NFL Head Coach 09 Review

[gjb01]

Isn't a lot of the negotiating and stuff like that already in Madden franchise? I love sim games but just don't get the appeal of this when you could have both the onfield playing experience and the management experience.

[Josh_Looman]

Re: NFL Head Coach 09 Review

What a great review....excellent job, Terry. You also had me laughing at my desk with your documented struggles, firings, etc. Great stuff!!

But I fear your score with be the exception to the rule. Based on what' I've seen at other review sites (trend wise), I think this game will be getting ripped for it's bugs and yes, it's complexity. I'm expecting to see other's score it in the 5-7.5 ranges. Short-sighted reviews with some legit gripes, but not seeing the good that FAR outweighs the negatives; most of which should be fixed in a patch soon.

I, for one, love the game. And I loved your quote "For me, it’s closer to a 10. I found it extremely easy to look past some of the issues that it has since I was easily able to work around them, and the on-field action kept me up until two in the morning." That really says it all. I've gotten so LITTLE sleep since I started this damn game up it's crazy. I'm almost to the point where I have to force myself to leave it alone during the week and save it for weekends!

Thanks for the great review...I hope it makes waves and helps to counter one or two of the other 'big' sites probable lack-luster reviews somewhat. People need to buy this game and support quality gaming...money sends the message to the companies that this is what we want.

This was a great review. I really appreciate it, guys.

And if we get knocked for bugs in other reviews (with Head Coach essentially being a first year product) I'm going to be frustrated. Every other sports game out there has huge bugs when shipped.

The baseball game I'm playing right now has some very major bugs and it was rated very highly this year. I got into my second year offseason last night in that game and not ONE free agent was signed. So big time players like David Ortiz and Roy Halladay could be signed for 1 yr/500k. To me...that is a gamekiller.

I'm not making excuses for the bugs...as I've said, I take full responsiblity for these things slipping through.

But to base a review on bugs that can be fixed and to give a game a low score because of it...I'm not a fan of that approach. There's a difference between a game that is terrible vs. a game that is fun yet has some bugs.

[ChicagoSparty]

Re: NFL Head Coach 09 Review

Isn't a lot of the negotiating and stuff like that already in Madden franchise? I love sim games but just don't get the appeal of this when you could have both the onfield playing experience and the management experience.

For me, there are two primary reasons:

A -- The management experience here is much deeper and more realistic than in Madden.

B -- In Madden, if you're good with the controls, you can make most players into HOFamers. Here, they have to (i) fit into the scheme; (ii) know the playbook; (iii) have the physical ability; and (iv) have the mental ability.

Madden sits in the CE box. It seems like a great game on its own, and the presentation is spectacular, but it's just not as interesting as HC.

[El Greazy 1]

I don't understand the score. While I've read a lot of great reviews from people, there is still a large list of bugs and glitches, some of them being game breakers yet it still receives a 9? What is going on here? A GAME BREAKING BUG means it completely ruins the game. That's like saying Halo 4 gets a 9 but oh yeah, there is a bug where your opponents won't die in online matches, ie: game breaker!!!!

Even still, I'm very much looking forward to testing this game out. Goes to show you EA what can be done to a game when you take the time to put some work into it, **coughMADDENcough**. If EA can make the patches a go, as promised, then I could warrant the reviewers rating of a 9.

[ChicagoSparty]

Re: NFL Head Coach 09 Review

I don't understand the score. While I've read a lot of great reviews from people, there is still a large list of bugs and glitches, some of them being game breakers yet it still receives a 9? What is going on here? A GAME BREAKING BUG means it completely ruins the game. That's like saying Halo 4 gets a 9 but oh yeah, there is a bug where your opponents won't die in online matches, ie: game breaker!!!!

Even still, I'm very much looking forward to testing this game out. Goes to show you EA what can be done to a game when you take the time to put some work into it, **coughMADDENcough**. If EA can make the patches a go, as promised, then I could warrant the reviewers rating of a 9.

Which ones?

[Caveman Mafia]

Re: NFL Head Coach 09 Review

the negotiating in madden has always been terribly shallow and would actually make it possible to sign an entire squad of veteran pro bowlers or , my favorite, using draft picks alone, end up with 10 1st round draft picks (and thats without trading future picks).... the depth this game strives to achieve is amazing and surprising in the sense that this is a product released by EA

[TCrouch]

Re: NFL Head Coach 09 Review

El Greazy, let me clarify that right up front: the reason it didn't impact my score is directly because of the fact that the developers are on here so much and have given us very simple workarounds. My "real" job is a technical support rep for a software company, so I'm probably more versed than most in how complicated it is to account for every little issue that arises. The support that has been given to the community to account for, acknowledge, and provide solutions to the bugs that crop up is the best I've seen from a major company with a major release like this.

