Game Debate #140: Tecmo Super Bowl

[Reed Rothchild | 9,511]

[Webhead123 | 675]

I'm not much for sports or sports games but Tecmo Super Bowl is one of the rare exceptions of a game which surpasses its source material to become something incredibly fun and addictive. I don't know exactly what it is that makes it work but it is one that I will happily fire up anytime. Super Tecmo Bowl on SNES also follows that trend and is almost certainly the best sports game on SNES.

8/10

Edited February 9, 2023 by Webhead123

[mbd39 | 2,020]

I'm not into sports games but this is definitely one of the best on NES. 8/10

[twiztor | 849]

easily one of the best sports games of all time. always a crowd pleaser. simple to play, simple to learn. while skill definitely helps, even a novice can pull off a big win.

i still simulate the Super Bowl each year before the big game (note to self: don't forget to do this on Saturday/Sunday!) The accuracy leaves something to be desired, but it's still fun!

[RH | 4,898]

If it's a sports game, especially a Football game, there's a 99.9% chance I'll never touch it.  They only exception might be NFL Blitz if I ever find a local copy in the condition I want.  I hear it's fast pace and simple enough to be entertaining.

I just don't like football.  I can't even tell you who's in the Super Bowl.

Never played it. Never will.

[Webhead123 | 675]

42 minutes ago, RH said:

I just don't like football.  I can't even tell you who's in the Super Bowl.

Me either.

[wongojack | 213]

Wow - I LOVE sports games, and when I was growing up, it was probably my favorite genre.  Interestingly, I only owned the original Tecmo Bowl and then played the "Super" version on SNES, so I've never really played this game, but I'd give the prequel a 10 and so this one is likely equally deserving.  However, I'll hold my vote as I just haven't played it enough.

 

I'll add to my acclaim of the original Tecmo Bowl.  It was an absolute killer app.  That game got talked about at school a ton.  It sold a bunch of consoles all by itself.  Absolutely legendary.

Edited February 9, 2023 by wongojack

[AstralSoul | 502]

I voted on this before looking at the cover. For some reason I thought this was the SNES one. I never played this one actually. But I enjoy the original Tecmo Bowl and the SNES Tecmo Bowls. I gave it an 8 despite not having played it.

[Webhead123 | 675]

58 minutes ago, AstralSoul said:

I voted on this before looking at the cover. For some reason I thought this was the SNES one. I never played this one actually. But I enjoy the original Tecmo Bowl and the SNES Tecmo Bowls. I gave it an 8 despite not having played it.

Yeah, it's an obnoxiously obtuse naming scheme that they went with. Tecmo Super Bowl is the name of both the NES and SNES titles. And, of course, TSB is not to be confused with the original Tecmo Bowl. Not confusing at all. 

Edited February 10, 2023 by Webhead123

[Gaia Gensouki | 1,072]

18 hours ago, twiztor said:

easily one of the best sports games of all time. always a crowd pleaser. simple to play, simple to learn. while skill definitely helps, even a novice can pull off a big win.

I have absolutely zero idea how someone can think that this game is simple to learn or play. As someone who didn't grow up with football and has no idea how football even works, this game is absolutely incrompehensible. There are lots of teams that I've never heard of and so many stats that it makes almost any RPG ever pale in comparison to that. And people like to complain about those types of games that they're hard to get into.

As for just the gameplay itself TSB is incredibly boring. All you do is pick one of the different plays with no idea what you should even do or what would be a good choice. Then you usually just collide with some enemy player and either get knocked back and just watch the game passively while something happens or maybe you get to walk around for a few seconds until the game gets paused and everything repeats again.

So if you have no idea about football in general then this definitely isn't a game that you can just pick up, play and have fun. As such I don't even know how to rate this game. I'm sure that it's appealing to already existing football fans, but I can't tell if it's really accurate to the sport and how it compares to other similar games. I can only say that it's not simple to play.

