Hot Potato, Hot Rice, whatever you called it, Dodgeball was a must-play game back in school. I was the master of it back in Scouts (yes I admit I was a Scout once) thanks to my lanky legs and judgement of speed. With the game especially popular in America, where it is played on a more professional scale, Yukes have released Double D Dodgeball – but sadly there is nothing you can do to dodge this one…
Dodgeball is a classic school game that is so fond in our memories, yet Double D Dodgeball will do nothing of the sort. It all kicks off on the opening screen with a bland and annoying theme title that won’t go away and menu screens that are retro and basic. I’m not saying retro is not ‘hip’ but the way it has been done, it really doesn’t make retro ‘cool’ in anyway. This is bad retro.
With the potential to make such a great release around an addictive game, Yukes have failed to succeed. For those unaware, Dodgeball involves you on a team of four, trying to grab three balls or as many as possible then catching the other player out by hitting them. Simple but genius at the same time, well at least it is supposed to be!
Double D Dodgeball sees you control one character while one to five other AI players will assist against another team. You run around using the control stick and pick up a ball when you go near to it. Firing the ball requires you to squeeze the trigger; the harder the faster the ball will fly. However, if you are playing alone the game will get dull very quickly. Only one mode is on offer which is Exhibition and you can tinker about with the ball and arena settings, but there isn’t a lot else to play for. No challenges, no real sense of completion when you win a game which is disappointing.
Online and multiplayer is where the emphasis has been put in (if you can call it that), but even then, while most of the achievements are geared towards the online side of things there is no one playing the game online, and when you do get a game there is generally two seconds worth of lag. Getting eight people to play a game together to receive the achievement is going to be a tough one that’s for sure.
Graphically as I mentioned before, it is retro. This isn’t a fancy 3D graphical version, this is a basic Space Invaders meets Dodgeball game. The robots or characters have no flair and the arenas all generally look the same. The different game types, while adding slight variety, are dull and you’ll never really want to bother with the settings. The audio is just as similar, from the cheesy intro through to the poor in-game noises.
Double D Dodgeball had the potential to be good. It is based around a cracking sports game which isn’t particularly mainstream in the UK, yet Yukes have failed to do this and at 800 MS Points it doesn’t come cheap! The game is lifeless, dull and has no real goals. You can dodge your way to victory by dodging this one.
