You can’t shoot and score straight away, instead when the keeper saves a shot, a gauge above his head (Spirit Meter) starts to deteriorate. Goalkeepers are almost like video game bosses. Of course, you need to pass the ball into open spaces and can do so with ground, long, and through passes, but the opposition’s AI is smart enough to make this a challenge. The gameplay takes place on a football field, but there’s much more to it than passing, scoring, and getting a victory. Dialogue options in the cutscenes helps to build relationships that help you to become the player you want, as well as enjoying a fun story at the same time. Whilst I chose to play in attack, the sheer strength and power of Takasugi was something I wanted to have. It gave me a chance to see which players I wanted to emulate, and it helped me to realise that Shingo Takasugi is a God amongst men. I played through this mode once I’d experienced the story of Tsubasa, and I’m glad I did. The second story sees you create a hero of your own, picking from one of three schools to start out at, building friendships and learning the skills of other players within the game. Thankfully, the action is excellent, even if it can be challenging at times. They go on for a fair amount of time, and when you just want to dive into a match to help Tsubasa realise his dreams, these drag things out for too long. The cutscenes are told through copious lines of dialogue in a visual novel style, and these are perhaps the biggest downside to the game. Tsubasa is a loveable character that you really want to succeed. The first one is based around Tsubasa Ozora and his ascension from school to the World Cup. There’re two campaigns to get stuck into in Captain Tsubasa: Rise of New Champions. It may be weird to say, but this isn’t so much of a football game as it is an action adventure. It’s a wholesome story about dreaming big, friendship, and competition, and Captain Tsubasa: Rise of New Champions does a fantastic job of encapsulating it. Not only do footballers like Hidetoshi Nakata, Lionel Messi, and Andrés Iniesta site it as an inspiration, but 2001’s Shaolin Soccer was influenced by it, as well as a line of Adidas running shoes. It follows the simple story of a boy wanting to fulfil his childhood dream of playing for Japan in the World Cup, and its impact on the world of professional football is more surprising than you think.

Captain Tsubasa has been around for almost 40 years, making his manga debut in 1981 and staring in various anime since 1983.

Captain tsubasa pc