the 1992 FA Cup final against Liverpool so maybe I’m being a bit biased 🤣 Used to love Emlyn Hughes too, and I can agree with one thing, Peter Beardsley soccer defo needs to be at the bottom, that game was sooooo bad man 😂
Yes! One of the first things I would do is put the current Birmingham City team in. I think that’s partly why I was so looking forward to SWOS on the ST, so I could legitimately play as my team. I wonder what the best way to play SWOS is these days? I know there was an XBox version. DOSBox emulator maybe?
@@thejoyofsticks I know mate, my mates that had the Amiga would brag about playing SWOS for hours and I used to get so jealous as it wasn’t out for the ST as we know, the management games I had access to the ST where mediocre to say the least 🤣
Can’t wait for part 2 don’t hold us in suspense for too long mate 😂 I saw Manchester United footy game Is next, I vaguely remember that game man, the players would warm up on the sidelines I do remember that, I also think the game featured a referee 🤔 I could be wrong, look forward to it anyways 👍🏻
My mate had an Amiga, so my life wasn't completely devoid of SWOS, thankfully. I've just remembered that I have a couple of Amigas in the loft (a 500 and a 600) so maybe I should dig one out for a bit of Summer of SWOS action.
I certainly remember those features you mentioned in Man Utd Europe, so you might be right. I'll need to play the original this week for research as I've never played it!
Where is "El phenomeno" on the top of tierlist ? Hoo he's the wonder kid
Are you talking about R9? What a player! They broke the mould when they made him. Sadly, never got to watch him play in the flesh.
@@thejoyofsticks Yes it would be a nice name for your top. By the way I played only Kick Off 2 football video game, and spent hours on it. I played football to death in the school yard when i was kid
Be great if you did a football manager/ment version of this type of video.
Thanks for the feedback. I think I would enjoy it too! I remember extensively playing the various iterations of Championship Manager, Premier Manager, Player Manager and Treble Champions, but I’d have to research any others.
AFAIK, of these, i've only played the dino dini titles and SENSIBLE. i remember seeing STRIKER on GAMESMASTER, whenever that was.
other systems? ISS on the SNES got a bit of play.
I was football obsessed through my youth, so played absolutely every football game I could get my hands on. I liked ISS too. Nice vibe to it: arcadey and fun. And it would go on to spawn one of my all time favourite footy games: Pro Evolution Soccer 2 on the PS1.
@@thejoyofsticks
the last time i watched football was during the 1990 world cup . . .
At least you went out on a high. What a tournament that was!
@@thejoyofsticks
i've tried to get into sports and it's never stuck. while i could (conceivably) be impressed by some demonstration of athletic ability or skill, i just don't have a stake in any of it, and will never care about the fortunes of one person or team over another. closest i got was maybe basketball for a while, but that drifted away easily, too. i should maybe look at few historically significant games; see if i can find a way in again.
Hello i only subscribed because ivy and simon told me to
Just a reminder: Kick Off is superior to Kick Off 2.
First wey hey 😆..gonna enjoy this one ...here goes
Always first to arrive in the box. He's a striker's striker.
@@thejoyofsticks just what blues need ..I'll dig my boots out
🤣
I couldn't resist. Bought a season ticket on early bird release date! I was a season ticket holder last time we got relegated to the third tier, so it just felt right. We went to every away game that year too. Unfortunately, I don't think I'll be able to get away tickets this time as Blues have a tier system for fans getting tickets. This is my first season ticket for 15 years, so I'm bottom rung!
@thejoyofsticks good man ..I got 5 ..missus and kids all wanted to go ..tilton standing...think we've broken the record for amount sold already...buzzing for the season 👊🏻
Only The Blues would break season ticket sales records after a relegation. I bloody love Bluenoses sometimes.
Gazza's Super Soccer should def be in the bottom tier. Absolutely unplayable. Remeber reading the ads for it and getting it for the c64. Terrible Game
It’s bad. Really bad. But it’s not Beardsley bad. 🫣
@@thejoyofsticks Beardsley appearently has Dracula standing in as referee going for it though! 😆