 Review By: Jared Black |
Developer: | EA Tiburon |
| Publisher: | EA Sports | |
| Genre: | Sports | |
| ESRB: | Everyone | |
| # Of Players: | 1-2 (2 online) | |
| Online Play: | Yes | |
| Accessories: | Xbox Live (content DL, leaderboards, online play), In-game Dolby Digital |
The NFL Superstar mode also returns revamped, but it’s still not quite what it should be. You start out by randomly selecting parents based on a few listed attributes (ex: mom was a runway model with high IQ, while dad was a carpenter with average IQ), which determines your star’s attributes and position. You can continue to re-roll the set of parents until you find ones you like, which kinda makes the whole process pointless when you think about it. After filling in the rest of the details as you’d normally find in any create-a-player mode (height, weight, etc.), you then move on to manage your superstar’s career by using the built-in calendar, attending drills, checking email, answer interview questions, etc. The ultimate goal of it all is to build your superstar into a Hall of Fame player, earning influence by performing well in the game.
There are two problems with this mode that still need to be worked out however. The first one is that your superstar can gain or lose influence based on what other players (that you can’t control when you’re controlling your superstar) do in the game. While this is realistic (players on better teams have a better shot of making the Hall of Fame), it just seems unfair and has too much of an effect here.
The second, and much larger problem, is that very few of the Superstar mode’s playable positions are much fun. On offense you’ll almost certainly see the most action as a QB or RB, but tight camera angles make it tough to determine whom you’re throwing the ball to or see defenders blitzing from the corners. Playing as a wide receiver or offensive lineman is fairly straightforward, but you’ll see much less action as a WR and plenty of boring action as an offensive lineman. On defense, playing as a defensive lineman is basically as repetitive as on offense, given how hard it is to get by anyone into the backfield. The linebacker and secondary positions are a little more challenging and keep you busy, but still must deal with camera issues and the relative difficulty in playing those two positions. So on the whole the Superstar mode shows plenty of promise and can be a fun mode to mess around with, but needs further tweaking before it becomes a significant addition to the franchise.
This year’s version does bring several other new features to the Xbox 360, including mini-games, the Highlight Stick (basically an upgraded Truck Stick from last year that allows for finesse moves), and the ability to challenge a call on the field. Unfortunately the challenge system is still broken. Several times I challenged calls on the field that I clearly should’ve won, and yet they were not overturned despite overwhelming video evidence to the contrary. It also worked the other way, with the CPU challenging calls (or automatic booth reviews) that I ended up winning when I shouldn’t have. I’m talking about stuff that’s easy to determine too, like whether a WR got both feet in-bounds or not. And while a blown challenge may not have much of an effect when playing the CPU leading by four scores already, when it happens online it can significantly alter the outcome of a game.
Online support is robust, and continues to strengthen every year. New to the series is a nifty little mode called Live Opponent, which lets you play regular Franchise games online at any time. Opponents are chosen either from a pool of random Joe Schmoes, or you can invite a member of your Friend list for a little friendly competition. Win or lose, the result is then saved into your Franchise. The game also features tighter online integration in general, with functionality accessible from almost any menu, a real-time scoreboard ticker at the bottom of the screen similar to NCAA Football 07, etc.
Graphically, Madden NFL 07 stands out in much the same way NCAA did a couple of months ago. Everything has been improved, from the fluidity and variety of player animations to the grass and way the field degrades over the course of the game. The interface has also been given a sleek new look, which I honestly didn’t like at first but has since grown on me. Overall I prefer NCAA’s look just a tad to this one, but that comes down to a style preference and greater variety in stadium models. There’s absolutely nothing wrong with the graphic presentation here.
The sound is also impressive, from the use of actual QB voices for audibles to opposing players talking trash after a big play or muttering a defiant apology after a mistake. However, the one big misstep is that the game only has a “hometown” radio announcer (who sounds like Brad Nessler to me) doing the play-by-play calling. It’s presented in a tinny, subdued way meant to simulate a radio broadcast, but only ends up making big plays feel less important and resulting in much more “dead air” when neither the announcer nor crowd is making much noise. While I’ve never been a big fan of Madden’s running commentary, his absence (along with Al Michaels) makes the game feel empty somehow. Why he’s in the PSP version of all places, and not here, is beyond me and I sincerely hope he returns in next year’s installment. Wow, I never thought I would actually want Madden back, but I do.
Bottom Line:
Complaints about inertia in the series are certainly legitimate, and I don't doubt that any longtime fan would agree that the series has grown into a predictable pattern. However, only a fool would assert that the Madden series doesn’t still serve up a nice game of football. There are many changes that need to be made in the coming years if the series is ever going to reach another level, but this year’s installment is good enough to keep me busy well past Super Bowl Sunday.
| Pros: | Cons: | Final Score: |
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| 8.0 |
Posted: 2006-09-25 08:02:00 PST