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NCAA Football 09 Official First Look: NCAA Strategies

10:42 PM - April 24, 2008 by coogrfan

NCAA Strategies have just posted their first look at NCAA Football 09.

Quote:


	"The offensive line play seems improved in pass protection, IMO. I am not sure I would quantify it as a pure �pocket� like some of you have asked, but I didn�t got stomped by the defensive line as much as I did in 08. In 08, online play was hampered by gamers taking advantage of the lead blocking feature with offensive linemen. If you attempted pancake blocks with them, they would blow the DL several yards deep opening up a huge hole. This year, that does not seem to be the case. I worked on this several times and only saw one pancake, but it did not result in the DL getting blasted five yards deep � only two or three. The rest of the time the players were simply engaged in a tie-up."

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

# 101 SidVish @ 04/25/08 04:51 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by MassNole


	Okay, so when I was a moderator at NCAA Strategies (then called Utopia) I must have imagined EA sending the owner of the forum a message basically stating if they weren't more favorable to EA then EA wouldn't provide them with an advance copy of the game.

# 102 umd @ 04/25/08 04:55 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by bad_philanthropy


	They really just hate EA? They aren't just angry because they want them to make better games?

nope - EVERYone around who criticizes EA criticizes them because of the exclusive license. At least that's what some (BK comes to mind he should chime in any minute) says about everything - regardless of sport.

Even though NCAA hasn't had competition in a million years. And no, that horrendous steaming pile of a college football game 2k produced does not count.

Everything comes back to NFL 2k around here if you don't like the way EA is developing ANY franchise. Everyone who says anything negative about any EA franchise is obviously an EA *****. It's the ultimate argument fall back.

# 103 Russell_SCEA @ 04/25/08 05:00 PM

Quote:


	Okay, so when I was a moderator at NCAA Strategies (then called Utopia) I must have imagined EA sending the owner of the forum a message basically stating if they weren't more favorable to EA then EA wouldn't provide them with an advance copy of the game.

That doesn't mean anything dude sorry to break it to you EA has one of the best marketing teams in the game business they are not going to burn any bridges no matter how small. Now in no way am I saying they don't care about us that would be the furthest from the truth of the matter. I can remember the hated lead producer of Madden making a visit to last years community day just to get our feedback and talk to us on his off day, and I have ticket stubs and plenty of pictures from the 08 ESPY awards to remind me of that.

I have had countless conversations with the powers that be on this subject its just the way it is with those two games. Last year all the major review sites game Madden the highest ratings since its next gen inception which articles do you think reached the most people. The ones from IGN, and Gamestop or the negative ones from the hardcore sites? Even then you are still only reaching a small demographic in the grand scheme of things.

Over 80% of the people who are going to buy GTA next Tuesday know nothing about it in comparison to the gamers who frequent sites like Kotaku, IGN, and Gamestop. Its the nature of this beast wither you choose to accept it or not is another story.

# 104 bad_philanthropy @ 04/25/08 05:03 PM

Here's the thing I don't understand about what appears to be the direction of the game this year based on the impressions we've been given. There is an unrealistic emphasis on big plays and scoring. Basically the game seems to be built to play more like a Sportscenter highlight package than an actual game of football.

Now I don't know if this is the Peter Moore effect or what, but does anyone remember one of the NCAA producers stating that something like 80% of their customers play dynasty mode? Now I would think that a person who is into playing dynasty mode is at least a little bit more serious about college football in general and would prefer a more realistic game. So my question is, who are they really making the game for? Is there an untapped consumer base they are going for?

# 105 Russell_SCEA @ 04/25/08 05:07 PM

Quote:


	Here's the thing I don't understand about what appears to be the direction of the game this year based on the impressions we've been given. There is an unrealistic emphasis on big plays and scoring. Basically the game seems to be built to play more like a Sportscenter highlight package than an actual game of football. Now I don't know if this is the Peter Moore effect or what, but does anyone remember one of the NCAA producers stating that something like 80% of their customers play dynasty mode? Now I would think that a person who is into playing dynasty mode is at least a little bit more serious about college football in general and would prefer a more realistic game. So my question is, who are they really making the game for? Is there an untapped consumer base they are going for?

