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jeffruby · 09-05-2003, 07:11 PM

i am a long time madden player and have ps2 ver now. and i love it. was wondering how the GAMEPLAY differs . i pretty much ONLY play online so i dont care bout the franchise mode ...etc. thx

i3man · 09-05-2003, 09:10 PM

You're asking for trouble aren't you LOL. If you love Madden, it's unlikely you'll be happy with ESPN. It's like oil and water, they don't mix.

My copy of ESPN is gone already after only 2 days...I couldn't stand it. You might like it, you'll never know unless you try it but this is 2 years in a row I bought NFL/ESPN and got rid of it within days, I won't make the same mistake next year.

TDKing · 09-06-2003, 03:21 PM

"can someone pls post intelligent comparison to espn?"
I doubt it !

Sarah · 09-06-2003, 03:30 PM

Read game reviews about the 2 games. Reviewers for the most part compared both games anyway.

KymeraGB · 09-06-2003, 04:02 PM

there 2 totally diff games, you gotta try it to see if you like it.

Give it a rent.

VenomEB · 09-06-2003, 05:00 PM

I have been a Madden fan for 12 or 13 years. I rented 2K3 last year and hated it. Bought Madden this year, am furious with EA over the XBox import bug and the lack of communication on a concrete new disk date. I have finished my first season and am awaiting the new disk so that I can import. So while waiting I rented ESPN yesterday and let me tell you its REALLY good. If I don't see my replacement disk in the next week or so I'm probably returning MAdden for ESPN. Don't get me wrong I love Madden but this issue is really burning me. They were quick to acknowledge it but have been silent since and I'm getting impatient. Here is my analysis....basically the only reason I stand by Madden is because of the companion college game that ESPN lacks and the more in-depth, user friendly off-season. ESPN has passed MAdden in almost all other categories. The gameplay and graphics are top-notch. The tackling animations are very nice and there are a ton of them, while Madden's animations are repetitive. The sound is much better in ESPN and don't even get me started on the presentation and atmosphere. Its AWESOME. Weekly primetime shows complete with stats, analysis, AND highlights as well as a great halftime report. Now to a few things Madden does better (besides offseason). I like how in Madden the CPU automatically subs in people in the preseason so that the backups get the majority of the playing time. ESPN doesn't do this (that I know of.....maybe you have to turn it on). The comp plays its starters ALL game long. I don't like having to manually sub in all players that I want to get playing time. Also I like how Madden presents the progression after the preseason. In ESPN I had to search for it, but it is there. Stat tracking in both games is fairly accurate there is no clear cut winner here HOWEVER in ESPN you can select the sim quarter length which will solve any issues you may find with the stats. One thing that is better in ESPN is that lineman and linebackers actually get more tackles like they should while in MAdden I find that my secondary is getting most of the tackles even when I stop a run for 2 or 3 yards. All in all I am having more fun with ESPN, but I haven't played enough yet, but like I said at this point I can't import classes (my main madden love) and if that continues much longer I WILL switch. IF ESPN surprises us (which I have heard rumors they will) with a companion college game next year AND Madden doesn't make drastic changes to animations, presentaton etc I think I will switch games. Hope this helps anyone that wants an honest, non-biased opinion.

seanmac · 09-06-2003, 05:44 PM

I find it bizarre that so many people can only play one game or the other, but I guess that's habit for you. I have both Madden and ESPN for Xbox, and like you I play the majority of my games online, so Madden is largely finished for the season. But if you are a PS2 owner, I would guess that you will consistently have more games available for Madden. My understanding is that most of the people who play ESPN/2K3 do so for the Xbox, and the PS2 lobbies were pretty empty last year. I haven't heard anything one way or the other in regards to this season.

As for gameplay comparisons, you are looking at two very solid games of football. Clearly the two companies are paying attention to each other, as there is a lot of overlap in terms of features. Madden probably has a more elegent set of pre-snap options, but ESPN has a much, much better audible system. The player control in both games is excellent, and the fluidity of motion is excellent. On the Xbox, ESPN is the significantly better looking game, but Madden is no slouch in that department either. In terms of Xs and Os, I think ESPN is the better game- the defenders play more soundly in the pass game without needing presnap help, the offensive and defensive playbooks do a better job of capturing the different teams, and the passing system is predicated on drops, something Madden is sorely in need of emulating. I could go into it at some length, but it's a Madden forum, so I'll just keep it short and say that I think the ESPN game engine is the best I have ever seen. But Madden is also an excellent game, and you are not going to go wrong either way. If I had a PS2 and was looking for online games, I would probably want to own the combo of ESPN and NCAA, but you are not going to go wrong no matter what you do, as there are three excellent, excellent games out there (and I know a lot of people who really like this year's Gameday, for that matter).

yoyoctw · 09-06-2003, 06:26 PM

For a very intelligent comparison of Madden vs. ESPN, I think the best places to go would be Gamespot (www.gamespot.com), since they seem to usually be pretty unbiased and usually have very good reviews for comparisons, but even better is a comparison of all the football games that just came out on Gamespy.com.

Link: http://www.gamespy.com/articles/september03/nflroundup/

Not surprisingly, ESPN is the overall winner.

09-05-2003, 07:11 PM	#1
jeffruby Pro OVR: 4 Join Date: Jul 2002	can someone pls post intelligent comparison to espn? i am a long time madden player and have ps2 ver now. and i love it. was wondering how the GAMEPLAY differs . i pretty much ONLY play online so i dont care bout the franchise mode ...etc. thx

09-05-2003, 09:10 PM	#2
i3man Rookie OVR: 4 Join Date: Jul 2002	Re: can someone pls post intelligent comparison to espn? You're asking for trouble aren't you LOL. If you love Madden, it's unlikely you'll be happy with ESPN. It's like oil and water, they don't mix. My copy of ESPN is gone already after only 2 days...I couldn't stand it. You might like it, you'll never know unless you try it but this is 2 years in a row I bought NFL/ESPN and got rid of it within days, I won't make the same mistake next year.