So my personal enjoyment would be something like a 2 out of 10 according to the scale above. However, I chose "Never played it, never will." with the intention behind it that I will most likely never spend a considerable amount of time on this game, because it's simply frustrating and annoying to play. Probably the only football game I ever liked was Bloodbowl since it never cared about providing an authentic experience and just did its own thing.

[RegularGuyGamer | 2,012]

15 hours ago, RH said:

just don't like football.  I can't even tell you who's in the Super Bowl.

Same here. The game gets a 9/10 for me. It splits the title of greatest sport game with NFL blitz and NBA street.

[DefaultGen | 5,401]

Great memories of this game. It was easy to find at flea markets or garage sales and I could flip it for $20 every time. This and Contra were my two consistent moneymakers! Oh yeah it’s really fun too 8/10

[Abelardo | 154]

Really enjoyed the original Tecmo Bowl game, had it on the Gameboy but as far as I could tell it was identical to the NES version, unfortunately Tecmo Super Bowl came out at the time everybody was crazy about Madden on the Genesis, TSB just seemed dated at that point, in retrospective TSB is great game that took the original TB formula and improved it in just about every aspect, the game has also aged reasonably well, that said I'd rather play TSB for the NES over any Madden game on the Genesis any day.

[Estil | 1,264]

On 2/9/2023 at 2:58 PM, RH said:

I just don't like football.  I can't even tell you who's in the Super Bowl.

The only time I really cared about the Super Bowl was when my dearly departed wife's Patriots were in it...and then we'd have ourselves a Super Bowl party   Hee hee, boy would she get real sore whenever I'd tell her (before Tom Brady left) that most everyone outside of New England is sick of the Patriots (I mean they were in the Big Game five years out of eight...) and it'd be so nice for someone else to represent the AFC in the Super Bowl for a change!  

Edited February 12, 2023 by Estil

[TDIRunner | 2,730]

Never played it.  Never will.  

[fox | 1,665]

SPORTS

[MagusSmurf | 577]

I’m sorta interested just because of how much of a landmark title this is and how much of an enduring cult it still has. My football appreciation and knowledge ain’t much better than @Gaia Gensouki‘s though so I’m not expecting much. Football seems like it would be hard to make a game out of that non-fans would appreciate.

[doner24 | 1,195]

9

[JamesRobot | 5,788]

I don't think I ever really played Tecmo Super Bowl.  Everyone just had Tecmo Bowl when I was a kid.

[JamesRobot | 5,788]

On 2/9/2023 at 4:07 PM, AstralSoul said:

I voted on this before looking at the cover. For some reason I thought this was the SNES one. I never played this one actually. But I enjoy the original Tecmo Bowl and the SNES Tecmo Bowls. I gave it an 8 despite not having played it.

 

If only there were some way to change your vote. @Gloves

[Estil | 1,264]

On 2/10/2023 at 4:44 PM, fox said:

SPORTS

Football is not a sport.  Fly fishing is a sport.

Football is not a game.  Monopoly is a game.

And with apologies to Bo Jackson...

Football is not a "hobby".  Stamp collecting is a hobby.

NO FEAR.

Edited February 13, 2023 by Estil

[G-type | 2,479]

I might have only played Tecmo Bowl... don't really remember the difference. 

[JamesRobot | 5,788]

On 2/10/2023 at 3:44 PM, fox said:

SPORTS

[twiztor | 849]

it pains me to post this:
the official Tecmo Super Bowl 2023 prediction.
the Chiefs absolutely demolished the Eagles. just ate their lunch, and came back for dinner too. i've never seen such a one-sided affair. Chiefs effectively used a combination of running and passing to rack up the points, while their defense absolutely just stifled the Eagles. shout out to Neil Smith, who had 11 sacks!
this is one time i hope the prediction is wildly wrong.

[rdrunner | 422]

10/10 - This game is directly responsible for my interest in football.  Before this game came out, I knew enough about the sport, but never followed it.  28 undefeated seasons later (1 per team) and I've been a fan ever since!