Speedball Breaks the Ice And a Few Skulls In Its Fiercest Return Yet
Speedball hurls you straight into the neon-lit brutality of 2138, where cybernetically enhanced athletes collide in a sport built on speed, steel, and sheer spectacle. From the moment you step into its chrome-plated arenas, the game’s explosive energy and ruthless momentum pull you into an in-depth exploration of its futuristic bloodsport fantasy. Every match feels like a fight for survival, every rebound a chance to turn the tide, and every impact a reminder that in Speedball, glory is earned the hard way.
Speedball Review Pros
- Decent graphics.
- 9.57GB download size.
- Platinum trophy.
- Audio sliders for – commentator, sound effects, crowd, music, and a master volume.
- Display settings – spawn crowd toggle, and player indicator colours.
- Subtitles toggle.
- Gameplay settings – player switching (automatic/manual/manual and directional), crossplay support that can be toggled, analytics toggle, controller vibration minimap, player switch indicator, and show button prompts.
- Two camera choices – broadcast and traditional, which can be tweaked with settings for the field of view slider, tracking speed, camera height, and camera trailing distance.
- Five game difficulties – Beginner, easy, normal, hard, and brutal.
- Future Speedball gameplay.
- Opening match with tutorial pop-ups. You also have a practice arena.
- Opening sequences before every match, you get to see the stadium and crowd. You can also just skip it.
- Third-person view, and you can have it so the camera is behind you, above, or side on.
- The goal is to um score more goals than your opponent. You can pass the ball, lob, run, tackle, and run along the walls to achieve this.
- Boot camp has two modes – practice and tutorials, which can be replayed.
- Quick play for against AI, and local play game modes.
- League mode is the main single-player mode. Select a team, a game difficulty, and an arena layout for how brutal or filled with environmental hazards the arena is. You have three choices: normal, brutal, and always Speedball stadium.
- Ten teams to play as, and each has a star rating from 1 to 5. Press the ” More Information ” button to get a breakdown of the team and traits.
- Team manager lets you edit the line-up, and change your team tactics (blockade/counter attack/balanced/pass and run/blitz).
- League mode is exactly that, with a league table showing match results, and you work your way to the top.
- Every player has a skippable goal celebration.
- I do like the atmosphere and the feel of the brutal hits in the game.
- Half-time and end-of-game breakdown showing stats, and it’s all presented like a sports broadcast.
- During the league mode, you can choose from a set of randomised players to recruit, and team players improve stats as you play games.
- You can and will knock players down, daze them, and even injure them so they have to leave and be substituted.
- When a player or obstacle is in the way, your player will be colored in so you can see them.
- Shooting is easy with a hold or tap shot button, and a target shows where your shot will go on the goal.
- You can and should take out the goalie.
- It is a good evolution for the game series, and I really do prefer the third-person view over the old-school views. It is a lot of fun, and you should try it even if you disliked the original.
Speedball Review Cons
- The tutorials are actually surprisingly basic, and you have to dig through the help menu to get actual help with the game.
- You cannot remap the controls.
- There are no accessibility options, but the select colour menu can help Colourblind players.
- Bit of a missed trick, but you cannot create or edit/customise your teams.
- I struggled a lot to know when I had the ball or the opponent had it. Picking up a loose ball is not always a simple affair, and it can be frustrating.
- The goal celebrations and opening sequences are all the same, and it gets repetitive.
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Speedball
Developer: Rebellion
Publisher: Rebellion
Store Link:
Speedball Review
Summary
Speedball – The Thrills and Highlights of Gameplay:
Speedball brings a solid mix of future sports chaos and fast, brutal action, backed by decent graphics and a surprisingly small 9.57GB download size. You get a platinum trophy to chase, a wide range of audio sliders, display tweaks, and gameplay settings that let you tailor the experience. The two camera choices can be fine-tuned, and the five difficulty levels give you plenty of challenge. The third-person view works brilliantly, letting you pass, lob, run, tackle, and even sprint along walls as you try to score more goals than your opponent. Boot camp offers practice and tutorials, quick play lets you face AI or local opponents, and league mode gives you a full single-player climb with team traits, tactics, and evolving player stats. The atmosphere is strong, the hits feel brutal, and the broadcast-style breakdowns add a lot of flavour. It is a good evolution for the series, and the third-person view really does elevate the whole thing.
Speedball – Where It Falls Short: Key Negatives:
The tutorials are surprisingly basic, and you have to dig into the help menu to get proper guidance. You cannot remap controls, and there are no accessibility options beyond colour choices. You also cannot create or customise teams, which feels like a missed opportunity. It can be hard to tell who has the ball, and picking up loose balls can be frustrating. The goal celebrations and opening sequences repeat constantly, and they lose their impact quickly.
Speedball – Immersive Story and Narrative Elements:
Speedball does not lean into a narrative, but the presentation around each match, the stadium intros, and the broadcast-style breakdowns give the sport a sense of identity and atmosphere. The league structure and team traits help build a feeling of progression as you work your way up the table.
Speedball – Visual and Performance Aspects:
The graphics are decent, and the presentation captures the feel of a futuristic, hard-hitting sport. The crowd, stadium intros, and brutal tackles all help sell the atmosphere. The camera options and field-of-view tweaks let you find a setup that works for you, and the visual clarity of players being highlighted when obstructed is a welcome touch.
Speedball – Overall Verdict: Is It Worth Playing?:
Speedball is a fun and surprisingly engaging evolution of the series, with strong atmosphere, satisfying hits, and a great third-person perspective that makes the action feel more immediate. Despite some repetitive elements and a few missing features, it is a lot of fun and worth trying even if you disliked the original.
Back of the Box Quotes:
Speedball delivers brutal future-sport action with style.
