NCAA Football 2004 - Best Ever?

[Art01]

I have played 04, 06, 07 and 08 for Original XBOX - all in "Coach Mode" - meaning QB Autothrow On and only taking control to execute kicks and occasionally a Fair Catch on Punt Returns.

In my opinion, gameplay in 08 is the smoothest of all versions I have played. 08 is the deepest game in terms of playbook options, etc. I have enjoyed the challenge of trying to get the game to play my way - emphasis on defense and running. I have tried many slider and difficulty level combinations in my quest. I am finding that interceptions and effects of mementum can be reduced considerably by changing difficulty levels during game play in order to keep the CPU in check. Currently, I am playing games at 8 minute quarters with mostly realistic results in terms of turnovers, game play, runs versus passes, and acceptable levels of "silly results" such as long passes completed into double coverage, poor defensive pursuit angles, etc.

I expect that my settings would not work for other players because other players will have different expectations and different views of what is enjoyable - particularly when comparing styles of play such as arcade versus coach mode. So, I encourage all players to experiment with all the settings to find the ones that provide the most satisfying results.

We should all remember that this game, in whatever version we play, is a software simulation, that all software has issues, tradeoffs, and inherent limitations and that, ocassionally, we can expect to encounter instances of oddball behavior. When they do occur, just reset or try other actions to eliminate the problem.

I paid $20.00 for NCAA08 new at Walmart about two months ago and I have certainly gotten my money's worth from the game.

I will happily move to the 360 if EA Sports provides the means to play Coach Mode on the 360. Being able to save a game in progress would also be nice - Madden 09 for Original XBOX continues to have both of these features.

Regards to all,

Art

[mercalnd]

Quote: Originally Posted by Cusefan

Nostalgia factor. I remember playing that games with my buddies for hours and hours.

The fact that you were playing with buddies (I'm assuming head to head here) probably explains why you enjoyed it so much. Against the CPU, it was very common to see the CPU qb complete 4 passes out of 25 attemps and things of that nature. Of course, those four completions totaled 225 yards...

[bigjake62505]

I was so dissapointed with 09 I went to game stop and bought madden and NCAA 08 for the xbox. I have played it a few time with great results but I just cant get into it. I wish I could find some HD cables for my xbox to see if that makes it better.

[bsb13]

There is no way I could go back to 2004. The lack of pre-snap adjustments and the ease of just bombing it deep would kill it for me.

[blackscorpion11]

Don't really remember 2004, that had joey harrington on it right?

I swear by 2006, fun to play and coach a dynasty.. players actually matured and developed skills from season to season.. Player development seems non existent in next gen versions..2009 worst of all, cant tell freshmen from seniors in this game.. speed ratings is all that matters. Being smart, experience, composure, making the right play at the right time..

not present in 2009.

waiting on 2010 version, hoping for 2k sports or some other developer to put a college game out.

[jdrhammer]

Quote: Originally Posted by blackscorpion11

Don't really remember 2004, that had joey harrington on it right? I swear by 2006, fun to play and coach a dynasty.. players actually matured and developed skills from season to season.. Player development seems non existent in next gen versions..2009 worst of all, cant tell freshmen from seniors in this game.. speed ratings is all that matters. Being smart, experience, composure, making the right play at the right time.. not present in 2009. waiting on 2010 version, hoping for 2k sports or some other developer to put a college game out.

2003 had Harrington on the cover. 04 had Carson Palmer. It was the first year to have athletes in recruiting. It played really smooth.

[ehh]

Quote: Originally Posted by rudyjuly2

Never played '04 but I find it hard to play any older sports title. The rosters are very outdated and the gameplay is often flawed. Nostalgia is very forgiving. If the NCAA team released NCAA 2010 on the PS2 with the '04 engine and updated rosters, it would probably get trashed by the community.

If they took PS2/Xbox 07's gameplay and got rid of the awful momentum meter which was an absolute game killer then I would love NCAA '10 on PS3. Same could be said if they took 06's gameplay and toned down the impact players.

Last gen gameplay, animations and dynasty, next gen graphics and I'd be all set. Shows how bad next gen NCAA has been.

This thread makes me want to start a dynasty in '06 again.

As for '05, the things that killed that game for me were...

- Slowdown behind LOS on running plays
- Dropped passes
- The debut of superman LB's and DB's
- DB's played volleyball, the ball would get knocked around and bounce all over the place on a defended pass.

I played a few games in it the other week and it wasn't quite as bad as I remember it being, but there's no reason to play it these days with '06 available.

[GoToledo]

Quote: Originally Posted by ehh

If they took PS2/Xbox 07's gameplay and got rid of the awful momentum meter which was an absolute game killer then I would love NCAA '10 on PS3. Same could be said if they took 06's gameplay and toned down the impact players. Last gen gameplay, animations and dynasty, next gen graphics and I'd be all set. Shows how bad next gen NCAA has been. This thread makes me want to start a dynasty in '06 again. As for '05, the things that killed that game for me were... - Slowdown behind LOS on running plays - Dropped passes - The debut of superman LB's and DB's - DB's played volleyball, the ball would get knocked around and bounce all over the place on a defended pass. I played a few games in it the other week and it wasn't quite as bad as I remember it being, but there's no reason to play it these days with '06 available.

Yes. As sad as it is, at this point all I want is last gen gameplay with next gen graphics. That would be incredible.