NCAA Football 14 Impressions Thread

[Papi34]

I picked up the d/l version on the PS3 today and was a bit hesitant given the 50/50 split between best NCAA since 2006 and load of crap.

I've played a few games with default rosters and sliders and I'm still going glass half full. So far I'm in the best since 2006 camp. To be honest, I don't think we give EA the credit it deserves when they get things right as they've shafted us so many times.
I didn't play last years game (1st time I skipped both football games), but this year they got a lot more right than they have wrong. Yes there's still a lot of the issues that have plagued the game this whole generation, but they've also pulled a lot of stuff together. I still had fun with the previous games, but things niggled me like "Great, we have stat overlays, but there's not enough and they're too random." or "Yay we finally have progressive lighting, but booooooo the uniform degradation is screwed."

Despite the ongoing problems, they've got enough right for me to make it a lot of fun this year. Most of the things that really bothered me have been sorted and I really think I can live with the things they haven't. A few points for me.

1) The infinity engine works like it should have done in Madden 13. Really, really impressive and I've already seen a lot of animations that are new like a DB sliding after he loses his footing trying to change direction, but then the deflected pass drops towards him and he picks it off on his knees. Nice. Yes there's the odd freaky play, but they're very odd and I can totally live with them. The animations look WAY better.
2) The option game is a thing of beauty and works for the first time (for me).
3) The post play cut scenes seem to fit in to the flow of things better. Like it.
4) Stat overlays after every play (LOVE this), but I would like more sta windows rather than the pop ups.
5) The new planting/momentum is great. Again, much more natural.
6) Other things I can't think of as I've had a few beers.

Yes the commentary still sucks, four verts is money, etc, etc, but they've tightened so many others things up that I can live with the ongoing issues that are still there. Or so it seems at the minute.

Yes it's unacceptable that it's taken until 2013 to get where we're at now, but I'm being glass half full like I say, and I'm just glad we're here at least. The only thing that's really bothering me is the ridiculous stuttering with nearly every replay.

[marc68]

Granted,Ive only played 2 full games,but its a good time.

Second game I was WV against South Carolina and came back from 14-0 to win 17-14 an earn the "EA instant classic" or something to that effect. (ps,I stayed away from the 99 overall rated Clowney as much as possible)

My only gripe thus far is the cpu quarterback hardly EVER throws a bad ball.

First game the qb only missed on 1 of 15 attempts,and that was an int.

Second game he only missed 2 and one of those was an int.

Im sure sliders can fix that.

[Philstat]

Quote: Originally Posted by Jistic

This is the best out of the box EA football title I can remember in the last 10 years. Beyond the fun factor, the way the CPU plays, the stats at the end of the game...I would've killed for this in many past iterations of NCAA football. So much I could gush over, but I'll just say that I'm very happy with my purchase.

Same here, played Georgia Tech vs Nebraska last night and the entire aspect of everything was outstanding, with default sliders. This game is exceptional! Xbox 360 version.

[Tyler_Bullard]

I just started my dynasty with Florida...And wow what a fun game this is,It just feels so much better.

[mebby]

Quote: Originally Posted by Papi34

I picked up the d/l version on the PS3 today and was a bit hesitant given the 50/50 split between best NCAA since 2006 and load of crap. I've played a few games with default rosters and sliders and I'm still going glass half full. So far I'm in the best since 2006 camp. To be honest, I don't think we give EA the credit it deserves when they get things right as they've shafted us so many times. I didn't play last years game (1st time I skipped both football games), but this year they got a lot more right than they have wrong. Yes there's still a lot of the issues that have plagued the game this whole generation, but they've also pulled a lot of stuff together. I still had fun with the previous games, but things niggled me like "Great, we have stat overlays, but there's not enough and they're too random." or "Yay we finally have progressive lighting, but booooooo the uniform degradation is screwed." Despite the ongoing problems, they've got enough right for me to make it a lot of fun this year. Most of the things that really bothered me have been sorted and I really think I can live with the things they haven't. A few points for me. 1) The infinity engine works like it should have done in Madden 13. Really, really impressive and I've already seen a lot of animations that are new like a DB sliding after he loses his footing trying to change direction, but then the deflected pass drops towards him and he picks it off on his knees. Nice. Yes there's the odd freaky play, but they're very odd and I can totally live with them. The animations look WAY better. 2) The option game is a thing of beauty and works for the first time (for me). 3) The post play cut scenes seem to fit in to the flow of things better. Like it. 4) Stat overlays after every play (LOVE this), but I would like more sta windows rather than the pop ups. 5) The new planting/momentum is great. Again, much more natural. 6) Other things I can't think of as I've had a few beers. Yes the commentary still sucks, four verts is money, etc, etc, but they've tightened so many others things up that I can live with the ongoing issues that are still there. Or so it seems at the minute. Yes it's unacceptable that it's taken until 2013 to get where we're at now, but I'm being glass half full like I say, and I'm just glad we're here at least. The only thing that's really bothering me is the ridiculous stuttering with nearly every replay.

