Namco Prime Soccer PS1 Review

Namco Prime Soccer is an arcade styled soccer game that was released for the PlayStation in 1996 and is part of a series of J League soccer games that would have seen life in the arcades in the early 90s with this version being ported to consoles during the mid 90s and offers up a very unique and different style of gameplay. 

From a visual standpoint it very much reminds you of the earlier FIFA games that would have been seen in the early 90s before it went all into 3D in 1997. 

It has a very similar play style and feel but it has some really nice graphics and 2D visuals that really set the game apart from many other games that were seen at the time. 

It has just some very fun and quirky elements that helped it to really stand out as it does focus very on arcade aesthetics but it just has a unique feel to it that really suits the style of the game and it has a lot of cool different features, modes and various attributes that also add to the playability of the game. 

You have your typical modes like multiplayer and you can play in different tournaments and exhibition matches and so forth but you also have some cool features when you're playing. 

You can play with different aesthetics on the teams and you can string passes together and it is very easy to pick up and play compared to many other soccer games that are out there but it has one unique feature as well at a different points randomly throughout play, you will be given the option where you'll have to go one-on-one against an opponent on the pitch either the computer AI is against you or you're against them and you have to time a button press or directional press on the d-pad and you can shimmy or use some tricks to dribble the ball around the player so that you can get around them and take advantage of them to throw them off. 

So it will give you some leverage to gain some sort of a distance away from the opposing player which is a pretty cool concept and it was very cool to see it back then and in all respects to the game it is very reflective of its time like it is an arcade style game at its heart and it just has the look and feel and the whole vibe about the game is definitely more arcade than anything else. 

But I think that's what really helps it to stand out, like having spent time playing it I genuinely think that this is a cool little game. It's very different from your more mainstream soccer games, like I said it plays very like the earlier FIFA games but it also plays very like the earlier 2D style of international superstar soccer games also. 

It just has a really good dynamic about it and from what I have learned through online research and even through comments and from people messaging looking for videos of this game, clearly the game has a very unique following and there are a lot of fans of this type of game on the PlayStation. 

So it was worth while checking it out I have to say, I'm pleasantly surprised by the game itself. 

It is a very very fun game, it is reflective of its time but it has some really cool features and it just has some cool features that helps it to really stand out and it is simple enough to pick up and play. 

Even a beginner coming into playing this will find it tricky at first granted but once you put a bit of time into it you just will have a lot of fun. 

I found that it's definitely reflective with time it does put me In mind of playing old soccer games on the Sega Mega Drive even even the Super Nintendo as some of them games were quite fun and they were able to reflect the whole atmosphere of soccer at that time and this game does do that as well. 

So I think that's what's really cool about it is the fact is that it replicates that aura, that presence that football had during the mid 90s which I think is pretty cool in its own right. It has some nice 2D visuals with the character sprites and it has some really good graphics in terms of the all round environments and surroundings of the game. 

All in all it's just a cool little game I think that is worthwhile playing and it's definitely something a wee bit different from a more typical and mainstream or even 3D soccer games also seen on the PlayStation so I'd highly recommend if you're looking for something different or even something wee bit old school and nostalgic, this is definitely a game I think that is worth trying out for sure. 

And I would love to know your thoughts on Namco Prime Soccer for the PlayStation, if you have played this game yourself and if so what do you think of it. 

Do you enjoy these old school type of soccer games or do you prefer more mainstream and more 3D type of soccer games that were also released on the PlayStation itself? 

I'd love to hear whatever stories you do have at this game so be sure to share it in the comments below and be sure to keep watching to see more content on other games similar to Namco Prime Soccer, you can check out the blog where we will be diving into the iconic elements of these classic video games and as always keep those gaming memories alive...