In 1987, Tecmo Bowl took the gaming world by storm: creating a fun, pixelated game for all to enjoy. In January 2020, developer New Star Games came out with Retro Bowl, a game that draws inspiration from Tecmo Bowl. Despite Tecmo Bowl being a 34 year old game, Retro Bowl feels anything but old. It creates a short, fun playing experience for all ages. 

The game has seemed to gain recent popularity from its simple gameplay, which features an offense-only football experience. Games are short and fulfilling while also creating some excitement when playing a more competitive round. 

When building your team, contracts only last two seasons, and with a salary cap, it becomes more challenging when signing players that want a higher contract the following year. The main goal of the game is to win the championship, the Retro Bowl. The achievements it has might also be a secondary goal for some players as it takes lots of playing time and dedication in order to get 100% of them. With unlimited seasons, it is possible to complete them. It takes a simple and nostalgic idea and makes it feel fresh and new again. For that, I’ll give it a round of applause. 

With these different features, there are many upsides to the game over others. Additionally, its quick playing nature is a great way for people who have no football experience to jump into it in a way that doesn’t feel overwhelming or rushed. The game also updates accordingly with the actual National Football League rules as they recently added a 17 game season. 

The game doesn’t offer a multiplayer platform, but you can compare your seasons with your friends and show off your star players. With five save slots, you can create many teams from which you can help grow and become Retro Bowl winners. All players and coaches are rated by a five star scale by an increase of half stars. This game hosts many minute details including coaching credits, team attributes and upgrades like a training and rehabilitation center. There are so many details in this game that can be overlooked, but when discovered, it can create a whole different experience for players.

Even though the game is amazing overall, there are some drawbacks. Some of these include the lack of play calling, which depending on how good your quarterback is, could be very limited when choosing or changing a play. Another issue is a lack of defense. Even though you have defensive players on your team, you cannot see them play. 

I would give this game 4.5 stars because of its uniqueness and details that other games, like Madden, lack.