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Madden NFL 2004 for xBox Game for Xbox Videos >>
Madden NFL 2004 for xBox Game for Xbox
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Madden NFL 2004 for xBox Game for Xbox
70 reviews   3.61 of 5

Product Description

Sound

The sound could use some improvements. Like how the comintators say the same things over and over, it realy does get annoying. I realy don't like hearing them tell me how stupid I am for going for it on forth down.But all in all it is good, but not great.

Gameplay

The gameplay for the XBOX is way better than what I have seen from the PS2, and the GameCube. To me the rushing and the passing game is very good, But for the defence its something else. From broken tackles, to missed interseptions, and the way when the your playing the computer or just playing against a friend they can always find a way to score on the first play on every drive even if your playing on pro level and using cheats. You can hardly ever stop them,and you can almost never do what the computer does .You may think that I'm just no good at the game, but acualy I'm getting pretty good at playing.
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Summary

Wow. It is surprising to get to this review page for Madden 2004 and see that it only has a 3.5 overall at this point. I frankly can't imagine a pro football game being better than this, no matter who it was made by. While it isn't perfect, it is pretty darn close to reaching levels of pure greatness. I wonder how they can even top themselves after delivering such a good product to us gamers. This is a definite must own. I hope people do not fear buying this because of some of the interesting reviews found here. Batman Dark Tomorrow was a poor game folks, worthy of a below average grade if not a zero. MAdden football, any year, has never warrented a below average grade. It is not a hack job of a video game, but a fine tuned evolution of creativity. I just want to thank EA for another job well done but also ask that you get to work making next year's even better. Strive for perfect please!

So...I decided I will list problems, for something different here in the reviews, things that EA could take note and change/implement for next year that could make it BETTER. (things that could've been better from this year's version)
Though, please note that I love this game A LOT,...i am just listing things that I have noticed that need improving. Hard to find them since the game is so polished but some do come to mind.

#1...Crowd sounds. Have the crowd more into the game at certain times in the game, to go along better with the score and to create more of an atmosphere.

#2...Ref sounds. Why does the ref speak/sound like he is mumbling? WHy can't i hear him better?
Not to mention, he looks/moves like a muppet from the muppet show. I like the close up of him but he looks a little off and he mumbles really low and there seems to be no way to tweak that. Does he have issues with public speaking?

#3...Cheerleaders. Ok EA...where do i begin? Is there a problem with putting the actual team cheerleaders in? Now that would be cool. Even a couple minute clip at halftime of the actual squads the work hard all season for their respective teams at the football games. These cheerleaders that you have put into the game look like badly crafted fake barbie dolls or Mattel rejects and are just plain ugly to look at. Putting THOSE in the game is not helping this football game. The halftime show with these triplet and twin doll rejects is shock and awe of the negative type. This is something all football games do wrong is the cheerleading and it looks nothing like that which is "in the game" of football. These girls at halftime are way worse than the muppet ref. EA SPORTS CAN BLAZE NEW GROUND AND BE FIRST IN PUTTING IN THE REAL CHEERLEADERS FOR PRO FOOTBALL! HOW COOL WOULD THAT BE? I know cheerleading overall is not a big thing in regards to playing this game...but if you want to claim to have what is in the game, in YOUR game...put it in!!!

#4...There is a twitch or glitch with the center on defense during the game where he changes skin color periodically and phases in and out before your eyes. Not a mjor problem...but a glitch i would suppose none the less.

#5...Here is another request...like the cheerleader one i suppose. HAve the fields get torn up more and show dirt on the players clothing as they get dirty. Kinda like EA MVP Baseball. I want to see the players getting dirty after a dragged out battle in the trenches. That would be a nice touch.

That's all I can think of! I hope EA reads this and takes note!! :)

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Sound

sound seems a bit better as well but not that much better.

