Game Review: Soccer Kick (Mobile – Free to Play)

Earlier this year we reviewed a free to play game called Baseball Boy by the developer Voodoo. An arcade styled home run sort of game where you whack a ball and try and hit it as far as you can. As you gain distance, you earn coins. With those coins you can upgrade your bat and power to hit further distances and get more money for upgrades. We did not have positive things to say about the bare-bones, ad-heavy experience and you can read our full review here.

This review is for version 1.3.3.

Why am I talking about Baseball Boy when this review is for a game called Soccer Kick? Well, this is Baseball Boy but with a football/soccer theme instead and it’s also by Voodoo. Coincidentally arriving during the World Cup.

You can’t blame developers and publishers from trying to take advantage of the biggest football event in the world. However, in this case Voodoo should be ashamed of themselves as Soccer Kick is the most grabbiest cash grab attempt we’ve seen since…well, Baseball Boy!

Maybe watching ads is how you get your gaming kicks. If so Soccer Kick is perfect for you as the game throws one your way every 30 seconds or less. That’s not hyperbole, I’m serious. After almost every attempt of kicking the ball is followed by an ad.

Gameplay is very basic. Kick the ball by stopping the arrow in a direction and see how far you can get it. You can move the ball slightly in the air to avoid buildings and obstacles as well as giving it a few bounces as it lands to get that little extra movement.

Earn coins that can then be spent on upgrading your power, bounce and offline earnings. Upgrade these to get further and further each time. Countries in the World Cup are represented visually (sort of) and entering each new one also increases your base stats. Should you manage to score a goal by landing the ball in one of the many nets you’ll double your coin count. However, you can always triple that amount by…you guessed it, watching an ad.

That’s it.

There is nothing else to Soccer Kick. No music, basic sound effects, no unlocks and no extra modes. It’s ugly to look at and the longer you play in one sitting, the more it begins to suffer from lag until it eventually crashes.

While it is initially addictive, the absolute assault of ads will turn everyone off. You’re left with two options. Pay an outrageous asking price for the removal of ads (£2.99) or delete it and forget you ever played it. I suggest the latter.