09-06-2003, 03:21 PM	#3
TDKing MVP OVR: 12 Join Date: Feb 2003 Location: South Jersey	Re: can someone pls post intelligent comparison to espn? "can someone pls post intelligent comparison to espn?" I doubt it !

09-06-2003, 03:30 PM	#4
Sarah MVP OVR: 14 Join Date: May 2003	Re: can someone pls post intelligent comparison to espn? Read game reviews about the 2 games. Reviewers for the most part compared both games anyway.

09-06-2003, 04:02 PM	#5
KymeraGB Pro OVR: 5 Join Date: Mar 2003	Re: can someone pls post intelligent comparison to espn? there 2 totally diff games, you gotta try it to see if you like it. Give it a rent.

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09-06-2003, 05:00 PM	#6
VenomEB Rookie OVR: 1 Join Date: Aug 2003	Re: can someone pls post intelligent comparison to espn? I have been a Madden fan for 12 or 13 years. I rented 2K3 last year and hated it. Bought Madden this year, am furious with EA over the XBox import bug and the lack of communication on a concrete new disk date. I have finished my first season and am awaiting the new disk so that I can import. So while waiting I rented ESPN yesterday and let me tell you its REALLY good. If I don't see my replacement disk in the next week or so I'm probably returning MAdden for ESPN. Don't get me wrong I love Madden but this issue is really burning me. They were quick to acknowledge it but have been silent since and I'm getting impatient. Here is my analysis....basically the only reason I stand by Madden is because of the companion college game that ESPN lacks and the more in-depth, user friendly off-season. ESPN has passed MAdden in almost all other categories. The gameplay and graphics are top-notch. The tackling animations are very nice and there are a ton of them, while Madden's animations are repetitive. The sound is much better in ESPN and don't even get me started on the presentation and atmosphere. Its AWESOME. Weekly primetime shows complete with stats, analysis, AND highlights as well as a great halftime report. Now to a few things Madden does better (besides offseason). I like how in Madden the CPU automatically subs in people in the preseason so that the backups get the majority of the playing time. ESPN doesn't do this (that I know of.....maybe you have to turn it on). The comp plays its starters ALL game long. I don't like having to manually sub in all players that I want to get playing time. Also I like how Madden presents the progression after the preseason. In ESPN I had to search for it, but it is there. Stat tracking in both games is fairly accurate there is no clear cut winner here HOWEVER in ESPN you can select the sim quarter length which will solve any issues you may find with the stats. One thing that is better in ESPN is that lineman and linebackers actually get more tackles like they should while in MAdden I find that my secondary is getting most of the tackles even when I stop a run for 2 or 3 yards. All in all I am having more fun with ESPN, but I haven't played enough yet, but like I said at this point I can't import classes (my main madden love) and if that continues much longer I WILL switch. IF ESPN surprises us (which I have heard rumors they will) with a companion college game next year AND Madden doesn't make drastic changes to animations, presentaton etc I think I will switch games. Hope this helps anyone that wants an honest, non-biased opinion.

09-06-2003, 05:44 PM	#7
seanmac MVP OVR: 8 Join Date: Jul 2002	Re: can someone pls post intelligent comparison to espn? I find it bizarre that so many people can only play one game or the other, but I guess that's habit for you. I have both Madden and ESPN for Xbox, and like you I play the majority of my games online, so Madden is largely finished for the season. But if you are a PS2 owner, I would guess that you will consistently have more games available for Madden. My understanding is that most of the people who play ESPN/2K3 do so for the Xbox, and the PS2 lobbies were pretty empty last year. I haven't heard anything one way or the other in regards to this season. As for gameplay comparisons, you are looking at two very solid games of football. Clearly the two companies are paying attention to each other, as there is a lot of overlap in terms of features. Madden probably has a more elegent set of pre-snap options, but ESPN has a much, much better audible system. The player control in both games is excellent, and the fluidity of motion is excellent. On the Xbox, ESPN is the significantly better looking game, but Madden is no slouch in that department either. In terms of Xs and Os, I think ESPN is the better game- the defenders play more soundly in the pass game without needing presnap help, the offensive and defensive playbooks do a better job of capturing the different teams, and the passing system is predicated on drops, something Madden is sorely in need of emulating. I could go into it at some length, but it's a Madden forum, so I'll just keep it short and say that I think the ESPN game engine is the best I have ever seen. But Madden is also an excellent game, and you are not going to go wrong either way. If I had a PS2 and was looking for online games, I would probably want to own the combo of ESPN and NCAA, but you are not going to go wrong no matter what you do, as there are three excellent, excellent games out there (and I know a lot of people who really like this year's Gameday, for that matter).

09-06-2003, 06:26 PM	#8
yoyoctw Rookie OVR: 1 Join Date: Sep 2003	Re: can someone pls post intelligent comparison to espn? For a very intelligent comparison of Madden vs. ESPN, I think the best places to go would be Gamespot (www.gamespot.com), since they seem to usually be pretty unbiased and usually have very good reviews for comparisons, but even better is a comparison of all the football games that just came out on Gamespy.com. Link: http://www.gamespy.com/articles/september03/nflroundup/ Not surprisingly, ESPN is the overall winner.