Backbreaker Demo Available, Post Your Impressions Here

[adembroski]

Glad impressions are good. Can't wait 'till Tuesday.

[maddenps2]

Re: Backbreaker Demo Available, Post Your Impressions Here

This is the first time i've played a next gen football game that had a next gen feel. The player motion and animations blow madden away. Yes they aren't perfect, there are flaws, but the overall smoothness and feel of the animations, don't look nearly as canned or cookie cutter as madden.

A glitch i found, the computer QB threw a pass which was ruled an intentinal grounded. I accepted the penalty and called a timeout, the game froze up on the scoreboard.


I'm glad a small video company had the balls, vision, and will power to push/innovate the face of next gen football in the right direction. Don't you wish a huge company Like EA would do this?

Flaws will be found, the game isn't near perfect, but it's damn immpressive for a first try and using a new type of engine.

[maddenps2]

Re: Backbreaker Demo Available, Post Your Impressions Here

I'd like to compare Madden and Backbreaker to a couple skateboarding games we all know well. Remember tony hawk skateboarding and how great it was for many years. Neversoft kept on pushing more and more tony hawks out, very little innovation, and the series got stale. When tony hawk came to next gen, it still felt like it hadn't innovated anything.

Then suddenly the Skate series emerged and it blew us away and tony hawk away. Skate felt fresh, innovative, and next gen. Madden to me feels like tony hawk, and backbreaker is like skate. Just a little thought i had as i was playing the backbreaker and skate 3 demos.

[ZeeAyKay]

Re: Backbreaker Demo Available, Post Your Impressions Here

I love playing offense. QB feels great, and if i throw a Pick I generally know it was my fault. I think we will see HUMAN interceptions down a lot as we all get better.

Defense is a whole other beast, though. I am fine with the Camera angle, and I enjoy playing linebacker. The problem is, the offensive AI SUCKS!!! I can't believe how bad it is. Every time I play I get more and more frustrated on defense. I play as the worst team vs. the best team, and the QB still throws picks left and right and gets sacked. The run game is at least decent, but every time the QB holds onto the ball it almost always ends in a sack or INT. It's honestly really hard for me to understand how they could screw that up so bad, and I'm praying for a DEV to say something about how they fixed it in the real game.

I'm still buying the game, no doubt. Playing a human opponent will fix almost all the issues I have. The game is revolutionary and that's a fact. But if the QB AI is this bad, then ROAD TO BACKBREAKER and SEASON will be pointless when they you score 5 INT's (at least) a game... without even doing anything!

Oh, and Tackle Alley is a blast! It's a great little game to show off to friends. It's hard not to be impressed w/ the animations and anyone can pick it up and play.

EDIT: Oh, and yes. I am playing on PRO and HARD.

[SIM RULES]

Re: Backbreaker Demo Available, Post Your Impressions Here

The British have yet again started a cultural revolution...lol
After playing this demo for a few hours, and by simply using football common sense, I am thankful for this sim experience. IMO the British have successfully invaded American video football, and are showing us how to play our own sport correctly. I kind of feel embarrassed that it took the British to step in with little to no experience, and change the course of football, and set it on it's correct course.

I am loving the camera angle, and hope that they do not try to appease those that enjoy the standard 20 year old, unrealistic football view. Initially it was awkward for me, now I love the fact that it represents real football, and how the game is viewed by the players on the field. Football fans, and sim guys should be having a blast with this demo. Aside from a few AI issues, this game is very solid in every area. I am a beast on defense now that I read the offense, focus on my assignment, and stop trying to switch players so much.

[SIM RULES]

Re: Backbreaker Demo Available, Post Your Impressions Here

Another thing that I love about having this demo is that it offers people a choice. If you do not like it, you can play the other football games offered this year. I think we can all agree that having a choice between different football games is a great thing, instead of being forced to accept one companies version of football.