Bingo They way they see it and I totally agree with them on this point is that college football and pro football have fan bases many millions over what their games do in sales on any given year. They want to tap into that base the guy who watches football on Saturdays and Sundays heck he may even be a season ticket holder but he doesn't buy NCAA and Madden. That kid enrolled at GT who goes to every home game but doesn't buy NCAA because its to hard. Hence Peter Moore talking about making the game "more accessible".

Quote:


	So if EA doesn't care about these sites, why would they threaten to take away advance copies if they don't get favorable treatment on the message boards. Oddly enough this was for NCAA 2005, arguably the worst game they've ever put out.

I'm done you don't get it, who said they don't care about these sites. Did you just not read the above post.

Quote:


	Now in no way am I saying they don't care about us that would be the furthest from the truth of the matter. I can remember the hated lead producer of Madden making a visit to last years community day just to get our feedback and talk to us on his off day, and I have ticket stubs and plenty of pictures from the 08 ESPY awards to remind me of that.

# 106 nxt @ 04/25/08 05:10 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by russell05


	Again you don't get it for better or for worse those previews are only going to reach the hardcore gamer. Not the casual gamer that is 90% of their consumer base not the hardcore guy. To many people fail to realize this FACT we aren't as important as we think we are. The moment you realize this the easier this process becomes.

That's a great way to think! We aren't important. Why even form an opinion. That's just the way it is. We can't do a thing about it. Just sit down, shut up, and take it like a man. OK.

# 107 umd @ 04/25/08 05:11 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by MassNole


	Oddly enough this was for NCAA 2005, arguably the worst game they've ever put out.

05 wasn't arguably the worst game in the series, it WAS the worst game. Thank goodness they turned it around from that on PS2 and Xbox. It was the only poor release of NCAA on those systems.

Which is why the series has become extremely disappointing since hitting the better hardware.

Ironically, wasn't 05 developed by the old Madden producer?

# 108 PAPERNUT @ 04/25/08 05:17 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by mercalnd


	What I'd like to know is if it's truly a matter of EA not wanting negative impressions out there, how does pushing them back a week help? I'm not pleased about some of the things I've read in these impressions but I think somesome of you are just seeing conspiracies all the time when it comes ot EA. This doesn't add up to me. Now, if a week from now the articles are reposted but all the negative stuff is gone then you guys will have a point but until then EA gains nothing by delaying negative impressions by a week.

I think the closer you hold impressions to release, the easier it is for them to come back with the we did not have time to correct that before release line. Call me an EA *****, but if they cannot look at the many sites that are out with peoples thoughts about what is wrong and needs to be fixed, then there is a problem with the developers. 2 simple things to fix: ints and fumbles. If they cannot do that for 09, then I will pass again.

# 109 Russell_SCEA @ 04/25/08 05:25 PM

Quote:


	That's a great way to think! We aren't important. Why even form an opinion. That's just the way it is. We can't do a thing about it. Just sit down, shut up, and take it like a man. OK.

Man its impossible who said we aren't important if you read it again it clearly says "we aren't as important as we think we are" I'm 100% sure thats what I posted. Who do you think has more pull in what goes into and what comes out of a game or any business model for that matter 10% of your consumer base or 90% of your consumer base its simple economics.

EA loves their hardcore gaming base and the feedback they get from the guys who come out other wise they wouldn't spend tens of thousands of dollars on these community days. In contrast the devs and producers can only do so much case in point the vision cone hardcore feature hands down. It wasn't polished but most of us could see the idea what happened casual fans complained and the feature was scraped.

