Don't throw your junk in my back yard . . . only kidding!! An unpolished, simple game . . . yet also quite fun despite.

User Rating: 7 | Backyard Football 2006 PS2
Backyard Football 2006 isn't necessarily a true football simulator along the lines of say, the Madden series of games, it's more of a title for younger kids that will help them enjoy video game football without all the complications that come with most of today's modern games. The premise of the game is that there is a group of young kids that live in the same neighbourhood and all play together in the BFL (Backyard Football League). Instead of playing on actual football fields they play in random areas around their town like a clearing in the forest, a scrap yard, the local high school, among others.

From the main menu you have six options, the first of which is called "Quick Game". This game mode will take you straight to some BFL action in a one off exhibition game, leaving you with absolutely zero decisions to make. The machine chooses the teams, the players, and all of the various field and game options, then whisks you off to the action.

The second option from the main menu is called "Pick-Up Game" and is pretty much the same as Quick Game, only you get to make all the game decisions before getting to the action. After choosing this game mode you will then be asked to select the two teams you want to see compete. At this screen you can also alter the look of each team by changing up their various uniform colourations. You can also choose the style of gameplay you'd like your team to emphasize. As far as the teams go in Backyard Football 2006, you can choose from amongst all of the 32 NFL teams as well as 19 BFL teams created just for this game. After you leave the team page you will then be asked to select the location you'd like the game to be played at. When you first start on this game there are 7 locations available including Cyan Lane, McMillan & Sons Junkyard, Bourne Free Kilt Co., Past President High School, Swirling Meadow, Big Wood Park & Chicken Rock. Throughout the course of the game you will unlock one last location, called Humongous Memorial Stadium. At the location selection screen you'll also be able to choose whether you want to play on the full sized field, or if you want to play on a shortened version of the field. In the shortened version there is no kicking involved in the game at all. You simply go for touchdowns and if the defense stops you before you can punch it in, their offense takes over from where you left off. You can also set what type of weather you want to incur in your game, including rainy, snow or sunny. After selecting the location you then move on to set the field rules. Field rules include setting the first down stipulation (the usual 10 yards, no first downs, or completing 2 passes in a row) as well as the win condition (game ends after a set amount of time, quarters can be between 1-5 minutes each, or game ends after a certain amount of points are scored by the winning team, this amount can be set anywhere between 7-70 points). After dealing with the field rules you then move on to set the game rules. Game rules include selecting the difficulty level (easy, normal or hard), toggling power moves on/off, toggling helmets on/off, toggling the tutorial on/off, toggling player assist on/off & toggling Chuck's Pick on/off (Chuck is one of the commentators in the game, when you're selecting either an offensive or a defensive play you can press a button to see what play he suggests at any given time). The last step before heading off to game action is to select the players you want to be on your roster. I don't remember exactly but I think in this game there are 7 players to a team. You take turns choosing players with the other team until you both have your rosters filled out. There are 21 BFL kids to choose from that were made especially for this game, as well as 14 NFL pros (in child form). Not all of the NFL players are available at the start of the game, quite a few of them have to be unlocked. Finally, after setting your rosters it's off to the game!

The third option from the main menu is called "Season" and is where you'll spend the bulk of your time on this title. It's also the mode that will allow you to most easily unlock all of the various extras in the game. Basically in this mode you choose a team to play with and then set out on a 14 game regular season, followed up by 4 rounds of playoffs, all in an effort to win the ultimate BFL prize . . . the Cereal Bowl!! When you choose this game mode the first thing you do is select the team you want to control throughout your season, from amongst all of the NFL and BFL teams. After you select your team you then set all of the field rules and game rules as I explained in the paragraph above. The only rules/settings that are a little bit different when you embark on season mode is the weather setting, you can choose only random or always sunny in this regard. Also, before you get to the action you have to choose which of the locations in the game you want to be your home field.

After you finish with all of the above selections you will then be taken to the Season Menu, from which you have eight options. The first option is called "Play", by choosing this you will immediately be taken to the field for the next applicable game on your season schedule. The second option is "Schedule". Here you can view all of the regular season games on your schedule, as well as the scores of any games you've already completed. Third we have the "Standings" option, which simply shows the current BFL standings. You can toggle whether you want to view the standings by division, conference, or the entire league. During the post-season this option will display a playoff tree instead. Fourth we have "Statistics", where you can view all of the relative BFL statistics from your current season. There are three categories of statistics to view under this option including Team Stats, Player Stats, and Milestones (a listing of the ultimate individual player achievements).

