The graphics were absolutely horrible.  I was reminded of the good old 8 bit days when "Kings of The Beach" ruled the tiny volleyball game genre.  The players had no element of detail whatsoever and the backgrounds did not in any way make for up for this shortcoming. They too were of 8 bit standards with uncreative billboards and the audience looking like nothing more than a random set of colored pixels. Even during replays when the camera was zoomed in, I could still not decipher what was written on the players' t-shirts but the 3D models did look a bit more sophisticated than they did in game play mode.  This lack of detail is present throughout and in no way does it take advantage of Playstation's graphical capabilities.  When the volleyball is seen up close, it resembles a crumpled-up piece of paper or some sort of ten-sided polygon.  During normal game play, the players look like nothing more than colored blobs, often with their skin blending in with the sand.    One impressive aspect of the graphics is visible when a player dives into the sand bringing up a realistic cloud of sand. Another decent quality is the fact that, at a distance, player's shadows look convincing.

Despite the fact that sound effects during game play are somewhat realistic with cheering crowds, players groaning, waves crashing and ball noises, the sound is fairly weak.  In an attempt to make the game sound as if it was actually on the beach, the developers left background music out of tournament play.  This though, is probably a good thing given the quality of the music during setup mode, which sounds like your little brother playing the demo on his keyboard.  The music is truly uninspired and just plain laughable.  A good soundtrack to listen to while playing would have given it some flavor but one is nonexistent.

The game play is one of the better aspects of "Power Spike."  Despite the horrible graphics and sound, it's actually somewhat of an entertaining game to play with friends or by yourself in World Tour mode, which lets players compete in eight different tournaments against teams from all over the globe.  You can create a custom player to use, allowing you to determine their appearance and to change his or her attributes.  As you win more games, your custom player receives points to add to his attributes which include strength, serve, pass, etc.  Also available are exhibition and practice modes.  Exhibition mode lets you choose from over forty top players, allowing teams to be male, female or co-ed.  Practice mode, which does not tally points, is helpful in getting the hang of the game which may take awhile given it's super sensitive play controls.  Controls are very simple to figure out. The X button is predominately used for normal functions like bump, set and spike.  The other buttons are used for power shots, blocking and to control your computer teammate.  You can choose from three difficulty levels including amateur, pro and all-star.  The main differences in difficulty are in game speed, aggressiveness of opponents and the ability to used advanced techniques.  Aiming cursor, power bars and player positioning guide allow for easy to understand, yet effective, game play.

This game utilizes the Playstation multi-tap, which lets up to four players get involved which is when the game is the most fun.  However, the views make it very hard for one of the teams to see what is going on because they are on the other side of the obtrusive net.  The other view option, lateral/horizontal, places the view in the center.  The disadvantage of this is that the players appear tiny and makes for much more difficult game play.

I wouldn't add "Power Spike" to your wish list unless you are an absolute volleyball fanatic.  While it can provide some fun, especially in multiplayer mode, the game simply isn't up to par due to the graphical quality.

This game has been rated "E" for everyone.
 

Install: N/A

Gameplay: 6.5
Fairly fun, specifically in mulitplayer mode.  The controls will take getting some used to be are simple and straight-forward.

Graphics: 3.0
For this day in age, these graphics simply don't cut it.

Sound: 5.5
Sound effects are reasonable during game play, but the music is not creative nor is it enjoyable.

Difficulty: 7.0
While allowing for beginners to compete in amateur mode, the game also allows the more skillful gamer to be challenged in all-star mode.

Concept: 6.0
Numerous volleyball games have been released over the years and this one does nothing to advance the genre or to stand out in any way.

Multiplayer: 7.0
Allows for some fun matches with friends, but the camera views could use some refinement.

Overall: 5.8
I would not recommend this title unless for some reason you've been itching for a new volleyball game.