[NoSkillz50]

Re: Backbreaker Demo Available, Post Your Impressions Here

i think the dissatisfaction with the camera is due to frustration and the fact that it's a little cluttered and nerve-racking. that's how football is though, the qb has to read the defense from that angle, they have to progress through their reads, they can't throw it to any receiver they want at will at any time during their routes. real qbs don't approach the game like you do in madden, they can't get that clear vision of the field until they go back and study the tape. i think people will learn how to pass from this new camera angle. the peripheral vision is fine, it's a decent 3rd person camera, its not the usual 120 degree fps vision. might not be perfect, but it's pretty reasonable.

[bkrich83]

Re: Backbreaker Demo Available, Post Your Impressions Here

Played a bunch more today.

I wish the quarters were longer. It's hard to get a feel for the offense, when you just can't get a rhytm or tempo going due to such a short game time.

My impressions remain positive. Still a first day buy. Still hate the player models and the camera angle. I don't think sensory deprivation in the name of reality is really that realistic. Lack of depth perception and peripheral vision really hamper the game play from a camera perspective imo. Maybe that's just me. I simply don't like it, and don't feel it's more "realistic" or "sim" due to the limitations of playing on a 2d screen.

The run game is fun, and playing defense is fun. Seen lots of great hits and tackle animations. I think the intensity of the hits needs to be toned down a little. A few too many perfect form tackles resulting in a crushed ball carrier for my tastes, but with such limited exposure that could just be an anomaly.

I hope the playbooks are a little more expanded in the final version. They are pretty limited in the demo. That could be a bit of a turnoff down the road.

Overall, very encouraged, and am liking it so far.

[bkrich83]

Re: Backbreaker Demo Available, Post Your Impressions Here

s

this thread is crazy with 90pct crying about the camera. it truly speaks loudly to solidify that ppl hate change. youre outta your mind to think in less than a day you should have mastered the camera and be dominating and be able to do exactly what you want cuz u played a few hours. bottom line is its easy to pick up but will take TIME TO LEARN AND MASTER! its been known for 3yrs what the camera was gona be. no clue why ppl are expecting a patched in madden cam. if you cant accept change and actually take time to learn the nuances and such to get good....u shouldnt be bothering to play it. its evident madden/ncaa got you trained and your having too much trouble accepting and adapting to a new game.

answer this...if you get good at call of duty over the course of a yr...do you expect to pick up another shooter franchise and expect to have it mastered immediately in less than 24hrs? do you expect the button layout to be identical? the gunplay to be the same? or do you take time to learn it and its nuances then get good over time? this instant gratification society is a little crazy sometimes.

the game isnt perfect and thats a fact. a learning curve is expected. if u take the necessary time to adjust and learn youll prolly have a diff view and see the game in its glory. im willing to invest more than a day to learn and will enjoy this title along with many others as long as the ai proves solid. its a lil shaky in this demo but that could be due to being a demo afterall. i dont believe that full ai could possibly be included in a 400mb demo...esp with the graphics and physics we"re playing with.

IMO if madden had this cam all along and BB came with god cam...everyone would be crying for the 3rd person cam to be patched in. give it a REAL chance ppl!! unlearn EA football...or at least forget it for now. I really think its a solid demo with a few question marks to be answered with a full game disc on the 1st

At some point, you're just going to have to accept the fact, this game will not be everyone's cup of tea, and there will be things like camera angles that people simply don't like about it.

I am not sure why people think that giving the user multiple options for something like camera angle is a bad thing. It was one of my biggest complaints in Madden, and it's pretty much my biggest complaint in this game (lack of choice in camera angles.

The whole notion that if you don't like the camera angle it's because you are to "trained" by Madden and NCAA, and that you aren't up to the task of mastering and adapting to it is beyond ridiculous and just reeks of blind fanboyism. Different people have different preferences.

