- Release Date: 1993
- Genre: Sports
- Style: Football (American)
- Similar Games: Mutant League Hockey (Sega Genesis)
Game Description
"Bone crushing hits" take on new meaning as mutants from around the galaxy vie for glory in Mutant League Football for theObstacles litter the playing field, including rocks, potholes, and mines. With bodies literally exploding all over the field, part of the challenge is keeping your team alive. Instant replays catch all the carnage up close, and feel free to hurl dynamite at the halftime marching band.
Mutant League Football encompasses 19 different fields and four difficulty levels, as well as two-player support. And if things aren't going your way, you can always bribe the ref.
~ Ben Silverman, All Game Guide
Review: Overall
Mutant League Football is one of those games that almost makes it to the highest echelon of video games but falls just short. It has a great concept, but the graphics and game play fall just short of making it a great game. Another year or two in development would have done this game some good, but in the dog eat dog world of video games, time is never a luxury that developers have. That being said, Mutant League Football is still a really good video game. There are just a few elements missing.The idea of monsters, robots, aliens, and humans tearing up the field together is great. It is a clash that draws sports fans and sci-fi fans together. That is a good thing. Anytime a game appeals to more than one of my interests, it feels like the developers are talking to me and people like me. The folks at Electronic Arts were definitely singing my tune with the Mutant League concept.
Also appealing is the idea of games that appreciate the value if cheating. If you have the swag, you can bribe the referee. After the bribe, he usually calls your opponent for "flicking boogers" and negates any big play that he or she may have just had. If you don't have the cash to bribe the ref, you can always call the "Kill Ref" play and sit back as your team chases him down and rips him to shreds. Killing the ref usually results in a penalty, but it is fun to do occasionally anyway.
Finally, the idea that this is really football is great. It's not some weird "space football" where the object is to run through a maze and destroy an alien ship on your way to the end zone. This is real, honest, smashmouth football.
There are a few problems with Mutant League Football, however. First, the graphics are not great. The game is played with a top down view with players running north and south rather than east and west. This style is okay and has been used in many football games, but the characters in the game are a bit too small to make it work well. The characters are also not very detailed on the field. The cutaway graphics are good, but the game graphics are fairly weak.
The sound is also not a big plus for Mutant League Football. It is basically just a series of grunts and explosions. You could argue that those types of sounds add ambiance to the game, but more likely the developers at EA just didn't want to spend much more time with it.
Finally, Mutant League Football is just missing some of the intangibles that great games have. Even though it was popular enough to spawn other games and a cartoon series, there is something that keeps it from being a great game. Although it was fun to play, it is doubtful that you will find many people who would put Mutant League Football high on their list of the greatest Sega Genesis games. Overall, it's a good game -- not great, but good.
~ Anthony Baize, All Game Guide
Review: Enjoyment
Good fun~ Anthony Baize, All Game Guide
Review: Graphics
Fairly weak~ Anthony Baize, All Game Guide
Review: Sound
Also weak~ Anthony Baize, All Game Guide
Review: Replay Value
Always challenging~ Anthony Baize, All Game Guide
Review: Documentation
Good~ Anthony Baize, All Game Guide
Production Credits
Created by: Michael Mendheim; Design: Michael Mendheim, Alan Martin; Lead Artist: Art Koch; Graphics: Jeff Fennel, Roseann Mitchell, Armand Cadrera; Animation: Jeff Fennel, Michael Mendheim, Peggy Brennan, Peter Traugot, Steve Suhy; Music & Sound Effects: Brian Schmidt; Lead Programmer: Gil Colgate; Programmers: Gil Colgate, Ian Clarke; Producer: Sam Nelson,; Associate Producer: Kieth Orr; Assistant Producer: Tony Iuppa; Technical Director: Edwin Reich; Product Testing: Kevin Hogan, Alan Martin, Eric Newhouse; Product Manager: Dave Neubecker ; Art Director: Nancy Waisanen; Package Design: Michael Osborne; Game Text & Documentation: Michael Humes; Documentation Layout: Corey Higgins; Documentation Illustration: Frank Cirocco; Quality Assurance: Walter Ianneo, Ted Fitzgerald; Thanks to: Baron Samhadi, H.G. Wells, Edgar Allan Poe; Special Thanks to: Valerie Hennigan and Richard Robbins; Produced by: Mutant Productions
~ Ron Ellerson, All Game Guide
