Anyone pick up MM or ESPN CB yet? [Archive] - Front Office Football Central

cincyreds

11-18-2003, 07:27 AM

Yeah I bought the ESPN College Hoops game last Friday.

I also bought last years version of the game and let me tell you that this years game is so far ahead of that one it is ridicilous.

It is an awesome game bigjdotcomo.

The Legacy mode is truly amazing. You can recruit and scout players to come to your team...the player details are nice too.

There are sliders to switch back and forth to get the right kind of gameplay that you would like.

I started an 'open legacy' with the LSU Tigers. Right now, I am 8-2 and getting ready to play Centenary before I open up my SEC schedule.

It is a great game, it truly is. I won't be buying MM, because the ESPN game is really good.

Get it or rent it.

go to operationsports.com there is alot of discussion over there about the game, all good too.

ice4277

11-18-2003, 07:31 AM

Cincy,

How is the gameplay compared to last year's version? And do you have the game for XBox or PS2?

cincyreds

11-18-2003, 09:35 AM

Ice the gameplay is excellent, no kidding.

I have adjusted my sliders enough to where each time I step on the court I am getting a challenge.

I lost to #1 UCONN in the Preseason NIT 88-78, then reeled off 8 in a row which wasn't easy...lost to a very stubborn UAB team 75-73 in a game that I never lead. Missed a jumper a the top of the key at the buzzer to lose and not force OT.

I have the XBOX version of the game.

I played last years version and though I really liked it, there just was not enough realism in the game. But this year it is a different story. They have put in so much more depth in the game that I cannot stop playing it.

The TOP 25 seems more realistic this year now, also it lists teams getting votes that did not crack the rankings.

There is a slam dunk competition mode which is alot of fun and there a mode called gym rat where you can play anyone anywhere....1 on 1, 2 on 2 and so on.

I am glad I bought the game and I am a hard gamer to please. It reminds me alot of the depth that EA's College Football 2004 offers.

You can create and edit players, you also can recruit players during the season. The recruiting is fun. You can choose visit 3 recruits per week, invite them to one of your games. There is an email system where recruits and assistant coaches email you with information, you can reply back to them.

Mike Patrick and Jay Bilas are doing the play by play which leaps ahead of last years guys who were so repetitious in the things they were saying.

Bilas saying, "he's got eyes in the back of his head" is probably heard at least once a game...but other then that the play by play is very good and more detailed than last years version.

The arenas and the crowds have been done really well also.

Check it out, it is a incredible detailed college basketball game. EA's MM has alot of competition to match up too.

Let me know if there is anything else you want to know.

bigjdotcom01

11-18-2003, 10:02 AM

I had cb 2k3, but the screenshots of MM look great. I love the bubble watch and the dynasty mode looks sweet. But, cincy, you make ESPN CB sound like the way to go. Could you post the ratings for Buffalo out of the MAC?

Butter

11-18-2003, 11:59 AM

Did they fix the end of game in ESPN so that the opposing team will actually try to come from behind this year? That was my main problem with it last year.

Chubby

11-18-2003, 12:37 PM

operationsports gave them both good writeups, 4/5 for sega and 5/5 for ea. hmm which to buy which to buy.

bigj - you're in rochester aren't you, i recognize the henrietta.

bigjdotcom01

11-18-2003, 12:42 PM

Originally posted by Chubby
operationsports gave them both good writeups, 4/5 for sega and 5/5 for ea. hmm which to buy which to buy.

bigj - you're in rochester aren't you, i recognize the henrietta.

Yup

cincyreds

11-18-2003, 12:55 PM

March Madess I will wait and see and hear before I judge.

ESPN also has a bubble watch and a Legacy mode.

MM you can only play 30 years, ESPN is infinity.

ESPN College Hoops (http://forums.operationsports.com/ubbthreads/postlist.php?Cat=&Board=ESPNCB)

Bigj I will post rating for Buffalo for you when I get home later.

cincyreds

11-18-2003, 01:07 PM

I think infinity...will have to check.

markprior22

11-18-2003, 01:11 PM

I have ESPN and have been very happy with it so far. Like Cincy said, you will need to adjust the sliders to fit your dexterity. Once you get it set up...the game is alot of fun. Can't comment on MM...never played it. I bought ESPN NBA and wanted to be able to import players from the college game.

cincyreds

11-18-2003, 02:53 PM

Oh yeah forgot about the import feature to the NBA game.

Thank MP...great season this year!

ice4277

11-18-2003, 04:00 PM

Cincy,

I see that you mentioned the preseason NIT. Are there any other pre-season tournaments, and does the game feature the postseason NIT?

Thanks!

illinifan999

11-18-2003, 06:23 PM

Minor concern for me but it's still there:

Does ESPN again have the random name generator? And are their names on the back of the jersey's? Last year's there weren't names on the back of the jersey, and for me I hate that.

Pumpy Tudors

11-18-2003, 07:05 PM

Originally posted by illinifan999
Minor concern for me but it's still there:

Does ESPN again have the random name generator? And are their names on the back of the jersey's? Last year's there weren't names on the back of the jersey, and for me I hate that.

Yes and yes. Now go buy the game.

tucker342

11-18-2003, 10:59 PM

ESPN CB sounds a lot better then last years version.... I'll probably get it for christmas.

ESPN Basketball 2k4 is incredible though. Probably get both of them

korme

11-18-2003, 11:38 PM

Dude, importing to NBA2k3 last year, there were no first names. It was shitty. And they had no resemblance to their college generated guy.

Are these things fixed?

cincyreds

11-19-2003, 08:00 AM

postseason NIT is there...will have to check on preseason tourney's for you.

Butter

11-19-2003, 08:08 AM

Originally posted by Butter_of_69
Did they fix the end of game in ESPN so that the opposing team will actually try to come from behind this year? That was my main problem with it last year.

