![]() ![]() As you progress through the divisions and win the cups on offer so you have the chance to play and unlock teams and pitches from different galaxies. Take them from the bottom of Division Two to the Speedball Intergalactic Champions League. The competition structure is a bit more like Sensible Soccer, in that it offers you a choice of Quick Match, Preset Competition (choose from five cups and leagues in the game), Custom Competition (devise your own league, cup or tournament) and Career Mode.Ĭareer Mode gives you a 10-season career to create your own team and In addition to the established two divisions of eight teams such as Brutal Deluxe and Super Nashwan, we have added a whole extra layer to the game. The main area we have added new features is in the depth of teams and competitions in the game. Of course we have increased the number of pitches and greatly enhanced the quality of the graphics but the game is still very definitely and instantly recognisable as Speedball. Speedball is a futuristic sport with set rules and a set configuration of scoring items on the pitch and pickups appearing from time to time and in every respect we have remained faithful to this. On the game content side we have ensured that whatever we do fits in with the existing world of Speedball. In both versions tapping on the screen emulates the actions of the fire button in the original Speedball for tackling, passing and shooting. The other big advantage of the tilt system for the iPhone and iPhone4 is that it means the screen is clear of your fingers most of the time. In any case the player is free to change from one system to the other as he chooses at any time. I have observed that all people under 25 pick up the tilt system immediately where as some older guys tend to first opt for the comfort of the stick before jumping over to the tilt mechanism after a while. The second control system is the virtual joystick – this has been seen on a number of iOS games before and works very well too, although it is in my opinion a retro way of playing the game. We have a full Sensible Soccer style player selection engine sitting underneath this which helps to keep the action flowing and to give the player the man he wants to use without the need for a player select button. The first is tilt control: you tilt the device to emulate the direction you would push the joystick in, and it is now a 360 degree joystick, it is very intuitive after abut 30 seconds use. The control system works incredibly well. We have redesigned the menu system and the game controls so that it appears as if the game was actually designed for smartphones and other touch screen devices. This has enabled us to properly take advantage of the touchscreen and tilt technology and the Bluetooth and Wi-Fi connectability that wasn't around when the game was originally made. We looked at the original source code and then proceeded to build the game from the ground up. The game has already been ported to Xbox Live – what does this new version bring to the party? For Speedball 2 Evolution I have been working very closely with Vivid Games for over a year. Mike has very kindly given me the choice of choosing the order we wish to remake the old Bitmap Games and I chose this one first, because it is my personal favourite. I have been working closely with Mike Montgomery and the Bitmap Brothers since 2004 and have helped Mike get conversions of Bitmap games done before. To those too young to remember the original, and to most people in the US, Speedball will be something brand new, despite the fact it has sold over 2m copies to date in its various forms, and I genuinely believe this game can be as big a hit as something new to these two new markets for us. ![]() To those of us who know the game I hope it will be received as the best version of Speedball since the original – that is certainly what I believe in any case. Firstly Speedball 2 is a classic game that is perfect for many modern day downloadable platforms including iOS and there is nothing else like it on the market at the moment. A new version – Speedball 2 Evolution – was announced last week for the iphone/ipad and I caught up with veteran Speedball developer Jon Hare. Even a slightly disappointing Xbox Live Arcade port a couple of years ago hasn't tarnished the legacy of Speedball 2. The future sport title – think handball with added violence – was one of the very best Amiga games, especially on multiplayer. Most gamers aged later 20s upwards will have come across Speedball 2 in their time. ![]()
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