Backyard Soccer MLS Edition

Backyard Soccer MLS Edition

Developer(s) Humongous Entertainment
Publisher(s) Atari Europe S.A.S.U.
Platform(s) Macintosh, Windows
Release date(s) 2001
Genre(s) Sports

Backyard Soccer MLS Edition is a children's soccer video game developed by Humongous Entertainment and released in 2001 as part of the Backyard Sports series.[1] Unlike the series' previous game, Backyard Soccer, this edition was the first to feature Major League Soccer (MLS) teams,[2] including several women from the United States women's national soccer team that won the 1999 FIFA Women's World Cup.[1] Aimed at children ages 5 to 10,[1] the game includes famous soccer players such as the Dallas Burn's Jason Kreis and female player Brandi Chastain, but with the added twist that all the MLS players are drawn as child caricatures in the game.[1][2][3] The edition was released for the Macintosh and Windows platforms.[2]

In the game, players manage a soccer team through a season and participate in matches played against the computer.[2] As the team coach, users also must deal with the rise and fall of individual team member's skills during the season.[2] Players can play with actual teams from the MLS or customize their own team from a pool of MLS players, and the game allows users to disable select rules such as offside.[2] The game also offers a two-player mode on a single computer where one player uses the mouse to control their team and the other uses the keyboard.[2]

Reception

The Dallas Daily News noted that the game only offered three female soccer stars to play as, but they appreciated the game's replay value: "There is enough substance to keep you coming back."[2]

References

  1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 "Female Athletes in New "Backyard" Sports CD-ROM". The Journal of Physical Education, Recreation & Dance. Jan 1, 2001. Retrieved Nov 30, 2012. (subscription required)
  2. ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 2.3 2.4 2.5 2.6 2.7 Johnson, Linda Stallard; Johnson, Rebecca (Nov 21, 2000). "Electronic adventures: video and computer game reviews". The Dallas Morning News. Retrieved Nov 30, 2012. (subscription required)
  3. ↑ "Cool Stuff: Video Game That's Just for Kicks". Los Angeles Daily News. Nov 7, 2000. Retrieved Nov 30, 2012.

Further reading