Review NaN of 4
Price Paid:
$50.00
from EBGames.com Summary:
Ahh, still nearly two months away and we can have a little tailgate party before the real season! The big deal this year is that XBOX owners can finally play an E.A. game online. This is a big deal consideirng not a single E.A. game has ever been online, so rejoice. However, early on, things are ugly, read below for issues about XBOX Live.
I won't deny, I miss college, the parties, the ladies, the beer, the skipping of classes, but the one thing I miss the most is going to all the football games. That said, there is truly no better way to get into the spirit of the football season!! Go out and buy this game now to relive the college life! Well, almost! NCAA Football 2005 is the newest and greatest football game brought out by E.A., the makers of Madden. 2005 unlike it's 2004 cousin, is XBOX Live compatible and has many new features to keep the game feeling like new year after year. There is extensive home field advantage this year and a new matchup stick activator to check on your players to see if they are rattled. There are new celebrations that you take control of, there are new tackles, a new "vicious hit button" new catches, new animations, more teams, more commentary, more pageantry, more college atmosphere and most importantly it can all be enjoyed online anywhere, anytime, and that within itself is a damn good thing.
Gameplay: Forget 2002, 2003, and 2004. NCAA Football 2005 feels and plays completely differently from it's predecessors. I can tell you from the start of the kickoff, the most drastic change you're going to notice is that the game itself plays significantly slower then the previous games. (and I didn't find a speed adjuster either). However, the slower game speed is more pronounced on the XBOX than it is on the Playstation 2, so keep that in mind too.
Nonetheless, no matter what system you're playing it on, it definitely took me awhile to adapt. Most fans of the series are going to notice this change, and I have to say, it takes some getting used to, and some may not ever get used to it and there is no way to adjust it either. Now don't get me wrong here, the game is not in slow motion, but it's very significant compared to the past and I even noticed more slow down (especially on XBOX) when things get busy on-screen.
I think what E.A. is trying to do (by slowing the game down a bit) is give the game play a "better response" time and a more realistic feel to the game. High scoring games, for the most part, will be very uncommon, although players who can't play defense will certainly still give up the high scores. I notice it's easier to make tackles on defense with the slower gameplay because you have the ability to have a better response time. In the past, due to the fast gameplay, I felt the offense always had the advantage because it was so difficult to react to a quick run or pass down the field and before you knew it, the receiver was in the end zone. Now you'll have time to react. The slower pace also makes for more realistic "real time" play.
If you can finally get used to the game speed, you're also going to have to get used to how the players move now. The game, in my opinion, is not as tight. I remember one instance I was blitzing the quarterback and I felt like my linebacker was slipping around the field like he was on ice and I missed the quarterback completely. The control seems a bit tighter on the PS2 and actually felt more like 2004, especially when I was playing online. I had a tougher time getting my players to go in the direction I wanted on the XBOX. But on either system, it's all about getting used to the new format, you're going to miss tackles, you're going to miss that crucial pick-off and you're going to makes mistakes in this game. But there will also be times the game will reward you for playing good "D" and you will be working hard to get the big play to work. What I was also really pleased with was the fact the computer controlled teammates seemed to be more helpful, especially against the deadly option play.
E.A. added a new button for tackling along with the standard "dive" button. It's basically a "vicious hit" button which is activated by pressing the "white" button (XBOX) on your controller and "L2" on the PS2. I don't recommend using it all the time because it's quite risky because your player loses any maneuvering abilities, but if you make contact, it increases the chances of a fumble or turnover and the constant hits on the player will take a toll on him and take away valuable stamina. Weaker teams with no decent bench players will take affect to the hard hits than the big schools because the powerhouse teams have been 2nd men rosters. Report this review >>
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