# 110 KG @ 04/25/08 05:32 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by MassNole


	I don't know, to me NCAA 2008 was the worst one, it was the first time I ever got rid of the game before the next one came out. But NCAA 2005 was a total and complete disaster. My favorite was my WR's ability to drop a screen pass when they had nothing but green grass in front of them but when they would lose 5 yards they turned into some super human combination of Jerry Rice/Lynn Swann/David Tyree to catch the ball.

Ahh...I can never remember which versions are which. I just seem to remember the issues from the past. Good thing OS is here to map them out.

# 111 SageInfinite @ 04/25/08 05:39 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by bad_philanthropy


	I don't think people hate EA, if they did they wouldn't have any reason to even be in this forum. I think it is mainly that a lot of us have in the past had some of our best gaming experiences playing EA football games in the era where they were constantly pushing the envelope in terms of innovation with their football games to make them more realistic, in recent years we have been disappointed because the games have lacked the qualities that previous titles did that really engaged us. We were used to every year being able to be excited about the new football games from EA and having them deliver a package that brought us a ton of enjoyment. I can't forget that upgrade between 2001 on the PS1 and 2002 on the PS2. That is probably the ultimate example of my expectations being exceeded. Many of the efforts of last-gen were fantastic and I feel those games really did achieve a lot in terms of being a football simulation. To me it's more like I know that they are capable of making the kind of game that we all want, because they have before, but for some reason they keep taking steps backwards which is very frustrating to those of us who have enjoyed the series for so long.

# 112 countryboy @ 04/25/08 05:42 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by bad_philanthropy


	They really just hate EA? They aren't just angry because they want them to make better games?

Believe it or not, there are people out there that hate EA.

# 113 PAPERNUT @ 04/25/08 05:54 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by bad_philanthropy


	I don't think people hate EA, if they did they wouldn't have any reason to even be in this forum. I think it is mainly that a lot of us have in the past had some of our best gaming experiences playing EA football games in the era where they were constantly pushing the envelope in terms of innovation with their football games to make them more realistic, in recent years we have been disappointed because the games have lacked the qualities that previous titles did that really engaged us. We were used to every year being able to be excited about the new football games from EA and having them deliver a package that brought us a ton of enjoyment. I can't forget that upgrade between 2001 on the PS1 and 2002 on the PS2. That is probably the ultimate example of my expectations being exceeded. Many of the efforts of last-gen were fantastic and I feel those games really did achieve a lot in terms of being a football simulation. To me it's more like I know that they are capable of making the kind of game that we all want, because they have before, but for some reason they keep taking steps backwards which is very frustrating to those of us who have enjoyed the series for so long.

Excellent post. Agree 100%. Send that to Peter Moore please!

# 114 razcan @ 04/25/08 07:05 PM

One think I am not clear on about the menus... We now have the option of highlighting the play or using a corresponding button ala last-gen to pick the play? Is this correct? It would be huge IMO.

Thanks

# 115 rudyjuly2 @ 04/25/08 07:08 PM

I think some of you are being too negative and jaded. Granted, EA hasn't delivered a truly next gen football gaming experience and so I can understand but some of you act as those gameplay reviews were horrible for EA. They spoke of a lot of good things in their hands on experience and they said they really enjoyed the game. Of course they mentioned the pick-6 and cpu QB AI but they hadn't had that much time with the game just yet. They are still getting more time with it (which we'll have to wait for). I was excited about some of the things they wrote and Pasta didn't say every game was a shootout either.

As for EA pulling the plug, I agree its a little fishy. I do see that Gamespot had an online dynasty preview this week and I totally believe EA hands out exclusive NCAA info to many different sites on a planned schedule. They probably try to give out new info every week to generate interest and maybe they wanted these guys to wait. On the other hand, these guys were very open on their site about the ability to post things right away and I never understood media days to show off a game and then not let you talk about it. If the reviews were totally negative I might be more inclined to believe that's why EA had them pulled. But there was a lot of positive stuff in there so I'm not buying into that theory yet.