Kodos

11-19-2003, 12:38 PM

I'm thinking of getting one of these. I was leaning towards ESPN CB because NBA Live got poor reviews this year, but it looks like the college version (March Madness) is good after all?

cincyreds

11-19-2003, 01:41 PM

Kodos if you get MM let us know how good it is please will ya?

ESPN College Hoops has got me so hooked right now it is ridiculous!

Chubby

11-19-2003, 01:44 PM

i wish someone would get MM as it has been getting better reviews and it looks better to me so i can finally decide which one to get. they both look good, I played a little espn nba last week and that was good as well. i'm concerned that espn ncaa is last years nba while MM is seemingly going the ea ncaa football route and making it's own engine and everything instead of copying last years madden like they used to a couple of yrs ago.

cincyreds

11-19-2003, 05:25 PM

From what I am reading over on the operation sports forums is that MM is getting mixed reveiws. Some are saying that it is not realistic enough, some say it is great, some say it is LIVE with college players.

Chubby

11-19-2003, 05:28 PM

Originally posted by cincyreds
From what I am reading over on the operation sports forums is that MM is getting mixed reveiws. Some are saying that it is not realistic enough, some say it is great, some say it is LIVE with college players.

but isnt espn ncaa just last years nba2k?

ice4277

11-19-2003, 06:20 PM

Originally posted by Chubby
but isnt espn ncaa just last years nba2k?

Well, I guess it would then depend on which NBA series you like better; seeing as I have not been able to stand Live for about five years, I will probably go back with ESPN College Hoops.

Pumpy Tudors

11-19-2003, 08:59 PM

bigjdotcom01

11-19-2003, 10:51 PM

Originally posted by Butter_of_69
Did they fix the end of game in ESPN so that the opposing team will actually try to come from behind this year? That was my main problem with it last year.

I just picked up ESPN CH tonight and in my first game, I came back from a 13 point second half defecit to take the lead by one with 55.1 left. The CPU then drained back-to-back threes to win it 57-54. Not a bad first impression! :)

Balldog

11-20-2003, 05:33 AM

I picked up MM last night, haven't played it yet though.

bigjdotcom01

11-20-2003, 06:25 AM

Originally posted by Balldog
I picked up MM last night, haven't played it yet though.

cincyreds

11-21-2003, 07:45 AM

Thought I would mention this about ESPN College Hoops.

When recruiting for players, when you choose to attend a recruits game you can either play the game or watch your recruit play.

Yes, you can play HS games!!! Did not know this, WOW!

Also about preseason tourney's in the game. There are 12 preseason tournaments to choose to play in.

You can also customize your schedule to play any team that you choose.

I am finding out that the game almost 100% editable.

That means you edit players, class status and attributes for each player.

Not bad at all for this game.

I have been really enjoying this game. I just lost 79-66 last night to Alabama in game that I was so streaky. I was up 62-61 with about 3 minutes to play and Alabama sank 3 straight 3's to take the lead 70-62....it was basically over. My team went cold when it didn't need too. Oh well....gotta love the challenege that each game brings.

I turned around and barely got by a stubborn New Orleans team 85-77.

I am 11-3 so far in 1st year LSU Tiger legacy.

The game just has so much more depth to me that March Madness.

....and no I don't work for Sega or EA. Just giving my honest opinion of the game.

ice4277

11-21-2003, 11:31 AM

Cincy,

Thanks for your continued thoughts on the game. I think it will be my next purchase, once it comes out for PS2.

Neuqua

11-21-2003, 01:49 PM

You could actually play the HS games in last year's versions as well, just to let you know. Thanks for your efforts though Cincy, I'm now strongly considering purchasing this game.

Balldog

11-21-2003, 02:30 PM

Originally posted by Neuqua
You could actually play the HS games in last year's versions as well, just to let you know. Thanks for your efforts though Cincy, I'm now strongly considering purchasing this game.

That was only All-Star Games, this is actual High School season games. Were a small school 7'0" wander could be playing against a 6'2" center opposition.

Neuqua

11-21-2003, 02:35 PM

Wow, really? I take that back then.

CraigSca

11-21-2003, 02:54 PM

Originally posted by ice4277
Cincy,

Thanks for your continued thoughts on the game. I think it will be my next purchase, once it comes out for PS2.

Isn't this out for PS2? Ebgames says it "usually ships in 24 hours".

ScottVib

11-21-2003, 03:25 PM

Here's IGN's March Madness review... that coupled with other opinions I've read have me leaning towards ESPN, if I decide I get sick enough of NCAA 2004 to need another game:

For the first time maybe ever, there are two very good college basketball games on the market in the same year. This is not only great for the fans, but great for the competition as hopefully both EA Sports and ESPN Games continue to improve their college b-ball titles with the innovations and intentions that go into the rest of their lineups. That being said, while I applaud March Madness' marked improvements, it still doesn't equal ESPN College Hoops in terms of depth, so the game comes in a close second this year on the PS2, and a little more distant on the Xbox due to EA not supporting Xbox Live.

One thing's for sure, though. If EA Sports continues to ramp up development on this series, it shouldn't be too long before it is mentioned in the same breath and with the same scores as NCAA Football, and that's something college basketball fans have been asking for since the days of Coach K.

I may just wait another year though...

ice4277

11-21-2003, 03:32 PM

Originally posted by CraigSca
Isn't this out for PS2? Ebgames says it "usually ships in 24 hours".

That's what I thought, but checked the ESPN Games website, it says it ships Dec. 1, and couple stores I have checked haven't had it in yet :confused:

Kodos

11-21-2003, 06:39 PM

I'm leaning towards ESPN CB as my only basketball purchase this year. But maybe ESPN NBA too...

John Galt

11-21-2003, 06:46 PM

Betraying EA twice in one season with the same sport - have you aliens no decency?

