Inazuma Eleven Victory Road Beta Review (Nintendo Switch)

With the release of the Inazuma Eleven Victory Road Beta the series has made its long-awaited return with a massive jump from the touch screen gameplay of the DS to an all-button control style. With his massive overhaul is sure to come some adjustments so this Inazuma Eleven Victory Road beta review will focus on my thoughts as a long-time player.

Inazuma Eleven Victory Road Beta Thoughts

The Gameplay Change

So going from touch screen football to analogue and buttons required a complete change to how Inazuma Eleven plays. Now, the buttons are the main way to pass, shoot, and progress up the pitch.

What’s impressive is how the 1 vs 1 battles have been adapted to this style. The dribbler and defender still square off for possession, as does the goalkeeper and the shooter, this time though it isn’t as simple as choosing options and trying not to use up MP.

This does take some getting used to as the game throws a lot of mechanics at you off the bat but over time I got used to it and most fans of the series should to as it’s still the same at its core.

I am intrigued to see how this play style can adapt to the short 3v3 battles that the series used to have as the gameplay does require the full space of the field to really work.

RPG Elements Changed

Gone is the MP system to use special moves, which is something that probably would be OP with the current style of play. In its place is the brand new Tension meter which builds up the more you keep possession and allows you to trigger special moves.

This forces you to play the game more as the touch screen of the DS and some of the OP mechanics allowed for very one-sided games if you were able to pass to the right places and use the most effective dribbling moves.

You can still pass you way to the other goal with ease, but if you do that now you won’t have any tension built up and the defense will shut you down.

Defending

I do have some issues with defending as a player, but there are also positives. The big negative is it feels like the AI is able to get past my defenders a bit too easily, especially when out wide, the defensive window is too small generally to cover the sides of the pitch properly.

The good part is, the shot-stopping is very powerful and once you get used to it you’ll be able to place defenders in the right spots to nullify the opponent. This marks our second major mechanic overhaul as the game now slows down into a “Zone” in key shooting moments. This allows you as an attacker to either string together shots for a powerful attack ot as the goalkeeper you can place “walls” where your defenders can block the shot and reduce its power if placed properly.

Defending is probably my only big issue so far, and it could certainly be tuned up as this is a beta, but even then the game makes it work by letting the goalkeeper phase be the safety net.

Pomp & Circumstances

With the power of the Nintendo Switch there’s room for everything in Inazuma Eleven to be more grandiose than we saw on the DS and Wii. Level 5 have taken this opportunity and run with it as the match presentation is better than ever.

The pre-match intros are really cool and the tactical screens and commentary overlay are neat additions that make the game feel a lot more authentic. I’m interested to see how this carries over to the full career mode and its matches.

Overall Thoughts

I think this is a great leap from older consoles to a new generation. Inazuma Eleven Victory Road Beta gives us a glimpse of what could be a fun game. I am interested to see how the established mechanics carry over to the RPG style gameplay of the story mode but they’ve got the essentials correct with the actual football being well done after some adjustments.