BBallcoach's Blog
In regards to gaming. I love sports games. I grew up on Ice Hockey on the NES. I vividly remember NBA Live 95 on the Sega Genesis. Madden 99 on the 64 is probably the game that started my obsession of being a GM of team. I love franchise modes or coaching career modes like College Hoops 2k8 (which gets my vote for best sports game ever but more on that on a different day). When I was 15 I got my first job at a local golf course. There were two reasons why I wanted this job, new golf clubs and the PS2 was dropping that October. Madden 2001 again hooked me, but it wasn't until NCAA Football 2002 and beyond that I would forever be sucked into sports gaming year after year. The NCAA Football series is my favorite series of all time (side note: there is only one game that isn't a sports game in my top 5 all time fav games and it's #1 shockingly, that game... Mega Man 2, pure classic). Around NBA Live 2003 is when I got fed up with that series and jumped to the NBA 2k series, NBA 2k3 being my first purchase of the series, as a basketball die hard I was blown away and have never looked back. But I was never a fan of the 2k football games. NFL 2k5 was good but I liked Madden 2005 better, again another debate for another day. I also love golf games and I am harsh on them. I like some of the Tiger Series but it's too fake with being able to choose your spin after the shot, thats why my favorite golf series is Hot Shots Golf, which for a cartoon game has the best most realistic golf ball physics. In 2010 (march or so) I bough FIFA 10 and fell in love with soccer games. So there is a brief history of how I got to where I am sports gaming wise, I will post my outside sports gaming tastes in another blog but lets get to my 2012 sports game of the year.
2012 has been on of the best years for sports games in a long time. Unfortunately we don't get multiple titles of NBA, NFL, NHL and now MLB from different companies. But the titles that have been released this year have been stellar. Most years I gamefly half the games because, A. it's cheaper than buying and B. I usually get sick of some of the games and want to play something else. This year, out of the 7 total games I have listed, I only gamefly'd one of the games. The other 6 I bought. Which is a testament to the games this year. So I'll start out with the honorable mentions then my top 4.
Honorable Mentions
NHL 13- I will not include NHL 13 in here because of the real world lockout. Last year I refused to buy NBA 2k12 until they resolved their issues. So it is automatically not in the running, even though it deserves a play and probably a purchase, I cant do it. On a side note though, it would have made the top 4 into a top 5. I did rent it.
NCAA Football 13- When NCAA 13 dropped I was pumped. They fixed all the gameplay and added new recruiting elements to the mix. The biggest problem is after Madden 13 was released every time I go to play it again, I can't. The lack of the infinity engine just kills the game. It feels old and clunky. I have contemplated already trading in the game, it just feels dated.
Tony Hawk PS HD- It's the only arcade game even mentioned but holy cow for $15 ($20 with the recent revert extra levels DLC) this game is worth it. It is classic THPS, and even though your avatar on 360 looks out of place a little it's still fun to have them in there. I had a blast with THPS and still play it when I have time to kill, before heading out of the house. It deserves the honorable mention.
The Top 4
To the top 4. These four games were all GREAT, yes it deserved to be capitalized. These four games I still switch between today. Mainly the top 3 but All 4 deserve this award. I will explain why I liked them and for the ones that don't win why I didn't pick them.
4. MLB 12: The Show- Year in, year out MLB The Show is one of the top games of the year, not just sports game. This year with the addition of Diamond Dynasty and minor gameplay tweaks was no different. But that's why it didn't win it for me. It felt too much like MLB 11. They need to overhaul Road to the Show Mode and Franchise Mode. They need to add some new elements into them. It feels stale when you get deep into the modes. I sim a lot of games so I can get 9-10 years into franchise and it feels the same as year one. There isn't enough diversity in the modes. And that is ultimately why it finishes fourth. It has great realistic gameplay and for that it deserves a nod. It's still in my PS3 to this day though.
3. NBA 2k13- While I LOVE the NBA 2k series, NBA 2k13 seems like a step back from 2k12. No Greatest's Mode or Jordan Challenge. As a true sim of a sport, 2k13 is by far the best in that category. The controls are very complex and I personally don't like the switch to the ISO moves to the stick. It felt better with last year's controls. My Player mode now called MyCareer got another little revamp which is nice. Franchise mode got a few little tweaks but nothing major. But again like The Show, 2k13 doesn't win because they didn't make enough changes to the franchise modes that can get stale. Even though this will be the game I play the most on this list, it doesn't take home the award.
2. Madden NFL 13- Madden was the biggest surprise to me in sports this year. I had not purchased Madden since Madden 09. I played 10, 11 and 12 and they all felt the same. A big change was needed. And EA made it by introducing the Infinity Engine into the gameplay. Madden 13 is fun to play. It's why NCAA couldn't get on the final list, Madden is so good it makes it hard to play. Connect Careers is on the right path, shockingly. As against it as I was, because I like importing my draft classes, CCM is a great franchise mode. Scouting the draft, the twitter feed, practices and complete control of the team is there. It just has a refreshing feel. Madden is a fun game to play. I have not enjoyed a pro football game as much as this year's Madden since Madden 05.
1. FIFA 13- Even as great as Madden is, FIFA is the crown jewel. The FIFA series is so good, it turned me from a soccer h.a.t.e.r, to a fan of the sport. FIFA is a simple pick up and play yet has in-depth controls to master, but unlike NBA 2k13 you can compete in games just knowing the basics. Another thing I love about FIFA is all of the different leagues around the world to play in. Yes it's a feature in the game every year, but it's a great feature. FIFA also has it's own CCM which is great too. Again a ton of information going on all the screens allow me to keep up with the rest of the league, transfers and all the breaking news. FIFA has it all, great gameplay, great online and great single player experience. Plus I love how you can become a manager of a national team and also try to win a world cup too. A true test to how good this game is, I bought it on Black Friday from EA for $30 got it the next week. It hasn't left my xbox, when I turn on my xbox to watch netflix I end up playing FIFA. It's just great.
So there it is. All 7 of these games deserve to be played. What do you think? Is FIFA your sports game? or is it something not on this list. I'd love the feed back. Let's keep the discussion going.
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BBallcoach
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