While the Football Manager games drown us in emotion on a large, longterm scale, this one is on the opposite end of the spectrum: immediate, thunderous excitement, delivered with wonderfully cheesy moments that had us pumping our fists in the air. This was the game which, when played in the arcade where it belongs, would have us howling with glee with each goal, and then looking behind us to check if anyone had witnessed our moment of on-screen glory. Obviously the FIFA franchise blows this SNK classic out of the water when it comes to skill, finesse, depth of play, features, and just about everything else, but no one whipped up goal frenzy as well as Super Sidekicks. The game itself was dead simple, limited by the traditional joystick and buttons setup of an arcade cabinet, but that didn't matter. Hoof those big lobs up field to your superstar striker and pound that goalie with unbridled aggression€ eventually one will go in. And when it does, bathe in the euphoria of the moment as the corniest goal celebrations you've ever seen fill the screen. It's so gloriously over the top that you can't help but grin like an idiot. These crudely drawn, barely animated cutaways injected an air of sensation and riveting drama to each match, especially when up against a friend. Watching your striker slot that winning goal and then run wildly across the pitch to dive into the arms of a equally ecstatic teammate, it's a thing of beauty. A gaudy, obnoxious, guilty pleasure in the face of the highbrow football titles which dominate the genre these days.
Game-obsessed since the moment I could twiddle both thumbs independently. Equally enthralled by all the genres of music that your parents warned you about.