The fifth option from the season menu is "Strategy", where you can view the player positioning on your offensive, defensive and kicking units. This is also where you can switch the player's positions within these various units. Sixth we come to the "Playbook" option. Your team in Backyard Football 2006 will have 4 pages of plays on both defense and offense, for a total of 16 plays you can execute on either side of the ball. You will also have 1 page of kicking plays, for a total of 4 possible plays to execute in any given kicking situation. This Playbook option is where you can swap plays in and out of your own personal playbook and customize your teams' arsenal to just where you want it. Option seven from the season menu is "Edit Teams". This is where you go if you want to change the team you control on your season at any given time. Finally, the eighth option is "Options". When you select it you will be given three sub-options. The first two sub-options are Field Rules and Game Rules, which include the exact same settings I glossed over in the third paragraph of this review. The third sub-option is Sound & Display. Here you can adjust the camera position setting, the menu music, SFX, commentary, kid chatter and background sound volumes, the sound setting (stereo, mono or surround) as well as toggle the vibration control on/off. And that is all for Season mode, do you have what it takes? :)

Getting back to the main menu the fourth option you will find there is "Profiles". Here you simply have the options of loading, deleting or creating new game save files.

Fifth on the main menu is . . . "Options"! The sub-options presented here are the same three ones I mentioned two paragraphs earlier, including Field Rules, Game Rules, and Sound & Display.

The sixth and final option on the main menu is called "The Goods". This is where you can view all of the unlockable material in the game and much, much more. When you first choose it you will be presented with five sub-options. The first one is called Meet the Players. Here you can view the abilities and bios of all players in the game, both NFL and BFL, as well as any players you've created (player creation is done at the player selection screen and can be performed under any game mode). You can also listen to various sound bites from each player as well. The second sub-option is High Scores. Here you can view the all-time best totals, sorted by either team or individual player, in a number of categories like touchdowns, field goals, total points, tackles, sacks, interceptions, fumble recoveries, etc. Third we come to the "Trophy Case" sub-option, where you can view all of the various trophies up for grabs in season mode and how many times you've won them. The trophies included are the League Champion Trophy, League MVP, Goody Goody Trophy, AFC and NFC Conference Trophies, as well as all of the divisional trophies. Fourth is the Unlockables sub-option, where you can scroll between two different pages of unlockable material. The first page is also titled Unlockables and lists a number of extras that include the additional NFL players you can unlock, the additional football field up for grabs, as well as a pile of goofy gear upgrades you can equip your created players with. The second page of extras is called Cheat Codes. As you unlock these extras you will earn a cheat code you can enter to enable all sorts of different game upgrades including a variety of novelty footballs for use during game action as well as physical feature alterations for your entire team like big heads, big hands, big feet, etc. To gain all of these various unlockable items you have to perform certain tasks throughout the course of your experience on Backyard Football 2006. Some of them are as simple as beating a certain team in the game like the Indianapolis Colts, but most of them are of a medium difficulty, requiring you to perform tasks like getting five interceptions or scoring ten touchdowns in a single game. There are a small number of tasks that are a fair bit harder to achieve and must be completed by playing through season mode, such as winning the League MVP or leading the league in rushing and receiving. Lastly, the fifth and final sub-option under The Goods is called Credits, where you can simply view a list of the people who designed this game for us.

At this point I should take a minute to explain your options from the pause menu once you are actually in the midst of a game. When you press the Start button you will be faced with a list of five options. The first option is Resume Game, just select it to get right back to game action. The second option is called Strategy and is the same option I explained four paragraphs earlier. During the game you can view your players' positioning on the offensive, defensive and kicking units and make any changes you may deem necessary. Third we come to the Replay option. If something awesome happens during the game, a big hit perhaps, here is where you go to watch it in all it's slow-mo glory!! Fourth from the pause menu comes Options, it is exactly the same as I mentioned two paragraphs earlier. Last we come to the Quit to Treehouse option. If you are too tired, fed up, or drunk to continue playing, select this option and you'll be taken back to the main menu of the game (the main menu in Backyard Football 2006 takes the form of a kid's treehouse, if you hadn't already guessed).

Once you get in to the game there isn't a lot to look out for, it is just a football game after all, but there is some information on the game screen you'll need to pay attention to. In the upper corners of the screen you will see the logo for each team that is competing in the game. Surrounding each team's logo is a gauge broken up in to three sections, this is the power moves gauge. As you make good stuff happen in the game like complete passes, get first downs, score points, make sacks etc., these gauges will fill. The energy built up in these gauges is what is used to execute your player's power moves. Depending on the type of player power moves come in different varieties. For quarterbacks they make them throw bullet passes that cannot be intercepted, make wide receivers leap super high up in to the air to catch a pass, make running backs lower their head and batter any defenders that try to touch them, and the list goes on. Back to the task at hand, depending on who has possession of the ball at any point during a game you will also see a football icon beside that team's logo. Lastly, in the top middle section of the screen you will see a bar that connects the team logos and displays information like the win condition (either what quarter the game is in and how much time is left, or the point condition), the current down situation, as well as the play clock.

