Breakaway Football was one of my favorite games from 2021 even though it didn’t release that year. It ended up being a “new to me game” that also fell into the category of “how have I not heard about it until now?”. If you haven’t read my review of the base game yet, you can check it out here. But suffice to say, it’s a phenomenal 2 player game that simulates the back and forth aspect of NFL football. And today, we are going to be looking at the newest and sixth expansion for Breakaway football.
Expansion Overview:
Like most expansions for Breakaway Football, this one comes with four unique teams to try out, each of which is based on a team from NFL history. Included are the Sinners, based on the 2018 Saints; the Centurions, based on the 2019 Chiefs; the Mustangs, based on the 1998 Broncos; and the Outlaws, based on the 1976 Raiders. So let’s take a look at each of these teams and see what makes them tick.
Game Experience with the Expansion:
The Sinners
As you might recall, the 2018 Saints went 13-3 that year and made it all the way to the NFC Conference Championship, but ended up losing in overtime to the Rams in a game with no shortage of controversy. For the Sinners though, they feature ball control passing and an average defense. They have four special abilities: High accuracy passing, crowd noise, a strong punt return team, and, of course, a blown call marker. That last one was a nice touch, as it lets your opponent ignore one penalty card during the game (a call back to the NFC championship game). Overall they were pretty fun to play, with lots of medium to short passes. Just don’t expect to be throwing many long bombs with Drew Brees’ noodle arm. However, it does feature a couple of really awesome “double QB” offensive plays (thanks Taysom Hill), that can convert the play type after a snap! Those definitely gave my defense trouble.
The Centurions
The 2019 Chiefs are a fairly recent team, so it’s hard not to remember Patrick Mahomes first Super Bowl win. The Centurions run a west coast offense that doesn’t care that much about running. Their strengths focus on an athletic QB, fast WRs, and a big play ability. In fact, only 3 of their pass plays are under 6 yards! Their special powers let them convert a pass to a run, redraw game day cards, and score TDs if their breakaways go far enough. I really enjoyed the high-powered offense of this one, however, their weak defense turned a lot of their games into shootouts. But if you are OK with that, this team is a ton of fun to play as long as you aren’t looking for a grinding runner.
The Mustangs
The 1998 Broncos were the last year John Elway played and saw them win the Super Bowl behind Terrell Davis’ strong rushing attack. At that point in his career, Elway wasn’t the passer he was in his prime but he could still manage the game behind Davis. And that’s what you get with the Mustangs. Strong rushing offense and defense with some big play ability for your RB to gain extra yardage. The rest of their team (passing and defense) is fairly average. Their special abilities focus around their Double the Run tokens, which can grant fairly big gains. Just be aware as it only works during the first half and earning more of them is kind of rough. This was probably my least favorite team of the expansion, although it’s not bad by any stretch. You just have to really like focusing on rushing attacks.
The Outlaws
To be honest, I don’t know a whole lot about the 76 Raiders as they were a team from before I was born. But from what I can tell they were a pretty mean team with some shady stuff going on. The Outlaws are the first team I’ve seen in Breakaway Football with a double-sized referee card. This team features a good defense with a strong rushing offense and a legendary comeback ability. Interestingly, their weakness is excessive penalties, which I thought was pretty funny. They actually have the ability to injure their opponent’s team which not only gives them penalties on plays, but earns them Win tokens to use in the second half, which they can use for powerful comeback powers. They also have the drawback of an over-the-hill kicker as their field goals get a -3 penalty. The Outlaws were a ton of fun to play and I really liked the uniqueness of the team. Even in a game where each team has their own feel, Uplink Games always seems to come up with great ideas to tie a team to their source material.
Final Thoughts:
I would be hard-pressed ever to not recommend an expansion for this game, as these teams are always so well made and more variety is never a bad thing. If you are looking for your first expansion for Breakaway Football, honestly just pick the one that has your favorite team. But if you don’t have an allegiance or already have a few teams, then expansion six is a solid choice for any fan of the game. Each team has their plusses and minuses, with only the Mustangs feeling kind of meh for me. But the Outlaws, Sinners, and Centurions were all home runs for me (or touchdowns I guess).
Hits:
• Outlaws injuring players was really clever
• Dual QB is a powerful weapon
• Four solid teams
Misses:
• Mustangs could use a bit more excitement
