Easygoing App: Give your life over to Pocket League Academy

The makers of the incredibly addictive Game Dev Story have decided to turn their talented hands towards football management. What's not to love about Pocket League Story?

Here at JOE, we both love and hate app developers Kairosoft, the geniuses behind the likes of Game Dev Story and Hot Springs Story. As you can tell by each game’s ‘Story’ title, a pattern is beginning to emerge.

After flooring us in 2010 with the aforementioned Game Dev Story, the Japanese developers have brought their expertise in the realm of ultra-addictive, sprite-based simulation titles to the likes of Imperial Japan (Oh! Edo Towns), city building (Venture Towns), shopping (Mega Mall Story), relaxing (Hot Springs Story), running a school (Pocket Academy) and perhaps our favourite of all, managing a racing team for Grand Prix Story.

After each of those random yet connected titles, Kairosoft are finally moving towards perhaps their most lucrative avenue yet – football.

The lightweight nature of the latest from the talented team won’t give the makers of Football Manager sleepless nights, unless they download the app itself and get as hooked as we did.

Rather than focus on an authentic, branded experience, Pocket League Story challenges players with creating the best Sunday League side imaginable.

While the app initially feels quite complex compared to its sister titles, with time you’ll have amassed an invincible side and disregarded cereal and regular bathing in your quest to the top.

If you can't learn to love those sprite players, you have a heart of stone

The ultimate goal in Pocket League Story is to build a top-class side by recruiting the best players, training them, selling merchandise, building a gym and even creating your own stadium as you progress further.

As is typical for Kairosoft, you’ll earn research points on and off the field to spend on the best of the best. Similar to Grand Prix Story, you play no part in the efforts of your team when they take to the field, so you’ll have to grit your teeth and hope that you don’t receive a drubbing over 90 minutes.

Far more accessible than most football sims around, Pocket League Story is deceptively shallow but opens up to a world of options and reasons to stay up far too late.

If this is your first ever Kairosoft title, then it’s a wonderful introduction – you’ll just have to figure out how to organize your new social life around the team’s addictive creations.

Pocket League Story is currently available in the Android Market and iOS App Store at an introductory price.