News Post

NCAA Football 09 Postmortem

09:59 AM - January 13, 2009 by RaychelSnr

It is the perfect time to revisit EA Sports' NCAA Football 09 and discuss the game in postmortem fashion. NCAA 09 did a lot of things right both on and off the field. I wanted to focus specifically on what 09 brought to the table this season, and how these features held up over the course of the 2008 college season. I know there are many of you out there still playing the game -- and many who will not agree with what I have to say -- but as of this week, I feel it is important to at least "officially" end our NCAA Football 09 discussion, and begin our NCAA Football 10 discussions.

Plus, it is always fun to take a look back at a title nearly seven months after release because, at this point, most people can speak more calmly about a title that is not so fresh in their minds. Is the honeymoon officially over? How did NCAA 09 withstand the test of time?

Read More - NCAA Football 09 Postmortem

Game: NCAA Football 09Reader Score: 7/10 - Vote Now
Platform: PS2 / PS3 / PSP / Wii / Xbox 360Votes for game: 95 - View All

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Member Comments

# 21 Pared @ 01/14/09 11:00 AM

I haven't played NCAA much this year. Many of the same issues that plagued the game in head to head matches remained... CPU play was a "chore" and the game lacked the enthusiasm of college football.

I enjoyed '08 but with the CPU actually feeling worse this year, there wasn't much else left to do with the game.

Look at previous years; No matter how bad NCAA was, people would not move on to other games. They would overlook the issues and still play the game. Recently, other games have done a much, much better job of capturing their sport than NCAA has. People would rather play MLB, NBA NHL, and FIFA games over this. The same holds true for Madden.

It's just deep issues with the engine that seem to persist. I loved all the other stuff they added to the game, like the team celebrations and such... but they couldn't overshadow the same issues that are there year after year. And this year, with the wide open gameplay being instituted... many more were introduced.

Even with their problems I would prefer to play NCAA '04, '05 and '06.

# 22 rudyjuly2 @ 01/14/09 11:07 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by stoncold32


	I gotta disagree dude. This game is borderline terrible if you've ever played the PS2/Xbox versions. You say the biggest problem is the CPU running game, but I think it's WAy more than that. What about the CPU never passing deep? I think I've counted a total of two pass plays where the ball traveled at least 30yds before the WR caught it....and both of those were in the same game.

I just listed the biggest problem which I think is the cpu running game. I would agree that the cpu never passing deep is a big problem but #2 on my list. In terms of the speed issue, the biggest problem there was RBs running routes against LBs. I also thought the QB's were too slow.

Quote:

Originally Posted by rudyjuly2


	1. Improve the anemic cpu rushing attack. With the horribly watered down sliders this year, that wasn't possible. 2. Bring back the deep ball! The cpu never threw it deep and it was rare to see a WR actually get behind a DB as well. Better cpu QB AI in general. 3. Improve the DL moves and map them to the R-stick. Playing as a DL sucks and is no fun currently. 4. Better player control on defense. It's too hard to manually defend the pass.

# 23 rhombic21 @ 01/14/09 11:15 AM

My review of NCAA Football '09 is this:

The AI issues, particularly on defense, combined with the lacking playbooks, made head to head play a lot less fun than it probably could/should have been with better gameplay tuning. Additionally, the game is still in the dark ages when it comes to CPU AI, both in terms of game planning/game management, and in terms of roster management and recruiting, which made offline gameplay/dynasty uninteresting -- particularly for people with above average gaming skills.

Still, it did some things well. Graphically they took some important steps forward with the field textures and player models. The stadium sounds feature is something that could potentially be expanded and improved on even further in the future to build on atmosphere/presentation. The EA locker made roster sharing easier, and will probably eliminate scum like Kaldenburg. And of course, online dynasty is a blockbuster feature that, when the rest of the game catches up, will be an even bigger hit. That's the sort of big-time feature that will not only drive NCAA forward in the future, but which will put pressure on other sports games to expand their online modes as well, similar to the way that EASW revolutionized things a year ago.