Balldog

11-21-2003, 07:31 PM

I might just pick up ESPN then I will have both and can't go wrong.

tucker342

11-21-2003, 10:34 PM

I'll also pick up both, but first I wanna make sure that the import feature works. It didn't last year, which really pissed me off.

Pumpy Tudors

11-21-2003, 10:37 PM

I have both games for Xbox, but I haven't even touched the NBA game since I got Gladius, which was a couple of weeks before I got College Hoops. I don't think NBA will get much play over here, but I only paid $15 for it.

Eaglesfan27

11-21-2003, 10:39 PM

How did you get the ESPN NBA game for only 15$. Or better yet, where?

Pumpy Tudors

11-21-2003, 10:44 PM

Originally posted by Eaglesfan27
How did you get the ESPN NBA game for only 15$. Or better yet, where?

Trade-ins. Lots and lots of trade-ins.

Electronics Boutique was doing a promotion (maybe they still are) that added $3 to the trade-in of each game traded in toward a new release. ESPN NBA Basketball was a new release at the time. I traded in 7 games for a combined total of about $20 in store credit. Then they added on another $21 because of the promotion. That left me to pay only about $15, including tax.

Eaglesfan27

11-21-2003, 10:56 PM

Ahh, I see. I usually buy everything from Gamestop (Babbages) in the Lakeside mall and didn't see any similar deals recently.

Pumpy Tudors

11-21-2003, 10:59 PM

The only EB stores in the area are in New Orleans Centre (next to the Superdome), the Riverwalk, and the Esplanade in Kenner. If you happen to be in or near central Metairie, none of those places are particularly close to you. For new releases, though, if you have something to trade in, EB is a pretty good deal.

Eaglesfan27

11-21-2003, 11:35 PM

I actually live in uptown New Orleans, just off of St. Charles, but my mother-in-law lives in Metairie, and I have to usually go visit with my wife as the trade-off to getting myself a game ;)

I work at Charity a lot and didn't know there was an EB there next to the Superdome.. thanks for the info! :)

Kodos

11-24-2003, 03:01 PM

I'm still struggling with this. Does anybody prefer MM over ESPN? The reviews are all contradictory...

nilodor

11-24-2003, 05:45 PM

The best I can get from all of the reviews and the forums is MM has slightly better gameplay while ESPN is more in depth in terms of modes and the legacy mode.

Also MM has one team in the wrong conference and alot of the fresmen are missing.

My only real criteria is gameplay so I am leaning towards MM. I wish I could rent them but neither are being released in Canada because they can not collect royalties here so I have to order them online.

BigDPW

11-24-2003, 05:53 PM

I have only played ESPN but I think that the gameplay in the game is solid... I had major issues with the 2k3 version of NCAA but this year I am astounded by the improvements they made...

I have played Live and I would assume that if you like that style of play you would prefer to play MM rather than ESPN... Though I think the ESPN style of play suits me best...

The game plays excellent out of the box... In total I have adjusted only the foul sliders and increased the tendency of the CPU to pull midrange jumpers and threes... Otherwise I have not touched a thing playing on the mid-level...

I have started a Legacy with Radford and so far I am 3-2 and I am entering the toughest part of my nonconference schedule... Before that I got about 9 games deep into a legacy with UNC-Greensboro but restarted with Radford once the X-Port Rosters came out with all of the players named...

I am truly a gameplay kind of guy and I cannot find anything wrong with how ESPN plays... I would highly suggest renting both of these games before choosing one to purchase if you really think MM might be your preference... As for me I think ESPN plays great and I love the career legacy options, recruiting, coaching aspects, as well as the graphics and gameplay.

I would say all in all I would give ESPN College Hoops a 9/10...

BigDPW

11-24-2003, 05:56 PM

Dola-

Also in regards to ESPNs NCAA effort versus their NBA effort if you are choosing between the two of them I would go with NCAA... I have both and I think that the NCAA plays better... Also you can actually call the exact plays you want on NCAA as opposed to NBA...

Kodos-
If you get ESPN College Hoops let me know and we will hook up online an play a little... So far I have only been able to play the CPU...

Kodos

11-24-2003, 06:34 PM

Okay BigDPW. I'm trying to resist buying either (money is tight right now), but my will is weakening. Especially because I have $20 of best buy rewards zone coupons to spend...

Balldog

11-24-2003, 06:44 PM

Does the CPU actually run more than one or two plays this year on ESPN? Last year it seemed they just ran the same plays every game no matter who you were playing against.

korme

11-24-2003, 06:56 PM

ESPN at first glance - fun, fun. Graphics are beautiful.

Calis

11-24-2003, 07:18 PM

so does ESPN College have ACTUAL plays? Just want confirmation on this for sure, if so I think I'll go buy it. I mean does it have actual plays aside from just just calling an isolation or pick and roll? Was the main downside I saw to the NBA version.

Man, I really like the feature of playing high school game's also, that sounds like a blast. Be interesting to see how fun it actually is in use.

BishopMVP

11-24-2003, 07:33 PM

Damn you and your tempting reviews! Now I'm gonna have to get one of these two over Thanksgiving or possibly Christmas. That's 50 bucks that could be going to alco...I mean studying or books or something like that. :) Sounds like ESPN is more my style (better legacy.)

Kodos

11-24-2003, 07:36 PM

Crap. Reading the Operation Sports boards did nothing to resolve this. Sounds like MM has better gameplay/online play, ESPN better dynasty and more accurate stadiums/rosters/etc.

fflix

11-25-2003, 01:53 AM

After reading all the positive posts I went out and bought Espn CB. I was wondering if anyone could answer these questions based on their experiences so far.
1. How many minutes per half result in realistic scores?
2. What camera do you use?
3. Do you keep gameplay speed on normal or fast?
Thanks

illinifan999

11-25-2003, 06:39 AM

Ok one more question before I put this on the X-MAS list. In ESPN, do they actually dunk the ball this year? Last year it felt like a miracle if the guy did a lay-up or a dunk from 3 feet away instead of doing a jump shot and mssing.