Gameplay

too many big plays such as INT's, fumbles, kick returns, long runs and broken tackle TD's, sacks, etc... too high scoring and stats are not real. not enough punts in the games... every drive is either a score or a turnover so if you play with 15 minute quarters you get real stats but too many turnovers and too much scoring... if you lower the time so you get real scores then you don't get real stats like punting, total run and pass plays, yardage etc.... madden 2003 at 10 minute quarters gives me a pretty close to real game stats for most important stats... playing madden 2004 just feels wrong. too arcade like, it seems like EA is making all there sports games more of the arcade type. what happened to the passing game?? it seems like all my passes are bullets that never go over a defender thats why soo many INT's in this game... it like that old football game with little lines for players and you had to throw the ball to your player but if there was a defender in the line of site they pick it off..
don't miss any tackles because it is usually a TD and even if you do hit the guy he will break the tackle and go all the way... in my first 5 games I have had 18 INT's and the cpu about 15 and that is with the other stats not real, like number of plays etc... does the cpu cheat or what? 3 of the 5 games I had a 17-0 lead and lost all 3 games, can't be a coincidence!! last years game was much better. EA never mind the extra's like selling hotdogs etc, just make the game realistic. do the guys that make these games look at the stats of the real games... I like the new accelerated clock but it doesn't make the game better because in 2003 I play with regular time and it seems to be fine, I get most plays off with 10 secs or less and the cpu with 10-20 secs if you let the after play cutscenes play because they eat up some of the cpu's time in the huddle so it is more realistic...
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Summary

MADDEN NFL 2004 is simply THE best football game ever created for consoles. PERIOD! The Xbox version ROCKS!!

I’ll repeat this… MADDEN NFL 2004 for the Xbox is simply the best football game ever created. It has everything you could think of in terms of gameplay both “on” and “off” the field. Madden NFL 2004 has outstanding graphics, great sound, and a ton of options that will keep you busy for the next year!

Talk about simulation! EA really was not kidding about “If it’s in the game, it’s in the game.” LOL! Madden’s franchise mode is a force to reckoned with. If you haven’t heard by now, the owner mode is top notch. The new mode will absolutely change football games from this point on. Believe me, no other football game will top this one for a long time. That statement includes Sony, MS, and Sega.

Speaking of Sega… It simply amazes me how every year the "Sega fans" write a review for Madden 2000-whatever to try to lower the Madden review score so that Sega’s INFERIOR game comes across as being the better game. Simply amazing! (And absolutely stupid if you ask me…) Every year, the EA haters will try to say that Madden lacks “this or that”, or has had the same “that or this” for years. Yet they fail to realize that Madden simply outsells every other football game made. Sega’s new crappy “ESPN NFL Football” will be no exception. Too all of the Madden haters, Madden does not have a “new” first person mode because EA did it for Madden years ago on the N64. Been there, done that! And Madden NFL 2004 does not have a new “Crib” where you get new pillows or a poster just because you scored a touchdown. LOL! Madden 2004 has “real gameplay”. That’s an oxymoron for you Sega fans. Not some idiotic “Crib” feature than no one will ever use!

Back to the best damn football game ever created!

With loads of options and the best simulation features out of any of the 2004 football games, you can’t go wrong with this year’s version of Madden. It’s the greatest!
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Sound

Madden has made some attempt to improve their dismal sound this year, but there are still many miles for them to go to get it right.

The comentary is downright boring and the pregame intro when they refer to your star player as "this guy" is just shameful. Someone neglected to put the proper sound clips in here and it shows. The crowd noise is still very generic and not really reactionary, but since no game to this point as gotten that part right, I won't complain.

The refs are barely audible when making a call and the smack talk is weak, but it there this year and that at least add some fun to the proceedings.

The addition of Soundtracks for the Xbox works well and at least help to fill the sound spectrum up a bit. The sound of hits and balls being caught are very real.

In all Madden has lots of good sounds, but not all of them are put together in a totally professional package.

Gameplay

The overall feel and gameplay of madden has improved over very slightly over the years. It still fees like Madden and they have added many tweaks to the running game but there are still some really nagging aspects that even playmaker can't fix.

