• Publisher: Level 5
  • Release Date: Feb 13, 2014
Inazuma Eleven Image
Metascore
78

Generally favorable reviews - based on 15 Critic Reviews What's this?

User Score
8.3

Generally favorable reviews- based on 51 Ratings

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  • Summary: Take the world of soccer by storm! Genres collide in this soccer RPG!

    The original world-renowned soccer RPG INAZUMA ELEVEN is now available for digital download! Nobody loves soccer like Mark Evans. As captain of the Raimon Junior High soccer club, he dreams of taking his team to the
    Take the world of soccer by storm! Genres collide in this soccer RPG!

    The original world-renowned soccer RPG INAZUMA ELEVEN is now available for digital download!

    Nobody loves soccer like Mark Evans. As captain of the Raimon Junior High soccer club, he dreams of taking his team to the top and winning the legendary Soccer Frontier championship. Unfortunately for him, nobody else in the club shares his passion... until theyre thrown into a match against the elite Royal Academy for the club's survival. It seems the only way Raimon will stand a chance is if Mark can convince new transfer student and ace striker Axel Blaze to come out of his mysterious early retirement...

    Train your team, find items, and level up; then take to the field for some tactical soccer action. The more soccer battles you win, the more special moves youll learn, and the stronger your team will be!

    Take on fierce opponents in eleven-on-eleven soccer matches!

    Field over 1000 potential recruits to craft your custom team and challenge your friends via local wireless play!

    The first few episodes of the INAZUMA ELEVEN anime are now available on the Nintendo eShop for FREE
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Score distribution:
  1. Positive: 8 out of 15
  2. Negative: 0 out of 15
  1. Feb 26, 2014
    100
    The soccer and JRPG mechanics blend incredibly well together and make a fantastic hybrid for fans of both genres.
  2. Feb 20, 2014
    90
    Inazuma Eleven is one of the best role-playing experiences I've had in a long time, and more importantly, rekindled a youthful feeling I've grown to miss.
  3. Mar 14, 2014
    90
    If the phrase "soccer RPG" has you the least bit intrigued, lace up your cleats and grab your stylus — Inazuma Eleven's masterful mix of lighthearted storytelling and over-the-top soccer is fun, fresh, and surprisingly deep.
  4. Mar 9, 2014
    75
    Inazuma Eleven is a quirky and novel RPG, but the on-field action is too unrefined to be rewarding.
  5. 70
    Inazuma Eleven is by no means a perfect game; I can't see any reason why it had to be touch screen controlled, nor is there any excuse for why the soccer action itself is so poor. But, as a sport-themed JRPG, it's a niche kind of game, but an entertaining one.
  6. 70
    Fans of sports games or RPGs may hate the game and its weird control system, whilst those who are away from both genres may find something different and satisfying. Those who endure the first three hours and get used to the controls will find a long campaign, with up to 20 hours of gameplay. When you get there, though, you will be tired of that much soccer and of the absurd that will carry you until the final match.
  7. Feb 20, 2014
    68
    Inazuma Eleven has not aged very well and with the latest installment (Team Ogre Attacks!) hitting stores right now there's really no reason to dig into the most bastic iteration in the franchise, unless you are an avid Inazuma Eleven fan.

See all 15 Critic Reviews

Score distribution:
  1. Positive: 7 out of 8
  2. Negative: 0 out of 8
  1. Sep 12, 2019
    10
    Juego de 10 , muy rejugable, y adictivo desde el comienzo hasta el final , incluso cuando te lo acabas te picas por conseguir los futbolistasJuego de 10 , muy rejugable, y adictivo desde el comienzo hasta el final , incluso cuando te lo acabas te picas por conseguir los futbolistas rivales y subir de nivel las supertecnicas Expand
  2. Apr 14, 2023
    10
    One of the best (if not the best) football games ever made. This game was my childhood and deserves a way higher score than given.
  3. Feb 25, 2022
    10
    Great JRPG combined with soccer!
    This game has a very interesting story, good multiplayer and great postgame.
  4. Sep 2, 2014
    10
    Excellent RPG, graphics, music, length, storytelling, combat system, completionist content, all 10/10. It follows the Anime with subtleExcellent RPG, graphics, music, length, storytelling, combat system, completionist content, all 10/10. It follows the Anime with subtle differences, but you don't need to be a fan or ever watch the show to fully enjoy this. GET IT!!! Expand
  5. Apr 25, 2018
    8
    A terrific blend of football, drama, RPG and magic. The matches are fast paced and watching players special moves is always a joy to watch.A terrific blend of football, drama, RPG and magic. The matches are fast paced and watching players special moves is always a joy to watch. Recruiting better players and sorting out your team to strengthen your play makes the game very interesting and the animated sequences are top notch. A great game from beginning to end, you owe it to yourself as an RPG fan to play the whole series. Expand
  6. Dec 13, 2017
    8
    Inazuma Eleven is a very well developed sports Rpg game. Inazuma Eleven offers fairly simple gameplay with a large cast of characters and tonsInazuma Eleven is a very well developed sports Rpg game. Inazuma Eleven offers fairly simple gameplay with a large cast of characters and tons of special moves to teach characters that make sure the game never gets old. While it can be a little too easy at times and the story isn't fantastic the gameplay is very entertaining and its soundtrack is a joy to listen to. Inazuma Eleven is a very underrated DS and 3DS title, that I pray gets a sequel on the Switch.