Also, how the hell do you put a team in the wrong conference? :confused:

Kodos

11-25-2003, 07:54 PM

Has anyone run into the problem where the vast majority of incoming freshmen that you recruit are left handed?

ice4277

11-25-2003, 08:53 PM

Or, has anyone run into the problem of not being able to purchase the game? I can't find a store around my area (northern Detroit suburbs) that has a copy, and one of my local Gamestops even told me the game had been cancelled :rolleyes: What's the deal?

BigDPW

11-25-2003, 10:37 PM

Originally posted by fflix
After reading all the positive posts I went out and bought Espn CB. I was wondering if anyone could answer these questions based on their experiences so far.
1. How many minutes per half result in realistic scores?
2. What camera do you use?
3. Do you keep gameplay speed on normal or fast?
Thanks

1- I use 14 minutes...

2- I use Side View with zooming in the Key...

3- I use normal speed but I use a little trick mentioned on Operation Sports by bumping the slider for both the CPU and Human down 3 notches to slow the game down a bit more... Alot of guys at OS are actually playing with the same set up except they bump the speed slider for each down 15 notches....

BigDPW

11-25-2003, 10:39 PM

Originally posted by Kodos
Has anyone run into the problem where the vast majority of incoming freshmen that you recruit are left handed?

I have heard of this Kodos but I have not seen it yet... Again I have only gotten about 1/3 of the way through the year... This would not be a game killer for me anyway... Alot of games have had just righties up until the last few years so having all lefties now wouldn't be a huge upset for me... I will keep an eye out for it as I progress though...

BigDPW

11-25-2003, 10:42 PM

Originally posted by illinifan999
Ok one more question before I put this on the X-MAS list. In ESPN, do they actually dunk the ball this year? Last year it felt like a miracle if the guy did a lay-up or a dunk from 3 feet away instead of doing a jump shot and mssing.

Also, how the hell do you put a team in the wrong conference? :confused:

Yes they dunk this year... The animation is 10 times better than last year for around the basket stuff... There are about 15-20 different around the basket animations that I have seen and most are good... About 5-8 of those are low post dunks and the rest are spins and fadeaways etc... I still think they could use a little work around the basket - the animation that is used seem more context based than user controlled but this is no where near the issues they had last year with the around the basket animations (or lack there-of)

BigDPW

11-25-2003, 10:44 PM

Originally posted by Calis
so does ESPN College have ACTUAL plays? Just want confirmation on this for sure, if so I think I'll go buy it. I mean does it have actual plays aside from just just calling an isolation or pick and roll? Was the main downside I saw to the NBA version.

Man, I really like the feature of playing high school game's also, that sounds like a blast. Be interesting to see how fun it actually is in use.

YES they are actual plays... If you played last years game (or even last years NBA 2k3) the play calling is just like that... I think this is a big plus for this game over the NBA version... The game even shows you the diagram of how the plays are meant to work just like last years game...

BigDPW

11-25-2003, 10:49 PM

Originally posted by Balldog
Does the CPU actually run more than one or two plays this year on ESPN? Last year it seemed they just ran the same plays every game no matter who you were playing against.

I have not noticed the CPU running the same play over and over again... They seem pretty varied to me... I have played about 20-25 games so far and while I have not focuses continually on how the cpu is running its offense they seem pretty smart to me... When I go man-man they take advantage and when I go 2-3 zone they seem to find there big shooters for 3s on the wing just like they should or they will penetrate... When I go 3-2 zone they seem to go inside to the low block like they should...

ALSO - for anyone that is interested the jump steal that was so abusable last year is no where near as effective this year... I would say of the jump steals that would work last year I can now use it effectively about 5-10 percent as I could last year...

They seem to cause more loose balls than straight steals that end up in the hands of the jumping defender... I think this move is tremendously improved in how it is implemented this year... I plays much more realistically as a result...

BigDPW

11-25-2003, 10:54 PM

I would still suggest that anyone interested in either MM or ESPN CH should rent first... Especially if you are not sure whether you prefer the Live style or the Sega Style... They are both very different products on the NBA side of things and from the reviews it seems the same on the college side of things as well...

AS far as which has better gameplay I think this will probably rest on taste and the preference above... I tried Live this year and despised it despite most reviews raving about its gameplay... I am not an ESPN mark but I do prefer their basketball style for some reason - I think it has to do with the amount of control I feel I have as opposed to live... I am willing to sacrifice super smooth animation for better control I guess (but if I could have both I would choose whichever game delivered that on that)...

Cuckoo

11-26-2003, 11:10 AM

I rented MM last night and only played it for an hour or so, but has anyone else noticed how SLOWWWWWW it is. It takes forever between every screen, and the simming and recruiting process slower than any game I've seen.

Calis

11-26-2003, 09:35 PM

Drug myself away from FBCB long enough to go out and pick up ESPN College Hoops this evening.

I'm VERY impressed so far, having a blast. I started up just creating a guy to add to a scrub team, and then started up a Legacy mode and am locked in on him. Only played one game of it so far, but had a nail biter against Minnesota which we pulled off in the last few seconds.

It seems great so far, and haven't even touched the recruiting and such. Just played one game, and then fiddled around with a few exhibition games.

