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Outlaw Volleyball for Xbox Videos >>
Rating Reviewed By HowserReview Date 09/04/2003 Overall Rating  5 of 5 Visitors rate this review 5.00 of 5, 1 votes Rate this review? Summary I was hesitant when it came to buying this game initially. The other volleyball games really weren't all they were cracked up to be. I was told that this was a pretty decent game and saw some reviews that said it was fun also so i decided to give it a shot. I was sure glad I decided to buy this game because it is a lot of fun. Sure there are all the things that the other volleyball games have, like lots of half naked girls with many different swimsuits available and many sexual references, etc. Don't get me wrong they are very good things to have in a game, but take all that away and you still have a really good and fun game to play.Sound The sound is also pretty good in this game. The soundtrack isn't too bad for a video game but I do suggest you cut your own tracks into this game, which is also another benefit of this game because you can listen to your own music while playing. The same goofy announcer from outlaw golf is here yet again, but he's a lot funnier than in that game though he does get a bit repetitive and say some really goofy things.Gameplay The gameplay is very realistic in this game, and it's not very hard to learn either. Just play a few games and you should have the hang of it in no time. Yes there are fights in this game too just like in outlaw golf, but this time you actually get to fight against someone else rather than just pushing a button a couple of times and watching your character smack the crap out of you defenseless caddy. There are also many different things to keep you playing this game for a while too, like special drills to complete to make your characters better players.Would you like to Comment? Join VideoGameReview for a free account, or Login if you are already a member. Rating Reviewed By Jose PapasFrom United States Review Date 08/04/2003 Overall Rating  4 of 5 Rate this review? Summary Three previous attempts at volleyball on the current batch of consoles have all left a sour taste in terms of gameplay. Sure some of the pixilated babes looked great but that can only hold up for so long when simply batting a ball back and forth and back and forth over a net. Hypnotix and Simon and Shuster Interactive have teamed up to offer the fourth entry, an Xbox exclusive, as the second release of the pleasantly surprising ‘Outlaw’ series. Toss together 16 characters, SSX-style unlocking system, Live play, taunting/fighting, and a slightly better than average game engine and this bad boy leaves those other three buried in the sand.Live To date, Live games supporting 1 Xbox allowing 2 players to play simultaneously have been far outnumbered by one player experiences. MechAssault was the only solid example until now. Because beach volleyball is a 2 on 2 game, this lends itself perfectly to a match between a pair of friends in two rooms clear across the country from one another. The frame rate holds up steady on Live and honestly feels no different than playing against the CPU. The fighting, taunting and other crazy nuances are perfect when combined with the headset. The only knock against Live harkens back to the gameplay. Because of the limited physics, points can drag on for an eternity making short games unheard of unless one of the players truly stinks. I guess if the person on the other end is a good conversationalist that isn’t necessarily a bad thing. Modes are as expected with the ability to craft and host a game or jump into a public game. A leader-board is available and downloadable content should arrive sometime in the near future. Suggestions Let’s improve those physics. I want to see balls flying out of bounds and 10 minutes volleys a thing of the past. The fighting could be a little more complex and the tokens feel like they need more use, just like in Outlaw Golf. Finally throw in more detail in the sand and the courts and I’ll be a happy camper. Conclusion It may not be perfect but Outlaw Volleyball raises the bar above all previous volleyball games in terms of gameplay and replay value. With the Live component thrown in, it outperforms Outlaw Golf and sets the standard for both Outlaw and volleyball games going forward. I recommend Live players and SSX fans add this one to their collection but don’t expect Summer’s top to come flying off during a brawl. Sound Obviously there isn’t much use for 5.1 surround in a volleyball game yet Hypnotix has managed to work in a few not-so-subtle effects. A couple times a police car siren went off through the rears that had me looking out the window. Yep, I felt pretty stupid. Other than that the rears are fairly quiet throughout.It should come as no surprise that the announcer is funny at first but gets repetitive and annoying fast. He did have a great Halo line that made me crack up so I can’t totally bash how much he ate at my nerves. Lastly, this game is plastered with the music and endorsement of Diffuser however it also includes the option to create custom soundtracks using the Xbox hard drive. Every, and I mean every game should have this feature. Gameplay Let’s be honest; volleyball isn’t the most complicated sport