Heads Arena: Soccer All Stars — Play Free Online

Heads Arena: Soccer All Stars is a head-soccer game: a short, one-on-one match where the players are cartoon characters with oversized heads and the ball is the only thing that matters. There is no full-pitch simulation, no offside and no tactics board. You run, jump and swing a foot at the ball, and the aim is simply to put it in the other side's goal before time runs out.

A match is over in a minute or two, which suits the pace of Doodle Jump. Where that game is about climbing without falling, this one is about reading a bouncing ball and being in the right spot a moment before it arrives. It is a quick reaction game dressed up as football, and rounds are short enough that losing one just makes you want another.

It plays in the browser with nothing to install, on a keyboard or on a phone.

How to play

On a keyboard, move with the arrow keys or WASD. The mouse is used to aim and to pick options in the menus. On a phone you tap and swipe instead. The controls shown in the game itself are the final word, so glance at them on your first match.

A round follows the usual head-soccer pattern. The ball drops in, both players rush to meet it, and the ball ricochets off heads, feet, the ground and the goal frame. Most goals come from small deflections rather than big kicks, so a good position matters more than raw speed.

Tips

1. Stay near your own goal at the start of a round instead of charging the ball. A defender who is already in position beats one who is rushing back.
2. Learn how the ball bounces off a head. You can steer a shot by choosing which part of the head meets the ball, so test it in the first few matches.
3. Don't jump the moment the ball comes near. Jumping early leaves you in the air and unable to change direction, so wait until the ball is closer.
4. Switch to fullscreen if you play on a laptop, so you can see the whole pitch and follow the ball when it flies to the far side.

Similar games on Doodle Jump

The closest cousin here is Bouncy Basketball, which uses the same quick one-on-one format with a ball and a hoop in place of a goal. Fireboy and Watergirl is a calmer pick if you want to play with a friend on one keyboard, and Helix Jump gives you something faster and more solitary when you only have a minute.

Heads Arena suits short breaks, a quick rematch against a friend sitting next to you, or anyone who likes a sports game that is done in a couple of minutes.