I wanna just focus on playing through my created guys' career, this player lock thing is actually pretty fun. I only want to kill my teammates 75% of the time, which is the best I've seen yet! ;)

ColtCrazy

11-26-2003, 09:59 PM

I got ESPN CH, and it's so much fun. I created all my friends and stuck us on Chicago St. (very cool road unis) to try for that cinderella story. After 11, we are 9-2. We've had one game where we were thumped soundly (against #1 UConn) and one where we blew them out (against Detroit) otherwise every game is close with leads changing hands and runs galore, just like in the college game. It's a lot of fun. We've upset Indiana, but lost to Murray St. Your big men will dunk if under the goal, the passing is VASTLY improved now that they have passing icons in it, and even on defense you have defense icons so you can quickly switch to the guy you want to be on defense (so you can try to stop that little guard that's hit 4 threes on you already) Recruiting is interesting as well. I haven't played any of the HS games yet, but they've been to mine.
Overall, I'm very satisfied.

One glitch to report. If you go to the pre-season invatational (their NIT) and you back out of the bracket after the second game, you can't get back into the tourney. It just stops. I was 2-0 getting ready to play Texas Tech and it wouldn't let me back in. I had to restart the dynasty (thanksfully it's at the beginning and not a big deal) and made sure I played it through. It was okay by saving after game 1, but somehow lost the tourney if you tried to back out from game 2 or 3. Just a note, but not enough to annoy me to a great extent.

ice4277

11-27-2003, 06:08 AM

I picked ESPN CH up yesterday as well. Didn't get a chance to play it too much, and probably won't until after the weekend, but I finally saw it at a store around here and didn't want to pass it up. From what I could tell, gameplay did seem a little bit better. Playing Michigan/Michigan State, it was a close game with each team going on a number of runs. You definitely have to work the ball around to find an open player. But when you find the open man out on the wing for three, it feels good. Definitely looking forward to starting a legacy career soon.

CraigSca

11-27-2003, 08:59 AM

No one specifies which box they're playing on - is this available on PS2 yet?

Eaglesfan27

11-27-2003, 02:14 PM

I also picked it up for some variety on my long weekend off with lots of game playing as my wife has to work most of the weekend. It is out for the PS2, although I only found one copy at my local EB. I'm not sure why they only had one copy. It's an awesome game. I like the way it flows so much better then ESPN NBA which I also liked fairly well (but was disappointed with the lack of specific plays.) There are some great sliders over at operation sports which have most of my stats dead on realistic with some variance from game to game. I'm getting beat almost every game as I chose to start the dynasty mode where you have to pick a bottom of the barrel team. In this case, I'm UC-Riverside and my only decent players are a starting SF and PF. But, with sliders they tire appropriately even with shorter then 20 minute halves. All in all, I highly recommend the game.

By the way, Happy Thanksgiving all!

Edited to clarify: ESPN NBA doesn't have specific plays.. this game does :)

Cuckoo

11-28-2003, 12:13 PM

I could be wrong on this, but I don't think Sega's NCAA 2k4 is out yet for PS2. I bought their version last year and felt that it was pretty solid. I rented March Madness for PS2 earlier this week, and here are a few of my initial thoughts:

- I mentioned this earlier, but it's important enough to say first. This game is so slow. The menus are slow, the simming is slow, and the recruiting is slow. Now, I know there's a lot to be done, but this makes the experience of playing the game almost grueling. You sim a few days and have time to go grab a sandwich or do some plumbing work before it's finished. I've never minded this on other games, so it must be pretty bad.

- As others have mentioned, the game play is pretty solid. I played on all default settings and found most things to be accurate with the possible exception of maybe too many steals, but that might just be because I make bad passes all the time. Animation looks good, and the feel of the game is dead on, I'd say.

- The dynasty mode is absolutely boring in my opinion. Recruiting is minimal at best, and there is little to no real connection to the players you're going after. You don't even get messages about what they're looking for like you do in other EA titles.

- You can customize the non-conference opponents on your schedule, which is nice, but there are some problems in this area. For example, it is not uncommon to have three games in three days which rarely happens in real life, and the conference stuff is screwed up. If I'm not mistaken, in the Big 12, teams in the south would play every other south team twice and every north team once. This is not the case in the game.

- The game does the Sporting News cover each week similar to the way the football game does the SI cover, but it seems very worthless because it doesn't have league specific ones like the football one did. So, you get a lot of covers about Duke and Indiana, and rarely if ever about a team in other conferences.

- There are three standings pages listed: coaches, writer's, and RPI. Also, there is a bubble watch of sorts, but I've noticed that they've screwed up some stuff here too. For example, they rank the conferences based on overall record, not conference record, and award automatic births and conference winners according to the overall record instead of the conference one. This was really annoying for me. They also don't separate conferences into the divisions when there's a north/south or an east/west, also very annoying.

Those are just some general thoughts on it. I enjoy playing the actual games, but the rest is pretty pathetic. For that reason, I'll almost definitely rent the Sega one and buy it if it's better, which I'm sure it will be.

Eaglesfan27

11-28-2003, 12:22 PM

As I said in my previous post, Sega's NCAA 2k4 now called ESPN College Hoops is out. I will post a long review of it if anyone is interested, but I'm really enjoying it with the sliders posted by jistic for All-American over at operation sports. The dynasty mode is incredible. I am recruiting a really crappy 7'3 293 pound center in California. Players that big seem to be suitably rare, and most of them have minimal skills. This guy is no exception. He has no offensive skills, he is good for rebounding and blocking. His has poor speed, poor dribbling, etc. This is the only reason he seems interested in my small UC-Riverside school. Since he is interested, I decide to go visit one of his high school games. He dominates against a bunch of 6'2, 6'3 guys. The opposing Center is 6'5. He dunks over him quite a few times (despite poor dunk ratings, but I suspect he will have a much harder time dunking in college should I land him.) He is a great rebounder and because most of the high school guys can't shoot that effectively he ends up with 24 boards, and 16 points (mostly on putbacks.) He also ends up with 4 blocks (not more mostly cause the opposing team took outside shots for most of the game.) It was so fun and it gave me a great insight into the potential strengths and weaknesses of the recruit. I can't wait to see if we get him :)

ahbrady

11-28-2003, 02:38 PM

I just bought ESPN College Hoops the other day. I'm nearing the end of my first year in Legacy mode with Youngstown St. So far this game has been great. I haven't landed any recruits so far, but the recruiting process with the emails and being able to watch your future star is really interesting. Assuming the end of season/off-season stuff is solid this is game will be one of my favorites, behind NCAA '04.

