Why I hate Football... - cwash020's Blog

cwash020's Blog

Why I hate Football...

Posted on September 15, 2009 at 02:29 PM.

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70 bucks...That's about how much money I waste every Fall on NCAA and Madden. Hear me out first, I dont dislike either game.
I am big fan of football in general, but college football takes precedence over NFL for me so here's my yearly scenario:

Step One - Buy NCAA day it comes out.
Step Two - Play the hell out of it for a few months then eventually realize it's a somewhat disappointing iteration on the previous year's game.
Step Three - Trade it in (25 store credit) towards Madden. Cause let's face it, Madden is always touted year after year as the best Madden in years, right?
Step Four - I fall for that and buy Madden.
Step Five - Play the hell out of it for a couple of days then remember how NFL games bore me and wish I had NCAA back.
Step Six - This step changes varies from depending on the year, but I either buy NCAA again or give up on f-ball games all together for that year. Either way I trade Madden back in (25 in store credit)

120 = Total for both games
-50 = Store Credit
=70 Dollars lost

Now, obviously I am a complete sucker for doing this time and time again. But I can't help that I am a man in his late 20s who can only relive his football aspirations in a virtual world. This year I did happen to find my football fix in the form of All Pro Football 2k8 however. I can hear the haters now - "Get over it! NFL 2k5 and APF 2k8 are yesteryear. 2k8 doesnt even have an NFL license." True, but it has believeable gameplay, realistic route running, line blocking schemes, and QB awareness and pocket presence. The graphics arent the best, but to see a WR run a crisp route and catch the deep ball is a thing of beauty.

Listen, Madden 10 is a very good game. Above and beyond anything EA has offered this generation, but there are still a significant amount of problems and the presentation everyone has been raving about is stale overall. If I wanted to see a bunch of stat overlays for a halftime show, I could go to espn.com.
I know what EA is capable of. Madden 05 and NCAA 06 were two of the best football games I have ever played. The reason for that is twofold: a) the atmosphere was great, and b) the fundamentals were right. I think Madden 10 is step in the right direction. And I give Madden 10 credit for one thing - this felt like a new game, not a half a$$ roster update from the previous year.

That's why people are still out there making roster changes to a 5 year old NFL 2k5 or opting to play APF 2k8 instead. Because it brings a new, refreshing experience and fundamentally sound gameplay. Imitation is the sincerest form of flattery. If you buy out the NFL license because of the competition, the least you can do is borrow some of their swagger. LISTEN TO WHAT THE FANS WANT FROM YOUR GAME!

From NCAA in particular, all I want is more collegiate atmosphere. Let Lee Corso pick the winners pregame, have the fans rush the field and take down the goal post, maybe even show the seminole mascot come on field on the horse and throw the spear in the ground.

After all "If it's in the game, it's in the game" is your motto, correct??