The momentum running system uses a pinball effect that will regularly see a running back literally bounce off of 2 or 3 tackels prior to going down. Now this would not be a huge problem, but it just takes away the illusion of playing a real game. The blocking for the most part is very good, though some guys tend to drop their block for no real reason.

The passing game has also been enhanced, but due to alot of cheating in the secondary the CPU gets way too many picks. They CPU also knows or seems to know where the running plays are headed, even when you mix things up, as I do.

On defense, the Defensive backs on your team do not react as sharply as the CPU's backs. There are many times in a game when one missed tackle equals a tocuhdown and that is not realistic at all.

The computer also cheats and forces turnovers at times in order to stay in contention, or the computer will run back a kickoff out of no where.

For me these things really hamper the fun of the game, I really pride myself on Defense and it is inmpossible to shut a passing team down, even in zone coverage.
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Sound

Average, Al Michael's and Madden give the game a nice touch. Its seems at times like your watching a game on TV but the overall sound aspect is average.

Gameplay

As I said earlier if your a hardcore Madden veteran you'll be able to dive into this game with no problem and you'll adore all the new gameplay elements. New Madden players like myself are probably gonna find football enjoyment else where with titles like ESPN football and NFL fever on the horizon. In my opinion the gameplay is way too complex for a casual gamer or maybe even a hardcore gamer not familiar with the Madden series. There are just too many buttons that need to be pressed and joy stick manuvering to execute plays. There are a millons things to learn and remember if you wanna get the best out of Madden's gameplay. On offense you have an option called hot routes,where you can changes the routes of your receivers before the snap. Pressing the Y button activates this options. Then pressing the assigned button to that receiver is highlighted and pressing the D pad in any of the four direction changes his route. Then you have your audibles, that is activated by pressing the X button. Almost every button on the controller is a different play. Then you have your all new playmarker option that is used with push of right joystick in the correct direction. Its a great concept but its really diffulcult to use at times. With playmaker option you can do just about anything you want before or after the snap. Change running backs direction on a run play,tell defender to block the closes guy, move recievers to an open spot on the field, the options are limitless. The problem I have with all these options is, by the time you view your playbook,choose your play, read the defence and if you decide to change your receivers routes and RB direction on a run play or if you wanna use your audibles the play clock has already ran out forcing a penalty. There're just too many buttons,joystick manuvering,and D pad usage to remember. You have so little time to execute a good play. You have to know everything quickly control wise to have success in Madden. If not, expect interception after interception. Loss yardage everplay, and sacks everytime. Defensively I won't even go into explaining all the buttons that must used along with right joy stick and the D pad, its even more complex then the offense. For goodness sake you have two different sprint buttons, B for offense, X for defence. Too many controls to remember in this game and they don't work that smooth either.
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Summary

Madden NFL 2004. If you like a arcade like experience, then this is the title for you. The graphics are a little better, along with the sound, but take away the Owner's Mode, and Play Maker control, then you have the same game for the last 5 years at least. If you want a Real football experience, then wait for Fever or 2k4. Madden has become so much arcade like, that all it's missing is the flaming footballs. EA did nothing more that make the graphics and sound a little better, and add a couple of "new" things. They will regret it because there are a least a couple of games coming out soon that I bet will be better than this. But the mags who are in bed with EA will never rate the other games as better. They know who butters they're bread. Someone in the gaming magazine world should have the guts to tell EA the truth....Madden is on it's last legs and it needs to improve everything.

Sound

The announcing: I don't know who's worst, Madden and Michaels, or the guys who do Fever. It's a problem when Michaels tells you want formation you're in before you even break the huddle. Madden is still using basically the same quipes from years past. All those who love the Madden game just need to hear Sega's play by play guys to understand how it should be. The sounds on the tackles are better than last year, for sure. The crowd needs to be a lot more vocal. Case in point.....If I'm playing at home, and I'm up 7 points and the CPU is a my 3 yard line on 3rd and goal, in real football, the crowd would be going nuts. Not on Madden. Even when I pump up the crowd, it's for like 2 seconds. They have got to improve on this.