MizzouRah

11-28-2003, 04:06 PM

Originally posted by Eaglesfan27
As I said in my previous post, Sega's NCAA 2k4 now called ESPN College Hoops is out. I will post a long review of it if anyone is interested, but I'm really enjoying it with the sliders posted by jistic for All-American over at operation sports. The dynasty mode is incredible. I am recruiting a really crappy 7'3 293 pound center in California. Players that big seem to be suitably rare, and most of them have minimal skills. This guy is no exception. He has no offensive skills, he is good for rebounding and blocking. His has poor speed, poor dribbling, etc. This is the only reason he seems interested in my small UC-Riverside school. Since he is interested, I decide to go visit one of his high school games. He dominates against a bunch of 6'2, 6'3 guys. The opposing Center is 6'5. He dunks over him quite a few times (despite poor dunk ratings, but I suspect he will have a much harder time dunking in college should I land him.) He is a great rebounder and because most of the high school guys can't shoot that effectively he ends up with 24 boards, and 16 points (mostly on putbacks.) He also ends up with 4 blocks (not more mostly cause the opposing team took outside shots for most of the game.) It was so fun and it gave me a great insight into the potential strengths and weaknesses of the recruit. I can't wait to see if we get him :)

Not that I have time for this game, but nice write up on your experience thus far. Pretty interesting.

Todd

Balldog

11-28-2003, 04:19 PM

Originally posted by Eaglesfan27
As I said in my previous post, Sega's NCAA 2k4 now called ESPN College Hoops is out. I will post a long review of it if anyone is interested, but I'm really enjoying it with the sliders posted by jistic for All-American over at operation sports. The dynasty mode is incredible. I am recruiting a really crappy 7'3 293 pound center in California. Players that big seem to be suitably rare, and most of them have minimal skills. This guy is no exception. He has no offensive skills, he is good for rebounding and blocking. His has poor speed, poor dribbling, etc. This is the only reason he seems interested in my small UC-Riverside school. Since he is interested, I decide to go visit one of his high school games. He dominates against a bunch of 6'2, 6'3 guys. The opposing Center is 6'5. He dunks over him quite a few times (despite poor dunk ratings, but I suspect he will have a much harder time dunking in college should I land him.) He is a great rebounder and because most of the high school guys can't shoot that effectively he ends up with 24 boards, and 16 points (mostly on putbacks.) He also ends up with 4 blocks (not more mostly cause the opposing team took outside shots for most of the game.) It was so fun and it gave me a great insight into the potential strengths and weaknesses of the recruit. I can't wait to see if we get him :)

Damn you, I really don't have money for this game now. :eek:

fflix

11-29-2003, 12:59 AM

I like College Hoop's cutscenes, but I think they get shown way too often. One of the more interesting ones I've seen is a scene with a couple making out while the camera zooms in on them.

MizzouRah

02-05-2004, 12:13 PM

Just saw the game is now $29.99 at Gamespot, Best Buy, etc. When did this happen?

I'm picking this one up today!

Eaglesfan27, how is your dynasty going?

Todd

Nyarlahotep

02-05-2004, 12:28 PM

Happened a few weeks ago if I recall correctly. Right after I bought it of course.

MizzouRah

02-05-2004, 06:03 PM

I went to 5 different stores before I found it by my house at Sam Goody. They had it at $49.99, but it rang up $29.99. Heck of a deal. See ya Quinn :)

Todd

Eaglesfan27

02-05-2004, 06:16 PM

My dynasty is going slowly, mainly cause of the bug (at least in my version and Cam's I believe - see another thread on the general board where we discussed removing the redshirt from players) where I cannot remove the redshirt from my star center to replace my junior center who went down for the year with a knee injury. It's still a very good game, but a couple of bugs keep it from being a GREAT game. I've only played 7 games since I discovered that bug 2 months ago. I keep trying to reframe this bug as a house rule to make it more challenging for my team, but it's annoying that it is being forced upon me.

MizzouRah

02-05-2004, 09:22 PM

illinifan999

02-05-2004, 09:44 PM

Since we're sharing,

I'm Norfolk State and I've played 3 full seasons, and half of the fourth. My first season was a train wreck. Seemed I had a bunch of seniors who just wanted to leave and not play basketball. My senior center was 6'9, and my backup was 6'7. Into recruiting I found Paul Harris, a 1* 6'11, 265 pound C. Him, Dameon Dixson (A pg) and T.J. Henderson who I suspect I recruited because he had the same name as the kid in Smart Guy. :P Now that they are sophmores, Paul average 19.2 PPG, and 11.9 RPG, Dameon averages 11.2 PPG, and TJ averages 10.2 PPG and 5.4 APG. In my third season I finally got ranked, but missed out on the tourney. This season after a HUGE, and I'm talking HUGE upset over Duke @ Cameroon, we cracked the top 25.

The Duke game was probably the best one I've ever played in any game. My gamestyle is to have my forwards set picks for my guards so they can go to the lane. Or pass it to Paul Harris and let him try to make a short basket. My forwards don't really score that much. Duke went into man defense which is my I-Love-This-Defense because it's easier to set a pick and drive. So at the end of the half with the score 46-43 Duke, after they had a 12-0 run to end the half.

