BBC SPORT | Funny Old Game | Let's play: Go Go Beckham



By David Gibbon BBC Sport Online game reviewer

After having Brooklyn and then Romeo, Becks is becoming increasingly keen at keeping his kids happy and this video game could be seen as his latest attempt.

While we have already had the fairly unsuccessful series of official Beckham games, this one is a cartoon-style Becks game.

Creators Rage decided to make a boyish looking David Beckham - but one that comes with the infamous Becks hair cut.

Go Go Beckham

Format: Game Boy Advance

Price: �29.99

Publisher: Rage Software

Genre: Football

Also Available: N/A

And the end result can be seen here, looking more like Brooklyn than the great man himself.

The final character designs were said to have been approved by Becks - so maybe he was thinking more of his son at the time?

Rather than being yet another out and out football game, Go Go Beckham is more of a platform arcade game but with soccer as its central theme.

The basic premise is that a nasty character called Mr Woe has cast a spell on the inhabitants of Soccer Island.

He wants to persecute its entire human race and steal all the balls from the island - heaven forbid!

But Beckham gets to use his soccer skills to take on an army of opponents, reverse the terrible spell and restore peace and harmony to the island.

More of a platform arcade game than a football game

The game features five different adventure-packed locations - The Club, The Enchanted Forest, The Creepy Caves, The West Coast and the Frozen North.

And should you get through them, you end up in Mr Woe's Castle before facing the villain himself.

Playing the game is very simple indeed. It is very much platform based and uses 2D graphics.

You control the young Becks and he can jump, kick, crouch and even swim (there is water throughout the island).

There are monsters everywhere, but there are also lots of power-ups which can be collected.

Gibbon's verdict

Graphics: 82%

Playability: 92%

Sound: 68%

Realism: 78%

Overall: 90%

To destroy baddies - or collect power-ups - all you need do is shoot the ball at them.

There are also different magical balls that can be used, such as rubber balls which bounce a lot to beach balls which are light and easy to control.

In addition, there are also spells around the island and these can do anything from freezing all monsters in sight for a short while to making you invisible to monsters.

Graphics are colourful and bright and youngsters are sure to love the whole Beckham appeal.

Although there is little originality here, Go Go Beckham is a brilliant alternative to true football and will keep players spellbound for months to come.