    Cons
    Story is mediocre
    A little too easy at times.
    Expand
  7. Jul 10, 2021
    5
    This review contains spoilers, click expand to view. Good old Inazuma 11 had a poor start in America when localization is concerned. While it did fairly well in other countries, we only got a single game in the USA. Thankfully, a good chunk of the anime was dubbed & I was able to learn about its true greatness as a series...but man is this game disappointing. Somehow I still carry it in my 3DS virtual console & end returning to it from time to time. Because whenever I'm in the mood to play through the whole series again, I might as well start from the beginning. Inazuma 11 is a unique sports RPG where you use the touch screen to pass the ball & guide players into killer formations. It's a really fun...DS GAME! Yep, not only did the US get the original Japanese version that was riddled with glitches, but this isn't even a 3DS game! Of course when Level 5 started localizing these games they fixed many of the original game's glitches & added more content in order to make more enjoyable. So why in the flying Hell Army Z did we get this sad version!? Of course was a pretty good game at the time, but do you what happens when you don't add any upgrades to a 2008 DS game that's being released in 2014 on the 3DS? Disappointed players & no sequels to follow its release. What a shame because there was a lot of love put into this series. The music is fantastic, the animated cutscenes give off that enjoyment from watching a Saturday morning cartoon, the action scenes are creative as heck, & the characters are lovable. However, the series strong points really lie within its ability to better itself with each game. Every single Inazuma 11 core series game has something grand about it. As for this game, it's the realism. Yo've got a lovely town to explore as you learn the secrets of the legendary soccer team, in order to help your team climb up the ranks, & win the Soccer Frontier tournament. The gameplay mainly consists of fast paced soccer action, but every once in a while you'll be in a situation where you'll need to need to complete certain conditions in order to keep the story going. Like scoring a goal with Kevin Dragonfly or else the goalie will keep stopping the rest of your shots easily. This gimmick can get annoying at times especially when I can't even move tired players after the event has passed & my formations get screwed up. Seriously, it's bad enough that good Earth Strikers are endangered. While this version carries several issues, it can still be enjoyable like any underrated RPG as long as you're motivated. With multiple profiles at hand, I created an anime theme team, made up of the players from the show & teaching them the appropriate special moves. Like teaching Evans Fireball Knuckle. Of course there are much more powerful moves to teach after unlocking Mr. Veteran's Shop. And let's not forget that you can recruit all sorts of powerful players from defeated teams. Sadly, you're stealing power from other teams by doing this. Recruit Royal Academy's King of Keepers & they are basically a pushover now. You're facing teams who don't substitute tired players or play at full power because you've taken away they're best players. In the sequels, there's an extra competition system where you virtually time travel & face teams you've created before at full power. No key players are removed & its also pretty fun to see players fight themselves. The post game is only at an acceptable level without the extra challenges at into the upgraded international versions. After defeating Zeus Jr. High, you can now face...stupid strong Zeus Jr. High. Yeah its a pretty lame hidden boss fight. It's basically a much more challenging version of the final boss without any dialogue or story events interrupting you. And the amount of grinding you have to too in order to challenge them isn't really worth it. On the bright side, you get a ton of adequate rewards after game completion. From hidden special moves to rare equipment, it feels nice to stroll around through Inazuma town one more time while checking out all of the new hidden areas. Sadly, the feeling the doesn't last long when you realize that's all you're going to be doing for the rest of the post game. And then there's the Flash Training Facility, the only legitimate dungeon in the game. It's a nice challenge to take if you're in a good mood. It's full of strong soccer battle challenges, rare items, a Professor Layton cameo, & you get to raise you players stats after completion. Only problem is that these don't give off good experience points. Making this place once big luck-based challenge if your searching for rare move manuals. If you're playing the game for the story, the anime may be superior, but its nice to have to the freedom of creating your own ultimate team. Multiplayer does get a chance to shine, since you get the ability to trade players, choose your own team name, & even add a fun emblem. This game can possibly be at its best when a friend is involved. It was a rocky start for me, but I still love this series Expand

See all 8 User Reviews