So, I think that if you rate NCAA 2009 by itself, you have to give it somewhere between a 7.0 and 8.0. It was a mediocre game that was generally not all that fun to actually play. But if you look at the game as a step in the process, towards NCAA 2010 and beyond, I think it may go down as a serious contribution, assuming of course that EA eventually gets around to fixing the core gameplay issues that are currently holding the series back.

# 24 deebo2246 @ 01/14/09 11:51 AM

I am still trying to figure out if the producer of this article played the same game as everyone else. However, everyone has a different opinion on what videogame football should play like. Maybe he just enjoys playing a game that offers no realistic aspect of the game we watch and have played over the years. EA as a whole need to go back to the drawing board with their football and basketball games and re-invent them from the ground up with new visionairies that can make a realistic engine for those 2 sports. They need to talk more with FIFA and NHL producers to help them make a more definitive game. They may need to take the approach of utilizing two studios to make the development process longer with them alternating release years. If football is EA's claim to glory then treat it like a superstar it once was and not a prima-dona rookie that it has become.

# 25 bangpow @ 01/14/09 12:04 PM

I think NCAA 09 is absolutely brutal. It is not a fun game to play at all as the AI is probably the worst I've ever seen. I just never feel like I'm playing a game of football.

In fact, while NCAA 08 wasn't all that perfect either, I think I might go picked up a used copy tonight as I remember actually having some fun with that game last year, especially after the last patch that came out for it.

# 26 Tovarich @ 01/14/09 12:19 PM

The absolutely pitiful angles taken by the AI, the random sabotaging of speed when the CPU gets outside, the lack of custom playbooks, the baffling playcalling by the CPU, the awful DL animations...gameplay is no better better than a C...at it's core level, gameplay is broken unfortunately I think. I agree the complaints about pass rush were excessive. Eliminating robo QB could fix that. It's not all about sacks. If you got pressure, robo QB appeared. CPU screens...result in sacks more often than not for me. The DL getting flipped head over heels though was funny the first 200 times I saw it, then I just shook my head. Graphically, very nice. Presentation was simply a lack of effort in my opinion. They did ok with what they tried to do, they just didn't do anything. Online dynasty is nice for the first try. Some very strange problems with it though...basic stuff though like schedules...why is the 09 season the 07 schedule? How the hell does that even happen? 1-AA teams need to stop being treated like HS teams. Because seriously, you have to try not to score 100 on the 1-AA teams on Heisman with 5 minuete quarters even. Rosters thankfully are editable because whoever did those had to be clueless about football. I know you can't know the true depth chart when the game is out, but yikes. A lot of this just strikes me as lack of effort. All very fixable, except gameplay at its core probably needs to be built back up from scratch.

# 27 rudyjuly2 @ 01/14/09 12:54 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by bigjake62505


	With all the other issues that have already been stated here one thing that really takes away from the beauty of the game is the horrible running animations. It looks so stupid when the running back breaks a long run then starts to bobble and hop when they are doing that horrible animation. I want whoever is responsible for this to watch some football games and pay attention to the running style. Who in the world of college football runs like this? And for the love of god fix this. The RB's are just an example, Watch the DL/OL guys run. That is the stupidest running style I have ever seen.

The long runs do look dumb. I think a lot of that is due to the fact they are trying to calculate fatigue on the fly during a play. It ends up retriggering the running animations all the time and looks bad. They need to fix that. Just get rid of fatigue during the play for all I care.

I would like to see game long fatigue (ie. 30 carries killing a smaller RB) and season long fatigue/physical condition implemented if possible.

# 28 fistofrage @ 01/14/09 01:10 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by rudyjuly2


	The long runs do look dumb. I think a lot of that is due to the fact they are trying to calculate fatigue on the fly during a play. It ends up retriggering the running animations all the time and looks bad. They need to fix that. Just get rid of fatigue during the play for all I care. I would like to see game long fatigue (ie. 30 carries killing a smaller RB) and season long fatigue/physical condition implemented if possible.