Gameplay

If you have ever played any games in the Madden series than you know how to play the game. No learning curve. There are still way too many times that you can just throw the ball up in a crowd of DB's and still catch it. There are also too many big plays in this game. I'm in my 9 week of franchise mode, and I average 44 points a game and give up 38. No matter how bad the team you're playing is...they will still get between 5-7 gigantic plays on you. I don't know about anyone else, but I found my money play, that will get me at least 5 yards every rip. EA has taken Madden to the cusp of arcade-ness.
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Sound

I have never liked the sound in the Madden series. Madden and Michels seem so stale. Come on!! I would like to hear a bit of excitement in their statements. This year it has improved in one area. Madden and Michels will make player specific comments and also comments to do with stats and game situations. Most of the time though it is just generic commentary which is used over and over again regardless of which teams are playing. The crowd noise is pretty well done and they will make game specific chants. The sound track in Madden is awsome. It has music from actual bands and you can even create custom tracks for your listening enjoyment as you play

Gameplay

This years Madden offers new features such as owner mode and the abillity to take your players through training camp and boost there abillities. Kind of like what you do in a RPG. I have always loved games that really let you micro-manage your team so these additions are most welcome. In this years Madden you will see better defensive AI as the CPU will adjust to your play calling tendencies. Gone are the days were you can run the same play over and over. You really have to mix your plays up offensively and defensively. Defensive backs now will intercept wayward passes left and right and also swat down the ball. As a quarterback you really have to make defensive reads and find the open man. Being a former coach, I love the fact that you can challenge close plays. I have even had some decisions overturned of plays I have challenged. All in all, Madden has a great strategical element that I love. Is the game perfect? Of course not!! I just feel it is a great game. I will also be buying NFL2K4 when it comes out as it should be a great game also.
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Sound

Sound is good..I like Madden and the other guy but there are two faults. 1. you can't hear the referees when they announce a penalty. 2. The crowd cheering is a little ridiculous. Go and watch any NFL team play and listen for the roar of the crowd after they score....when they're down by 5 touchdowns. Really!

Gameplay

Gameplay is ridiculous. I don't care how many Madden fans disagree. I put the game on Rookie, I win 52-0. I put the game on pro, I lose 52-0. Don't suggest AI sliders. I'm convinced they're just for looks, the game plays the same. Every fumble I recover in the red zone is overturned and Marshall Faulk fumbles 4 times in one quarter...please! As others have stated you can't stop the passing game and you can be ahead 35-0 at the half and the computer will still beat you.
Though others may insult Fever at least the games were usually close.
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Summary

I thought I'd voice my little opinion on this game. To start out I've never been a Madden fan. I loved NFL2K for my Dreamcast and when I sold my Dreamcast to get a PlayStation2 I bought Madden 2001. I thought the graphics were better at the time but it took forever for me to get accustomed to the game. Then I bought Madden 2002 and once again was dissatisfied. I think the only major improvement from 2001 to 2002 was the players’ eyes. Remember how they used to be zombie like? Finally I decided I had enough and bought NFL2K3 for the Xbox. I was finally greeted with what I was accustomed to way back in the day with my Dreamcast. Basically if you’ve never been into Madden games then you won’t be into this one. If you love Madden with a passion then I’m sure you’ll feel right at home with 2004.

Now Madden 2004 is out and gamespot.com and xbox.ign.com both rated the game really high. There are a lot of positives to the game but where the game lacks the most is actually game play in a regular game. The mini camp and owner mode both are fairly fun. It was a nice idea to have mini camp where you can do drills to improve a player. The owner mode is also nice but I think it was over hyped and really isn’t that cool. I’m sure the same will be said about the first person mode with ESPN’s (aka NFL2k4) football game. If you didn’t know already ESPN’s football game has first person mode but it is just a mode and is separate from the regular game. I’d rather have online play than the owner mode. Where Madden really becomes tiresome is playing a game. I know Madden games are known for their realistic gameplay rather than Sega’s semi realistic/semi arcade style of play. And where the realism comes into play is basically momentum. But once again I think ESPN’s new football game will be like the other NFL2k games and have a nice balance of fun and realism.