Dukes 3P- 8-10
NSU 3P- 1-7
Points in the Paint:
Duke: 10
NSU: 36

We get the ball to start the half, and of course Duke steals it. They go on a 13-0 run, and I figure I'm done. I stick to my game plan of uptempo, drive it to the lane, and it starts to click. My defense is playing a little better and Duke hits a cold streak. pretty soon the score is 70-64 with 2 minutes left Duke. I run down the floor pass it to my SF Milton Love, he jacks up a 3 hits it, and is fouled. Now the score is 70-68 (BTW I HATE FREE THROW SHOOTING).

My defense is man-man with the PG pressing a little. They inbound it and I risk the foul and steal the ball, and I lay it up. Tie score, and I'm pissing myself. Duke runs the floor and their guy gets a WIDE open lane to drive through, and misses the lay-up. Harris grabs the rebound, and I call timeout. There's 10 seconds left now. I pass it in, and TJ gets the ball, he runs down the floor, gets caught up in a defender, I manuveur him around him, and with the clock expiring, he hits the leaner and we pull it off. I then proceed to lose to SC State, but hey WE BEAT DUKE!

MizzouRah

02-05-2004, 11:53 PM

What settings are you using?

Todd

cincyreds

02-06-2004, 05:54 AM

awesome game!

Pumpy Tudors

02-06-2004, 10:06 AM

I feel compelled to discuss my UNO dynasty, but I must go to work now. Doggone it.

MizzouRah

02-07-2004, 09:43 PM

Just started my season with Mizzou today. Lost Paulding in the first game, out for 8 weeks with a fractured leg. :( Won the game and then struggled against Coppen State at home, but pulled it out 63-60. I had two 5 star recruits attending that game. :)

I'm still thrilled I only paid $29.99 for it, I could care less how March Madness plays as this game has definitly been improved from last years version. Recruiting has never been this much fun in a game before!

Free throws are killing me.... ;)

Todd

Pumpy Tudors

02-07-2004, 10:21 PM

I know my team is just New Orleans, but I wish I could even get a TWO-star recruit to visit my games. My Privateers just aren't any good, I guess. :(

Eaglesfan27

02-07-2004, 11:15 PM

One key thing to know Pumpy Tudors: The post season recruiting can be VERY different then the inseason recruiting. I couldn't get any good players to come visit my team during the season, but after the season, I ended up recruiting a few 3 star players to the team. Keep some scholarships open for that postseason recruiting period.

sabotai

02-08-2004, 01:22 AM

MizzouRah

02-08-2004, 09:53 AM

I just picked up ESPN CH today and am having fun with it. THe controls are a bit hard to get used to, especially free throws. My one main dislike is the free throw. I know this has been the easy part of most basketball games, but there's not need to make it as complex as this. I know it'll just take practice to get used to it...but still. :)
I've been switching controls to neutral, letting my guy shoot his FT, then switch back to control of my team. I'm missing almost every free throw! :(

Todd

Balldog

02-08-2004, 12:21 PM

I've been switching controls to neutral, letting my guy shoot his FT, then switch back to control of my team. I'm missing almost every free throw! :(

Todd

I was doing that but it got annoying with the CPU changing my lineup every time. :mad:

Pumpy Tudors

02-08-2004, 12:32 PM

How many free throw attempts are you guys getting per game? I'm only getting maybe four to six with 15-minute halves. I guess I could bump the foul settings up even more, huh?

Butter

02-09-2004, 09:11 AM

If you don't mind missing out on the User Challenge thing, you could always switch the difficulty to Starter and shoot the free throws, then switch back to whichever setting you use on a regular basis.

I'm in my 2nd season with the University of Dayton. In the first year I beat Mizzou in round 1 of the NCAA tournament on a 15 foot leaner at the buzzer 91-89, then proceeded to get handed my hat by North Carolina, 89-79, in a game I lead as late as with 5 minutes to go, up 71-67.

A couple of my favorite parts of the game, now that I've played a good 40 solid games with it:

-If you panic and start jacking up shots (especially on All-American difficulty), it won't help you catch up. There is no "catch-up" logic. I think that's what happened to me against UNC, once they took the lead late, I rushed shots and got killed. If you stay within your offense (which for me is a lot of guard penetration, or post back-downs), you will do pretty well. Unless your team sucks. In which case, don't schedule up.

-Playing to your team's strengths makes a lot of difference. In my first year, I had 2 strong low-post players, so I played more of a slow-down, pound the ball inside game. After recruiting 5 new players, though, my outside depth improved a great deal. Now I like to run-and-gun and penetrate. My point guards are more involved, and the inside players are getting easy shots once the big men are drawn to the penetrating guard. One new PG I got is unbelievably quick, and has made mince-meat of the 2 weak schools I have played so far (Iona and Georgetown). I have a quick SG that complements him pretty well, and I can vary my strategy based on the lineup I have in at the time. I have put over 100 on both opponents so far... but I scheduled up this year, and have Maryland, UConn, Illinois, Ohio State (who is top 15 in the game), and Syracuse coming up.

-Now that I've bumped up foul logic all the way, fouls are pretty realistic, and vary from game to game. Some games I have several guys with 3 by halftime, other times I have maybe one guy with 2 fouls. The free throw shooting does suck, and if they would just provide an alternate control or something, that would bump this game up from good to great, I think.

MJ4H

02-09-2004, 09:25 AM

MizzouRah

02-09-2004, 03:55 PM

On free throws, rather than pushing the sticks towards the middle (this refers to PS2 version, btw), try pushing them both straight down all the way, then slowly rotating them inwards, making sure they are pushing against the limit of their movement outward. I find you have a lot more control over the sticks this way. Hope this helps.

Thanks for the tip, I'll have to try this when I get home. I'm now 2-2 after getting shelled by Indiana and losing to Gonzaga at the buzzer.

With jistic's slider settings, the game is playing great. I do have one beef with the game, which hasn't changed since last years version. When a guy is close in (ie, getting an offensive rebound), instead of laying the ball up or slamming it home, they often just shoot it (about 2 ft from the basket) and miss it about 90% of the time. This can happen over and over again... frustrates the hell out of me.

