As someone whose only experiences with the franchise had been via its anime adaptations and a brief addiction to the Strikers spin-offs during my youth, I could not wait to dive into Inazuma Eleven: Victory Road and see for myself what a mainline experience is like, now paired with improved graphics and welcome new gameplay features. But did the game manage to up the stakes after almost a decade of development hell? Here are our thoughts after almost 100 hours.
To Start, Let’s Talk About The Story
Its most talked-about feature, Victory Road‘s Story Mode takes place 25 years after the event’s of the first entry and puts players in the shoes of student Unmei Sasanami (or Destin Billows if you decided against using the original Japanese voices/nomenclature), who after having his love for the game reignited, embarks on a mission to revive his school’s football club and reach the top. The mode offers an experience that seemed similar to that of the latest Fire Emblem games at first, via its style of exploration, while allowing players to take on turn-based battles against other students or enemies, complete side-quests, and attempt many minigames (or Special Trainings) between both story and optional matches.
I know that might seem impressive, and it truly is, but that scope also highlights my biggest gripes with it: Its large amount of filler content, illustrated by its many intel-gathering or mandatory minigame sections, and wasted potential. What do I mean by the latter? Well, although the mode more than succeeds in bringing that Inazuma Eleven feel to life through its overall presentation and brief but heartfelt story, featuring many animated cutscenes by Jujutsu Kaisen‘s Studio MAPPA, all facets of its off-the-pitch experience feel half-baked, from exploration to character interaction.
Take, for example, its side quests or the mentioned turn-based battles, which do not add anything substantial to it in the long run, or the way that pretty much all of its cast members are either underutilized or cast aside. Honestly, even if most have an undeniable charm and do grow on you as you take them to the field via both the Story and other game modes, I cannot help but wonder what it would be like to have companion-related quests that reward you with moves and give more insight into your fellow students/staff members.
Many could also be centered around the mentioned minigames, with a perfect example being the beautifully animated rhythm sequence you must complete early on to recruit Raika Shinohara. Can you imagine what it would be like to have the option to tackle more of them as part of a character-focused questline?
Chronicle Is A Delight, But There’s Way More To Do
Chronicle Mode can be considered the game’s main pillar, as the large majority of the experience relies on its Competition Route. In it, players can take on a completely different campaign, now taking place decades after the events of the above, and are tasked with reliving most of the franchise’s story while completing key matches and advancing through a grid-like map. To give it a more cinematic feel, each stage follows the pattern set by the Story Mode, presenting players with conditions that must be fulfilled to complete it.
Upon completing any for the first time, you can then tackle the stage with your own team to either unlock the next one or go for more rewards, such as items and the Player Spirits used to summon your favorites and add them to your overall player bank. Its secondary feature (Player Universe) then allows you to pull for rare spirits in exchange for Bond Stars, earned by playing or as free Crate rewards. Keep in mind that different game modes reward you with different rewards.
Branching away from Chronicle, cozy gaming fans might also find a home in Kizuma Station, which allows you to create your own Bond Towns and Avatar, usable on all game modes. Your towns can then be fully decorated with characters, buildings, and objects. You can also invite friends and unknown players to it to hang out or play matches.
Those looking for extra challenges might also find content in Competitive, while BB Station allows you to take canon teams to the pitch, both offline and online. Before you ask, no, Victory Road does not offer couch versus or co-op at the time of writing.
Anime Football At Its Finest
Now that we have gone over the main modes, it’s time to dive into how matches are actually played. After all, no matter how enticing the above can be, they will be meaningless if the core 11v11 fails to deliver on the premise. On that, I am more than happy to say that Inazuma Eleven: Victory Road delivers an experience just as addictive and rewarding as you can expect on the pitch, courtesy of its Focus and Zone systems.
Made to simulate the 1v1 encounters seen in most football anime/manga and taking inspiration from even more RPG elements, the system allows players to pick techniques on the fly during key situations to both gain boosts and beat on-field players/keepers. To balance offense and defense, its Castle mechanic also allows you to steal balls, as well as intercept, weaken, or even counter shots by placing defenders in their path and picking the right abilities.
Those looking for squad-building freedom also won’t be disappointed, as most members of the game’s cast can have all of their abilities customized through their Abilearn Board. That pairs extremely well with the franchise’s element system and allows you to craft your ideal players by leveling up skills and investing in the right stats for your chosen positions. Picking the right tactics also plays a huge role here, as even if you cannot change formations mid-match, they can provide effects sure to impact.
You Get What You Invest, And That’s Amazing
As you can guess from the above, grinding is the name of the game here, with playing being the only way to get access to new stat boosting equipment pieces, moves, Spirits, and even new Bond Town buildings. It’s also important to point out that Victory Road does not have microtransactions, which makes finally getting that sought-after player with the right Team Passive even more gratifying.
Final Thoughts
Inazuma Eleven Victory Road‘s immense roster of fully customizable players, beautiful presentation, and addictive gameplay make it feel like both a thank-you letter to the community and the perfect entry point for newcomers looking to pair their football love with over-the-top action. Just make sure to accept its story mode for what it is and expect a lot of grinding.
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Pros:
- A vast cast of unique but customizable characters, including hundreds of known faces and fan-favorites
- Replicates the anime feel like few others can
- Content for days
- No Microtransactions (Playing is your only way to improve)
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Cons:
- RPG fans might find Its Main Story lacking due to its lack of character exploration and repetitive feel
- No co-op modes at release
