10:20 AM - June 15, 2015 by Steve_OS
What would happen if Electronic Arts and Take-Two Interactive decided to copy Nintendo's idea, and host World Championships for Madden NFL 15 and NBA 2K15 at E3 this week? Given how both games are currently built, these tournaments would likely become a long series of dull "mirror matches," repeatedly pitting Seahawks against Seahawks, and Warriors versus Warriors. Picking a team other than those two front-runners would be as big a handicap in those games as choosing to hit from the Pros' tees in Rory McIlroy PGA Tour, while all of your competitors are driving off the Women's tees.
Being able to gain a significant advantage over your opponent on the "team select" screen is partially sports videogames' fault, but primarily, professional sports' fault. League bigwigs love to talk-up their competition committees, and how they've helped to usher-in an era of "unprecedented parity," but that utopian, egalitarian vision hasn't yet materialized in sports videogames, which remain ruled by the one annoying "super squad" that everyone selects online. FIFA and PES still have FC Barcelona, NHL still has the Chicago Blackhawks, MLB The Show still has the Los Angeles Dodgers, and so on, as you browse through all of the team sports titles presently available on store shelves.
Read More - Ultimate Team is a Missed Opportunity to Correct Sports' Inherent Imbalance (Written by Jayson Young)