NCAA Football 14 Demo is Available Now, Post Impressions Here (360, PS3)

[md0t]

i havent had such a low level of frustration playing this game in years..not perfect but so far, lovin it cant wait start my offline dynasty.

GO CUSE!!!

[awflbcfl]

Quote: Originally Posted by AuburnAlumni

Settings-->House Rules

Haha, Just realized I had been playing the NCAA13 demo thinking it was 14.... WOW!

[jmik58]

I finally had a chance to play about 6 games last night and did a lot of tweaking with various things to get a good feel and I'm pretty satisfied with the response to the settings/sliders adjustments I made.

I have been playing on All-American (Off and Def) and noticed some issues that bugged me.

- I enjoy playing on "Slow" but it seemed like the CPU had way too much time for pass defense animations to play out. I dropped the "Pass Covg" slider to "40" and am enjoying playing on "Slow". "Normal" speed doesn't seem very smooth and makes the animations feel like players are sliding around.

- CPU defenders still show shades of psychic ability (running routes before the receiver. A couple times I burned man coverage when the DB ran the route before the receiver, only to have me modify the pass location knowing it was coming. The pass coverage slider adjustment I mentioned above helped though.

- I also dropped CPU INT slider to 35 and enjoy that combo with the pass covg slider.

- I tested various types of speed threshold settings and I think the sweet spot is somewhere between "20" and "30". Only the elite speed guys are breaking away for big runs. This also made Kick Returns more dangerous. I returned two in one game thanks to huge pancake blocks mixed with the kicker placing the ball in a bad spot for where the coverage team was headed.

- I love the blocking improvements, however; it's almost impossible to avoid blocks or break free of them. I dropped "Run Blocking" down to 40 and love the results.

- The CPU runners (especially QBs) break tons of tackles on default. I upped "Tackling" to 65 and really like the results.

- Another note about playing on "Slow" is that tackling is a little smoother and easier because player movements aren't so twitchy. Sizing up a tackle is pretty tough out of the box.

- SOMETHING (I think) I LEARNED : I could be wrong but ... the speed burst (R2/RT on PS3) doesn't have to be held the entire time. You use it to get up to speed and then you can let go. It worked this way in the skills training but I didn't test it in game since I didn't get very many chances for long runs. When I did a juke move or slowed down, however; I had to use the speed burst AGAIN to get back up to top speed quickly. This really changes my perception of how to use it. Maybe it doesn't matter, but could others confirm the impact of always holding it versus letting go once at top speed? Is there a stamina change? I wouldn't think there would be, because once you're at top speed you're at your max regardless of pushing the boost or not.

[HozAndMoose]

Bama is the NCAA version of San Fran. Every hit they try to kill you. Really loving the Wide camera. Didnt care to much for the coordinator.

[HozAndMoose]

CPU can complete every pass to the outside. Its like they made sure the psychic D was gone by making sure the defender didnt follow a receiver after a cut for a full 2 seconds. Or maybe its just Bama being OP.

[HozAndMoose]

Okay Bama is just to OP. The TE just put down 4 jukes in 2 seconds to get past 3 guys.

[JerseySuave4]

Quote: Originally Posted by AlreadyKnoJ

What glitches? I mean Ive seen once that in a TD celebration, the players went through the stadium wall. Other than that, nothing noticeable. What could you possibly be talking about. Ive played a good 10 - 15 games, and my boy, whos played over 40 times, and hasnt missed a NCAA game in 10 years, says this is easily the best one yet and a great way to end the Console generation Can we get some pics of what your talking about, or something, anything. Nobody likes a wet blanket dude .

i started a whole thread on them. The play selection screen not coming up and allowing me to continue a game... that's not a big deal or anything. Perfectly acceptable.

[BenGerman]

Quote: Originally Posted by Armor & Sword

Take this with a grain of salt. I am one of 6 people around here who still loves and plays NCAA 13. Pros: IE 2.0 is far better than the mess that was M13 I really like the WR matchup numbers a very nice touch Option and running game are excellent Colors are very rich and pop off the screen (but there is a con on this) Lot's of cool new animations I like the speed of the game as it feels slowed down Players have a weighty feel this year Coordinator Cam is very cool on offense Zoom Cam is nice to have as well. Cons It is basically the same game....it really is. Just added some physics which help The colors are too rich and make the game look cartoony to my eyes. I do not like the new intros at all. I love NCAA 13's pre-game rituals and Rece Davis doing some pre-game talking. Then again I do not know if this was taken out as this is a play now demo and not a dynasty demo like 13 was. Overall the game has some new wrinkles...it is nothing groundbreaking and not a game I need to purchase anytime soon. It is a wait and see how the AI really is for retail and after the slider makers here cut their teeth on this game for a few months. Now I am intrigued with the new recruiting, and coaching skill tree. But again I am one who is still playing and loving NCAA 13. So I don't feel like I have to have a new college football game. If it turns out the game's AI and option game are truly far better( and the option game is better i can already see that)....I will get in when the price drop happens for Black Friday. Is the demo good? Absolutely. Feels like 13 with a better running game, brighter colors, some new camera options and it does feel more organic. All positive developments. But not to the point of OMG I gotta have this game.

Usually we see eye to eye, but I just couldn't disagree more with a lot of this. I LOVE the colors, and am so glad they changed it from the washed out look of '13. It got to the point where I was having a hard time playing that game because of how terrible the field looked. It didn't look like grass, it looked like a grey wash-board that had players skating across it without any kind of foot-planting or weight - something I also believe to be fixed in '14.

Not to mention, the CPU CAN run the option, something that they couldn't do in '13. For me, the option is an integral part of college football and I can't see myself going back to '13, ever. The AI still isn't perfect, but I've seen plays where the CPU runner will bounce outside/cut inside and avoid runners in a way they haven't done since '06. Zone defense finally works, and the pass rush actually resembles something real. There are pushes at the line, and I've actually seen sacks just from pushing an O-Lineman so far back. Not to mention, the blocking logic is so improved in the open field it's scary to think what it was like before.

Anyway, I don't mean to disregard your opinion. Of course, if you enjoy '13 there's no reason to jump for a purchase. I just think this is a significant step forward for the series, and the first time I've enjoyed a game of NCAA in almost seven years. In fact, I've played at least ten games of the demo, and am increasingly excited by it every time I play.