A long-time fan of Irem's "10-Yard Fight" from the arcade, I was eager to play it on the NES. I was simultaneously impressed and disappointed with the results. In the arcade, "10-Yard Fight" pitted the player against increasingly difficult defensive teams in an attempt to score before the clock ran out. Controls and plays were simple. It could perhaps be best described as a football-flavored action game. Nintendo's take on "10-Yard Fight" was much more ambitious. Gone was the arcade points system (1,000 points for a first down, for instance), but it still felt pretty much like the arcade game I grew up with... that is, until I scored a touchdown. Instead of being moved on to the next defensive squad, I found MYSELF playing the defensive squad against the CPU, controlling the halt of the kickoff return and then calling defensive plays and reacting on subsequent carries. My puzzlement quickly turned into joy as I proceeded to destroy the CPU’s offense. Slowly, however, my rapture morphed into fatigue. "10-Yard Fight" is a very active game, and unlike its arcade counterpart, the games can last a long time. Nearing the end of the first game, I was savoring the taste of victory (despite my numb thumbs) as the clock ran down on my 35-10 demolition of the CPU. I wasn't so smug, however, when the game automatically trotted out the next team. My aching digits subsequently hit the showers while I imagined with chagrin the razzing coming from the CPU team, victorious through forfeit. Fortunately, I was able to avenge myself later as the game allowed me to start on any of the available skill levels. Obviously, someone decided to take this action game and try to make a real football game out of it. Unfortunately, as an attempt at a real football game, the games are too long and the action is too shallow for the fun to last for long. Graphically, "10-Yard Fight" is not bad. The sprites are somewhat smaller than the arcade game, though they closely recreate the original graphics. It’s a shame that the sprites do flicker pretty rapidly, however, when numerous on-screen players congregate too closely. Like the graphics, the sound also does a fair job or recreating the original ambience of the arcade game, minus the speech, of course. Of import is the consideration of controller for use with this game. During the game, one crucial move is the evasion, which an offensive player performs when a defensive player grabs him. This move is accomplished by quickly "waggling" left and right. This move is difficult to perform well on a D-Pad, even with both hands. Therefore, an alternative controller with a joystick (like the NES Advantage) is recommended for this game. Overall, "10-Yard Fight" is best relegated to die-hard football fans and to NES collectors. Fans of the original arcade game will be disappointed by Nintendo's divergence from Irem's playbook.
This is without a doubt the most difficult, ill-conceived sports game ever produced. If Nintendo was to be judged for only one game and this was it, I can only think the death penalty would be considered. In 10-Yard ... Read Full Review
10 Yard Fight is a football game that was an alright football game for the NES at the time when it came out. I can’t really say much about these graphics in any of the reviews I write for the original NES because all th... Read Full Review
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