Stand aside FIFA 23, Serious Fun Football is here. OK, that may have been a little too dramatic. Nonetheless, Serious Fun Football is a decent football arcade game, with a few pleasant surprises.

First Impressions of Serious Fun Football

The game opens up with a ‘jaunty uplifting tune that screams ‘fun’. Backed up by a unique cartoon style, our first impression of Serious Fun Football was that it was about to live up to its name and provide hours of end-to-end action, wrapped up with a neat bow of good ol’ fashioned arcade fun.

This optimism was quickly diminished, however, as we ran into a number of teething errors while trying to get used to the clunky control mechanics and playing as a single player, as opposed to having the ability to switch players and control our team (in the default mode), as in most soccer games.

With that being said, Serious Fun Football does, at times, live up to its name (somewhat) and provides an experience that keeps you entertained – for around ten minutes.

Serious Fun Football Gameplay

While at times we found ourselves enjoying Serious Fun Football, it wouldn’t be honest of us to say it’s pitch-perfect (if you will kindly excuse the terrible pun). In fact, the game often falls short of the goal; frequently coming close, but ultimately rebounding off the crossbar or missing entirely.

As metioned, the controls feel a little off. Not in a way that renders them unresponsive, but in a way that takes a little while to get used to. It just doesn’t have that fluid feel that is essential to soccer games, even those of an arcade variety. To add to this awkwardness, the ‘realistic ball physics’ claimed by the developers, are far from such.

The ball itself is more akin to a beachball than a soccer ball and doesn’t automatically adhere to a player’s feet upon receiving it. While it seems as though it’s something KW-SFF (the development team) has purposely done, as opposed to it being a mistake, it further takes away from that all-important fluidity that would have been more than welcome during our games.

Serious Fun Football is 3-vs-3

Too many players would have taken all of the fun out of Serious Fun Football and ‘Serious Football’ doesn’t quite have the same ring. The game is instead played with two teams of three. Like five-a-side soccer rules, there are no corner kicks, goal kicks, or throw-ins. Instead, the pitch is fenced off at the sides, making it impossible for the ball to go out of play. Without these game-delaying entities, the game is non-stop, giving it a redeeming quality of pace and appending to the arcade feel.

Serious Fun Football – Graphics

For the low price tag, the graphics in Serious Fun Football are pretty impressive. The game has adopted a unique, cartoon style that fits perfectly with its lighthearted tones and focus on fun. There are six stadiums to choose from, each embellished with great detail and with the same artistic flair as seen with the characters.

Serious Fun Football – Summary

After taking a little time to get used to the controls and general mechanics, Super Fun Football does pack a lot of fun into the sports games genre (as the name suggests). Yes, there is still a lot to do, but the game is still in its infancy and holds a lot of future potential.

With a few more teams – other than ‘North Team’ and ‘South Team’ and an overhaul of the controls, Serious Fun Football will be a true gem.

Serious Fun Football is available now on Steam, for under $8.