Critics and players never agree on sports games or any game for that matter. With sports game players spending countless hours in the game, they will notice every flaw in the system. Far more picked through than your average game, and with a lot less content, everything has to be on point.
In the last decade, things have gone from good to great as far as sports games go. The best pieces have been filtered through, and the experience is only getting more refined. That's why it's hard to stand out among the countless sports and versions that release every year. However, those that do deserve some recognition, especially in this era.
10 NHL 11 (88)
2k may run basketball, but when it comes to Hockey, EA is king. Reigning the market for almost a decade, they just know how to make a good hockey game. From customized camera angles to player chants and celebrations, it will be a long time before EA is off the throne.
The common theme between all great sports games is a great physics engine serving as the backbone. NHL 11 benefits from a shiny new one making the gameplay smooth with no animation loads ups. There's nothing worse than a jittery system when you're trying to make the highlights.
9 NBA 2K12 (90)
At the time it was a not so heated rivalry between EA and 2k for king of the court. The difference in quality that 2k brought to the table was too much and it eventually took over, giving them time to improve upon the best foundation in basketball.
Part of that improvement was the addition of the Greatest mode which let you select from an all-star roster spanning back through history. While that's fairly common in today's sports games 2K12 was one of the pioneers in this section. A smooth play in any mode 2K12 is a one-off that you can't miss.
8 NBA 2K17 (90)
We all love online multiplayer. It's most of the reason anyone buys the game, but those that jump into the deep end are in for a long road of failure. You have to dip your toes into the waters with career mode, a mode that 2k17 focused on greatly.
It immerses you in the story of 2 players that want to become the next great duo. If taking the back seat is more your style, you can totally control and customize any current team or new team you create into a season. GM mode gives you options for just about anything you could possibly want to achieve.
7 FIFA Soccer 10- 91
Often times, a sequel doesn't need to be too much change to significantly improve the experience; after all, the original must have been good enough to get part two. Speed of play, for example, has been turned up a considerable amount from precious installments making players think on their feet.
Manager Mode was a welcome addition to the football fanatic. Organizing the team and watching the results is key to becoming better at the game. The contract negotiations and player acquisitions have been bumped up on the realistic side, giving the player a chance to effectively set up the team they want.
6 Let's Golf! 2- 91
It's rare that a well-liked original makes a great sequel. Players are always comparing the two, and it becomes a dividing argument. Luckily the developers of Let's Golf! did the thing others can't seem to figure out, they fixed the flaws and didn't meddle with what made the first one great.
Accurate power that remains consistent in all shots is the bedrock of great gameplay. When you can count on the mechanics, everything else flows. Including challenge mode and a thorough career mode that keeps players engaged the entire way through.
5 Ridiculous Fishing - A Tale Of Redemption- 91
A lot of fishing games follow the same way to hook the fish; it's really the best way to go about it on mobile. Ridiculous Fishing ups the ante by making the player hoist and shoot the fish to get credit for the catch. It couldn't get any more cowboy if it tried.
Suffering from every game developer's worst nightmare of having a competitor make a similar game, the developers pushed to make this game the best it could be. From the soundtrack to the avalanche of unlockables and unique content keep this game fresh for hours at a time.
4 MLB 10: The Show- 91
In any sports game, what the player really loves is how customizable it can be. The more customization, the more you can put yourself hitting that home run in your highlights. This game lets you adjust it down to the songs and chants you hear.
Balance comes next. If the gameplay is too much one way or the other, it will throw the feel off. Even when players get stuck into the finals and the difficulty is turned up, everything feels weighted nicely.
3 Out Of The Park Baseball 17- 92
Not for the action minded, OOTP is more of a thinking man's game. If strategy and numbers get your heart racing, then this game will be hours upon hours of fun. The GM position of any team dating back to the 1800s is yours.
Usually, when there are so many moving parts in a game, things tend to fall apart as far as playability goes. Even with the game to game variations, if you run a real team's stats against the game it will show up near exact. With that level of precise gameplay, you can be sure that every result is a result of your choices.
2 Table Tennis Touch- 92
Unlike most mobile games, Table Tennis Touch provides a considerable challenge with almost every opponent you come up against. The simplistic controls give new players a solid entry to jump into the game, but once you're in the thick of it, the difficulty jumps.
Career mode gives players a chance to really hone their skills, unlocking mini-games along the way. The mini-games are a whole other avenue outside of the main game, each with a stylized and time-sucking addictive quality. Mastering the paddle will take a while, but the sense of achievement is massive when you do.
1 Pocket Run Pool- 93
Pocket Run Pool is the game a layer should start with if they want to excel at pool games a whole. It's set up perfectly to hone your skills with just enough pressure to make you better. No online competition to throw the player off, and plenty of weird and wonderful challenges to sharpen aim.
Pre-set tables that you have to make clean shots on to get the most points, it's the perfect practice board. Then you take the money earned from practice and go to challenge mode. This will present you with smaller pockets or various sizes of balls to test what you've learned.