Not only is Madden extra difficult but the AI is ridiculous. Its hard enough to read the defense and try to make plays but when the AI seems to cheat it just isn’t fun. It seems once I mastered how to move down the field on offense and score some points the computer starts doing some ridiculous plays or scenarios that make me want to throw my Type-S controller at my Widescreen television. Here are a couple of examples. One game I finally started making progress and was catching up to the computer when all of a sudden my players started fumbling the ball. I don’t know if anyone else has experienced this but no matter what player or team I use (Bucs and Falcons) my players fumbled the ball too much. In one game I had three separate possessions in a row where I fumbled the ball. This is a video game and there is nothing worse or less fun then getting to the red zone and fumbling the ball. Another example is when the AI decides to “Challenge” the play on the field. I’ve had two occasions so far where the computer has challenged a play. The first one was when the CPU fumbled the ball and challenged the play which was overturned. It could have gone either way so I wasn’t that upset. The second one was in the fourth quarter of a game where I was down 17-21 and intercepted the ball at their end zone for a touchback. BUT the computer challenged the call and overturned it. But I looked at the replay and the ball did not hit the ground or even come close. The final example is when I was up 14-0 and on one drive my defense got 4 facemasks for 15 year penalties each. Do you get my drift?

If it wasn’t for these crazy events that seem to happen at the worst times I’d say the gameplay is realistic and you really have to look for the open receiver. It’s a challenge and at certain times during a game I actually have fun. But its only for short periods. I’ve made my decision to trade this game for ESPN’s game when it comes out early September because of the inconsistent AI during the course of a game. I can stand a fumble here and there—even a face mask here and there. But when you have multiple face masks or fumbles in a row on one drive it just isn’t fun or realistic.

Graphics: The graphics are good. The textures are beautiful and the facial features have improved over the last versions. But the characters still have the same generic “Madden” look that they all have had. If Madden wants to take the next step in visuals they need to overhaul the character models. They are no where near as good as Sega’s. The stadiums are perfect and most animations are right on, but the player models need to improve. Some angles the player’s helmets look so big compared to their bodies it’s hilarious.

Sound: Madden has never had good commentary and it hasn’t improved at all. John Madden sounds like John Madden on TV but my complaint is with Al Michaels. It isn’t so much what he says but how EA pasted them together to form statements. My one example I’ll give is at the beginning of each game. When Al Michaels introduces the two teams that are going to play you can tell he recorded each team separate from the generic statement he comments on prior to saying the team’s name. It just doesn’t sound fluid like Sega’s commentaries and needs to be improved. One positive aspect of the sound is regular grunts and comments the players on the field yell out during gameplay.

Bottom-line: Madden is still Madden. If you’ve liked Madden in the past then you’ll probably like this game. If you didn’t then wait until ESPN’s rendition comes out.
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Sound

Same as all of the other years...oh yea why does the crowd keep cheering for you when you are down by 3 touchdowns??

Gameplay

I basically went over this already. Yes the franchise and owner mode is cool but the gameplay is sooo awfull that it ruins the experience. I have owned just about every Madden since 1989 and I will tell you this is the first one that really made me want to just quit playing games all together. To everyone who is praising this game with 5's ,please, do you watch the NFL??? This game is unrealistic, the cpu WILL NOT let you stay ahead,know matter what defence you pick if they need a first down and they are behind I swear 9 times out of 10 they WILL get it. EA has stopped trying to get better and now are just coasting selling the game because of its past and its name, and as long as people keep buying it and overlooking the stupidity of it nothing will change.
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Summary