on the planet. As such, its incarnation in video game form should remain fairly simplistic yet offer enough diversity in the physics to leave the game fresh after hundreds of games.Outlaw Volleyball pretty much nails the control scheme. Dig, set, spike, jump, speed burst, change players, and instigate a fight all have their own buttons/triggers which are easily learned after mere minutes of play. A power meter effectively allows the strength of shots to be accurately gauged while a momentum meter can be gambled during a fight for a little extra oomph from the players. The problem is, once the controls are mastered it becomes obvious the physics are anything but diverse. I tried as hard as I could to hit a ball directly out-of-bounds and was unable to. Unless a shot is hit into the net, it will land in play and most likely be dug out because a player doesn’t need to be positioned exactly where the ball is headed to make the play. Add all this up and some painfully long volleys ensue between even novice players, much less well-seasoned veterans. Turning the 'where the ball lands' cursor off help a little but not much. The real key to winning games isn’t necessarily aiming for the empty spot on the court. Of course that’s important, but player attributes are the real key. Each player is assigned a ranking in speed, power, offense, and defense. Some players have maximums in speed, others defense and so on. Learning the strengths and weaknesses of these attributes and exploiting them will lend any player the edge over the competition. Player attributes start on the low end of the scale but are increased by completing series of drills. In similar fashion as SSX, each player must be taken through each drill to gain points which can be distributed amongst the attributes. Trying to max out each player can be very addictive and time consuming, especially with 16 characters to work through. A good laugh comes with nailing onlookers who are dancing to Macarena and occasionally taunting by shaking their butts. When first booted up, only 4 of the 16 players are available. To unlock new ones, set games in the tour mode must be beaten. This is also where new outfits, venues and drills are unlocked. Game modes vary greatly here between different scoring rules, hot potato: where the ball explodes after roughly 30 seconds, and casino: where money is earned on each volley. Like picking through the drills, the tour becomes addictive just to unlock the 12 additional players and courts. Doing so will take many hours of gameplay and once completed, there’s only one other place to put up or shut up. Would you like to Comment? Join VideoGameReview for a free account, or Login if you are already a member. Summary The best Volleyball action since NES Kings of the Beach. I play many many games and this one is one of few that has hooked me in the year 2003.Sound No complaints here, I am still hooked on the game so they must be doing something right.Gameplay Unique, Different from traditional button pressing volleyball. Actual power control as well as spot spiking. Once you master these its easy to spank the pc drones and run through the game. Awesome rewards for you work, aka - open new characters, clothing, and venues. Very smooth control and worth every penny.Would you like to Comment? Join VideoGameReview for a free account, or Login if you are already a member. Summary I'm going to make this short and sweet: DO NOT BUY THIS GAME FOR THE SINGLE PLAYER. If you intend to use it on LIVE or for a lot of multiplayer action at home, then it can be a very fun game. However, the single player experience is truly dreadful, which is a darn shame, really. The single player experience in OVB lives up to the tradition of sports games: it's the weakest part of it by far. I expected arcadey-style volleyball action, especially given the Outlaw style, but it's too much so. Way too much. The rallies last FOREVER. Even the so-called super spikes get returned with ease (do they even do anything except look different? Not that I can tell) and I've had rallies back and forth last several MINUTES, which is beyond lame. The sheer number of times where I've spiked into the rear corner only to see the CPU player dive, pop it up, then the other CPU player run the length of the court to pop it up again, and then the original player get up and smack it PERFECTLY into the far corner of my court staggers me. It shouldn't happen more than once every ten games. Instead, it happens ten times every game, sometimes several times on the same rally. The charm of Outlaw Golf was that despite its "extreme" trappings, it was a good golf sim. Outlaw Volleyball cannot make this claim; this is solely arcade action and there is zero strategy involved. Being in the right position and hitting hard to the corners rarely pays off as the computer will know where the ball is going before it's hit and make "miraculous" dig after miraculous dig. Yawn. Would it have killed them to put a *little* realism into this game? Apparently so. To me, this is a shame. This game is only worth having if you intend to play a lot of multiplayer or have no idea or care about what volleyball should be like. The controls are generally nice and intuitive, but the ridiculous extremes they went to to ensure that rallies last