As for the controls, they're pretty simple for a football game. You can use the D-pad or the left analog stick to move your players around the field. These buttons are also used to flip through the pages of your playbook and adjust the aim of a kick before you actually boot it. The L1 button is used for a number of things. When you are looking through your playbook it is used to display Chuck's Pick. On the field, before the snap, it is used to view the current route assignments for the play you're running. Once the action has started it is used to initiate a power move. Each player has more than one power move available to them, so you press L1 to initiate the move and then press either the X, Square, Triangle or Circle button, depending on which power move you want to utilize. As for the R1 button, when looking at your playbook it is used to flip plays, once on the field it is used to make your player sprint. The X button is the one with the most controls assigned to it . . . as usual! It is used to snap the ball when you are on offense, and then when you are carrying the ball you can use it to perform a stiff arm. When your quarterback has control of the ball on a passing play it is used to pass to the "X" receiver. Once the ball is in the air on any given pass play, no matter which receiver you are passing to, pressing X will allow you to gain control of said receiver from the computer. On defense it is used to cycle through control of your defenders before the ball is snapped. Once the play is in effect it is then used to switch control to the defender closest to the ball. Lastly, on kicking plays X is used to stop/start the kicking power meter. The Square button is used for two things, to make your quarterback pass to the "Square" receiver, or to make your player do a spin move. The Triangle button isn't used for much, it's sole purpose is to make your player dive, in order to make a tackle, dive for a pass, dive across the goal line, etc. As for the Circle button, it is of course used to make your quarterback pass to the "Circle" receiver, as well as make your player jump (usually to receive/intercept a pass). Circle is also used to cycle control through your defenders before the ball is snapped, in the opposite direction as the X button does. It is important to note that when you are making a pass holding down the applicable pass button will make your quarterback throw a harder, faster pass, and by tapping the button quickly it will make him or her throw a slower, more lob type of pass. Finally, the Start button is used to pause the game whenever the need may arise.

Backyard Football 2006's presentation is merely average. The graphics are average, of both the players and their surroundings. They're nothing horrendous, just nothing special either. Smoothing out the rough edges on the environments and putting a bit of extra polish on things would have made it a lot easier on the eyes. The sound isn't great either. The game is filled with musical pieces designed specifically for the game but they seem uninspired and even when the sound sliders are pushed to the max the volume still seems a little subdued. On the bright side though the controls are very well laid out and they respond perfectly, so there are no control issues whatsoever.

As for the pros and cons to this title, there is a steady stream of both. First we'll start with the cons. As I just mentioned, the presentation of this game leaves a lot to be desired, in terms of both the look and the sound this game puts across. It isn't a total flop, but it isn't anywhere close to a home run either. I also didn't like the slow pace the game as a whole seemed to contain. Whether it was confirming menu choices or the load/save wait times, it just seemed to take forever to get around within this game. In terms of the actual football action, this game does have a bit of a slower pace to it, the game speed could have been upped a few notches and still hung on to the fun factor, but it's not a huge deal. As for the pros, first of all I've always liked the different and unique tack the Backyard series of sports games has taken. Playing as kids in all their weird environments (as well as the power moves feature) puts a bit of a different spin on things, it's a refreshing take from the usual suspects like the Madden series and what not. Also, I'm a big sucker for unlockable content as you may know by now if you've ever read any of my reviews, and this game has a fair amount of said material. So that's a plus in my opinion. Lastly, I really like the simple and straightforward method this game took in approach to it's controls. The last couple of Madden games I've purchase have astounded me in terms of their controls. These schemes are like an NFL team's playbook, you've got to devote all of your time to it and study it like crazy, let alone actually being able to execute them! Football games are so complicated these days it's taken all of the fun out of them, at least in my opinion. Backyard Football 2006 does away with all that crap and that is it's biggest strength. It allows you to just go out and play football, not get your ass handed to you while you sit on the couch in a dazed and confused stupor. This straightforwardness lends the game a pretty decent fun factor in spite of the various flaws it contains.

In terms of tips and tricks, I don't have many to offer as this is a pretty simple game to understand and play, but there are a couple. First, when you embark on season mode, take the time to review what's in your playbook and swap out any plays that you don't like. I found that it's really nice to have as many good plays at your disposal as possible, both to keep your opponent on their heels and also to hold your interest in the game by mixing things up as much as possible, not just running the same old, same old. Also, if you're a sucker for unlocking all of the extra material there is in a game like I am, go to "The Goods" option from the main menu when you first start up the game and review just what tasks you need to perform in order to gain this extra material. The sooner you know what you need to do the sooner you can execute it and add these various items to your cache.

So I guess overall Backyard Football 2006 is a bit of an enigma, really. On one hand it is quite average, especially when you get your first glance at it, but then on the other hand it also has so many redeeming qualities once you actually get in to it. I wouldn't consider this a must play by any means, but it's worth a play if you ever have a hankering for some video game football and the price is right.