Although Blitz: Overtime has some problems, it is still a fun take on football.
This game has been on ps2 and the xbox for about 2 years and as of now, it's been out for about a year on the psp and is now at the 19.99 price, which is really a steal. Enough about all that, I will go to the game. Overview-Blitz: Overtime is about a football league that runs on one statement "win at any cost". That's right. You want to late hit an opponent? Go ahead. You want to land a massive dirty hit on someone? Go ahead. No pass interference or penalties, just hardcore football. The game also has a feature that helps your players on offense and defense greatly. This is called "Clash" power. You earn this power by doing well on both sides of the ball. The 'clash' feature allows your player to slow everyone else down on offense while your players continue running at the same speed. It also helps defense by unleashing huge power hits that will ultimately injure the other team. This is where the fun begins. If your player, or the other teams player is injured, a cut screen will show an x-ray of all the bone crunching glory. You have two options. Treat the player legit, or juice them up on drugs so that they can continue in the game. Be careful, because taking the drugs will make your player more prone to injury.
Graphics-The player models look pretty good for psp standards. They are somewhat grainy, but pretty decent none the less. However, the crowd looks terrible. I have seen a better looking crowd in a Playstation 1 game.
Sound-Great voice over work by Lawrence Taylor. The music fits the game as well. The voice over work completely earns it's M rating though. This is not a game that young kids should be playing.
Gameplay-While the core gameplay is pretty good and pretty easy to learn (seriously, you will be scoring touch downs within minutes of picking this game up), the game is somewhat slow at times. When your offense is ready to snap the ball, sometimes the game go's to a cut seen where players will taunt each other. This is a good addition, but sometimes it gets a bit annoying and slows the game down. The load times are pretty long, which will throw some people off. However, if you can handle the load times, the gameplay makes up for it. Lasting Appeal-The campaign mode will last you quite a while, with all the games to play, team creation and player customization. Wi-fi mode is here, but forget about going online. Your going to have to find a friend with a copy of this game.
Bottom Line-If you haven't played the first game (like me) and want an alternative to madden (also like me) and you own a psp, this game is for you. While the load times can become horrendous, the in game action is quite enjoyable. The 20 dollar price tag is also a huge plus. For what it's worth, Blitz: Overtime is a fun, pick up and play game that will offer some hard hitting, arcade like football satisfaction.