Josh, I understand it sucks, a lot of reviews will slam a game for bugs. I will dock it some if it breaks the immersion and really messes up the experience, like the injury bug would have done withour your guys' giving us a workaround. Since I had simple ways to get around the issues that it does have, it didn't really dampen my enjoyment of the experience.

[swaldo]

Bought the CE and haven't even touched Madden yet. Good review and fair score. With a game this deep you have to be cool about some of the issues. If total hours of play were the only way to score a review then Head Coach would definately get a 10.

[Lintyfresh85]

Re: NFL Head Coach 09 Review

Do many forum posters understand the concept of what a "game breaking bug" really is?

That means that one bug has rendered the game unplayable. So we're talking a MASSIVE bug. People throw around the word "game breaker" like they throw around the word "great" when describing an above average player. There are NO bugs in this game that "break" it.

Frustrating? Yes. "Game breaking"? No.

[mwjr]

great review. i wish they would make a coach sim for college football!

I'd love that, too. But I'd love to see that NCAA game from an AD's perspective.

In addition to developing your football team, what about managing boosters; allocating money to other athletic programs; building new workout and practice favilities.

[deebo2246]

^^^^^I do not think that concept would be as big as an NCAA Head Coach game. However they could use the AD in place of the GM and it can work that way.

[sroz39]

I'm stuck on the fence with this one. I've only played the demo that's on PSN and admittedly, this is NOT my type of game. I love Franchise/Owner modes and such, but I equally like playing the games.

But this one is SOOOOOOOO good at what it does. You guys did a great job with it...and also a great job with finding a way to make a demo out of a game that doesn't lend itself too well to a "quick" look, so to speak.

I have a feeling that me skipping out on buying Madden for the third straight year was a good choice, because I now have some cash to pick this one up. I think it'll be too much to resist this one too much longer. ESPECIALLY when the NFL season kicks off.

Again, nice work guys. And a great review. Playing the demo, I wasn't aware of some of the deeper aspects of this game.

[Lieutenant Dan]

Re: NFL Head Coach 09 Review

El Greazy, let me clarify that right up front: the reason it didn't impact my score is directly because of the fact that the developers are on here so much and have given us very simple workarounds.

Josh, I understand it sucks, a lot of reviews will slam a game for bugs. I will dock it some if it breaks the immersion and really messes up the experience, like the injury bug would have done withour your guys' giving us a workaround. Since I had simple ways to get around the issues that it does have, it didn't really dampen my enjoyment of the experience.

Josh, I love ya, man. And I love how you guys are here listening to us and working on fixing things to give us the best experience possible.

I was also not indicting the game in any way; I scored it a 9 on the reader's vote. I don't think you took it that way, but I just wanted to assure you, my thoughts were that other sites/reviewers aren't necessarily privy to the same info on workarounds, nor the knowledge work is under way to address the issues, hence when they encounter the bugs during their review process it could really hurt the score. And I HATE that because, sadly, not everyone reads OS reviews to get the real deal. They'll just read IGN's or GS review and call it a day, and if they do, they could miss out on one of the best NFL experiences ever created.

[Lieutenant Dan]

Re: NFL Head Coach 09 Review

Love the game, but QA was lazy.

"NNAMDI ASOMUGHA IS READY TO NEGOTIATION HIS FREE AGENT CONTRACT."

Okay...I have to admit that's almost signature-worthy.

[Josh_Looman]

Re: NFL Head Coach 09 Review

Josh, I love ya, man. And I love how you guys are here listening to us and working on fixing things to give us the best experience possible.

I was also not indicting the game in any way; I scored it a 9 on the reader's vote. I don't think you took it that way, but I just wanted to assure you, my thoughts were that other sites/reviewers aren't necessarily privy to the same info on workarounds, nor the knowledge work is under way to address the issues, hence when they encounter the bugs during their review process it could really hurt the score. And I HATE that because, sadly, not everyone reads OS reviews to get the real deal. They'll just read IGN's or GS review and call it a day, and if they do, they could miss out on one of the best NFL experiences ever created.

Not at all. I didn't communicate clearly but what I meant is that if we get a 40 or a 50 that's because of bugs, I think that's unfair.

When Game Informer said our game was like a team going from 5-11 to 6-10, I thought that was pretty silly.

The guys on this team killed themselves on this game and they deserve credit for what they did.

Outside of the bugs, I feel like everybody is having a really fun time with the game and I think the OS review was the most fair I've seen yet.

To me, a review is meant to look at the overall experience and judge the game's value compared to other titles.