forever is just stupid. Maybe OVB 2 won't be as weak in the game design. Basically, you NEED to play in multiplayer, as humans will actually make mistakes and not get to every spike. [Note: I'm speaking only of Tour mode. On pick up and play games, the AI is so incompetent, they rarely manage to get the ball over the net consistently, so that's worthless to play as well]Sound Well, you either like the hijinks and jokes or you don't. I don't. I turned them off and I give points to the game for realizing that many people will get tired of them and want to turn them off. Kudos there. Some people will find this level of humor great, so I can see how they would enjoy this, at least until it became repetitive. They have a decent in-game soundtrack and the ability to rip your own, always a plus.Gameplay The controls are solid and easy to pick up and maintain. There is virtually no strategy involved; this is pure arcade action. If you are looking for something that resembles real volleyball, you WILL be disappointed. However, it's Outlaw Volleyball, so you shouldn't be expecting that, now should you? The CPU AI is ridiculous. Expect that they will get to every possible spike you ever deliver, period. It's ridiculous and the rallies last frigging forever. I've had several go twenty or twenty-five times back and forth across the net with people making dig after dig of spikes that in anything resembling reality would have been easy kills. Forget it; it's a waste of your time. The mini games/drills were by far the best part of the game and you have to play the weak Tour mode to unlock, so pass!Would you like to Comment? Join VideoGameReview for a free account, or Login if you are already a member. Summary Overall, an enjoyable (fun) volleyball game. I know some people will say that they enjoyed DOAXV, but this is a better title when it comes down to actually playing volleyball. The characters are crazy, off-the-wall and even funny. Three different play modes and additional training drills similar to Virtua Tennis.Sound The characters have a few lines that gives them a bit more personality. The announcer is funny at times but for the most part he can get repetitive and annoying. The use of custom soundtracks is a big plus for this title and adds to the already fun atmosphere. However, you may want to remove some of the annoying songs found on the default soundtrack.Gameplay Easy to pick and even involves some strategy. I found this game to be a lot of fun against the computer, but it is even better with some friends. The use of different serves, spikes, dives and turbo moves (and a little fighting on the side) add some fun to this crazy title.Would you like to Comment? Join VideoGameReview for a free account, or Login if you are already a member. Rating Reviewed By John SpanglerFrom Bryan, OH USA Review Date 07/14/2003 Overall Rating 5 of 5 Rate this review? Summary Dead or Alive Extreme Volleyball was an overall disappointing experiece especially for those who wanted a realistic and fun playing Volleyball experience. Tack on the fake scoring rules that DOAV invented, it just didn't keep me involved and Tecmo should still be ashamed for putting the DOA name on a very weak playing volleyball engine.Finally to prove that DOAV was nothing more than just a visual presentation, I now introduce Outlaw Volleyball, the way volleyball was meant to be. In the works where it seems like forever, this game has been delayed numerous times. But for good reason, the final product seems polished and most importantly finished, as this seems like a real volleyball game engine. It's amazing what a game delay can do for a final product when you get decent developers. I'm actually surprised as a whole how it turned out. I thought the "golf" game with the Outlaw name was a bit out of whack, it couldn't distinguish itself as being an arcade or simulation experience. Outlaw Volleyball knows what it wants to be, it's definitely an arcade style, super turbo spikes, crazy saves and plays at a relentless pace. TAck on the crude humor, realistic scoring, (are you listening Tecmo?) skimpy bikinis and tight speedo with disgusting bulges and you got an interesting game experience in store. On top of that you can take this online and beat some volleball butt online too. Volleyball done right! Outlaw Volleyball is a 2 on 2 volleyball game with the Outlaw Characters from the golf game along with some newbies. The game is definitely "crude" enough to earn the "Mature" rating as the rating implies. This is due to some very skimpy apparel on the ladies and some very tight speedos or "lack thereof" for the males. There is also some very serious trash talkin' and the crudity heard throughout the game is definitely a call for children to stick with Nintendo. The game offers 10 Volleyball venues, 14 crude characters, a Tour mode(Season) mode, Exhibition, Drill, Tutorial and of course XBOX Live mode. The game also offers custom soundtracks, (Thank god), same corny announcer from Outlaw Golf and tight, fast gameplay. Sound The music really isn't that bad in Outlaw Volleyball. It's basically unknown, but at least it's new to our ears! You even get a free CD with music from Diffuser. It's a good deal. If you don't like the rockin' music from those dudes, you can use your own soundtracks. I