Red Card Soccer: The most brutal football game ever made

Remember Red Card Soccer?

The year was 2002 and, unlike today, there were a lot of football games on the market. 

Yes, FIFA and Pro Evo were the big boys then too, but that didn’t stop the likes of This Is Football and Actua Soccer from getting in on the act.

The less we talk about David Beckham Soccer and Ronaldo V-Football, the better. 

Now while FIFA and Pro Evo sought for perfection each year, edging closer and closer to realism as they fought it out for dominance of the market, Red Card Soccer took a different route.

This game was based entirely on, well, red cards. Or the lack of them. The aim of the game was to win, but to do so in as vicious a manner as possible. 

To do this, you had to fill up a special metre, which was done by, well, playing well. The game set you out on a Conquest Mode, with the intention of unlocking its version of the World Cup.

Incredibly, the game featured licensed players, meaning you could force David Beckham to karate kick Zinedine Zidane.

But it also contained non-human players, like a team of levitating dolphins and 11 baboons, as well as Aztecs and a literal SWAT team. For the avoidance of confusion, they were graciously named Aztec 1, Aztec 2, and so on.

The game was far from perfect, but did receive decent reviews. And crucially, it offered gamers a break away from the more serious offerings from EA Sports and Konami. 

Red Card Soccer never got a sequel – unfortunately – but it is fondly remembered by those who spent many an hour sending Ronaldo and Raul diving into brutal assaults on sea creatures and primates.

Beckham karate-kicking Zidane in the chest?

This is the most brutal football game ever made 👊 pic.twitter.com/scgAs8W4SZ

— FootballJOE (@FootballJOE) May 21, 2020