Power Spikes II (1994)

Game: Power Spikes II

Release Year: 1994

Time to complete: 3hr
Played on: Neo Geo CD

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Presentation: 6

Difficulty: 7

Fun: 7

Rating on a 1-10 scale

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For years I really believed this was the worst Neo Geo game ever made. Even worse then Legend of Success Joe if that’s possible. I had only played the game once, when I first got a Neo Geo CD, back in 97'. I admit that a Volleyball game does not especially stroke my interest, but I remember very clearly playing this game and thinking it has the worst controls ever. It also didn’t help that visually, its not the most mind blowing game. Now that I have had to take another ride on the Neo Geo volleyball express I'm left with a very different impression of the sequel to Super Volly '91.

The game it's self is broken down into 3 leagues. Two are modern day leagues, one for women, and one for the dudes. These two leagues are essentially the same both visually and gameplay wise from what I can see. The third league however is a futuristic league that looks very similar to Baseball 2020. In the future, according to Video Systems, there will be extreme spikes and a power gauge; all things I admit might help the popularity of the sport. The scoring is also slightly different. 

Volleyball in the future!

Gameplay wise its a really sharp learning curve here. You move your team left and right along a flat 2D plain, again with the not so exciting. There is a lot of automation in what your team members do. One of the aspects that makes this game difficult to figure out at first is understanding exactly what it is you control, and what you don't. The funny thing is once you get this it actually gets pretty fun. There is some interesting strategy that comes in with positioning you team and choosing what types of moves to execute. 

I played through and won each of the 3 leagues and I really found myself enjoying it. I will certainly give this disc another spin in the future. This game is really what makes going back and completing all the Neo Geo games a fun experience. I know I have some real crap coming up review wise, cough, cough, Legend of Success Joe... But you never know, maybe I'll find that its actually the best game ever made, after all I never though I would heartily recommend Power Spikes 2.