A lot of the little things I wanted fixed seem to be moving in the right direction (better player weight, improved PS3, some old features back, more big plays which I like). I think everyone wanted the cpu qb AI to be fixed - that includes too many picks and not throwing deep. From what I read, the pick-6s were more user vs. user (still not a great sign). It does concern me that they wouldn't have had this fixed already at this point. Its a big red flag but they did have this early community session to get feedback for the game in order to correct things. I just hope some of this stuff does get fixed but some of you guys are jumping off the bridge a little early imo. Slider and difficulty level adjustments might fix some of this stuff as well.

# 116 Spectre @ 04/25/08 11:35 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by J-Unit40


	Shocker. EA realizes there didn't do jack about the most glaring issues with the game and a Community Day participant reports on it so there is a "gap in communication". What a joke. Here's a tip EA; fix the issues and we won't have much to be disappointed about. Here's the real "gap in communication": We recommend/beg for improvements regarding glaring gameplay issues and EA chooses to ignore us. EA should just make the arcade version where there are 9 INTs, 3 pick-sixes, 7 fumbles, 11 "jump the snap" sacks and 125 point shootout games on 5 minute quarters on the Wii and leave the real football on the PS3 and 360.

Good post

From all indications, this looks like its going to be an arcade-fest.

# 117 ODogg @ 04/26/08 04:15 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Spectre


	Good post From all indications, this looks like its going to be an arcade-fest.

yes. i imagine by the time i'm returning my 3rd interception for a TD in my first game i'm going to want to cry.

# 118 rudyjuly2 @ 04/26/08 08:03 PM

Its still a little unclear to me as to how much human vs. cpu time they got in and how many human vs. human games they played. It sounds like the abundance of pick 6s were against each other. I know whenever I get the new game, it takes me at least 6 or 7 games to get a feel for the changes to it. Hopefully we'll get some good write-ups on May 2nd.

# 119 JRod @ 04/26/08 08:18 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by rudyjuly2


	Its still a little unclear to me as to how much human vs. cpu time they got in and how many human vs. human games they played. It sounds like the abundance of pick 6s were against each other. I know whenever I get the new game, it takes me at least 6 or 7 games to get a feel for the changes to it. Hopefully we'll get some good write-ups on May 2nd.

I don't know...

I saw the 10 minute video from the Community Day event. (I'm not sure where it was from.) And the game looked exactly the same.

I understand he was playing it on Freshman but this game hasn't made any major improvements since the switch to next gen. This is what a lack of competition does, it let's EA go at it's own pace, instead of the pace of your rivals.

Anyway, I don't think we are too jaded or negative. I think what we have here, is EA doesn't know what it's customers want. It's funny that are the most sim-like are the most successful. Winning Eleven, MLB The Show, MVP and NFL 2k were all at the top and more more sim than arcade.

# 120 rudyjuly2 @ 04/26/08 08:37 PM

I think every fan wants the game to be as realistic as possible. I don't think its right for companies to assume the casual fan wants a very arcade like experience. Those are for the people that rent. The people that buy games love football and if you make your game as realistic as possible, people will be happy.

Casual fans may not be as good and/or may want to win more than the hardcore fan. But I don't think they want a truly cheezy experience. A co-worker of mine got NCAA '08 for the PS2 and he loved it. He didn't like some of the unrealistic gameplay elements but yet he would play on JV because he's so hot headed he hates to lose lol.

As for that gameplay video, I will disagree and say I saw some improved things. Personally, I think all videos are overrated in terms of how much info you can get from them. Pastapadre wrote that the weight of the players is much heavier which is a good thing since it was too light in '08. The juke move was almost useless in '08 on the PS3 due to the lack of momentum but it certainly looked good in the video which I consider an improvement. The PS3 version will be 60 fps this year and it looked faster as well. I just remember counting how long it would take a guy to run 10 yards in last year's game and I think guys cover ground more quickly. Hard to say but it did look faster to me. I don't know if you can get any real AI judgments (good or bad) out of a video on freaking freshman. I'll trust the write-ups much more.

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