**New Videos!!..RAIDERS VS CHEIFS!!**

[inkcil]

Well,

Madden looks to be shaping up to be a decent game. Maybe it's b/c I played the ESPN series the last 2 years, so Madden is not worn-out for me like it was when the 2004 edition dropped.

Anyway, getting away from the series for the last 2 years was probably the best thing to happen to me since I'll have no other "new" options for the next few years.

I say that b/c I see some of the tackling animations and player models and it looks a lot better than the last time that I owned a Madden game, which was the 2003 version.

In effect, b/c I didn't play Madden the last 2 years, things don't look as stale to me as it would for someone who's been playing it religiously every year. Which leads me to wonder, "How is is that people who have been playing it every year not kind of worn out on it?" More good than bad from the looks of this one. I'm still gonna wait for the 360 version, though.

Things I liked:
Some of the tackle and "being tackled" animations (like the Raider RB flipped upside down for a loss in the backfield and stepping over guys after you tackled them)
Coach close-up commentary in beginning
I noticed some emotion/celebration after big plays (Collins slamming ball to ground after being sacked)
Running on the inside seemed fluid
On the second clip, there is a passing play where a rb undercut a blitzing LB and sent him sprawling giving Collins time to complete the throw...it looked real.
When Raiders were on offense, crowd reaction AI was good.
Nice cutscene of coach complaining on sidelines...
No cheap completions downfield...double coverage works.
There was a pre-snap scene that was like a full-picture cutscene as the lines got into position...I thought that was pretty tight.
CPU called the PI correctly.
The banner looks goods...shows downs, completion and conversion %, etc.
Maybe its just me, but it seems like the atmosphere was tense in the second half b/c more emotion showed by players after big plays.
The on-screen graphic that showed Surtain's stats after his pic.

Didn't like:
Crowd reaction AI not too smart w/Cheifs on offense...cheering when Cheifs failed to convert 3rd and short, for example
I hate that all the menus are on the screen during most cutscenes...takes away from the cutscene.
Also some good cutscenes were cut short (or maybe user was pressing buttons to get through it).
Pretty much same old commentary
75% of the time players are tackled they end up sprawling on their backs...lol

[EASPORTSGUY]

I love MADDEN, however the gameplay seems to be
very similar to last year. And the graphics don't look
improved. I guess March 2006 and the release of
the PS3 is only 8 months away. The game should take
a major step forward in the graphics department!

[ExtremeGamer]

Quote: Originally Posted by EASPORTSGUY

I love MADDEN, however the gameplay seems to be very similar to last year. And the graphics don't look improved. I guess March 2006 and the release of the PS3 is only 8 months away. The game should take a major step forward in the graphics department!

No pictures in your signature please.

[burnwood]

Quote: Originally Posted by EASPORTSGUY

I love MADDEN, however the gameplay seems to be very similar to last year. And the graphics don't look improved. I guess March 2006 and the release of the PS3 is only 8 months away. The game should take a major step forward in the graphics department!

Thought I was about to read a poem at first.

[bigmoe]

Quote: Originally Posted by burnwood

Thought I was about to read a poem at first.

OK.....

Madden ..Michaels ...ESPN
Same old......same old
Here we go again

Presentation ?...crowds cheering for the wrong team
Will we see Pass interference
Or helmets flying to the extreme

Player ratings...sliders to make the game fantastic
Who has the best
for sim play..Pared or Jistic

QB..Vision cone too light ..too dark
If Manning throws off the left foot
Does he miss his mark

Graphics..grass textures..wind and snow
Is this the best Madden ever
How should I know!

[Skyboxer]

Quote: Originally Posted by seanmac

I swear, comments like this just boggle my mind. A game might have the best game engine and best AI ever devised, but if there isn't "emotion," people are going to gripe about it. I'd rather that the game makes you supply the emotion (here you go, jump up and down in your living room after a big play) than having it make you supply other things, like, say, defensive back AI (cough, NCAA, cough). Games rise and fall on their game engines, their playbooks and their AI. The presentation issues are irrelevant- or rather, they're not irrelevant right now, when people sit around and get themselves into a lather over preview videos, but they become irrelevant as soon as people have the game in their hands and stumble across the first major AI issue.

As soon as they put out a game like that I will agree. IMO presentation is FAR from irrelevant. It adds to the atmoshpere of the game you are playing,
especially when you enter the playoffs or Super Bowl. I want the best AI and gameplay also, but how many years after years are people going to let EA slide by? When people complain about the engine etc the excuse is "There isn't much more they can do with the game with the current engine". So that leaves time to add something , including adding to the presentation. However when they don't, "Presentation is Irrelevant".


No matter what anyone else says, IMO Segas ESPN NFL games presentation added some excitement to the game.

With that said, I'm probably the most excited about Madden than I have been the last 3 years. I for one love the passing cone addition and hope it's a great addition.

[pfunk880]

I agree that presentation is important. I think a game with poor presentation just makes its gameplay flaws stand out even more.

[michigan21]

SOS. Same old ****. No more needs to be said.