Super Spike V'Ball is a sports volleyball video game that was developed by Technos and published by Taito for the Arcades and by Nintendo for the NES. The game was originally released in the Arcades on October 1988, and for the NES on February 1990. Super Spike V'Ball is one of the best sports games of the 1980s in the video game industry, it will have you enjoying for hours of making you feel like if you're in the beach playing with a rival team.
Plot. George and Michael are two v'ball players who make a life by challenging the local teams at the beach everyday. They're good players, but they want a greater challenge. One day, they see a flyer advertising a nationwide volleyball tournament offering the winning team a trophy and a one million dollar prize. The two beach bum friends are determined to win and make a name for themselves.
The game has three game modes: Exercise, American Circuit and World Cup. Exercise is for those who are new to the game, American Circuit consists of playing against five teams: Daytona, New York, Chicago, Las Vegas, and Los Angeles. The World Cup is for those who completed American Circuit and are looking for a greater challenge to play against teams such as: Japan, Italy, Australia, Mexico, Brazil, the U.S. Navy and U.S.S.R, all set to a hard difficulty. Players can play for two if they want to team up with a friend or family member, or play against them.
Concept. The concept consists of players choosing a team that they can dominate with good expertise and play against many teams to win. For rookies is Exercise, where there is a crowdless beach and they learn the basics of spiking and many other moves to earn points, American Circuit is the Normal Mode, where players play against teams in this order: Daytona, New York, Chicago, Las Vegas, and Los Angeles. And World Cup, the hardest difficulty setting is where players play in Hawaii against teams in this order: Japan, Italy, Australia, Mexico, Brazil. Then they play the two final matches, the U.S. Navy and Russia, formerly known as the U.S.S.R.
Design. Technos was behind the development of the game, and it is rendered in sprites. I also like the look of the lady who gives the points and penalties of each team, and they did a great job in designing her. Also, there were supposed to be female players, but unfortunately they can only be playable via a cheat code. Also, I was impressed to see the Double Dragons, but I did not like their looks that much.
Memories. I played this game when I was about 4 years old, during a vacation in Santo Domingo, three years before I moved there. This is one of the many video games that defined my childhood. In 1994 I managed to beat the American Circuit, and I really enjoyed playing it. The World Cup I had trouble because the teams were stronger, and I never got past the U.S. Navy, until the day I played this game on the emulator when I was 15. Me and my cousins would have some tournaments, or we would play together against the opposing team. Great days, great times, and I DON'T complain! Hahaha!
Rantings. For so many years, my hatred was directed towards the Navy in this game. The U.S. Navy was so strong that I could not get past them, and there were times I was about to beat them, but unfortunately, the parents would never let me beat them in bedtime. Sucks doesn't it? Some teams in the World Cup like Brazil and Mexico would definitely get on your nerves.
Good Aspects. This game has many great qualities and you will enjoy playing it. If only it was on the Wii Virtual Console of course. The game has great replay value, and if you ever bought an NES from a pawn shop, then you're in for the time of your life.
Overall. This is one of my favorite sports games of all time. This game gets a 7 out of 10.