Despite its humble beginning as an arcade game in 1987, Tecmo Bowl has become one of the most successful NES titles. We'll take a look at the history behind the iconic title and review it as if it were 1989 today.
The History Of Tecmo Bowl
While some games are very similar to their arcade counterparts, the arcade version of Tecmo Bowl was quite different from the NES version we know and love today. In the arcade version, there was a dual monitor setup and four players were able to play at the same time. Additionally, there were only two options as far as teams, so players could select either the Bulldogs or the Wildcats. What the arcade version lacked in team selection, however, it made up for in superior graphics due to the fact that it had a much larger color palette than the NES game.
When it was ported over to the NES, Tecmo Bowl became the very first title to include actual NFL players after Tecmo struck a deal with the NFL Players Association (NFLPA). While the company was able to secure the rights to players' names and statistics, it was not able to secure the rights for using real NFL team names. Because of this, every team in the game is identified only by their home city. While respective teams had rosters that matched their current ones, depending on which NES version you had, you could have either Eric Dickerson or Albert Bentley as running back for Indianapolis.
Gameplay
Though the NES version was limited to just two players, it could be played using either the coach, one-player, or two-player game modes. With coach mode, you were able to select the plays for your players and wouldn't be able to control them directly. In one-player mode, you had to select a team and play an entire football season against the computer and were able to select the play and control specific players on the field yourself. Meanwhile, with two-player mode, you and another player were able to play a single game against one another.
There were only four plays that you were able to call on for offense or defense and you were only successful on defense if you selected the right defensive play to counter your opponent's offensive play. Most teams in Tecmo had two-run and two-pass options, with the exception of Miami and San Fransisco, which both had three passing plays and one running play. Each team had specific strengths and weaknesses based on its personnel and, while the game did take real statistics for key players into account, their abilities in the game were limited. One key difference that you would likely notice is that there were only nine players actively on the field at any time, as opposed to the NFL standard of eleven.
Tips and Tricks
- You had to avoid passing if your team is known for running, as this would lower your chances of throwing an interception.
- You had to control the center player when playing defense and use the to attempt to sack the QB, as it was likely to be your best defender.
- You had to learn what each teams' strengths and weaknesses were and had to call your defensive plays accordingly.
- When playing single-player, you always had to try to be more than a touchdown ahead, as the computer would usually make a play that you couldn't stop, regardless of how hard you tried.
- When you were playing against a running team, you had to make sure that your drives took as long as possible early on to ensure that your opponent had little to no time to score.
I can safely say that Tecmo Bowl is one of my all-time favorite sports games. Whether you've already played it or not, it's definitely worth checking out. It is currently available on Nintendo Switch Online.
Review
From the very beginning, many players find Tecmo Bowl extremely addictive thanks in large part to its amazing soundtrack. There's just something about the 8-bit music that made you feel as if you were right in the middle of an arcade. It also caused you to play multiple games without even realizing how much time has passed. Sure, it wasn't as complex as some of the sports games that we know of today, but don't let that fool you. Tecmo Bowl presented its own unique challenges and regardless of what team you picked during the single-player season, you would have to defeat teams that were built with incredible defense.
The difficulty doesn't end there, though, as you would often find yourself starting over due to the fact that the computer would pull off a play that you weren't able to stop, even if you knew it is coming. It is for this reason that you had to be a certain number of points ahead of each opponent in order to ensure that you achieved victory. At first, this might seem rather frustrating, but the more you played, the more you enjoyed the extra challenge.
While your play selection was limited, your ability to control your own players ensured that you would be able to use your own skillset to make an otherwise broken play a successful one. This wasn't always possible of course, but the mere fact that you could attempt it makes for a very versatile game. The game forced you to constantly make split-second decisions against a computer opponent that could be unpredictable at times, adding to the overall difficulty.
Though the graphics were rather disappointing in comparison to the arcade counterpart, this didn't hurt the game in any way. Furthermore, the NES version of Tecmo Bowl seemed to run much smoother than its arcade version, making it much easier for you to quickly change direction when avoiding defenders or making a tackle.
Rating: 5/ 5