World Soccer (ワールドサッカー), known as Great Soccer in the US (though not the same as Great Soccer released in Europe and Japan), and Super Futebol in Brazil, is a sports game developed and published by Sega for the Sega Master System. The game was re-released in Japan a year later under the name Sports Pad Soccer (スポーツパッドサッカー), which was bundled with the Sega Sports Pad.
World Soccer is a football game using an overhead perspective and a horizontally oriented field. The game can be played with a standard control pad or with a Sports Pad, which uses a trackball for precise analogue control in every direction. Only a fifth of the field is visible at a time; the game pauses to scroll over to the next segment when the ball crosses over into it. There are eight teams, representing different countries. Teams consist of five players plus a goalkeeper. Games are divided into two halves, each five minutes long.
It can be played by one player against a computer team or by two players against each other. Players can play a regular game or a penalty kick contest. In the event of a tie in a regular game, the winner is decided by a penalty kick contest.
Kickoff
At the start of each half or whenever a team scores a point, both teams meet in the middle of the field for the kickoff where a player from one of the teams kicks the ball back into play (which is done automatically).
In the first half, player one kicks off and defends the goal on the left, but the teams switch sides in the second half. After a goal is scored, the team that was scored on gets to kick the ball.
Defense
When the opposing team has possession of the ball, the team member that the player controls is marked by an with a black border. The team member can be moved in any direction using the D-Pad or the trackball, and the other team members are controlled by the computer. The game automatically selects the team member that is closest to the ball, but the player can cycle between the team members manually by pressing . If the team member comes close to a player controlling the ball with his feet, he automatically does a slide tackle to try and push the ball away from the opposing player.
The goalkeeper is moved with and when he is view. The goalkeeper is controlled simultaneously with whichever other team member is active. If a member of the offensive team crosses the ball over the goal line without scoring a goal, the goalkeeper on the defending team kicks the ball back into play with a goal kick. The player can pick a team member (who is marked by an arrow with no border) using the D-Pad or trackball and pass the ball to him with or kick the ball downfield with .
If the offensive team moves the ball past a touch line (side line), one member of the defending team moves to the ball's position and throws it back in. The player can pick a team member (who is marked by an arrow with no border) using the D-Pad or trackball and pass the ball to him with .
If the offensive team makes an offside pass, the defending team gets a free kick where a member of that team moves to the ball's position and kicks the ball back into play. The player can pick a team member (who is marked by an arrow with no border) using the D-Pad or trackball and pass the ball to him with or kick the ball downfield with .
Offense
When the player's team has possession of the ball, the team member with the ball is marked by an arrow with a black border. The team member dribbles automatically, and the other team members are controlled by the computer. The player can kick the ball with , which is automatically aimed toward the goal. When the goal is in view, the kick can be aimed with and to move an arrow in front of the goal. Or the player can pass the ball with , which is passed to the closest teammate that the player was last facing (who is marked by an arrow with no border). If a pass is received by a team member who is closer to the goal (at the start of the pass) than the furthest defender (not counting the goalkeeper), it is considered an offside pass, and the opposing team gets a free kick. If the player is near the goal and passes the ball to a team member who is behind the goal area, the receiver performs an overhead shot with .
If a defender moves the ball past the goal line (without scoring a goal), the offensive team gets a corner kick where one member of that team moves to the corner of the field and kicks the ball back into play. The player can pick a team member (who is marked by an arrow with no border) using the D-Pad or trackball and pass the ball to him with .
Penalty Kick
If the game ends in a tie, the tie is resolved with a penalty kick contest. Each team takes turns shooting and defending, with all five members of the shooting team getting a shot. The team with the most goals after every member has kicked wins the game (unless there is another tie, in which case the teams play a sudden death contest). The shooting team aims and kicks by moving the D-Pad or trackball in any direction except . The defending team moves the goalkeeper with and and can jump with to try to block the shot.
Teams
Team selection
Only eight teams exist in World Soccer, including "GBR" (Great Britain), which, in the real world, has its constituent countries compete separately. After selecting a team, the game plays an excerpt of the country's national anthem.
When playing against the computer, the player chooses the opponent. The countries are arranged in groups of two, with the difficulty descending from left to right and top to bottom (so Argentina and West Germany are the most difficult, while U.S.A. and Japan are the least difficult).