**First and foremost**Give this game a chance. Play three or four full games before you review it here. All those people that had like 8 hours of playing time when the game was like six hours old, give it up!! I was really excited for the newest version of Madden. I had been playing NCAA 2004 which is great, but I was really just passing time until Madden came out. I brought Madden home and played my first game. I was in a little shock. The game got great reviews by some of the popular video game magazines, but bashed on sites such as this one. I was thinking these reviews were right and I felt pretty let down. But before I put NCAA 2004 back in my Xbox for good, I gave Madden another chance. I played three five minute quarter games in a row and I have seen the light. It is a great game deserving of great reviews. I am playing a season with the Chiefs and play random games that are good match ups after I play the Chiefs game. I played the Rams v Pittsburg game. I must have replayed like twenty plays of great passes and runs not just because I was impressed with my reads, but because they just looked so darn amazing. This game is not a waste of money and is a much improved game from last year, save one glaring omission by EA Sports. There is not a player of the game during a regular season game except for Monday night games, what gives? One last gripe, and mind you these are small complaints, I really enjoy this game, but here it goes: The franchise mode has taken over the game when it shouldn't. In franchise mode, you need to get more people to your games to increase revenue. Cool idea, but when you play the Packers and their stadium isn't filled to the brim, I get a little pissed. There is a waiting list a mile long to get into a freaking Packers game and I am supposed to believe that a few losses has driven the fans away? Other than that this game seriously rocks and I am going to have to make myself put NCAA back in tray, because it is also a great game, but Madden's realism and crispness takes the cake.

Sound

The sound is another area, upon the first game that people are dissing, without really getting into it. The music between plays is great and sounds just like you are at a game live. The music during the menus is pretty cool too. They may not be my favorite bands, but EA was genius to add real bonafide musicans to the game. Now there is one draw back that I will concede and give to NCAA 2004. The two in the booth on this one don't get excited enough. I know Al Michaels doesn't freak out on every long gain on Monday nights, but he does get fired up. There isn't too much of that going on. And I love Madden. I always have. I can never hear too much about Truduckens, but his commentary is a little weak.

Gameplay

The gameplay is pretty close to what you would expect from the Madden franchise, but more crisp from the previous year. There are many new animations and it is just pretty to watch the quaterback throw the ball. It looks so darn realistic. Other reviewers seem to get down on the gameplay staying similar, but I don't really get it. The gameplay is some of the most realistic so why mess with it? It just got smoother and more crisp.
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Summary

This is a very good game that is taking a thrashing on this site, which I found to be pretty surprising. This is not a perfect game, as I have found some things that bother with the gameplay itself (defense). I have not messed with the sliders, so this review is based solely on playing on All-Pro and no tweaking. I have no issues with the graphics as they are great overall and that is enough for me and probably most people that play video football games. The main problem that I'm seeing as of right now is in playing defense. Just not being able to stop the pass and then when the pass reaches the receiver, not being able to stop the receiver from reaching the endzone no matter where the play begins. This might be attributed to playing on All-Pro, but I would sure hate to see what it looks like playing on All-Madden. This game is brutal trying to stop the pass, I've yet to figure out what works best to disrupt the passing game. On offense, I'm not having much problem with moving the ball, although, I'm having a few more turnovers than I would like to have. Playmaker control in theory works well, just that on the fly trying to control it is difficult at best. When you drop back to pass there is little to no time to incorporate Playmaker control, unless you have a quarterback with major speed and can scramble out of the pocket without getting caught. On the defensive side of the ball, I'm using it, but not so sure I'm getting all the benefits of it stopping the defense as receivers seem to haul in any ball sent flying to them and quarterbacks are making all the right reads during gameplay. Another thing that I'm noticing a whole lot of is broken tackles, these guys on the other side of the line who touch the ball the most are getting to the endzone to often because of this. The word "FRUSTRATION" comes to mind more than I would like. Overall though, the game is polished and enjoyable except for the frustration factor on the defensive side of the ball, I'm hoping to get a handle on this soon. If not, I may switch games for that reason alone for the season. I like the game very much but that may be the kill switch for me.