The review about this product
Just played out my first season last night and here are my impressions.1) Yes, in terms of graphics and gameplay it is almost like Madden 2001, but is that a bad thing? Some animations have been tweaked, and the stadiums are in perfect detail. Though, the problem with the shiny, off-color helmets is still there.2) The AI is noticably better, for example for the first half of a game, I was tearing the computer up with my passing game. In the second half, the computer blitzed more, and softened up its coverage. On defense I am still trying to figure out how the computer's LT gets covered in glue, he's impossible to get free from.3) The audio is a mixed bag, the effects are great, but the commentary needs some work. There are three levels of games; local,regional, national and game of the week. Local games get no audio commentary, just the stadium PA announcer. However, I've noticed no difference between the other three commentaries. 4) Just about every stat imaginable can be tracked, through I could see no stats for knockdowns and pressures. The AI finally got rid of it's big school bias in doing the rankings. In past editions I would be a 12-0 Tulane being ranked behind a 8-4 FSU and 7-5 Tennessee and so on. However, how coaches are evaluated is dumb. For Tulane I was given an ultimatum of either go to bowls in 2 of 3 years or one national championship. Considering Tulane has been to one bowl since 1987, this is unrealistic.5) I haven't even touched on offseason work, and I allready feel this game clearly is not a Madden clone.
