Axis Football 26 Review

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Fast Facts

Are you tired of the current games that let you play on the Gridiron, and want to find your American football fix elsewhere? Well, Axis Football 26 might be for you.

Flags for broken immersion

While I do not personally play American Football games, I have a casual interest in the sport as a whole, and thought this was worth a try. That being said, the game has some resemblance to its major competitors, or at least what I’ve seen of them in user interfaces and in-game menus, but visually, the game feels lacking, as there’s no proper art style or identity. I do think the sound design was nice, with the crowd chanting your team name or “Defence!” when you’re about to play 4^th Down, and the modelling of the stadiums is nice, but when it comes to finding something unique to point out about the game, I can’t really say anything, which is disappointing.

It also doesn’t help that the game sometimes has really bad glitches. There was one point when the game should have ended on a touchdown play, and the clock had finished counting down, but then it gave the ball back to the opposing team, and I almost lost the game because of this. Put this alongside random little things like extra plays being run, and certain visuals not loading, a very weird wailing sound in a certain crowd sound effect, and I can’t help but feel that the game’s final product it’s was a bit of a mess in the artistic department, not that these games are artistic masterpieces anyway.

Overthrown Gameplay

I started with a new game, just to get myself used to what this game might have to offer, but well, if you’ve played football games, there’s not a lot new here, and one could argue it’s missing features, such as the ability to do onside kicks, run fake punts and field goals. The game has everything you’d expect: the ability to run and design plays, and you can ask the coach for assistance if you need help choosing plays. However, the balance of games feels somewhat off, as the AI feels like it gets back into a game too easily sometimes when it feels like I’ve shut them out, and while I understand it’s probably meant to keep me on my toes during gameplay, it’s not something I can say I’m fully comfortable with.

Additionally, as someone who hasn’t really played football games, I can’t say that it gave me a reason to play this over other options, as the game itself has some Quick-Time Events that keep me on my toes, but also I feel don’t do much to enhance gameplay. Besides that, I don’t think there’s anything that stands out about this game besides the fact that it’s trying to ape one of the more popular simulation games out there, and while it can work if you do it well, the execution of this in-game and the issues I mentioned earlier make me feel that this is not something in this game’s favour, especially give that this game doesn’t have a licenced league it is partnered with.

Blocked from Extra Modes

Adding to this issue for me is that there are no additional modes that would really give me a reason to come back, personally. This game isn’t licensed, so I understand a scenario mode is out of the question, but a training mode with some mini-games would at least give me a reason to come back. There’s also franchise mode, but outside of man management and things like trading, there’s nothing that lets it differ from the core gameplay, so unless you like that sorta thing, which I admittedly do, there’s nothing else.

Final Thoughts

Axis Football 26 has too many downsides to recommend in my opinion, even in an era where football games are scarce. I think it’s best to compare it to how many fans see the Pittsburgh Steelers, a good regular-season team that has too many issues to be a real contender. It’s an okay game when you play it once, but once the cracks begin to show, it piles up and ruins the experience. I would recommend saving your money on this one or waiting for the next game in the series.

Rapid Reviews Rating

2 out of 5

2