Deca Sports DS Review for Nintendo DS

System: DS	Review Rating Legend
Dev: Hudson Soft	1.0 - 1.9 = Avoid	4.0 - 4.4 = Great
Pub: Hudson Soft	2.0 - 2.4 = Poor	4.5 - 4.9 = Must Buy
Release: March 2, 2010	2.5 - 2.9 = Average	5.0 = The Best
Players: 1-6	3.0 - 3.4 = Fair
ESRB Rating: Everyone	3.5 - 3.9 = Good

In terms of production, Deca Sports DS looks and sounds decent. The visuals are quite pixelated, but they're good enough to bring the sports to life. The menu music is generic, and the sound effects are simply standard. Overall, the presentation is just good enough to keep players playing.

Deca Sports DS screenshot

Deca Sports DS does do a few technical things well, however. For starters, the tutorials are terse yet quite informative; getting you playing in no time. Also, each sport features varied modes of play that can be selected. You can play in an Open Match (free play), create a League, start a Tournament, or even try your hand at Challenges, which test your skills at the various sports with specific criteria. Challenges are a nice addition because they add a bit more to the package; I especially liked besting my scores in the Golf Challenge. Finally, the character and team customization tools will let you make a collection of players you "care" about. On the downside, you'll be forced to use these tools to tweak the default teams because the developers didn't take the time to populate them logically; you'll have a collection of bearded Annabelles and Shaft-like Kaidences, while Mari is more akin to Mario.

Deca Sports DS is certainly not an excellent game. In fact, I wouldn't even consider it to be particularly high-quality. However, this sports compilation does pack enough fun to give casual and younger players several hours of entertainment. The addition of single-cart DS Download Play for local multiplayer action proves to be a real boon for the title, packing it with an unexpected amount of play value.

By Jonathan Marx
CCC Editor / News Director

RATING OUT OF 5

RATING DESCRIPTION

3.0

Graphics
The visuals are passable.

3.8

Control
The sports, for the most part, control well. Many of the stylus-based gameplay mechanics get dull quickly.

2.5

Music / Sound FX / Voice Acting
The music and sounds do just enough to support gameplay.

4.0

Play Value
Though the game isn't that great whilst playing alone, it isn't too bad either. Moreover, the single-cart multiplayer adds a lot to the overall package.

3.0

Overall Rating - Fair
Not an average. See Rating legend above for a final score breakdown.

Game Features:

Single player - Play Open Match in one sport, a one-sport bracket-style Tournament, complete a Challenge, or the ultimate competition in the League vs. 6 teams in all 10 sports.

Multiplayer - Use just one game card for game sharing as you take on friends and family in 2-6 player competition in Open Match, VS., and Tournament modes.

Locker Room - Create your own team with the Team Editor: pick the name, colors, emblem, and the look and attributes of the players themselves! You can also learn the nuances of each sport in Tutorial mode here.