[Wazzer99]

Re: Backbreaker Demo Available, Post Your Impressions Here

Then suddenly the Skate series emerged and it blew us away and tony hawk away. Skate felt fresh, innovative, and next gen. Madden to me feels like tony hawk, and backbreaker is like skate. Just a little thought i had as i was playing the backbreaker and skate 3 demos.

You're not alone in that thought!

I played TH games for like 7/8 years, from the awesome THPS2 onwards. When Skate came along, it was "fresh" and "innovative" - however I personally just couldn't get in to it. Everyone was telling me how great it was, and I could also see all the good things about it and appreciate why people loved it. But for me personally, I just preferred the way the old THPS games played.

Having said that - in my opinion were the Skate developers right to try something different? Hell yes.

Comparisons between Backbreaker and Madden are inevitable. But they are both different games that just so happen to be based around the same sport. Personally I like an overhead view when playing sports games, but Backbreaker is trying to be a different sort of game. It is what it is, and think it should be taken on it's own merits.

I guess for some people, the overhead camera isn't just a preference for their football gaming - it's a requirement. And sadly for those people, maybe this just isn't the game for them, in the same way that Skate wasn't for me.

I kind of feel embarrassed that it took the British to step in with little to no experience, and change the course of football, and set it on it's correct course.

If it makes you feel any better, how do you think the British feel about Pro Evolution Soccer?

"It's not where you're from, it's where you're at."

[pistonpete]

Re: Backbreaker Demo Available, Post Your Impressions Here

Based on the vids and impressions i've read (ps3 guy) i think that a madden cam option would take away from, not enhance the experience NM envisioned. i play FPF exclusively on 2K5 so I am looking forward to BB. It took me a while to get used to the controls and the lack of peripheral vision, but once the learning curve was conquered, I really enjoyed it. With 2K the passing game and running game are hard at first. But after awhile, you learn them well, if you stick with it. Having said that, I anticipate that since BB has arrived, I will finally retire 2K5.
I do understand people wanting options for their hard earned $50, but at the same time I respect NM for executing their vision and not being afraid to disenfranchise some therein. I think that as someone said, since there is a zoomed out "coach" cam already there, they could either patch it in or add it to the next iteration. I'm sure they can tweak the controls so that switching receivers is not as wonky either. Question: can you play multiplayer in the demo?

pete

[TheCreep]

Re: Backbreaker Demo Available, Post Your Impressions Here

Logged in a little more playing time.

Physics engine is great, no denying that. Graphics are good, as are the player models, but I'm an equipment freak so I would love to have a choice of gloves, face masks, etc. Any plans for DLC to add in a few things I wonder?

The running game is tough and I get an extreme feeling of accomplishment when gaining yards. Feels rewarding when you make gains ya know.

Passing game is good, I dont find it that difficult actually. I too would've liked more options reference camera angles, but it doesn't destroy my experience. I can deal with it.

I cant help thinking while I'm pounding the ball, that fatigue really should have been implemented. Also, the AI seems to be very weak. I use the Columbia Colonels who have one of the lowest overalls and I'm able to stalemate pittsburgh? I dont like that. Right now its looking like the ratings aren't determining the games like it should.

CPU offensive A.I is not competent. I hope this is fixed for final release.\

Other than that, this is a good addition to video football games.

[TajDeni]

Re: Backbreaker Demo Available, Post Your Impressions Here

as far as this being a video game, from a conventional football standpoint there are quite a few things that i dont like about the demo at this point and dont really see it as being a serious contender to hardcore madden or ncaa fans

but that being said heres what backbreaker is to me and the main reason im seriously thinking about getting it....

backbreaker is what superstar mode or road to glory mode is supposed to look like, for me when seen in this manner, i think this demo is a smashing success,

i mean the 1st time i came throw that tunnel onto the football field i was blown away, i reset the demo right there to experience it again and again.

[Altoonasfinest]

Question would you pick BB over madden or NCAA?

[The Clairvoyant]

Re: Backbreaker Demo Available, Post Your Impressions Here

I liked the demo but I'm concern with the ints.