Instant Sports Summer Games

Genre: Compilation / Sports (Various)

Players: 1-4 Competitive (Local), 2-8 Team Competitive (Local), 2 Co-Op (Local)

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Review:

Instant Sports Summer Games, released in 2020 on Nintendo Switch, is a family-friendly Compilation of various Sports games (well, mostly minigames). With most of these minigames making use of gyroscopic motion control in some form, this is a game that is clearly aiming for the same sort of game you’d get with something like Wii Sports or Nintendo Switch Sports.

I should note that many of these games are recycled from Instant Sports, to the point where this game can be seen as an expanded version of that game. Do the changes and additions make a difference here? Let’s have a look…

Here is what I thought of each of the games in this collection:

Game	Genre	# of Players	Score
Archery	Sports (Misc.) / Arcade	1-4 Competitive (Local)	B-
tl;dr It’s a bit tricky at first figuring out how you’re meant to hold the Joy-Con controllers for this minigame, but once you do it’s actually a really clever take on using a bow and arrow. It’s just a pity that there are only three locations to play in, and the only difference is the amount of distance to the target and the amount of wind. I feel like this minigame could have been expanded into something more substantial.
Baseball	Sports (Baseball)	1-4 Competitive (Local)	D-
tl;dr This plays more like a Home Run Contest than a full game of Baseball. It plays well enough, but it’s simple to the point of being boring. After a short while playing this, you’ll never want to bother with it again.
Bowling	Sports (Bowling)	1-8 Competitive (Local)	B-
tl;dr This is a solid Wii Sports-style take on bowling, and the controls seem decent enough, and there’s even an alternate version with obstacles on the lane to avoid. Overall a good addition to this bundle of games.
Goalkeeper	Sports (Soccer) / Arcade	1-4 Competitive (Local) / 2 Co-Op (Local)	B-
tl;dr This simple Arcade-style game has players using motion controls to move a cursor to block incoming balls. Despite its simplicity, this is actually pretty fun, though it is annoying how the game constantly has players dealing with “wacky” handicaps like the screen flipping upside-down or the size of your hand changing. It does keep things interesting, but it would have been nice to be able to choose to remove this option and just have the difficulty come from the increasing speed.
High Jump	Sports (Misc.) / Arcade	1-4 Competitive (Local)	C-
tl;dr This minigame has players shake the Joy-Con to simulate running, suddenly move it up to simulate jumping, and then spin it to simulate going over the bar. It works, but it’s simple and not very engaging.
Javelin	Sports (Misc.) / Arcade	1-4 Competitive (Local)	F
tl;dr This minigame has players shake the Joy-Con controller to simulate running, then holding the Joy-Con like a javelin to aim, and pumping it forward to toss it. I tried this various ways, but I just cannot seem to see how what I’m doing translates into distance for my toss. As a result, this minigame is not enjoyable at all.
Rafting	Racing	1-4 Co-Op / Competitive (Local)	C+
tl;dr This is pretty enjoyable and a surprisingly good workout, but it’s marred by power-ups littering the course that warp you around in a jarring manner, and terribly limited by only having three courses. I feel like this could have been expanded into something more with a little tweaking, and it’s disappointing to see its potential so limited.
Relay Race	Sports (Misc.) / Racing / Arcade	1-4 Competitive (Local) / 2-8 Team Competitive (Local)	C+
tl;dr This game has players shaking a Joy-Con to simulate running, then tapping a button to pass the baton, all trying to maintain good timing. This is pretty good overall, even if it’s a bit simple and I don’t see it engaging players for long before they move on.
Run N’ Jump	Sports (Misc.) / Arcade	1-4 Competitive (Local)	C+
tl;dr “Run N’ Jump” is a strange name for a hurdle race, where you’re shaking the Joy-Con controller to simulate running, then raising it suddenly to simulate jumping, all while trying to keep a cursor within a specific range, akin to how Fishing games often work. The end result is actually pretty engaging, if a bit simple.
Tennis	Sports (Tennis)	1-2 Competitive (Local)	D+
tl;dr Players have no agency over their movement, and must either use gimmicky motion controls or awkward gamepad controls. There’s also a lack of nuance to the kinds of shots players can make. A young child might enjoy this game in easy mode, but otherwise this is a terrible Tennis game.
Triple Jump	Sports (Misc.) / Arcade	1-4 Competitive (Local)	C
tl;dr This minigame has players shaking the Joy-Con controller to simulate running, then use three timed button taps to jump. It’s decent enough, but there’s not a whole lot to it, and you’ll likely move on quickly enough.

Overall, the mix of quality is all over the place here. You have some really good minigames, like Archery, Bowling, and Goalkeeper, as well as some pretty good minigames that have small issues or are a tad too simple, such as Rafting, Relay Race, and Run N’ Jump… and then there are some absolutely terrible minigames, like Javelin and Baseball. I feel like it’s normal for a minigame collection to have a few standouts and a few stinkers, but even so I feel like the quality here is more inconsistent than usual.

Comparing this game to the original Instant Sports, it does seem like I enjoyed a few games better this time around, like Goalkeeper and Rafting. However, for the most part these games have much the same problems now that they did then. The new games in this collection, Archery, High Jump, Javelin, Relay Race, and Triple Jump, have one highlight (Archery), one terrible addition (Javelin), and the rest are mostly just “okay”.

I should also note that one of the problems here is that this spread of games seems to have scattered the attention of the developer, when I feel like this could have been better overall if the game just focused on expanding on some of the minigames that had a lot of potential but really needed more content, like Archery and Rafting. Heck, even just adding more options to Goalkeeper would have greatly improved it.

The presentation here is okay but nothing special, with simple somewhat-cartoony 3D visuals that get the job done but don’t do anything especially memorable, backed by an energetic soundtrack that sounds so painfully generic I just played the game before writing this and I’ve already forgotten it.

Overall, Instant Sports Summer Games is an improvement over the original Instant Sports, but it’s not much of an improvement… and the leeway I give this game for that improvement evaporates when you notice this game is priced $5 more than Instant Sports.

If you’re looking for a collection of Sports games on Nintendo Switch, Instant Sports Summer Games will likely entertain you for a little while, especially if you stick to the better games in this collection. But definitely don’t expect anything on par with the likes of Nintendo Switch Sports, which absolutely makes this look like a cheap imitation.

tl;dr – Instant Sports Summer Games is a Compilation of 11 various Sports minigames, including all six of the minigames that were in the original Instant Sports. The quality here ranges wildly, with some good ones, some bad ones, and a lot of mediocre ones. But in the end, this definitely feels like a cheap imitation of Wii Sports and Nintendo Switch Sports.

Grade: C

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