The sensational Sensible Soccer has finally arrived on Live, but without the promised online play.

Whenever players start the game they are disconnected from the internet until they return to the dashboard. Many were planning (including myself) to play old foes over the web; unfortunately we must hold off from this until the problem is fixed. There’s also two achievements which are centered around online play that are unobtainable.

Otherwise the game is enjoyable, a faithful adaptation to the 360 format that should give a whole new generation of players the opportunity to experience perhaps the finest football game of all time.

Happily, the camera control used in development remains, allowing players to zoom in or out by moving the right thumbstick. I use this to create tension on a penalty kick: zooming in till you can see (read: imagine) the sweat on the player’s face.

The updated graphics are a treat, especially in a game set in a large stadium. If you’re staunch in your loyalty to Sensi’s old look then you can turn off the enhancements in the options menu, and can also revert to the original theme as heard on the Amiga rather then this updated version of Goal Scoring Superstar Hero.

The hope is that success in this game’s Live release should prompt Codemasters to update Sensi, either by updating the faked player names to modern-day parodies or by a true sequel. With Jon Hare, series creator, having a close relationship with the publishers, this is a possibility.

I urge you to get on your 360 now and lay down the 800 points – it’s worth it. When it’s fixed, I’ll see you online for a game.

Tags: football_game, original_theme, penalty_kick, sensible_soccer

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