My wife usually hears, "Make a freakin basket you friggin idiot!!!!!!!"

Todd

sabotai

02-09-2004, 04:16 PM

Mizzou, I've noticed that too. I also notice that the range for layups and dunks is really small. Many times I'll be on the fast break, be close to the basket and want the guy to go for the layup or slam, but instead he stops, jumps BACKWARDS and shoots. Dude, the layup is wdie open and you're in the f'n paint! I could even do it and I suck at basketball.

Oh well.

illinifan999

02-09-2004, 04:38 PM

Yeah, that pisses me off the most about this game. So many times especially for my Center. I can be hard screaming, dunk the freakin ball you dumbass. I'm kinda hoping they add a different button for dunking/lay-up like March Madness.

MizzouRah

02-09-2004, 06:26 PM

:D

Glad you guys see this as well. Pisses me off to no end and one of the reasons 2k3 was traded in. The recruiting has been a blast though and has kept me interested thus far.

Todd

sabotai

02-09-2004, 06:33 PM

I just lost a game because my center missed ANOTHER easy shot off an offensive rebound. Down 61-60, My PG gets a steal with about 10 second left, drives down the court (my center was at half-court because he's a slow piece of crap and wasn't back down the court yet). He gets down there with 5 seconds left, shoots, misses. My center, with no one around him gets the easy offensive board and puts it up...and it bounces off the rim and I lose.

_I_ make that shot 99% of the time, and someone who plays in college can't make it more than once out of several chances in a game? Ugh...

illinifan999

02-09-2004, 06:41 PM

Eaglesfan27

02-09-2004, 06:47 PM

With jistic's slider settings, the game is playing great. I do have one beef with the game, which hasn't changed since last years version. When a guy is close in (ie, getting an offensive rebound), instead of laying the ball up or slamming it home, they often just shoot it (about 2 ft from the basket) and miss it about 90% of the time. This can happen over and over again... frustrates the hell out of me.

My wife usually hears, "Make a freakin basket you friggin idiot!!!!!!!"

Todd

I also use Jistic's sliders and love them. One thing some people don't notice about this game (not saying this is the case here) is that there is a lot of ratings including two different ratings for dunking. One is for dunking from a standstill (or at least it seems to effect that.) My guys with high dunk ratings don't generally do that shooting from 2 foot crap, although the rest of my guys do. I find it unrealistic that so many players won't do the layup but I otherwise like the way the game does this.

mgadfly

02-09-2004, 06:54 PM

I also use Jistic's sliders and love them. One thing some people don't notice about this game (not saying this is the case here) is that there is a lot of ratings including two different ratings for dunking. One is for dunking from a standstill (or at least it seems to effect that.) My guys with high dunk ratings don't generally do that shooting from 2 foot crap, although the rest of my guys do. I find it unrealistic that so many players won't do the layup but I otherwise like the way the game does this.

Where can we get his slider settings from?

Eaglesfan27

02-09-2004, 06:55 PM

Operationsports

MizzouRah

02-09-2004, 08:15 PM

I have to score 90% of my points in the paint since none of my guys can make a 12 foot jump shot. Then I see a player from the other team make a turn around fade away three pointer with a hand in his face.. That makes me sad.
Same thing happened to me vs Gonzaga, a guy hits an NBA 3-pointer with 5 seconds left and I lose. Peed me off to no end!

Todd

rjolley

02-11-2004, 12:33 PM

Is anyone having problems with Legacy mode? That's the main reason I bought the game...to play a career and have players move up to ESPN NBA. If this doesn't work, I may just take it back.

illinifan999

02-11-2004, 03:18 PM

What kind of problems? Besides the occasional freeze-up nothing has been going wrong that I've noticed. Except for some reason the Leaders don't all show up. My center averages 19.5 points a game, and the leaders go from 22.0-17.0. My center isn't included.

rjolley

02-11-2004, 04:33 PM

Had a freeze last night while simming games and have heard reports of legacy just not working right.

What's the difference between career and open legacy modes? (at work, so no manual)

Eaglesfan27

02-11-2004, 05:04 PM

I've seen a few problems with Legacy. Too many recruits are left-handed (I think they mixed up the code for left vs right handed.) Also, the game occasionally freezes. Also, some people (myself included) cannot un-redshirt a player when another player is injured. The game freezes every time I try to un-redshirt any of my guys. Therefore, I'm slowly playing through a dynasty with only 10 guys on the roster. Otherwise, it is a very good game.

rjolley

02-11-2004, 05:11 PM

So, either never redshirt a player or recruit well so the 10 you have playing are good. Gotcha. How long do you guys play in legacy? I think 15 minutes works well...but I like to run and gun.

MizzouRah

02-11-2004, 05:41 PM

In Legacy mode, you start with a low tier team and work your way up. In Open mode, you can start with any team you want. I think that's the only difference between the two modes, except if you start with a top tier team like Duke, you have to win right away.

I use a setting of 15 mins as well.

Todd

cincyreds

02-11-2004, 05:53 PM

15 minutes is good for me too.

I am in my second year with my LSU Tigers.

rjolley

02-12-2004, 07:50 AM

Started a new season with 15 minute halfs and a created team. Did well my first year, though I couldn't get anyone to sign. Got all of my guys in the late signing period.

Has anyone ever gotten a recruit to say they are coming to your game? Mine always say decline, but then they'll send an email about how good the game was. Maybe I just misread... Also about recruiting, I love how you can go and watch their game. What a great feature. Now, if they only showed up-to-date season stats for recruits...

Finally, when does player progression happen? I just went through my first season and everyone is rated the same as they were last year. Do the ratings get better as the season goes along, during the off-season, or both?