Captain Tsubasa: Rise of New Champions

Coming to Captain Tsubasa as a fan of football, but knowing nothing of the anime and manga, I had no idea what to expect from this game, but I was more than impressed. Tamsoft, a company better know for little skirts-and-panties games like Senran Kagura, spinoff Hyperdimension Neptunia titles, Onechanbara and School Girl/Zombie Hunter was up against it with this game. After all, how do you compete with the might of EA and Konami without going so far into the realm of arcade experiences that the game is no longer recognisable as the sport? Tamsoft genuinely managed to figure it out. Captain Tsu...

Game SkinnyRobotsFightingDinosaurs

9/10

Captain Tsubasa: Rise of New Champions is legitimately the best arcade sports title to come out since Rocket League.

Sirus GamingJett Vincent Sia

8.5/10

When the issues of a game are rolled and stomped by its greatness, then it’s something to invest on if you have some spare.

WayTooManyGamesLeo Faria

8/10

The name Captain Tsubasa might not be that famous if you grew up in the US as well as some other countries. But if you, like me, grew up in Latin America, then you know it and probably love it. This long-running manga and anime franchise was an absolute hit among us football-loving kids, to the point that many professional players in Europe and the Americas decided to become pros after watching it when they were young. I’ve been hoping for a video game adaptation of Captain Tsubasa for so l...

DualShockersDS Staff

8/10

In short, Captain Tsubasa is a simple tactics-adjacent sports game with characters you’ll quickly grow to love. Nothing here is particularly groundbreaking, but it is so much fun seeing Japan’s Golden Generation grow into tomorrow’s stars. The game probably doesn’t have much of a competitive future. That said, it did make me go out and pick up the manga. So, it's a win-win for creator Yoichi Takahashi. If you’re looking for a game that’s easy to get into and hard to put down, Captain Tsubasa: Rise of New Champions is as good as any.

Worth PlayingChris "Atom" DeAngelus

7.5/10

Based on the works of series creator, Yoichi Takahashi, the game chronicles the athletic exploits of Tsubasa Ozora and the glory and success his teammates experience under his leadership.

Nintendo World ReportAlex Culafi

7.5/10

Captain Tsubasa: Rise of New Champions is a good game with strong arcade soccer gameplay and a good deal of content to sink your teeth into. While the story modes didn’t click with me too much (which is no small problem), the core game could keep me picking up Captain Tsubasa for some time to come.

Playstation LifestyleGeorge Foster

7/10

Unless you’re pretty deep into your anime, you’d be forgiven for not knowing exactly what Captain Tsubasa: Rise of New Champions is. Although it saw a successful reboot in 2018 and was renowned in the 80’s and 90’s, it hasn’t quite reached the same height of the usual suspects like Naruto and Dragon Ball. Hopefully that’s rectified with this new release though, as Captain Tsubasa is stylish, fun and full of heart.

GamingBoltShubhankar Parijat

7/10

Captain Tsubasa: Rise of New Champions is not a perfect game, and it's not the most mechanically dense game, but thankfully, it doesn't have to be. Its strengths lie in its unhinged, over-the-top on-pitch action and its delightfully silly presentation. If you're looking for a football game that lets you focus on all the fun aspects of the sport while ignoring almost everything to do with tactics and strategy, this is the game for you.

COGConnectedRhett Waselenchuk

70/100

Have you found yourself upset as of late with mainstream soccer games? No one would blame you. Fifa and Pro Evolution have become stagnant. For the past several iterations, both franchises have failed to see any real, significant, change. Thus, it’s hard not to look at them and feel as if EA Sports and Konami have been coasting through their development cycles. I understand that as we inch closer to a new generation, it’s difficult for a team to split their resources up in order to cater to a lesser version of a product. NHL 15 suffered immensely from this. But, regardless, sports game fans ar...

GameSpewRichard Seagrave

5/10

If you’re a big fan of Captain Tsubasa, you might actually get a kick out of what’s on offer here. While its story scenes are a bit lifeless, they are genuinely entertaining, and there are plenty of twists and turns. You’ll have to grit your teeth and make your way through many unfulfilling football matches to enjoy them though. Captain Tsubasa: Rise of New Champions didn’t have to be FIFA, but it at least had to provide a game of football that felt dynamic, fair and fun. It doesn’t do that, unfortunately, and so for most it’s going to be a major disappointment.

Push SquareJohn Cal McCormick

5/10

We can't imagine there's a huge overlap on the Venn diagram for football fans and anime and manga and enthusiasts, but here we are. Captain Tsubasa: Rise of New Champions is aiming squarely for the demographic of people that have both a Sky Sports and a Crunchyroll subscription, and good luck to it, we say.