By Brad Cook
The International Cup final. A boisterous crowd fills the Madrid stadium to capacity, roaring with every exciting cross pass, slide tackle, and shot on goal. The score is tied, 1-1, as the minutes tick toward 90:00 in the second half. The crowd begins chanting as you steal the ball away from the other team deep in your end of the field. They sense drama in the air.
You move the ball swiftly downfield, passing it with ease between teammates. A skillfully executed one-two brings the ball across midfield as those chants grow louder. A defender charges, but a Marseille Roulette — spinning 360 degrees with the ball still in your possession — shakes him off.
Then you launch a beautiful cross pass to a teammate streaking down the other side of the field. In control of that player, you find yourself one-on-one with the goalie, who moves forward in an attempt to block a shot that never comes. As he dives, you tap the ball to a waiting team member, who fires it into the empty net. Goal! You savor the moment as you watch the replay.
Before the ensuing kick-off, you change your strategy to emphasize nothing but defense. The other team never gets close to scoring, and a 2-1 victory earns you another trophy for your case. Maybe now it’s time for some league action.
So Many Possibilities
League play is just one of many options in Real Soccer 2009, where you’ll find over 290 clubs and national teams, all of them featuring real players from around the world. Compete in four cups, five national leagues, and 10 club leagues as you collect 15 trophies to fill your case. Set your strategy, including formation and offense/defense mix, and play matches in stadiums located in San Paolo, Paris, Milan, Manchester, Barcelona, Madrid, Berlin, Vienna, and London.
Don’t forget to choose one of four difficulty levels, select the weather, and decide whether tie games should go to extra time. If you just want a quick contest, set up an exhibition match or a penalty kicks competition, or engage in some training to sharpen your skills. During matches, you can watch replays of key moments to see what you did right or wrong.
Luckily, if you make a mistake and score an own goal in a key game, you won’t have to worry about national headlines displaying your ignominy for all to see. Not everything requires true-to-life realism.
Tips and Tricks
- Pass to the spot where you expect a teammate to be, not where he is now. Conversely, on defense, attack where you expect the ball to go.
- Slide tackles from behind almost always draw a yellow or red card. Try to slide tackle from the front or side, but time the move right — if you knock down your opponent, he’ll likely get a free kick.
- Hold down the center button to run faster on defense, but be aware that doing so also fills the pass meter — if you get possession of the ball, that player will automatically pass or shoot it at the power level indicated by the meter. That’s a perfect technique, however, for setting up a powerful shot on goal.
- On the lower difficulty levels, you can get away with emphasizing offense over defense, which will lead to more scoring opportunities. Sure, it will give the other team more scoring opportunities too, but the game is more forgiving on easier settings, so you should be able to steal the ball away before they can set up a shot.
iPod Games FAQ
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GOOOOAAAAAALLL! Here’s another tip: Draw out the goalie and then fire it past him. Just don’t wait too long, or he’ll pounce on the ball.
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System Requirements
- Mac OS X version 10.3.9 or Windows 2000
- iPod nano (3rd and 4th generation only), iPod classic, or iPod (5th generation only). Not playable on your computer, other iPod models, iPod touch or iPhone. Please check which iPod model you have.
- iTunes 7.5 or higher required to download (games cannot be played in iTunes)