recommend "Celine Dion's My Heart Will Go On" and "I Want your Sex by George Michael." Just kidding. Download some good sexual healing music to mesh with the crude antics of these bikini babes. Test what you will, it's all up to you in the music scene!The game sounds great as a whole. Lots of trash talking and some good voiceovers from the characters. The hornball announcer is back from Outlaw Golf, he's funny, but his antics are repetitive within a couple of matches. Mute him. **Final Call** I'm not a huge fan of volleyball, and DOAV certainly didn't make me want to like it anymore, but Outlaw Volleyball made me a believer that Volleyball can be fun on a video game if it's done right. It's got great visuals, allbeit crude, a great gameplay engine, it's XBOX live ready, and the Tour mode will keep you busy forever. I was mad this game was delayed so long, but look what I got? I love this game and I think anyone that would like a breather from the norm, I think you'll be pleasantly sucked in to Outlaw Volleyball from the start. Lets hope Microsoft's Tennis game Top Spin will be just as successful! Gameplay Unlike DOAV, this is not a graphical showcase to display erotic cyber babes on-screen, this game actually focuses on it's title, "volleyball". You don't have to buy your partner sunglasses or hair clips to keep her happy, instead you play volleyball, hey good concept for me. The game engine is fifty times better than DOA's game and for good reason. The game starts you out with 4 Outlaw characters, 2 girls, 2 guys. Before going online you should improve your characters abilities by going to the "tour" mode. Within Tour mode you can earn new "Drills" which we'll talk about later, earn new volleyball locations, new characters and new threads for your babes or ugh, "your men". Course being male I'll stick with the ladies, glancing at the guys in speedos makes me want to puke, but nonetheless, the game keeps you busy to earn new things.The Drill Mode is the place to bring up your atrtibutes. It is somewhat reminiscent of Virtua Tennis as you have to go through a plethora of activites to reach your goal.Most involve target practice for spiking and lay ins over the net - attacking moving or standstill targets. Some of the drills take forever to finally pass to reach your goal, but they are entertaining to the point where you'll want to complete them over and over even after you'll reached your goal. My favorite drill is the "dancing morons". You get to practice your skills and spike the ball at these dancers. It's very difficult to get them all on the floor, but the satification of knocking these guys out espeically the ones taunting you will keep you playing it over and over. If you're planning on playing online, I definitely encourage you to get your characters attributes up. It takes awhile as you need to take each character you've earned in Tour mode to get your attributes up, but it's worth it when you go online when everyone else has beefed up their chracters and you haven't. We'll talk more about online stuff later. The actual game itself plays brilliantly. The game plays tight, fast and precise and feels polished. You initally choose the character you want to take control of, but you can actually switch control of the opposite player if you want to while you're on defense. Playing with the computer is very fun actually, and yoru computer is competent, but not dominant to take control the game. It's basically up to you to get the points. Outlaw Volleyball feels arcade style, but does have sim elements if you take away the super Turbo Spikes. You only have 3 hits on offense to hit the ball over and the realistic scoring of actual volleyball is intact. The game utilizes ideas from "Beach Volleyball" on the Cube. You have power meters, the power meters work perfectly and perfecting them is very rewarding as getting to the "max" takes practice. The "A" button sets your teammate up for the viscious spike or you can fake them out with a bunny hit with the "B" button. You can also mix it up by pressing "X" which hits the ball over without setting up your teammate. This is a good way to throw off your opponent. With any volleyball game, I'm always concerned with the camera, and Outlaw Volleyball doesn't disappoint. The game is zoomed out quite a bit from action and allows you to see your character at all times "for the most part" to plan your next move. For split seconds you'll be able to see the target meters from the opponents distinguishing where you should go. If you think you got the skills, the target meters can be turned off and you now have to judge your movements strictly on where the ball is on screen. It's difficult but adds more sim elements than the standard game. Targeting your shots is done while you're power meter is activated. It's difficult to master, but fun to perfect. Reaction time is crucial in Outlaw Volleyball and this game plays at a very swift pace. Playing against computer opponents is a tough order, especially in Tour mode as you'll have to worry about more than just playing volleyball. Some tour will have you go up against the time clock. Instead of playing to 15 you have to be ahead in points befor the time expires. Sometimes you'll be up against the "hot potato" which will explode the ball if