[Kaiser Wilhelm]

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I'm not even considering NCAA's gameplay, just how much goes into the games.

Gameplay is everything! What good is a game that doesn't play correctly, and also has major flaws in in flagship feature (dynasty roster bugs and tendency to create extremes at bothe the top and bottom) that make playing the game from a stratagy perspective annoying.

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No. Just no. I played Backbreaker, and gameplay is average at best. Mario running is a no-no, and I'm not a fan of being thrown around like a rag-doll EVERY play. Those graphics are there to stay because the Euphoria engine takes up most of the memory, coupled with the fact that they probably don't have much of a budget. And Backbreaker wasn't meant to show off Euphoria; GTA 4 had it as well. It was meant to show (apparently) how realistic gameplay could be. IMO it isn't very realistic.

I played BB too, and in my opinion many of the issues came from the design choices. The other issues, such as the rag-doll issue...eh, you got me there.

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Yes, but consider that the engine was optimized FOR Battlefield 3. Also, consider that the only thing the system/disc is running is the gameplay, and everything that interacts with it. (Basically, like running only the on-the-field parts of Madden/NCAA.) They don't have to worry about things like stat overlays, rosters, things interacting on field randomly, etc. We wouldn't want a situation where a game lags out of the box because too much is in it.

So What is stopping EA from making an engine optimized for this game. The current engine is clearly dated (cant really speak in a definitive but based off what I see in other games it seems either old or just not up to snuff). The other issues you mention, well I'm not asking for BF3 graphics, I'm content with NCAA 09 graphics if it means I can really feel like my players are playing football in this universe.

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ALSO, remember, that engine was made by EA, which I'm pretty sure EA will make an animation engine for it's sports games in the future.

I believe the engine was made by Dice, which (if I am not mistaken) works as an autonomous development studio under EA. Might be wrong there but that is how things seem.

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I don't think it will hurt EA, short term, even if they don't retain exclusivity. No one is prepared to put out a yearly college football game to threaten EA's sales, and I doubt 2K is willing to pay for a license. They still have to worry about EA's return to basketball, which I think will be a success.

I dont think so either, but it is a possibility. Also I hope EA makes a good BBall game, healthy competition can only benefit the consumer. I think 2k needs to get into the CHoops action again though.