Thats another problem with the game....When the guy gets the "cobb up his a$$" animation on a long run, he doesn't actually slow down. He just starts doing the Hemoroid Hop. I think its supposed to be fatigue setting in, but it doesn't work. Looks more like he's trying to run accross burning coals without hurting his feet. But it doesn't allow for defenders to catch up as they should.

# 29 AuburnAlumni @ 01/14/09 01:35 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by MMChrisS


	It is the perfect time to revisit EA Sports' NCAA Football 09 and discuss the game in postmortem fashion. NCAA 09 did a lot of things right both on and off the field. I wanted to focus specifically on what 09 brought to the table this season, and how these features held up over the course of the 2008 college season. I know there are many of you out there still playing the game -- and many who will not agree with what I have to say -- but as of this week, I feel it is important to at least "officially" end our NCAA Football 09 discussion, and begin our NCAA Football 10 discussions. Read More - NCAA Football 09 Postmortem

Please...name them.

I tell ya what...I'll name what they did WRONG on and off the field.

Let's start with off the field....

1. Dynasty glitches....games counted twice, games that were wins changed to losses for no reason, starters transferring after award winning seasons, inability to keep guys from going pro in online dynasty, etc.

2. Dynasty Logic....Undefeated WAC/MAC/Conference USA teams going to BCS Championship games over 1 loss BCS Conference teams.

3. Recruiting Logic...CPU controlled teams recruiting 11 WRs and 2 Defensive Linemen or CPU controlled teams after 3 years having 20 WRs and 6 total Offensive linemen.

4. Stadium Sounds....if you had over 20 stadiums sounds saved, you couldn't connect to an online head to head game unless you deleted them down to 15-20 or so.

Now on the field....

1. CPU QB AI- Horrid as usual. Throws into double coverage, "freaks out" if a HB is covered on a HB Screen i.e. will either A) just sit there forever waiting to be sacked or B) roll out to the far side of the field...then throw across the field to the covered HB regardless of whether you are literally standing right next to the HB. Rarely throws Deep. Usually will throw at least one pick six per game, maybe more.

2. Robo QB- On Heisman, it's just stupid. CPU QB always knows where the blitz is coming from. CPU QB will throw a perfect pass off his back foot under pressure with no penalty whatsoever.

3. Completely Neutered Defense- Horrible Pursuit Angles. "Greased Pig Animation" included as a cheap way to manufacture "Wide Open Gameplay" with defenders stumbling around like the 3 Stooges over and over. Superfast WRs who are unstoppable on slants and deep posts. Superfast RBs who blow by safeties and LBs on swing passes, etc. Complete lack of blitz aggressiveness...rarely, even on an all out blitz, can you get to the QB in less than 4-5 seconds.

4. Horrible O line/D line interaction- Suction blocking still there after a decade. D linemen get "engaged" with O line and do a psuedo "Sumo-Rodeo" animation that they can't break out of. Ridiculous amount of "chop blocks" by O linemen on D linemen. No difference a ratings...a 60 rated O lineman blocks just as well as a 95 rated O lineman and a 99 rated Defensive End plays exactly the same as a 60 rated Defensive End.

5. Overly juiced Speed ratings- As has been stated, a team of 1 and 2 star 99 speed players will annihilate a defense full of 5 star recruits. Comical speed differentials with 95+ speed players literally able to gain 400 yards a game due to Defense unable to effectively defend.

6. Horrible Pass Coverage AI- DBs and LBs have zero awareness in zone coverage. WRs and RBs can run a route, sit in a zone 2 feet from a defender and defender will not adjust to cover the WR/RB.

7. Horrid CPU Playcalling- CPU will call a QB Read option on 3rd and 9 with a 60 speed QB. CPU will call 3 screen plays in a row all the time. CPU has no real "strategy" to its playcalling and will not adjust during a game.

Quit beating the EA company Drum folks. This game was a major disappointment both on and off the field, unless you like Tecmo Bowl style gameplay instead of simulated college football.

# 30 quietcool72 @ 01/14/09 01:40 PM

Wow...retrospective score for NCAA 09 gameplay is an "A"?

And yet, the reviewer admits:
"I did have issues with the CPU completion percentage when I first purchased the game, but I slowly began to learn how to combat this by tricking the programming."