Best line I've read all day!!

Quote: Originally Posted by marc68

Granted,Ive only played 2 full games,but its a good time. Second game I was WV against South Carolina and came back from 14-0 to win 17-14 an earn the "EA instant classic" or something to that effect. (ps,I stayed away from the 99 overall rated Clowney as much as possible) My only gripe thus far is the cpu quarterback hardly EVER throws a bad ball. First game the qb only missed on 1 of 15 attempts,and that was an int. Second game he only missed 2 and one of those was an int. Im sure sliders can fix that.

Drop the CPU and Human QB Accuracy slider down to 10 or 5 and you'll see much more realistic stats for incompletions. It's a pretty good fix in my opinion (although I DO find it odd that you have to go all the way down to 5-10 to see ANY change but oh well...) as you'll see missed throws wide, long, short, etc.

[MattFromTheWire]

Game 1 Review

Georgia Tech at Nevada (Me)

Sliders: Playmakers

Well after my first game all I can say is I love it. Option offense is back and it's deadlier than ever. It still has it's faults but it's light years to what we saw the last few years. I do wish we had the ability to take out the READ and Pitch button icons off the screen.

SCORE
Nevada: 21
Georgia Tech : 14


The game was the closest game I've ever had with the computer. A pure defensive battle. The 1st half ended 3-3. I don't think I've ever had a 3-3 tie in NCAA. Everything was tough to get yardage wise. The longer the drives I had the more holes would open for my backfield to get through. The one thing I loved was you could tell the difference in SPEED between players. Nevada RB was slow as ever, had wide open holes that closed in a moment.

CPU Option: Well it is fixed to a certain degree. I saw most option plays go to the right side. I don't know if it was the code or due to the fact that each time they ran option to the left side my DE would break the play up for a loss. I would say it was about 80-20% option plays to the right. Out in the open field you better be prepared to pick the player you want to go after cause the QB will make you look silly. I had one play where I followed the QB and tried to split him with the RB thinking he would pitch, he didn't and turned the play upfield for a 15 yard gain. The QB knows who to give the ball to at the right moments.

CPU Passing: I can't really base an opinion on passing playing against GT. The QB went 8-10 for 72 yards. But not one completion was over a 5 yard pass. I mostly picked cover 3 defense on passing situations. Had I picked Cover 2 it woulda been a different passing game for the CPU.

CPU Defense: Tough as ever. Couldn't get any rushing yards until I got some long drives going and the defense got tired. Passing lanes weren't there and when they were, the defense stopped any chance of YAC.

CPU Clock Management: End of the 1st half GT had the ball and ran the clock out instead of trying to make a big play. End of the game GT had the ball with 2 minutes left to tie the game. The probably ran the ball twice. The rest was passing or the QB running after a break down. on 3rd and 13 they completed a 8 yard pass. With time running out on them with no TO they went for the long ball which was overthrown. I also tried to run the clock out and GT used timeouts with 4 minutes left to save time.

Human Option:I fear against the CPU and without house rules this can be overpowered. It could've been bad defense on GT or it could've been good play calling on my part. This is about the same as it was in NCAA 12 but with better holes to pick to run through.

Human Running: People who have played me in NCAA and Madden know I'm a run first type of player. And just seeing linemen get to the second level and having the read my blocks just makes my giddy. I love it.

Human Passing: Did I ever have a hard time getting a good pass off. I was 11-25 for 164 yards with 2 TD and 1 INT. The passing plays just weren't there for me. Zone worked against me most of the time, I did at time see open passing lanes due to terrible zone coverage, I abused it once for a first down but for the most part Zone worked good against me.



