NFL Retro Bowl '26 (2024) [+]
Aug 10 2026
NFL Retro Bowl '26 as far as I can tell is just standard Retro Bowl but with an NFL license they can use team names, logos, and player names (with approximate statistics). Otherwise I did not see any differences in features or game play than regular Retro Bowl.
That still means it remains a very entertaining American football manager with optional arcade game play. First choose a name and 8-bit image for your coach. Then pick your favorite team, which you don't get immediately. Instead you get a random team and start with a three round draft to fill out your 10-man roster (QB, RB, TE, K, WR, OL, DL, LB, DB positions with the first four being 1-active in a game and the others max 2-active).
Then you go through a normal season. A game can be skipped (just gives you results), simulation play (where it synthesizes each 4-down set into one play), or full arcade mode where you control the players. Players have skills which improve to various maximums, energy which goes down game by game so you might need to rest a player for a game, morale which improves when you win but if a player bottoms out in morale I find it's time to cut them instead of putting the major effort into improving their morale (low morale is infectious). Players can get injured and you can trade them out (only for draft picks), cut them, and sign free agents.
With simulation play a season will take a couple of hours then it's playoffs and on to the next season. Contracts expire and players will want more money and like the regular NFL you can't have a team of all-stars because of the salary cap (though also like the NFL drafted players are paid substantially less so drafting ready-to-go players is really nice). Oh, you can also upgrade your Offensive and Defensive coaches and improve three facilities (stadium, training, rehab).
Then after two seasons you get the chance to move to a different team (a selection of random teams). Changing teams is one way to avoid salary cap hell because you won't be around when all those high draft picks and free agents need to re-sign.
Anyway, with an official NFL license it's kind of nice coaching the Arizona Cardinals instead of the Phoenix team. You have real players with approximately the right stats -- and there is no "prone to injury" stat so Kyler Murray is likely to last the entire season. Unfortunately even with real names Retro Bowl still has the quirks that in simulation mode it often doesn't use player names and never when referring to the other team.
NFL Retro Bowl '26 is the same fun game made 10% better with real teams and players (and they start with the right uniform numbers but as you start acquiring randomly generated players they don't get uniform numbers).
2026-08-11 addendum: Thinking about it I'd like a preview (with ability to scout) of the next draft or two so that I can trade (or not re-sign) players when you know I'll draft their replacement. You even have to decide whether or not to re-sign expiring contracts before you get to the draft (and re-signing a player means cutting or trading them in the first year decreases team morale).
That still means it remains a very entertaining American football manager with optional arcade game play. First choose a name and 8-bit image for your coach. Then pick your favorite team, which you don't get immediately. Instead you get a random team and start with a three round draft to fill out your 10-man roster (QB, RB, TE, K, WR, OL, DL, LB, DB positions with the first four being 1-active in a game and the others max 2-active).
Then you go through a normal season. A game can be skipped (just gives you results), simulation play (where it synthesizes each 4-down set into one play), or full arcade mode where you control the players. Players have skills which improve to various maximums, energy which goes down game by game so you might need to rest a player for a game, morale which improves when you win but if a player bottoms out in morale I find it's time to cut them instead of putting the major effort into improving their morale (low morale is infectious). Players can get injured and you can trade them out (only for draft picks), cut them, and sign free agents.
With simulation play a season will take a couple of hours then it's playoffs and on to the next season. Contracts expire and players will want more money and like the regular NFL you can't have a team of all-stars because of the salary cap (though also like the NFL drafted players are paid substantially less so drafting ready-to-go players is really nice). Oh, you can also upgrade your Offensive and Defensive coaches and improve three facilities (stadium, training, rehab).
Then after two seasons you get the chance to move to a different team (a selection of random teams). Changing teams is one way to avoid salary cap hell because you won't be around when all those high draft picks and free agents need to re-sign.
Anyway, with an official NFL license it's kind of nice coaching the Arizona Cardinals instead of the Phoenix team. You have real players with approximately the right stats -- and there is no "prone to injury" stat so Kyler Murray is likely to last the entire season. Unfortunately even with real names Retro Bowl still has the quirks that in simulation mode it often doesn't use player names and never when referring to the other team.
NFL Retro Bowl '26 is the same fun game made 10% better with real teams and players (and they start with the right uniform numbers but as you start acquiring randomly generated players they don't get uniform numbers).
2026-08-11 addendum: Thinking about it I'd like a preview (with ability to scout) of the next draft or two so that I can trade (or not re-sign) players when you know I'll draft their replacement. You even have to decide whether or not to re-sign expiring contracts before you get to the draft (and re-signing a player means cutting or trading them in the first year decreases team morale).