it's on your side of the net when the time is alloted. Time bombs will also be stationed on the ground for each score the opponent makes on your turf, run into the bomb and lose your body to boot. Just like it's golf cousin, Outlaw Volleyball has fighting. It's not DOA but it's a good for a gamebreaker to get your momentum going. You can kick, punch, block and do your special move. I've fought about 25 times and haven't lost once, the computer characters are definitely weak in this part of the game. Fighting can definitely improve your momentum and makes you hit the ball harder and faster when you're momentum is up. You earn tokens to fight when you get Aces or consecutive scores on spikes. The most welcome part of Outlaw Volleyball is that you can take the action online. If you're like me with no friends, it's great to pit your skills against teh best of the best online. The game plays as smooth online as it does with playing a buddy on your couch. I really didn't notice any lag at all even when my connection was a bit on the slow side. The problem I had with the game though is that choosing quick match will get you into some trouble especially if you want even matchups. When I first bought the game my characters had no skills whatsoever, and as soon as I got online, my skills went with it too. I matched up against some dude with all the characters he earned and every attribute was maxed out on all of them. This was up against my indian chick and the Rico Suave dude with no skills whatsoever. I got slammed 15 to 0 in 2 games. If you simply can't wait to go online before you get your characters beefed up, make sure you go to Create a match yourself and make your own rules. You can choose standard "online" mode which allows you to use beefed up characters that are matched up evenly online. Or you can use your own characters, just make sure you have them beefed up yourself if you want a chance. The game does have mild cutomization for your chracters. You don't have near the selection as DOA had, but for what you got, I really can't complain. From sweatshirts to stocking shorts to g-strings to barely nada at all, Hypnotix offers some good eye candy for all us horn dogs out there. In drill mode you can earn photos of the babes and guys (UGH) and save them for your viewing pleasure. The artistic representations of the characters are well done and most are worth the price of admission. Would you like to Comment? Join VideoGameReview for a free account, or Login if you are already a member. Rating Reviewed By ZTIGERFrom St. Simons Island, Ga. Review Date 07/13/2003 Overall Rating  2 of 5 Rate this review? Summary Keep DOA Beach Volleyball because there's nothing to like here. If you like frustration, not just sexual, mind you, then this game is for you!Sound Would you buy a game only because of it having great graphics, but terrible in every other way? Of course not!Gameplay Awful! The controls are unresponsive. The camera angles are stupid. Overly complicated in order to say that its realistic, which it is not any kind of simulation.Would you like to Comment? Join VideoGameReview for a free account, or Login if you are already a member. Rating Reviewed By K BomberFrom Guelph, Ontario Review Date 07/11/2003 Overall Rating 5 of 5 Rate this review? Summary I'm sure that many people will view Outlaw Volleyball as a derivative of DOA Extreme Beach Volleyball; another opportunity to flaunt skin in a video game form with few other redeeming qualities.Those people will be dead wrong in their assumptions While OVB is a visual feast, it is also a deep, challenging, entertaining and well-conceived title from a company that has demonstrated an interest in listening to the gaming community and responding through their products. Outlaw Volleyball is one of the best gaming experiences to boot up in my X-Box, and I purchased a copy a couple of hours after renting it. This is a well fleshed-out game in all aspects of its presentation and it substantially exceeds any of the expectations created by Outlaw Golf while completely outclassing DOAXVB as a volleyball simulation Sound The sound, like all other apects is first rate. The character sound bites are varied and entertaining, the play by play is very funny and the way that soundtrack customization is handled on this title should be emulated by eveery developer of X-Box games -- it's really greatGameplay Outlaw Volleyball is as solid as they come from a gameplay standpoint. I was able to pick up the game, proceed through a few drills and then get right into playing on the tour events with little difficulty from a control standpoint.Relative to the computer AI, it ramps up as you play, so that you have a chance to learn the controls in your first few games and then are very readily challenged as you proceed. Once you get the hang of the game, the computer gives you all that you can handle with fantastic rallies being possible very quickly. THis is really fun. A variety of gameplay formats are also introduced so that the challenges provided by the game are varied and interesting from the standpoint of strategy as well. This isn't just standard volleyball fare and there are some curves thrown that keep things really interesting In terms of character control, players are very responsive and the timing of