Play Inazuma Eleven 2 - Firestorm (eu) Online

Inazuma Eleven 2: Firestorm came out in 2009 for the Nintendo DS, developed by Level-5. It was part of that wave of DS games that really used both screens and the stylus in clever ways. You could tell it was made by the same people behind Professor Layton; it had that polished, thoughtful feel even though it was a sports RPG.

You control Mark Evans and his ragtag Raimon soccer team, navigating the world screen by screen to find new players and challenge rival schools. The main goal is to win the Football Frontier International tournament, which means traveling across Japan and beyond, recruiting a massive roster of characters with unique special moves. The core gameplay splits between exploration on the top screen, where you talk to people and solve small field puzzles to progress, and the matches themselves. Matches are a frantic mix of tactical movement and touch screen commands; you draw paths for your players to run and tap icons to pass, shoot, or unleash those over-the-top hissatsu techniques. It starts simple but the difficulty ramps up significantly, demanding you grind for new skills and better team synergy. The feeling of finally pulling off a perfect chain of passes into a game winning special shot is pure satisfaction.