That's a heck of a way to play a football game. That's not good "AI" by any means. Defense was totally handicapped in this game, even GOOD defenses with high ratings. I just don't think anyone is doing any favors for the future development of this game by rewarding EA with a gamplay "A" for this years' game. If this game gets an "A", I'd hate to see the gamplay that would net a "D" or an "F".

# 31 youALREADYknow @ 01/14/09 01:43 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by AuburnAlumni


	This game was a major disappointment both on and off the field, unless you like Tecmo Bowl style gameplay instead of simulated college football.

You're underestimating Tecmo. Aside from the ability to throw the ball 100 yards in the air, I'd have to say TSB had more balanced gameplay than this game.

# 32 AuburnAlumni @ 01/14/09 01:43 PM

OMG...I just read the review.

Chris...an "A" grade? Seriously.

I'm sorry, but with the very vocal issues and constant "89-45" type scores folks are getting, for you to give this game an "A" on gameplay is well.... wow.

# 33 fistofrage @ 01/14/09 01:52 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by AuburnAlumni


	OMG...I just read the review. Chris...an "A" grade? Seriously. I'm sorry, but with the very vocal issues and constant "89-45" type scores folks are getting, for you to give this game an "A" on gameplay is well.... wow.

Yeah, I just realized that too and read the article. Gameplay A? Dude seriously. You might as well stop writing now and retire.

If you give the gameplay an A, then I seriously can't trust your opinion on games going forward.

Look at all the above mentioned Legitimate Complaints if you even knocked just 1 or 2 points off for each of the serious flaws regarding speed problems, pick 6's, artificial tom foolery that leads to wide open gameplay, AI not going deep, recruiting problems by the AI, dynasty issues, automatic FG's, lack of penalties, players ratings meaning nothing except for speed, the list goes on........

Your gameplay score should warrant a B- at best and '06 and '07 for the PS2 beat this game. '08 is close for the Ps2, surpasses it in every area except pursuit angles.

# 34 doctorhay53 @ 01/14/09 02:01 PM

Heck im still playing. Not ready to talk about it as if its dead yet.

Still half a year till the next game comes out. I'm getting my money out of it.

# 35 rudyjuly2 @ 01/14/09 02:02 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by AuburnAlumni


	OMG...I just read the review. Chris...an "A" grade? Seriously. I'm sorry, but with the very vocal issues and constant "89-45" type scores folks are getting, for you to give this game an "A" on gameplay is well.... wow.

Your opinion on this game went from rage to high praise to rage right from the beginning. I felt you blew a lot of stuff out of proportion when this game was released. Chris can have his opinion and it's one you shared at one point. For a game that sucked, I'm surprised you played it much but weren't you in a ton of dyansties as well?

Quote:

Originally Posted by AuburnAlumni


	This game is 1000000x times better post patch. Jess and I are using an All American Slider set and I'm on the road at Alabama. Some impressions. 1. Kickoffs are MUCH improved. No more house rules! 2. The Sliders working helps so much. Now the CPU is much more challenging on All American. 3. THERE IS A PASS RUSH!!! PRAISE THE LORD! THERE IS A PASS RUSH!!! I'm playing Alabama on the road in Tuscaloosa. My highly rated D line is actually getting in the backfield, not getting pancaked every play, and on a play just 5 minutes ago, both of my Defensive Ends blew by the Bama tackles and got to the QB. There are still pancakes, but not NEAR the insane amount as before. I almost wept with joy. I'll post a vid in a bit showing the improved pass rush. It's absolutely exhilirating. note I have Break block at 100 and CPU pass block at 0. I'm on All American. 4. You can hear opposing stadium sounds and it is SWEET. I'm listening to the Million Dollar Band in Tuscaloosa with Auburn on the road. I'm such a geek, I'll be setting each playlist before I play because it adds SO much to the game. Good job EA. This is a DEFINITE improvement, especially on defense. Hopefully these carry over in Human vs Human games as well.