Stats

GT QB: 10 -12 63 Yards
Nevada QB: 11 - 25 164 Yards 2 TD 1 INT

GT QB: 26 Att 120 Yards 4.6 Avg
GT RB: 6 Att 38 Yards 6.3 Avg
GT RB: 5 Att 77 Yards 15.4 Avg
Nevada RB: 18 Att 108 Yards 6.0 Avg

[MattFromTheWire]

Game 2 Review

Clemson at Vanderbilt (Me)

Sliders: Playmakers

Score
Vanderbilt: 22
Clemson: 21

Well another fun game. Switched it up and played against an overpowering offense in Clemson. It started off to be a scary situation with Robo-QB but that changed quickly when I fixed up my defense and called different plays. Clemson was able to move the ball, but when they went into No-Huddle mode they did it at will. I had trouble picking a new play in time.

My favorite part of this game. I had the ball with 4 mins in the 3rd Quarter. I rode my RB the entire way. He started to bust off good runs after good runs. Even my OL was in the yellow. I decided to hit the CPU with a play action pass and it was wide open for a 27 yard strike. I ran the ball to the 1 and got stuffed 3 times in a row, on 4th down I tried to dive over the pile and LB jumped up and finished me off.

Later in the game I saw the best run I've ever seen in Next Gen football. My RB went up the hole, bounced off a CPU defender and switched ball hands. I then Juke Cut up the field and while I was running my WR came back and picked up a block for me.

CPU Passing: Robo-QB started off fast for Boyd. He hit 5-5 with 63 yards and a TD on Clemson first drive. Once I switched up my defensive play calling it was a different game. The long passes weren't hitting anymore, I was getting to Boyd which cause a lot of over and under throws. Once QB gets a little pressure he starts to get off his game. 5 WR caught 2+ balls. 7 total caught balls. The CPU spread the ball out to all weapons.

CPU Running: When they decided to run they had holes to get through. They ran plays all over the place and it worked. Unfortunately they decided to pass more. This can be an easy fix with toning down Coach Edits. Option run was there as well, QB kept it when he needed to and gave it when he needed to.

CPU Clock Management: End of the 1st half with 7 seconds left on 4th down, they decided to throw a hail mary instead of punting. They threw the ball at times when they didn't need to, they were short passes that kept the clock running. They ran the ball on 2nd and 3rd down to keep it churning. Nothing out of the ordinary. During their last possession down 1, they connected on plays that resulted in 1st downs which stopped the clock but didn't use any of the 2 TO. I would've like to see TO used but it is computer and only go so far.

Human Passing: Played a different game than the first one. I ran the ball and set up the play action. Worked very well. I got my QB hot at times where he would continue connecting on passes. I took my chances and the defense denied me. I waited for opening in zones and hit them when I could.

Human Running: Y'all already read these thoughts above.

Head Scratching Moments: 1. Clemson was running the offense at full speed vs me. They got the ball to 3rd and 2 in the 2nd quarter but drained the clock down to Delay of Game. I decline the penalty. Next play they get stopped. Then go for it on 4th and 6 from the 27. Most coaches would kick a FG, but that spot is not out of question with going for it.

2. During an option play the RB didn't take the ball and Tahj Boyd just stood with the ball and wasted 10 seconds before he was sacked for 3 yard loss.

Overview on Score: I was trailing the entire game until my last possession. I was throwing and completing passes. I would mix in runs which caught the defense off guard that resulted in good yardage. I connected on a TD pass where the safety tried to pick it off and it floated over his head.

Stats
Clemson QB: 20 - 36 262 Yards 2 TD
Clemson QB: 10 ATT 17 Yards 1.7 Avg
Clemson RB: 8 Att 56 Yards 7.0 Avg

Vanderbilt QB: 19 - 33 302 Yards 2 TD 1 INT
Vanderbilt RB: 29 Att 118 Yards 4.0 Avg

[MattFromTheWire]

I played 2 games on Heisman today and had no fun factor. I feel as if ZONE is broken on Heisman. Routes that I wasn't able to hit on Varsity with good sliders were wide open on Heisman with good sliders.

I don't think Heisman is the way to go this year.

Tomorrow I will be playing 2 games on All - American to help decide which level is the way to go.