the game is very realistic. You really need to continually assess how the computer is playing you and there are no "money Plays" Would you like to Comment? Join VideoGameReview for a free account, or Login if you are already a member. Rating Reviewed By megalomamichaelFrom Fremont, Ca. Review Date 07/09/2003 Overall Rating 5 of 5 Rate this review? Summary I am one of those strange people who like to play with themselves. Wait, that came out wrong. I tend to play most my games on one player because no one around me plays video games and I never have gotten into online. My reasons for telling you are to explain that I'm reviewing Outlaw Volleyball in one player mode. I don't kiss butt and proclaim games to simply be great. I'll say a great game is just that, but I'll still point out it's faults, to give you something to gauge by. And yet, in what is extremely rare in games, there is little to complain about here. The game supports HD 480p and the graphics are wonderful. It's not DOA pretty, but close and looks like it was made for Xbox (which it was). Exclusive really makes a gigantic difference. There's around nineteen soundtrack songs which you might like if you're into Blink 182 pop punk MTV style songs, or a couple rap (literally a couple, as in two), but I just put on my custom soundtrack that it supports, so you should have no problem with tunes. And the game is funny! Not trying and failing at jokes, but actually laugh out loud (often, not always) humor. And all starting announcments can be skipped with the press of a button, so you don't have to sit through them again and again. I wish more games would think to do that. The characters, while built upon old stereotypes, still manage to be funny. Not great, but enough to make you smile. What I really enjoy are the little things, like Lizzy scoring so the camera closes in and shows her do a quick kinda sexy, mostly goofy happy dance. Or having Leon drop to his knees and pound his fists in the sand when he loses a game. Those little touches are funny in the way that the responses tend to match how you feel at that moment. And at a healthy 16 characters (8 boys, 8 girls) the variety is just right. But all this stuff I mentioned is just surface stuff, right? You're probably more interested in the gameplay more than anything else with a game like this. Well, did you play Dead Or Alive Extreme Beach Volleyball? Great news, the controls are much more involving than that. You have great timed release button attacks that give you what is probably the closest a controller will ever get to feeling like real volleyball. The gameplay here isn't a novelty, like DOA. Here, it's strategic and deep. My complaints wouls fall in the tutorial. It's funny (the first time), but didn't help me understand the controls at all. I really had to figure them out while actually playing. But luckily, it won't take more than one or two games for the controls to feel natural and reponsive. The camera is good for the most part, but sometimes feels like it pulls away too far (like a helicopter view sometimes). And in one player, the computer is too good. I mean, from the very first level they play perfect, doing things I've yet to see how a live person will. I realize they want to season you for online play, but the difficulty is way up there and is going to result in some broken controllers for the less patient of you out there. But all in all, if you like volleyball, this is a great buy. I'd go so far as to say it's the best volleyball video game ever. Even if you don't have Live, I'd recommend this as a rental to everyone who can get it (it is rated M, deservedly). Terrific fun! Oh, I just remembered. The fighting part (while very minor to the game as a whole) is a weak button masher with poor collision detection. Now that part is a novelty that needs to be improved if they bring it back for Outlaw Volleyball 2. Strange, since the collision with the ball seems dead on. The rest of the game plays impressively. A game that rises above it's slight flaws. 5 out of 5! (for me that's an even more amazing score)Sound Custom soundtrack. I wish every game supported it. This one does, so kudos to the Outlaw team. The announcer is a mixed bag. He has a few lines that will make you laugh (I'm still suprised at how much of this made me laugh out loud or even suprised a jaded old gamer like me), but he also has a few lines that annoy. But other than the announcer, everything was great. One of the best sports titles to come out in a long time. Highly recommended. Knocked to a 4 only because of the announcer.Gameplay Aside from the occasionally suspect view of the camera (and it's rare), I'm impressed with the gameplay. Once you fall into the rhythm of the controls, you'll be in the zone. I have no complaints with the controls. If you missed the ball, it was your fault, not the game's. But AI is a tad too difficult too early. Hardcore will love the challenge. Gave it a 4 because I knocked a point for the terrible fighting section. Again, it's a very small part of the game, don't let it discourage you.Would you like to Comment? Join VideoGameReview for a free account, or Login if you are already a member.
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4.22 of 5
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