# 36 quietcool72 @ 01/14/09 02:10 PM

What amazes me to this day is the different standards by which Madden and NCAA are judged. Madden is far from being without its own problems, but why is it that things NOT broken in Madden are often broken in NCAA, and hardcore NCAA fans who shun Madden's problems still wax poetic on the "greatness" of even the worst of the NCAA series? Are marching band sound clips and mascot visuals powerful enough to excuse poor AI running, non-existent pass D, AI QB's who refuse to throw the ball deep, low-rated college kickers with early years Morten Andersen legs, and a D-line pass penetration that is non-existent?

I guess so.

# 37 stoncold32 @ 01/14/09 03:07 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by doctorhay53


	Heck im still playing. Not ready to talk about it as if its dead yet. Still half a year till the next game comes out. I'm getting my money out of it.

Well, I'm sure like some people, you've managed to numb yourself from the terribleness of the gameplay to where you just ignore the obvious. It's easy to do when you're trying to justify spending money on something. But unless you've NEVER played any PS2 football or even Ps1, or you have no clue how football should look in real life, then yeah, you might like this game. Other than that, I just don't see how.

And I never read that guys review either, but for him to give it an "A" in gameplay, only gives EA more reason not to change anything....and will probably take it even further in the wrong direction. I mean, when the "experts" are giving you praise, who cares what the rest of us mindless minions think as long as were giving the money, right?

# 38 rudyjuly2 @ 01/14/09 03:14 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by stoncold32


	Well, I'm sure like some people, you've managed to numb yourself from the terribleness of the gameplay to where you just ignore the obvious. It's easy to do when you're trying to justify spending money on something. But unless you've NEVER played any PS2 football or even Ps1, or you have no clue how football should look in real life, then yeah, you might like this game. Other than that, I just don't see how.

That's an overly harsh and personal opinion though. Some of us do like the game even if we see the flaws. I liked the PS2 versions as well but don't think the PS3 version is crap. It certainly has flaws that annoy me but I had fun with it and got my monies worth. I don't think it's fair to label anyone that liked the game as clueless.

# 39 stoncold32 @ 01/14/09 03:17 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by rudyjuly2


	Your opinion on this game went from rage to high praise to rage right from the beginning. I felt you blew a lot of stuff out of proportion when this game was released. Chris can have his opinion and it's one you shared at one point. For a game that sucked, I'm surprised you played it much but weren't you in a ton of dyansties as well?

AA's response was much like mine upon first getting the patch. This game was so TERRIBLE pre-patch that any improvement was met with praise. I dl'd the patch, and in my very first game with it I played against Alabama(CPU), Parker-Wilson threw two 35 yd TD's catching the receiver perfectly in stride on both of them. I was amazed at that because prior to that, I'd never seen a pass travel over 20 yards, THROUGH THE AIR. I thought this would be norm now, and seeing mixed up passing styles. However, I havent seen the CPU do that since!!! Not once. I'm sure he typed his opinion after 1-2 games.

I also think people have become too accepting of EAs mistakes. The sliders not working in this game was just totally unacceptable, they still don't work like they should and like they have in the past. Thats like buying a car and not being able to tweak the AC/Heat adjuster, even though the controls are there. This is just my opinion, but to say that this game is good or even above average in any way(other than graphics) is just an admition of people just being so desperate to for something, that they'll settle for anything.

# 40 fistofrage @ 01/14/09 03:21 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by rudyjuly2


	That's an overly harsh and personal opinion though. Some of us do like the game even if we see the flaws. I liked the PS2 versions as well but don't think the PS3 version is crap. It certainly has flaws that annoy me but I had fun with it and got my monies worth. I don't think it's fair to label anyone that liked the game as clueless.

But he has a point. What if the EA programmers are sitting around right now trying to figure out what they can do to appease the OS critics. I know, I know.....But just imagine they read our posts are take the constructive criticism. And then EA Smithers goes running up to them with the review. "I think you'll be pleased sir."

"Exxxxcellent, apparantly we don't have to change a thing, OS just gave our gameplay an A. And to think, Johnson, you were going to work this weekend trying to fix that pick 6 issue they were complaining about. Go enjoy that new movie you wanted to see instead".

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