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« on: January 11, 2006, 07:57:37 PM »
In the spirit of the NFL playoffs (for those who care around here), here is my quick overview of Madden NFL '06.
I took a couple of seasons off and just happened to play Madden NFL '05 and Madden NFL '06 on the PS2, XBOX, XBOX 360, and GCN. Both my XBOX, XBOX 360, and PS2 fanboy friends have agreed that the GCN is simply much easier to control and looks better even without the on-line mode.
CONTROL: Much more responsive and there's that feeling of being able to kick PATs and Field Goals easily. The GCN does boast the least amount of buttons; however, I've found it a lot more easier than the four shoulder buttons of the PS2, which I've not been able to hit on a consistent basis. The XBOX is just wrong for control with the use of the black and gray buttons for receivers. It should be noted that the learning curve for the GCN control is somewhere between the PS2 and the XBOX and XBOX 360 controls.
GRAPHICS: With the exception of the XBOX 360, the GCN version just seems to make really good use of the anti-aliasing. Sometimes you can see the engine redrawing the onscreen players; however, it is a small sacrifice when you see the characters with better detail.
For the game itself:
The game has come along way since I first played the current generation Madden NFL on PS2. The gameplay has become much more immersive in terms of play calling and audibles. Running play action is stunning and gone are the unnecessary animations of old (e.g., the one-handed catch that began the current generation of consoles). The "truck stick" addition helps the running game tremendously and compliments last year's "hit stick" defensive controls.
Other new additions to the game include the QB vision. This new feature has received a mixed review. For me, it helps you to track your receivers while running their routes. Sometimes, people with bad field vision will lose their receiver as they look at other options to see if they are open. This QB vision allows a player to track one receiver as it highlights their movements on the field in a coned shape spotlight from the QB to receiver. You can manually move this highlighted field of vision from one receiver to the other using the C-stick.
One nice cosmetic addition is the use of a radio show. I'm a big fan of Tony Bruno here in Los Angeles with 1540AM "The Ticket". It was nice to hear that based on the results of one week to the next during a simulated season, there is a broadcast based on scores and highlights. A newspaper is also generated like the old school SNES sports games like Ken Griffey Jr. Baseball. Getting back to the radio broadcast, I'm impressed with the voice work and having some callers call in on other segments. Callers are easier to understand VS. the Jim Rome "Crones".
Al Michael and John Madden seem to be at the top of their game as well. Although we've been forced to listen to the "master of the obvious" John Madden since the series began, we're given good play-by-play commentary from Al Michaels.
Another strength of the game is the catalog of animations that Tiburon has been able to generate over the years. Again, they've come a long way from the one-handed catch of the first Madden NFL PS2 title. Running backs duck under diving tackles, the "hit stick" defensive tackles look a lot more vicious than ever, and the "truck stick" animations look like that poor USC defensive player who got stuck to Vince Young's leg while attempting a sack.
Different Game Modes also add to the Replay Value. The Franchise Mode is better than it has ever been. The Training Camp really does allow you to incorporate RPG elements in giving your individual players better attributes.
I think that's this REVIEW in a nutshell...
GRAPHICS: 8.5
GAMEPLAY: 8.5
PRESENTATION: 9.0
REPLAY VALUE: 8.0
FUN FACTOR: 8.0
OVERALL 8.5 / 10
That's it.
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